Bank of America Merrill Lynch's Joe Quinlan warns that China's slowdown, emerging market debt, and political instability in the Middle East are not as remotely threatening to the global economy as water-related climate change risks, a dynamic which, he argues, is little understood by investors. Quinlan says climate change will decrease the available water supply, not just for human consumption, but also for industrial use, to alarmingly low levels, and without water - "the lifeblood of the global economy" - it will be impossible for economies to function. He cites India as an example, stating that "the newly anointed growth champion of the world economy is in the grips of a two-year drought that threatens the economic livelihood of more than 300 million people. The Indian government has been forced to cut off supplies from its main source of water, the mighty Ganges River, which flows through two-thirds of India. Industrial water demand could increase 50% to 70% by 2050, according to World Bank estimates. Dams are parched, factories are operating below capacity, and the lack of safe drinking water has put the health of millions of people at risk. " As we have noted, the World Bank recently announced that 1.6bn people could be subject to serious water scarcity within 20 years while industrial water demand could increase 50% to 70% by 2050.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch's Joe Quinlan warns that China's slowdown, emerging market debt, and political instability in the Middle East are not as remotely threatening to the global economy as water-related climate change risks, a dynamic which, he argues, is little understood by investors. Quinlan says climate change will decrease the available water supply, not just for human consumption, but also for industrial use, to alarmingly low levels, and without water - "the lifeblood of the global economy" - it will be impossible for economies to function. He cites India as an example, stating that "the newly anointed growth champion of the world economy is in the grips of a two-year drought that threatens the economic livelihood of more than 300 million people. The Indian government has been forced to cut off supplies from its main source of water, the mighty Ganges River, which flows through two-thirds of India. Dams are parched, factories are operating below capacity, and the lack of safe drinking water has put the health of millions of people at risk. " As we have noted, the World Bank recently announced that 1.6bn people could be subject to serious water scarcity within 20 years while industrial water demand could increase 50% to 70% by 2050.