Water Issues -- Drought, Toxic Algae, Water Wars, etc.

[Judee]

Beijing plans rule to curb capital's water usage
March 26, 2012

State media says there are at least 75 golf courses in Beijing which are a huge drain on water resources

Authorities in Beijing plan to pass a rule this year aimed at curbing water usage by the capital's many golf courses and ski resorts, an official said Monday, as the city battles severe shortages.

The guideline also targets waterhouses -- common areas where locals gather to carry out daily washing chores -- said an official at the Beijing Water Authority, which oversees water usage in the capital.

"The guideline is still under review, and is expected to come into force this year," Ning Manjiang, who is in charge of the project, told AFP.

According to the official Xinhua news agency, the targeted venues will be given water quotas and will have to pay more fees for the precious resource.

Beijing has been plagued by chronic water shortages for years, and authorities have resorted to a wide range of measures -- some controversial -- to address the issue.

Last year, for instance, authorities in the city suspended the approval of new luxury bathhouses over water conservation concerns, Xinhua said.

The government is also building a huge $60 billion project that aims to divert water along a canal from the south to drought-stricken areas around the capital.

But critics point to the huge number of projects in the capital that waste water. According to state media, for instance, there are at least 75 golf courses in the city, which are a huge drain on the precious resource.

Environmentalists say Beijing pumps up to two-thirds of its water from underground aquifers, with wells in some places up to 1,000 metres (3,300 feet) deep.

The water shortage is not exclusive to Beijing, and has also plagued many parts of arid northern China, which is regularly affected by crippling dry spells while annual flooding wreaks havoc on farm areas in the south.

http://www.physorg.com/news/2012-03-...tal-usage.html

[pyrite]

py sez yipeeeee...college station/bryan texas are twin cities`.....drought buster!!!!!!

Yesterday College Station recorded 2.17 inches of rainfall bringing the monthly total to 8.56 inches. This sets a new rainfall record for the month of March at College Station. For the year so far, College Station has had 20.64 inches of rain which exceeds the rainfall total for all of 2011.

[Judee]

Iran starts $1-bn project to bring water to desert
by Staff Writers
April 16, 2012


Iran on Monday officially launched a $1-billion first phase of an ambitious project to pump water from the Caspian Sea to a city in its vast and expanding central desert, state media reported.

The initial phase will see a desalination plant and pipes built over the next two years to supply water to the desert city of Semnan, population 200,000, according to officials.

"The desert is growing... therefore we need to control its growth," President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in a speech in the northern city of Sari, near the Caspian shore.

The first phase would see water for drinking, irrigation and industrial use taken from the Caspian, treated to rid it of salt, and pumped to Semnan, 150 kilometres (90 miles) away to the south.

The first desalination plant to be built would have a capacity of 200 million cubic metres per year, or 548 million litres a day, according to Energy Minister Majid Namjou.

Khatam al-Anbiya group, the industrial arm of Iran's powerful military Revolutionary Guards which has interests in key economic sectors, is handling work on the project.

Later, two other phases are planned that would pump more water into desert areas from the Caspian Sea and from the Gulf, the media said.

Iran has operated several other desalination plants for decades for other regions.

Such seawater treatment facilities are also in use in other wealthy and arid Middle East countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Israel, to augment scarce water supplies.

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Ir...esert_999.html

[Topper]

Thought I'd slipped this article in here .... Wyoming EPA giving oil companies a chance to respond before going public
with findings that fracking does contaminate the ground water .... GEEZ like its not common sense.

http://fuelfix.com/blog/2012/05/04/w...frack-finding/

[Judee]

People are not only being killed over fresh water, but local strong arm politicians are blackmailing people for votes before they'll allow water deliveries. I have to wonder how long it will be before these types of events are common place around the world. Very sad...


Worst drought in 50 years takes toll in northern Brazil
by Staff Writers
Rio De Janeiro (AFP) May 13, 2012


Severe drought gripping northeastern Brazil -- the worst in a half-century -- is taking its toll on more than 1,100 towns, even triggering fighting in rural areas, local media reported Sunday.

An average of one person a day is being killed in "water wars" in rural areas, while scores of animals are wasting away before perishing, the O Globo newspaper reported over the weeekend.

Short water supplies have devastated farm output, the report said, endangering the lives of local people and their livestock.

Many people in the area have lost half their livestock, and the Brazilian government has reduced forecasts for corn, soy and bean crops.

In Pernambuco, 66 municipalities are on water emergencies, rivers have run completely dry and animals looking for water in the riverbed can only find the odd muddy puddle.

Local dams in the region are running dry, and abuses are rife. In one cited example, water truck drivers make deliveries -- but only if customers promise to vote for certain local candidates.

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Wo...razil_999.html

[Judee]

Ancient reservoir could bring water to dry Namibia

July 27, 2012

A stone-age underground water reservoir could transform life in arid Namibia, a government official said Friday, holding up to five million cubic metres of water that could supply the area for 400 years.

"If the underground water reservoir is indeed there and scientifically proven, it would be a relief for the supply of potable water in northern Namibia," Abraham Nehemia, under secretary for water and forestry in Namibia's agriculture ministry, told AFP Friday.

"Tests have not been completed fully and the perceived water quantity not yet scientifically proven," he said.

Last week the German embassy in Namibia announced that German experts had discovered the new underground water aquifer close to the border with Angola.

"According to cautious estimates, the water volumes could supply the densely populated northern region of Namibia for about 400 years at current supply volumes," said Martin Quinger, project manager from the German federal institute for geosciences and natural resources.

Quinger announced the discovery to the Namibia Scientific Society earlier this month.


About 800,000 people live in north-central Namibia, roughly 40 percent of the total population of 2.1 million. They receive water from the Calueque dam on the Kunene River in southwestern Angola (pictured) via an open water canal.
"The water is of very good quality and about 10,000 years old," Quinger said.

It gets recharged in southern Angola during the rainy seasons and slowly flows underground towards Namibia.

The huge aquifer lies in a depth of 280 to 350 metres (920 to 1,150 feet) and covers an area of roughly 70 kilometres by 40 kilometres (43 miles by 25 miles) within Namibia, he said.

The precious resource is covered by a layer of strong rock, but above that -- still underground -- is a layer of salty water. Uncoordinated and unauthorised drilling for the huge aquifer could threaten the good water, according to Quinger.

The two water layers could be mixed, deteriorating the good quality of the ancient water.

Quinger and his team of experts proposed to have the area declared a controlled water area while research continues over the next year.

About 800,000 people live in north-central Namibia, roughly 40 percent of the total population of 2,1 million.

They receive water from the Calueque dam on the Kunene River in south-western Angola via an open water canal.

Over the last decade, Namibia has been looking at ways to secure water supplies.

"If the newly discovered water supply can be confirmed, our government can possibly also look at supplying central Namibia from there," Nehemia said.

The United Nations Development Programme says Namibia is the driest country in sub-Saharan Africa.

http://phys.org/news/2012-07-ancient...ibia.html#nwlt

[Judee]

August 9, 2012
Worldwide Demand for Water Outstrips Supply: Study
Groundwater use is unsustainable in many of the world's major agricultural zones



The world's oldest and largest acquifers, according to the study, have supplied civilization with water for agricultural and industrial use for thousands of years, but are now under threat from over-extraction and the underground reservoirs can no longer replenish themselves at a sustainable rate.

“This overuse can lead to decreased groundwater availability for both drinking water and growing food,” says Tom Gleeson, a hydrogeologist at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, and lead author of the study. Eventually, he adds, it “can lead to dried up streams and ecological impacts”.

Gleeson said irrigation for agriculture drives much of the demand and is the main driver for the fragility of the acquifers. According to the study, India, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Mexico, and the United States lead the global pack of water-thirsty nations.

The researchers, from McGill University in Montreal and Utrecht University in the Netherlands, combined groundwater usage data from around the globe with computer models of underground water resources to come up with a measure of water usage relative to supply.

In addition, the scientists calculated how much stress each source of groundwater is under and looked in detail at the water flows needed to sustain the health of ecosystems such as grasses, trees and streams.

“To my knowledge, this is the first water-stress index that actually accounts for preserving the health of the environment,” says Jay Famiglietti, a hydrologist at the University of California, Irvine, who was not involved in the study. “That’s a critical step.”

According to Reuters, "Gleeson said limits on water extraction, more efficient irrigation and the promotion of different diets, with less or no meat, could make these water resources more sustainable."

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/08/09

[Judee]

November 19, 2012 by Common Dreams

Water Industry Outlook: 'The Time Is Ripe' for Water Privatization
Survey from water industry insiders shows hedge funds, private equity positioning to benefit from increasingly scarce resource


The privatization of the nation's water industry is set to explode in the next five years, according to the findings of a recent survey.

WeiserMazars LLP, a New York-based tax and advisory services firm, detailed the findings in its first annual U.S. Water Industry Outlook (pdf), in which professionals from the industry, representing privately owned businesses and public utilities, shed light on the near future for the water industry.

And what the next three to five years hold, according to the results, is a surge in privatization and public-private partnerships in a quest to capitalize on the resource.

As Jerome Devillers, Head of Water Infrastructure/Project Financing at WeiserMazars stated bluntly in a release, "Our study shows the time is ripe" for water privatization.

With water scarcity growing WeiserMazars sees water rights and access to water fees increasing as well -- and therefore attracting the interest of private equity and hedge funds, who can capitalize in the takeover of the public good.

Though "negative public perception" has blocked some water privatization efforts, tax increases needed to increase revenue for aging water infrastructure has been unpopular, and semi-privatizations are being enacted.

In next three to five years, most survey respondents -- 71% -- thought there would be a "significant amount of acquisitions of small sized utilities by larger investor owned utilities"

Source URL: http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/11/19-3

[Judee]

Nestle CEO seeks to control the world's water supply
by Lance Devon

(NaturalNews) Gun control may be a hot topic, but what about water control? Recent comments from Nestle CEO Peter Brabeck imply that the world's water will soon come under the control of corporations like his. Brabeck makes the astonishing claim that water is not a human right, but should be managed by business people and governing bodies. He wants water controlled, privatized, and delegated in a way that sustains the planet. View the astonishing interview here:



Water control hitting the United States
All of this means that Brabeck's future plans include monitoring and controlling the amount of water people use. One day, cities and towns may be forced by international law to limit each household to a set amount of water. People may have to obtain permits to dig wells or pay fines for collecting rainwater. Laws like these are already in motion in the United States. Learn more here: http://www.naturalnews.com/029286_ra...ion_water.html

Nestle's CEO thinks all water should have a price
In the interview, Brabeck touts that his company is the largest foodstuff corporation in the world with over $65 billion in profit each year. He proudly claims that millions of people are dependent on him and his company. Does this guy think he is a god?

He calls water a "foodstuff" that needs an assigned value. Who controls the price of water? Brabeck bases his sustainability projects on the fact that a third of the world's population may face water shortages within 15-20 years. By price controlling water, Brabeck believes he may save the planet from food and water shortages in the coming years.

With the threat of future water shortages, is it necessary to strip all humans of their natural liberty to water, as Brabeck suggests?

What might happen if international controls are placed on water sources as a select few corporate dictators rule over the water supply?

Can a free and thriving people find better ways to conserve and respect water with their own liberty, rather than allow global corporations to control it?

Nestle CEO applauds GMO farming and criticizes organic practices
Putting a person like Brabeck in control of water would create a tyrannical monopoly on something that was meant to be free. If influential corporations put a lock on the water tap, then they could dictate which farms received water. Nestle could protect GMO farming. In fact, in the interview, Brabeck said organic food is "not the best" and he went on to say that genetically modified food is perfectly safe and causes no disease. With this philosophy, a Brabeck economy would cut off organic farming from the water supply and allow genetically modified food to reign over the people.

Working together to preserve our right to water
Free people everywhere must work together to preserve their natural right to water. If one wants to dig their own well and tap the ground water, so be it. They are responsible for their keep. If one wants to collect their own rain water to sustain their own garden, then so be it. If one wants to purify their own water trough charcoal gravity fed filters and ditch bottled water companies altogether, then they will be better off for doing so. Is it time to reject a bottled water industry that is brainwashing people to submit to price controlled water? Humans can self sustain and work together, managing their own water. Greedy corporate CEOs are not the answer. No one is dependent on them. Water should remain unadulterated, free and available as a right to all.

Sign a petition to stop Nestle from dominating the world's water supply.
http://stopnestlewaters.org/about

Sources for this article include:

http://americanlivewire.com

http://www.marketwatch.com

http://www.sodahead.com

http://kat5dotpostfix.wordpress.com

http://www.naturalnews.com/040026_Ne...omination.html

[Judee]

!!! WARNING !!!

EDIS Code: DR-20130507-39146-IND
Date&Time: 2013-05-07
Continent: Asia
Country: India
State/Prov.: State of Maharastra,
Location: ,
City: Aurangabad
Damage level: Serious (Level 4)


Not confirmed information!


Description:
Salman Khan has dispatched 2500 tankers with a storage capacity of 2,000 litres to the drought hit region of Aurangabad in Maharashtra. Salman Khan has always been known to be a man with a heart of gold. This gesture comes through Salman Khan's NGO 'Being Human' which has taken a keen interest in aiding the grief stricken families of the drought hit regions in Maharashtra. The foundation will provide water tankers to the drought affected districts of Marathwada from May 6 to 31, according to an e-mail received recently by the Aurangabad Divisional Commissioner from Salman Khan's 'Being Human' Foundation. Salman's Being Human would supply 750 water tankers to Beed, 500 each to Osmanabad and Jalna, and 250 each to Aurangabad and Nanded. People of the Marathwada region have been facing acute water scarcity caused by uneven distribution of rainfall in the state.

[Judee]

May 13, 2013
Greg Pederson 406-994-7390 gpederson@usgs.gov
Paul Laustsen 650-329-4046 plaustsen@usgs.gov
Warmer Springs Causing Loss of Snow Cover throughout the Rocky Mountains


BOZEMAN, Mont. – Warmer spring temperatures since 1980 are causing an estimated 20 percent loss of snow cover across the Rocky Mountains of western North America, according to new research from the U.S. Geological Survey.

The new study builds upon a previous USGS snowpack investigation which showed that, until the 1980s, the northern Rocky Mountains experienced large snowpacks when the central and southern Rockies experienced meager ones, and vice versa. Yet, since the 1980s, there have been simultaneous snowpack declines along the entire length of the Rocky Mountains, and unusually severe declines in the north.

The new study has teased apart and quantified the different influences of winter temperature, spring temperature, and precipitation on historic snowpack variations and trends in the region. To distinguish those varying influences, the researchers implemented a regional snow model that uses inputs of monthly temperature and precipitation data from 1895 to 2011.

"Each year we looked at temperature and precipitation variations and the amount of water contained within the snowpack as of April," said USGS scientist Greg Pederson, the lead author of the study. "Snow deficits were consistent throughout the Rockies due to the lack of precipitation during the cool seasons during the 1930s – coinciding with the Dust Bowl era. From 1980 on, warmer spring temperatures melted snowpack throughout the Rockies early, regardless of winter precipitation. The model in turn shows temperature as the major driving factor in snowpack declines over the past thirty years."

Runoff from Rocky Mountain winter snowpack accounts for 60 to 80 percent of the annual water supply for more than 70 million people living in the western U.S., and is influenced by factors such as the snowpack’s water content, known as snow water equivalent, and the timing of snowmelt.

The timing of snowmelt affects not only when water is available for crop irrigation and energy production from hydroelectric dams, but also the risk of regional floods and wildfires. Earlier and faster snowmelt could have repercussions for water supply, risk management, and ecosystem health in western watersheds.

Regional snowpack accumulation is highly sensitive to variations in both temperature and precipitation over time. Patterns and sources of these variations are difficult to discern due to complex mountain topography, the different influence of Pacific Ocean climate, like La Niña and El Niño, on winter precipitation in the northern versus southern and central Rockies, and the brevity and patchiness of detailed snow records.

In the study, the regional snow model used by Pederson and his USGS colleagues Julio Betancourt and Greg McCabe allows estimation of snow water and cover variability at different latitudes and elevations during the last century regardless of the absence of direct and long-term observations everywhere. Recent snowpack variations also were evaluated in the context of snowpack evidence from tree-rings, allowing the scientists to compare recent observations to measurements from the past 800 years.

McCabe, co-author of the study, explains that "recent springtime warming also reduced the extent of snow cover at low to middle elevations where temperature has had the greatest impact."

"Both natural variability in temperature and anthropogenic warming have contributed to the recent snowpack decline, though disentangling their influences exactly remains elusive." Betancourt said,

"Regardless of the ultimate causes, continuation of present snowpack trends in the Rocky Mountains will pose difficult challenges for watershed management and conventional water planning in the American West."

The study, "Regional patterns and proximal causes of the recent snowpack decline in the Rocky Mountains," is available from Geophysical Research Letters, a journal of the American Geophysical Union.

http://www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article...er+Releases%29