Serbia’s reliance on groundwater for potable use strains a delicate balance between groundwater supply and demand. Climate change exacerbates this water stress and will present additional challenges as temperatures warm, evapotranspiration rates increase, and untreated wastewaters concentrate in Serbia’s interconnected surface-groundwater systems. As groundwater data is not readily available in Serbia, this study provides an alternative approach to quantifying climate change’s projected impacts on groundwater by using time series hydrometeorological datasets. River flow, precipitation, temperature, and public health trends are analyzed from recent time series data and the impacts of climate change on a water balance model are considered. The analysis results suggest that Serbia’s temperatures have increased (p &lt; 0.005) (1991-2014), surface water supplies have increased (p &lt; 0.05) (1991-2014), gastrointestinal illnesses have increased (p = 2.98 x 10-11) (1997-2014), but could not conclude that there were changes in precipitation (p &gt; 0.18) (1991-2014). The study concludes that climate change could result in approximately 5 ± 3 billion m3 of groundwater being irreversibly withdrawn by 2050. Furthermore, a three-fold increase in waterborne diseases was noted over the 17-year study period- a trend that may worsen as climate evaporates surface water more quickly and concentrates untreated wastewater effluent in watercourses.

Impacts of local climate change on water resources and human health in developing countries: The Republic of Serbia

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.