Asia may see more conflicts over scarce water resources in the coming years as climate change and population growth threaten access to the most basic natural resource, a report warned on Friday.

Water problems in Asia are already severe, with one in five people, or 700 million, not having access to safe drinking water and half the region's population lacking access to basic sanitation, according to the report produced by the Asia Society, a New York-based think tank.

Population growth, rapid urbanization and climate change are expected to worsen the situation, according to the report, Asia's Next Challenge: Securing the Region's Water Future.

It noted water disputes between India and Pakistan and the complex relations governing the Mekong River, which is shared by China and its southern neighbors, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

The report said while water issues have more often generated cooperation than conflict between nations in the past, demographic pressures and water scarcity would be unprecedented in the coming decades.

"The potential for conflicts sparked by the direct and indirect impacts of an increasingly volatile water supply should not be underestimated, " it said.

"No matter how we approach water resources - whether it is on the basis of quality and quantity, or as the most potent manifestation of extreme climatic events - hydropolitics is likely to be a growing force in Asian security," it said.

While Asia is home to more than half the world's population, it has less fresh water per person than any other populated continent, the report said. Asia's population is expected to rise by nearly 500 million within 10 years.

"The majority of Asia's water problems are not attributable to an actual shortage, but rather are the result of poor water governance," it said. "They are solvable through more effective governance and better management practices."

(China Daily via Agencies April 18, 2009)