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Kabul Faces Deepening Water Shortages as Aquifers Fall
Mercy Corps said Kabul’s aquifers have plunged 25 to 30 meters over the past decade, leaving some wells as deep as 150 meters.
- A Mercy Corps report from April 2025 found Kabul's groundwater levels plunged 25–30 meters over the past decade, forcing residents to dig wells as deep as 150 meters to reach water.
- Kabul's population surged from around 2.5 million in 2001 to 6 million today, while refugee influxes from Pakistan and Iran since 2023 have intensified pressure on the city's strained water resources.
- Two major projects—a roughly 200-kilometer Panjshir River pipeline costing roughly $130 million and the planned Shah Toot Dam—remain delayed and would take six to seven years to complete, though they could serve around 4 million people.
- Ministry of Water and Energy spokesman Qari Matiullah Abid said authorities imposed extraction restrictions and installed water meters on businesses, while residents report Taliban authorities cut private pipes from communal wells, worsening access for uphill households.
- Expert Najibullah Sadid noted that climate change—including repeated droughts and reduced snowfall—limits groundwater replenishment, positioning Kabul to face enduring water insecurity as environmental pressures compound urban expansion.
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11 Articles
11 Articles
Afghanistan’s capital is in the grip of a water crisis – UK Times
On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly international news dispatch The woman was furious. Standing in the muddy lane sloping up the hill in one of the Afghan capital’s poorer neighborhoods, she pulled her headscarf aside to reveal thick grey-white hair. “You see this hair? Even I with my white hair, I have to carry water,” said…
Coverage Details
Total News Sources11
Leaning Left6Leaning Right0Center2Last UpdatedBias Distribution75% Left
Bias Distribution
- 75% of the sources lean Left
75% Left
L 75%
C 25%
Factuality
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