Water in the News

Image: Via British National Party
 

Here's a rundown of some of the articles on water in the news. Imagine if we kept track of daily, weekly, monthly reports...

AP Interview: Japan nuke plant water worries rise
http://www.northjersey.com/news/international/175871911_AP_Interview__Japan_nuke_plant_water_worries_rise.html

Santa Clara's Water District's duties have expanded to include clean up of waterways
http://www.mercurynews.com/san-jose-neighborhoods/ci_21858024/santa-clara-valley-water-districts-duties-have-expanded

Impasse could trigger water crisis
http://www.nst.com.my/nation/general/impasse-could-trigger-water-crisis-1.162243

Water contamination complaints filed due to drilling
http://www.timesonline.com/news/local_news/water-contamination-complaints-filed-due-to-drilling/article_c38902e5-bf4f-56a7-95e5-465982d5cd2c.html

Wake Forest residents furious about drinking contaminated water
http://www2.nbc17.com/news/wake-county/2012/oct/25/wake-forest-residents-furious-about-drinking-conta-ar-2725769/

Scientists welcome Murray water plan
http://www.skynews.com.au/national/article.aspx?id=809806

Friends, these links are only a sampling of news items from today. The world's water resources are in peril.




 

Banning Plastic Bags

Eugene becomes the third city in Oregon to ban plastic bags.

Eco Watch published an article announcing the fantastic news that Eugene, OR has issued a ban on plastic bags.

Excerp from article:

"Eugene has become the third city in Oregon to implement a single-use plastic bag ban following the city council’s vote to ban plastic checkout bags and put a fee on paper bags. The decision will have big payoffs for Oregon’s environment and the Pacific Ocean. "

Read full article here:

Eugene bans plastic bags

The Biggest Threat to Water Security

That’s right; we are now talking about water security. Those words scare me—and they should scare you, too.

 

A recent article by environmental journalist Stephen Leahy calls attention to the issue of water shortages around the world citing the biggest threat as “neoliberal policies of the free market economic system laying waste to the natural world and turning water into a commodity” (Inter Press Service).

 

Areas expected to face the worst water shortages before 2030 include parts of Africa and Asia, including China, home to 1.3 billion people, and India, home to more than 1.2 billion people.  

 

Over two years ago I visited Mumbai and was annoyed that water was shut off around 4 pm. If you wanted to take a shower later than that, you needed to fill a bucket in your bathroom earlier in the day and then bathe with a dipper. At the time I viewed it as a major inconvenience. “How could people live this way?” I wondered.

 

Today the pressing issues about water involve how agriculture will sustain itself in coming years with the increased demand for water, privatization of water resources, water shortages, water security, and water wars. In other words, it won’t be long until you’re worrying about having enough water to drink and not whether you are allowed to take a shower, water your garden, or wash your car.

 

We need to be aware that water shortages will destabilize many parts of the world. We have already seen the number of deaths resulting from ethnic conflicts around the world; imagine what will happen when people are fighting over drinking water.

 

Leahy’s article cites details from the InterAction Council (IAC) report “Global Water Crisis: Addressing an Urgent Security Issue.” This is not a scare tactic, this is not liberal journalism: this is the coming reality.

 

Just in case you don’t want to believe the IAC report, you can check out the EPA website and download a poster on Drinking Water Security. And no, I am not kidding.

 

The biggest threat to water security may be the free market system and unregulated profiteers, but our complacence is also contributing to this growing concern. Please wake up and become a water activist.

 

 

Laissez-Faire Failing World’s Dwindling Water Resources by Stephen Leahy, IPS: http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/09/laissez-faire-failing-worlds-dwindling-water-resources/

 

Drinking Water Security Poster via United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): http://cfpub.epa.gov/safewater/watersecurity/publications.cfm?sort=TITLE&view=doctype_results&document_type_id=620

 

The Water Front Activist Guide: http://www.bullfrogfilms.com/guides/wateractivistguide.pdf

 

 

Precious Natural Resources

 

Ready to Save Water?

 

 

Issued in the public interest by Pixalas: www.pixalas.com

Water Competition is Here & It’s Not a Sport

When we think of the words water and competition together we almost always think of a sporting event, but this is not a sport and the losers of this competition face dire consequences.  

A compelling article from Bloomberg News about coal-fired power being adopted in Asia highlights the importance of competition for water resources. 

The article, Asian Water Scarcity Risked as Coal-Fired Power Embraced by Natalie Obiko Pearson, caught my attention with this quote:

“You’re going to have a huge issue with the competition between water, energy and food.”

 -          Vineet Mittal, managing director of Welspun Energy Ltd., the utility unit of Leon Black’s Apollo Global Management LLC-backed Welspun Group (Bloomberg).

 

A competition between water, energy and food? Have we got your attention yet?

 

I’m just a simple citizen who expects to pay for my energy usage, but I do not expect to have to compete for water and food. If corporations are already starting to compete over them, it won’t be long until it reaches the average person. We’re talking about competing for resources for which we do not have an unlimited supply.  

 

Complicating the issues even further is the fact that things like hydraulic fracturing and coal-fired power plants are poisoning the potable water resources that we have. Our polluted waters are polluting the fish and sea life we get from them. Chemicals we use in every-day life are polluting the land we use to grow vegetables and fruit. Sure, the world now has genetically modified food, but who wants to eat it when there is evidence that it is not safe for us?

 

Getting back to Pearson’s article she writes: “Inner Mongolia’s rivers are feeding China’s coal industry, turning grasslands into desert. In India, thousands of farmers have protested diverting water to coal-fired power plants, some committing suicide” (Bloomberg).

 

The world’s water supplies are in absolute danger. While there is no denying that we rely on power to run our lives, I can imagine living without power before I can imagine living without water.

 

I encourage you to read Natalie Obiko Pearson’s important article at: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-09/asian-water-scarcity-risked-as-coal-fired-power-embraced.html

Save Water! Please!

 

 

Please, every one of us needs to conserve and preserve water. It really will be

a matter of life and death someday soon!



Crater Lake

Crater Lake in Oregon is said to be one of the clearest lakes in the world, although some websites report it as being the “cleanest.” Perhaps it is both the clearest and the cleanest, either way, it is beautiful.

 

The National Park Service (NPS) describes Crater Lake as having a depth of 1,943 feet (592 meters) making it the deepest lake in the United States, and the seventh deepest in the world. It is interesting to note that the depth of the lake was first measured in 1886 using a simple sounding machine made from a crank and piano wire which showed the lake to be 1,996 feet deep. Modern equipment certainly is amazing, but it’s probably more amazing that measurements with such simple tools were that close to the real figure.

 

According to the NPS: “Crater Lake was formed when a massive eruption of Mount Mazama 7700 years ago caused the mountain to collapse, leaving a steaming caldera. Centuries of rain and snow filled the caldera creating Crater Lake.”

 

Aside from attracting tourists from around the world, Crater Lake is used as an outdoor laboratory by scientists, researchers, and teachers. There is also an Artist-in-Residence Program where the imaginations of musicians, painters, and photographers have been inspired by the natural beauty of the surrounding areas.

 

The NPS is working hard to protect and maintain parks like Crater Lake, but there is much that needs to be done to protect the world’s drinking water. Water is being polluted every day by hydraulic fracturing and other types of industrial pollution.

Take part in your community’s effort to protect your drinking water supply. 

Further information on Crater Lake available at http://www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm