BLOG
Melting Andean Glaciers May Leave South America High & Dry
May 7th, 2008
According to a recent report, about 99 percent of the Chacaltaya glacier in Bolivia has disappeared since 1940. Such loss of glaciers in the Andes mountain range is threatening the water supply of 30 million people in Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador, leaving mountain communities, agriculture, and entire ecosystems high and dry. For example, as noted […]
Read more »The Beginning of Water Wars? / Water for Arms
May 7th, 2008
We reported earlier that Spain was recently forced to consider importing water from France by boat to address a severe drought affecting Barcelona. As noted in a separate article, the proposal is interesting because it turns a local drought into an international situation where water scarcity can escalate conflicts, if not bring about water wars. […]
Read more »Successful Cooperation in the Niger Basin
May 7th, 2008
As reported by AFP, not all water politics are tales of animosity or conflict – there are some examples of successful cooperation. West African heads of state recently adopted a 5.5 billion-euro (8.6-billion-dollar), 20-year rescue plan to save the Niger River from extinction and guarantee the future of 110 million people. As the article noted: […]
Read more »Severe Drought in Europe Stirs Up Regional Tensions
May 7th, 2008
As recently reported by The International Herald Tribune, a drought that Spanish officials are calling the worst in a century has pushed the coastal city of Barcelona to the brink of a water crisis and re-ignited a tense debate among the country’s rival regions about who should control the precious resource. Water reserves across the […]
Read more »