Transformation of Water Use and Disposal in the Republic of Crimea and the City of Sevastopol at a Shortage of Water Resources

An analytical estimate is given to the transformation of the water-management and amelioration complex of Crimea under the conditions of deficiency of water resources based on the system and information-analytical approaches with the use of methods of logical and comparative analysis, and qualitative and quantitative analysis of statistical data. An abrupt change in the structure of freshwater intake was revealed. In 2014–2022, the leaks and losses in the water distribution system in the Republic of Crimea increased by 44%. Here, from 0.5 to 1.8% of the network length, requiring replacement is replaced every year; the respective number in Sevastopol is from 0.1 to 1.3%, which is extremely low. The mean daily water consumption by the population of the Republic of Crimea, taking into account the increase in the number of vacationers in this period decreased from 134 to 101 L, and that in Sevastopol City, from 184 to 98 L. Now, only 3/4 of the urban population of the Republic of Crimea and 2/3 of its rural population receive high-quality drinking water. After the closure of the North-Crimean Channel, the area of irrigated lands decreased by 7–8 times. The abrupt increase in water deficiency in agriculture has led to a rapid increase in the most efficient irrigation method—drip irrigation. The role of irrigation in the production of key agricultural products is demonstrated. It is shown that the proportion of polluted wastewaters increases, and the proportion of wastewater treated to a standard level decreases. In the Republic of Crimea, both decrease and increase in the discharged mass of individual pollutants was recorded. Water quality in most Crimean rivers does not deteriorate. In 2022, >97% of the major pollutants contained in wastewaters of Sevastopol City were discharged directly into the Black Sea, and the main watercourses (the rivers of Chernaya, Belbek, Kacha) were not polluted by them.