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South Africa: Race-Based Quotas for Water Licences Worry Farmers
September 17th, 2023
Courtesy of The Africa Report, a report on how South Africa’s ruling ANC has drafted a water licence bill that is seen by some as being race-based and threatening to agriculture: Farmer Dirk Kegta is frustrated that to get new water-drawing rights from the Vaal River in South Africa’s maize belt in the Free State […]
Read more »Heat, Drought and Population Growth Have Stressed Texas Aquifers
September 17th, 2023
Via the Texas Tribune, a report on how diminishing springs and aquifers due to heat, drought and high for water demand highlight the urgency for Central Texas conservation districts to prioritize climate-focused management, potentially involving reduced pumping for sustainability: Almost every other day, Charlie Flatten gets a call about another local water well gone dry. […]
Read more »Water-Starved Saudi Confronts Desalination’s Heavy Toll
September 17th, 2023
Via Al Monitor, a look at how water-starved Saudi Arabia is confronting desalination’s heavy toll: Solar panels soak up blinding noontime rays that help power a water desalination facility in eastern Saudi Arabia, a step towards making the notoriously emissions-heavy process less environmentally taxing. The Jazlah plant in Jubail city applies the latest technological advances […]
Read more »Big Tech Had a Water Problem Long Before ChatGPT
September 16th, 2023
Via PC Mag, a look at how data centers that run ChatGPT, Bing, and Bard consume huge amounts of water, but tech companies reported double-digit spikes in water use before these chatbots even existed: ChatGPT is making headlines for the enormous amount of water it uses, but water consumption in the tech industry has been an […]
Read more »New Lithium Company Wants Billions of Gallons From Great Salt Lake
September 16th, 2023
Via Salt Lake Tribune, an article on a new lithium company that wants billions of gallons from Great Salt Lake, but says it will put it all back; The lithium bonanza continues at the largest saline system in the West, but a new company says it can harvest the mineral in a way that doesn’t contribute […]
Read more »Groundwater: What Happens When It Runs Out?
September 16th, 2023
Via Echo River Capital, a presentation on groundwater: During a recent drive through the Central Valley of California, I saw electric motors sat on the corners of irrigation blocks pumping water to all manner of crops in a state that provides 90% of the nation’s vegetables and nuts, as well as rice, cotton and alfalfa. […]
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