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Archive for 2023

Afghan Canal A Test For Taliban Ties In Water-Stressed Central Asia

Via Radio Free Europe, commentary on a planned new Afghan canal which will parch an already water-stressed Central Asia: When the Taliban returned to power in 2021 in a lightning military insurrection that toppled Afghanistan’s internationally recognized government, the country immediately fell into diplomatic isolation. Two of Kabul’s neighbors to the north, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, […]

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How Bottled Water Masks The Global Water Crisis

Via The Conversation, commentary on the global bottled water industry: Bottled water is one of the world’s most popular beverages, and its industry is making the most of it. Since the millennium, the world has advanced significantly towards the goal of safe water for all. In 2020, 74 per cent of humanity had access to safe water. This […]

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Turkey’s Dams Bring Power and Heartbreak

Via Foreign Policy, a report on the impact of Turkey’s hydropower ambitions: Standing on a hilltop overlooking the vast Kackar mountain range in Turkey’s northeastern Artvin province, residents of Yusufeli are slowly watching their town drown. Each day, the water rises an estimated 3 feet, erasing gardens, graveyards, and streets; then come houses, historical churches, […]

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How We Drained California Dry

Via the MIT Technology Review, an article on the story of remaking California and taking the water until there was nothing left: The wind finally blew the other way last night and kicked out the smoke from the burning Sierra. Down here in the flatland of California, we used to regard the granite mountain as […]

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‘Vampiric’ Water Use Leading To ‘Imminent’ Global Crisis, UN Warns

Via Terra Daily, an article on the risk of ‘vampiric’ water use leading to ‘imminent’ global crisis: Humanity’s “lifeblood” — water — is increasingly at risk around the world due to “vampiric overconsumption and overdevelopment,” the UN warned in a report, published hours ahead of a major summit on the issue was set to begin […]

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Government Wants To Pay Western Farmers To Save Water By Not Farming

Via Fast Company, an interesting look at a proposed government plan to pay western U.S. farmers to save water by not farming: Tom Brundy, an alfalfa grower in California’s Imperial Valley, thinks farmers reliant on the shrinking Colorado River can do more to save water and use it more efficiently. That’s why he’s installed water sensors […]

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