INTERNATIONAL RIVER FOUNDATION WARNS HEALTHY RIVERS VITAL FOR LIFE...

If rivers get dried, there would be destructive consequences for human being and environment, as they support biodiversity and ecosystem, according to an official from a river organization.

"Rivers support biodiversity and ecosystems, provide water for drinking and agriculture, and lastly have played an integral role in the shaping of human history, culture and society," Carla Littlejohn, general manager of the International River Foundation (IRF), told Anadolu Agency.

Speaking on the occasion of the World Rivers Day, which is annually celebrated on the fourth Sunday of September, Littlejohn said that water is vital for life and people need healthy rivers as well as lakes and wetlands for a sustainable world.

"Rivers drying would have devastating effects for people and the environment, including reduced access to drinking water, absence of water for agriculture, loss of river transportation corridors, loss of aquatic habitat for fish and other organisms among others," she stressed.

Like wetlands and lakes, Littlejohn said, rivers "are the planet’s circulatory system".

Touching on the threats that rivers face, she highlighted that rivers, as a water resource, are at risk due to the climate change-related extreme weather events such as droughts, floods and storms.

"With increasing global populations and threats such as industrialization and climate change, we need to take a whole of system approach to managing our water resources," she said, adding that rivers, waterways should become resilient.

"We need to work together to ensure that there are adequate water supplies to sustain our future society and environment," she said, adding that water security also make a contribution to the fall of poverty.

Mentioning the works of IRF, which is also a key partner of World Rivers Day, Littlejohn said that they construct leadership and strong networks for the protection, sustainable management and resilience of the world’s rivers.