Climate Change to Spike Women's Water Collection Time by 30% by 2050

A new study reveals that climate change could increase the time women worldwide spend collecting water by up to 30% by 2050. Regions like South America and Southeast Asia might see a doubling in time spent on this daily task due to higher temperatures and decreased rainfall, emphasizing the gendered impact of climate change.

A groundbreaking study has highlighted the profound impact climate change could have on women across the globe, potentially increasing their water collection time by up to 30% by 2050.

Research published in Nature Climate Change indicates that in regions such as South America and Southeast Asia, women might see their water collecting duties double due to rising temperatures and decreased rainfall.

The study from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) observes that, on average, women without access to running water spend around 23 minutes daily on water collection. Drastic increases are anticipated, particularly in high-emission scenarios. The repercussions appear most severe for women in eastern and central Africa, with potential rises of 20-40% in water collection times.

Study author Robert Carr underscores the importance of addressing these impacts, noting that mitigating global warming could reduce the increase in water collection time to 19%.

Leonie Wenz, another PIK researcher, stresses the study's revelation of the 'gendered dimension of climate change,' which underscores significant losses in education, work, and leisure opportunities for women. These welfare losses could amount to tens to hundreds of millions of US dollars per country annually by 2050.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)