Water Supply

Lesotho Project Needs Scrutiny

Meeting to discuss LHWP, Lesotho
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
An agreement to build Phase II of Africa's biggest dam scheme has been signed, but tough questions about the project remain. Our op-ed appeared in one of South Africa's leading papers.

I Know the River Loves Me

Blues and greens swirl on the page and around a young girl who shares her love for her river. The river cools her in the summer, holds her up when she dives in, and takes takes care of her as she takes care of it. While rivers around the world are being threatened, polluted, and dammed, Maya Christina Gonzalez's book, I Know the River Loves Me, is a tribute to the relationship people, and especially children, continue to have with their rivers. Each beautifully illustrated page carries a message, in both English and Spanish, about the personal relationship one can have with their river.

China’s Water Warriors Grab Oscar Attention

Lu Guang, www.smithfund.org Over 70% of China's rivers and lakes and 90% of its groundwater are polluted. In addition, large dams often gather wastewater discharge from nearby factories and farms in a toxic soup behind their gates, further exacerbating the environmental and human health crisis. The World Health Organization estimates that polluted water causes 75% of diseases in China and over 100,000 deaths annually. Many of these pollution-related deaths involve cancer victims living near factories spewing chemicals into their air and waterways – and their stories would have gone unt

Adapting to a New Normal

The Aral Sea – a global poster-child of bad water management – once supported a major fishery until dams and irrigation diversions drained it.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
From September 2010 World Rivers Review When it comes to water, the past is no longer a reliable guide to the future Water, like energy, is essential to virtually every human endeavor. The growing number of water shortages around the world and the possibility of these shortages leading to economic disruption, food crises, social tensions, and even war suggest that the challenges posed by water in the coming decades will rival those posed by declining oil supplies. In fact, our water problem turns out to be much more worrisome than our energy situation, for three main reasons. First, unlike o

River of Words 2010 Art and Poetry Contest Winners Announced

I heard a beautiful story recently. It was a story about a young girl, a refugee from a war-torn country in the Middle East, who was able to create something beautiful in the midst of destruction and poverty. Tearing out pieces of magazines collected here and there, she created a collage, which eventually found it's way to Berkeley, California, and into the hands of the staff at River of Words. River of Words is a non-profit dedicated to improving the environmental and art literacy of children in the US and abroad. Every year, they host a poetry and art contest, which draws hundreds o

A Year of Rivers, Water and Rights

How about Earth Day everyday?
How about Earth Day everyday? http://www.earthday.ca/pub/merchandise/calendar/index.html Normally, my experience with the hoopla surrounding national and international days of commemoration–Black History Month (US), World AIDS Day, International Women's Day, etc.–is tempered by a good dose of caution (except for our own International Day of Action for Rivers of course). Call it an early onset of cynicism perhaps, but I can't help feeling that a lot of these commemorative days and months get short-changed. Schools in the US do a day-long event on famous Black figures in US his

How Dams Affect Water Supply

More water evaporates from reservoirs than is consumed by humans
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
From World Rivers Review December 2009Most rural Africans are directly dependent on surface water - rivers, wetlands, springs and lakes - for their water supply. Today, 20 African countries experience severe water scarcity and another 12 will be added in the next 25 years. As the climate changes, free-flowing, healthy rivers will become an even more valued resource than they are today. Dams are expected to affect water quality and quantity for millions of downstream users. A few ways that dams harm water supply include: By trapping river-borne nutrients, dams can lead to the growth of toxic al

“At World Water Forum 5 Expect a Flood of Risk” – International Rivers Warns

Tuesday, March 10, 2009
For Immediate Release * Interviews Available Now * Expect increased global warming, earthquakes, poverty, and debt if world leaders push big dams at the Fifth World Water Forum in Istanbul, Turkey, March 16-22. Berkeley – From March 16-22, the Fifth World Water Forum (WWF5) takes place in Istanbul, Turkey under the motto of “Bridging the Divides for Water.” Held once every three years, it is the largest global gathering of water officials, including heads of state, in the world. Previous Fora were held in Morocco (1997), the Netherlands (2000), Japan (2003) and Mexico (2006

Beneath Booming Cities, China's Future Is Drying Up

Friday, September 28, 2007
The New York Times Choking on GrowthThis is the second in a series of articles and multimedia examining the human toll, global impact and political challenge of China's epic pollution crisis.SHIJIAZHUANG, China - Hundreds of feet below ground, the primary water source for this provincial capital of more than two million people is steadily running dry. The underground water table is sinking about four feet a year. Municipal wells have already drained two-thirds of the local groundwater.Above ground, this city in the North China Plain is having a party. Economic growth topped 11 percent last ye

Ethiopia – Water for Private Sector Development

Wednesday, February 1, 2006
Hunger, aridity, flooding – Ethiopia is a particularly dramatic case of poverty and under-development. Almost half of the rural population suffers from chronic food insecurity. Year by year, six to eight per cent of the 70 million inhabitants are dependent on food aid. And if the rains fail the percentage is considerably higher. Yet, the problem is not a lack of water. The rugged mountainous region get twice as much rain as in Germany. Ethiopia: Water for Private Sector Development is part of the study “Water for food – water for profit”. This study examines the water policy

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