BLOG
The Thirsty Dragon: China’s Rush To Dam Rivers Flowing To Other Nations
November 26th, 2015
Via Brahma Chellaney’s Statecraft blog, an interesting look at how China’s rush to dam rivers is flowing to other nations: As if to underscore the contrast between an autocracy and a democracy, China’s recent announcement that all six power-generating units at the world’s highest-elevation dam in Zangmu, Tibet, are now fully operational coincided with protesters stalling movement […]
Read more »The Water Wars Waged By The Islamic State
November 25th, 2015
Courtesy of STRATFOR (subscription required), detailed analysis of the Islamic State’s use of water in its fight to establish a caliphate: The Islamic State’s use of natural resources to achieve its strategic goals is nothing new. Oil, one of the group’s biggest sources of funding, plays an especially important role in its calculations — something […]
Read more »Tensions Boil: Turkey, Northern Cyprus And Greek-Cypriots Argue Over Water Pipeline
November 25th, 2015
Via Future Directions International, a report on increasing tensions related to management of the Northern Cyprus water pipeline: Background In August, the Northern Cyprus Water Supply Project began transferring water from Turkey to Northern Cyprus. In a bid to increase water security to drought-prone Cyprus, this water pipeline has been heralded as a major step […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: China’s Bottled Water Industry Eyes The Tibetan Plateau
November 18th, 2015
Via The Guardian, an article on how Tibet is encouraging companies to tap the Himalayan glaciers for premium drinking water, but the environmental stakes are high: Qomolangma Glacier Water bottles water from a national reserve located 80 km from Everest Base Camp In the last two decades China has become the world’s largest bottled water […]
Read more »Mennonite Farmers Prepare To Leave Mexico To Avoid Competition For Water
November 17th, 2015
Courtesy of the New York Times, an interesting report on Chihuahua is a study in the costs of overusing a resource and the tensions that flare as it becomes scarce: On the edge of a high plain fringed by craggy sandstone hills, Johan Friesen’s small farm is a testament to the rural providence of his Mennonite […]
Read more »Asia Running Dry
November 11th, 2015
Courtesy of China Water Risk, a detailed look at Asia’s vanishing glaciers & shares concerns over the region’s water future: Highlights The Hindu-Kush Himalayas covers 8 countries & is the source of 10 major rivers which feed 17 countries in Asia 1.35bn Asians rely on these river basins as do major cities; yet media focus […]
Read more »