For Murcia, Spain, the water crisis has been sped up by developers and farmers who are fighting over this resource, impacting exchange traded funds (ETFs) from both sides.

Murcia was once a forgotten, poor farm town that has been built up to a booming resort destination, complete with sprawling golf courses. This year, farmers are fighting developers over water rights, and there is even a black market for water drawn from illegal wells, reports Elisabeth Rosenthal for The New York Times.

So is this the result of a cyclical drought or a climate change? Scientists are calling this a permanent situation, brought on by global warming, and there may not be any going back. A water shortage in spring equals a miserable summer and growing deserts make this issue urgent.

Can the plain in Spain get any rain? Other countries and regions experiencing rapid growth may want to take a lesson from Murcia’s issues. Water shortages and fights over the resource could wind up being something seen with increasing frequency in years to come if the warning signs aren’t heeded.

To make the most of a bad situation:

• iShares MSCI Spain Index Fund (EWP), down 6.8% year-to-date
• PowerShares Water Resource Portfolio (PHO), up 4.4% year-to-date
• First Trust ISE Water Index Fund (FIW), up 5.7% year-to-date
• Claymore S&P Global Water Index (CGW), down 0.3% year-to-date

For full disclosure, some of Tom Lydon’s clients own shares of EWP.

Tags | Europe, EWP, Spain, Water