World’s rivers faced driest year in more than three decades in 2023, UN says

Celeste Saulo said water is the ‘canary in the coalmine of climate change’ (Keystone via AP)

The UN weather agency is reporting that 2023 was the driest year in more than three decades for the world’s rivers, as the record-hot year underpinned a drying up of water flows and contributed to prolonged droughts in places.

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) also says glaciers that feed rivers in many countries suffered the largest loss of mass in the last five decades, warning that ice melt can threaten long-term water security for millions of people globally.