Intensive groundwater abstraction is leading to depletion of non renewable water sources (i.e. karstic watersheds) and to seawater intrusion in coastal areas.
Water quality is moreover highly affected by pollution due to intense human activities (industry, tourism, etc.) and concentration of population in urban and coastal areas.
Another serious implication of the unsustainable use of water resources in the Mediterranean is the loss of wetlands and aquatic ecosystems playing a decisive role in the conservation of biodiversity.
(Photo:Madeleine Theochari)