Climate-induced losses of surface water and total water storage in Northeast Asia

Abstract

Water shortages are intensifying globally due to climate change and human activities. Northeast Asia, with diverse ecosystems and transboundary water systems, is particularly sensitive to these pressures. Yet, the region’s water resource changes and drivers remain largely unknown. Here, we integrate Landsat and Sentinel-2 images, Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment and its Follow-On observations, climate and anthropogenic data, finding a net surface water area loss of 16 × 103 km2 in Far East Russia over 2000−2023, primarily driven by rising temperature and evaporative demand, and a net surface water area gain of 3 × 103 km2 in Northeast China, primarily driven by increasing precipitation and irrigation infrastructure. Approximately 1004 0.5° gridcells (1.4 × 106 km2) have concurrent losses of surface water area and total water storage. Approximately 185 million people reside in watersheds with surface water area or total water storage loss, underscoring the need for sustainable water management under intensifying climate change and human activities.