BLOG
The Thirsty Dragon: Water Politics Will Drive Kazakhstan’s Relations With China
January 14th, 2022
Via National Interest, commentary on the need for Kazakhstan and China to reach mutually beneficial agreements on water issues: The recent unrest in Kazakhstan quickly led to an intervention by the Collective Security Treaty Organization and triggered the appointment of a new prime minister. While events in Kazakhstan will continue to impact regional geopolitics, some issues will remain generally unaffected, […]
Read more »Iran’s ‘Water Bankruptcy’ Is a Warning for the Entire Middle East
January 5th, 2022
Via DAWN, an article on Iran’s water bankruptcy: Iran is out of water, and Iranians are fed up. Over the past year, they have steadily taken to the streets to show their frustration over severe water shortages and the government incompetence exacerbating them. The latest epicenter for this outrage was the central city of Isfahan, once the […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: Are ‘Sponge Cities’ the Answer to Shenzhen’s Water Scarcity?
January 5th, 2022
Via The Diplomat, an article on Shenzhen, which is facing its worst drought on record: Like many other countries, China is facing a multitude of water and water-related challenges, including flooding and droughts, which are linked to climate change. In the past few decades, water-related concerns in China have increased in both intensity and frequency, impacting not only society, but […]
Read more »Utah’s ‘Water OPEC’: Why The 2nd Driest State Rejects Conservation
December 28th, 2021
Via ProPublica, a report on why a powerful group that steers Utah’s water policy keeps pushing for costly infrastructure over meaningful conservation efforts: With rising temperatures and two decades of drought depleting the Colorado River, some Southwestern states are spending hundreds of millions of dollars to pay homeowners to tear out their lawns and farmers […]
Read more »The Parched Tiger: India’s Water-Stressed Villages, Modi Seeks a Tap for Every Home
December 25th, 2021
Courtesy of the New York Times, an article on India’s efforts to provide clean tap water by 2024 to approximately 192M households: The pipes are laid, the taps installed and the village tank is under construction — all promising signs that, come spring, Girja Ahriwar will get water at her doorstep and finally shed a […]
Read more »The West’s Race To Secure Water
December 25th, 2021
Via Bloomberg, a report on how four cities in the U.S. are trying to survive future droughts, from expanding reservoirs and tapping neighboring watersheds to pushing conservation efforts: How much water flows into Southwestern U.S. cities next year will depend on the coming snowfall and the resulting snowpack accumulation. So far, it’s not looking good. High mountain […]
Read more »