The Elephant
The climate change and environmental emergency: a comprehensive resource for journalists, politicians, policy makers, activists and citizens
The ElephantThe climate change and environmental emergency: a comprehensive resource for journalists, politicians, policy makers, activists and citizens
‘The land is becoming desert’: drought pushes Sicily’s farming heritage to the brink
2024-08-19 in The GuardianWhile tourists flock to the Italian island in greater numbers, a water crisis is intensifying for its rural population
Tagged under: Italy | Water Resources | Farming | Drought
Earth’s Fountain of Life Is Vanishing Beneath Our Feet
2024-03-03 in Popular MechanicsWith each passing year, the world’s groundwater reserves shrink.
Tagged under: Water Resources
Zimbabwe drought: Digging riverbeds in desperate search for water
2024-08-29 in The BBCThe southern Africa region is facing one of the worst droughts in living memory.
Tagged under: Water Resources | Rivers | Zimbabwe | Drought | Africa
‘The land is becoming desert’: drought pushes Sicily’s farming heritage to the brink
2024-08-19 in The GuardianWhile tourists flock to the Italian island in greater numbers, a water crisis is intensifying for its rural population
Tagged under: Italy | Water Resources | Farming | Drought
WHO to scrap weak PFAS drinking water guidelines after alleged corruption
2024-08-13 in The GuardianRegulations ignored credible research and didn’t fully protect human health, independent scientists say
Tagged under: Water Resources | Health | Regulation | PFAS aka Forever Chemicals
US air force avoids PFAS water cleanup, citing supreme court’s Chevron ruling
2024-08-12 in The GuardianEPA says Tucson’s drinking water is contaminated but air force claims agency lacks authority to order cleanup
Tagged under: Litigation | Regulation | Water Resources | PFAS aka Forever Chemicals
Climate‐Driven Increases in Stream Metal Concentrations in Mineralized Watersheds Throughout the Colorado Rocky Mountains, USA
2024-08-03 (or before) in Advancing Earth and Space Sciences JournalSulfate, zinc, and copper concentrations are increasing regionally in streams affected by acid rock drainage throughout Colorado Declining streamflows are contributing to increasing concentration...
Tagged under: Pollution | Water Resources | Colorado River | Colorado State
Will this government buck the trend and hold private water companies to account?
2024-08-01 in express.co.ukThames Water have so far avoided accountability for its sewage pollution at the expense of the UK bill payer but it's time we got justice, says Ashley Smith.
Tagged under: UK | UK Politics | Water Resources
Government action is needed if we are to reduce our demands on Earth’s resources and sustain life
2024-07-31 by in Daily Maverick - South African news, opinion and investigationsWe are running down our natural capital. Each year ends with the Earth having less forest, less biodiversity, less healthy soil and water, fewer fish in the sea, more pollution of our fresh water and more greenhouse gases blanketing the planet, heating it and destabilising the climate.
Tagged under: Capitalism | Water Resources | Activism | Legislation
State of emergency declared in Crete’s Messara due to water crisis
2024-07-25 (or before) in EuronewsThe Faneromeni dam, the main water source for the area, has seen its levels drop drastically due to illegal water pumping, low rainfall and high temperatures.
Tagged under: Drought | Water Resources
Scientists warn of "massive" release from Great Salt Lake
2024-07-25 in NewsweekResearcher Soren Brothers said the best way "to keep this CO2 from being released is by ensuring that Great Salt Lake remains wet."
Tagged under: Water Resources | USA | CO2
Forever Pesticides: A Growing Source of PFAS Contamination in the Environment | Environmental Health Perspectives | Vol. 132, No. 7
2024-07-24 (or before) in ehp.niehs.nih.govBackground: Environmental contamination by fluorinated chemicals, in particular chemicals from the per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) class, has raised concerns around the globe because of documented adverse impacts on human health, wildlife, and ecosystem quality. Recent studies have indicated that pesticide products may contain a variety of chemicals that meet the PFAS definition, including the active pesticide ingredients themselves. Given that pesticides are some of the most widely distributed pollutants across the world, the legacy impacts of PFAS addition into pesticide products could be widespread and have wide-ra...
Tagged under: Wildlife | Water Resources | Health | Plastic | Food Production and Consumption | PFAS aka Forever Chemicals | Agriculture | Risks | Pesticides
Sewage pollution warnings at 11 Cornwall beaches today after heavy rain - Cornwall Live
2024-07-21 by in Cornwall LiveTagged under: Capitalism | Pollution | UK | Water Resources
Thames Water hit with £39m of penalties after missing regulatory targets
2024-07-12 in The GuardianPerformance report shows debt-laden company missed 21 targets in areas from pollution to supply interruption
Tagged under: UK | Water Resources | Pollution
Global impacts of heat and water stress on food production and severe food insecurity - Scientific Reports
2024-06-22 in NatureIn contrast to most integrated assessment models, with limited transparency on damage functions and recursive temporal dynamics, we use a unique large-dimensional computational global climate and trade model, GTAP-DynW, to directly project the possible intertemporal impacts of water and heat stress on global food supply and food security to 2050. The GTAP-DynW model uses GTAP production and trade data for 141 countries and regions, with varying water and heat stress baselines, and results are aggregated into 30 countries/regions and 30 commodity sectors. Blue water stress projections are drawn from WRI source material and a GTAP...
Tagged under: Famine and Food Insecurity | Water Resources | Population | Food Production and Consumption | Data | Global Warming | Climate Change Impacts
Miami Is Entering a State of Unreality
2024-06-18 by in The AtlanticNo amount of adaptation to climate change can fix Miami’s water problems.
Tagged under: Flooding | Water Resources | Florida | Adaptation | Climate Change
River Thames triathletes rushed to hospital after severe vomiting over sewage fears - Mirror Online
2024-06-13 (or before) by Neil Hyde in The MirrorTagged under: Water Resources | Rivers
Owner of under fire South West Water appoints new chair - South West
2024-06-10 in thebusinessdesk.comCompany bosses were described as incompetent following sickness outbreak
Tagged under: UK | Water Resources
Thames Water accused of ‘misleading’ customers over level of debt payments
2024-03-12 in The GuardianBritain’s biggest water company said just 3p in every pound that appeared on bills went to its lenders
Tagged under: UK | Water Resources | Finance
Anglian Water set to invest £50m to stop sewage spills
2024-03-11 in East Anglian Daily TimesSuffolk homes' supplier Anglian Water will invest £50m to help stop sewage spills.
Tagged under: Water Resources | UK
India's water problems set to get worse as the world warms
2024-03-11 in Phys.org - News and Articles on Science and TechnologyWinter storms that provide crucial snow and rainfall to northern India are arriving significantly later in the year compared to 70 years ago, a new study has found, exacerbating the risk of catastrophic flooding while also reducing vital water supplies for millions of residents of India.
Tagged under: Climate Change Impacts | Climate Change | Water Resources | Flooding | Himalayas | India
Teddington: Water samples to be taken after concerns of possible sewage
2024-03-10 in The BBCResidents near Teddington Lock said they saw what looked like "brown lumps of porridge" in the water.
Tagged under: UK | Water Resources
Streets and gardens 'overwhelmed' by sewage - residents vent fury at Southern Water
2024-03-05 in Brighton ArgusResidents say they continue to face sewage flowing through their streets as drainage issues continue to blight neighbourhoods across Sussex.
Tagged under: UK | Water Resources
We need to talk about water – and the fact that the world is running out of it | George Monbiot
2024-03-04 in The GuardianOn a planet becoming hotter and drier by the year, governments are wilfully ignoring a looming crisis, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
Tagged under: Collapse | Water Resources
Earth’s Fountain of Life Is Vanishing Beneath Our Feet
2024-03-03 in Popular MechanicsWith each passing year, the world’s groundwater reserves shrink.
Tagged under: Water Resources
Rapid groundwater decline and some cases of recovery in aquifers globally - Nature
2024-01-24 in NatureAnalysis of about 170,000 monitoring wells and 1,693 aquifer systems worldwide shows that extensive and often accelerating groundwater declines are widespread in the twenty-first century, but that groundwater levels are recovering in some cases.
Tagged under: Water Resources
Groundwater decline is global but not universal
2024-01-24 in NatureMeasurements of groundwater levels in 170,000 wells reveal the global extent of groundwater decline. But the data also show that such depletion is not inevitable in a changing climate, providing hope for a resilient water future. Measurements of groundwater in 170,000 wells.
Tagged under: Drought | Water Resources
Water Scarcity in Africa: Everything You Need to Know
2024-01-14 (or before) in Global CitizenThe water crisis across Africa is only getting worse due to climate change. By 2025, hundreds of millions of people will experience water scarcity.
Tagged under: Africa | Water Resources
The Private Equity Firm Tapping America’s Spring Water
2023-12-19 in BloombergBlueTriton Brands owns Poland Spring, Arrowhead and other bottled water brands. As it tries to grow, experts worry sensitive springs, creeks and groundwater supplies from Florida to California are paying the price.
Tagged under: Capitalism | Water Resources | California
We need to talk about water
2023-12-13 in NatureWater needs to be central to India’s efforts to tackle floods, pollution and urbanization. Water needs to be central to India’s efforts to tackle floods, pollution and urbanization.
Tagged under: Climate Change Adaption | Water Resources | India
‘Forever chemicals’ found in drinking water sources across England
2023-11-28 in The GuardianExclusive: Experts ‘alarmed’ after potentially toxic chemicals detected in sources at 17 of England’s 18 water firms
Tagged under: Water Resources | PFAS aka Forever Chemicals
How Climate Change Affects Water Markets Globally
2023-10-18 in BloombergMore extreme weather is reshaping the availability of water, a commodity embedded in almost every product bought and sold in international markets
Tagged under: Drought | Economics | Climate Change Impacts | Water Resources | Rivers
U.S. Groundwater Is Disappearing, and Our Survival Is at Stake
2023-09-01 in Popular MechanicsAn eye-opening investigation reveals the devastation happening beneath our feet.
Tagged under: Water Resources | USA
‘Drought is on the verge of becoming the next pandemic’
2023-06-15 in The GuardianThe long read: While the world becomes drier, profit and pollution are draining our resources. We have to change our approach
Tagged under: Drought | Water Resources
The world's largest lakes are shrinking dramatically, and scientists say they have figured out why | CNN
2023-05-18 by in CNNMore than half of the world’s largest lakes and reservoirs have lost significant amounts of water over the last three decades.
Tagged under: Climate Change | Health | Water Resources | Finance
World Water Day 2023: The State of English Chalk Streams - River Action UK
2023-03-22 by in River Action UKOn this World Water Day, we want to focus our attention on the importance of chalk streams and advocate for the sustainable management of these unique and vulnerable freshwater resources.
Tagged under: Rivers | Water Resources
Petition update · This could be bad news... · Change.org
2023-03-20 (or before) in change.orgIn 2015, Fish Legal won a landmark case that secured the public’s right to obtain environmental information from privatised water companies under the EIR 2004. If the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill is enacted these regulations will be repealed. If this route disappears water companies will be able to withhold data on sewage spills. This is incredibly important for everyone who is campaigning to clean up our freshwater hence why I ask you take two minutes to sign here United Utilities constantly refuse to provide data which makes it incredibly difficult to scrutinise what's going on. If this h...
Tagged under: Water Resources | Fish
Toxic 'forever chemicals’ about to get their first US limits
2023-03-02 in Associated Press NewsThe Environmental Protection Agency is expected to propose restrictions on harmful “forever chemicals” in drinking water after finding they are dangerous in amounts so small as to be undetectable. But experts say removing them will cost billions, a burden that will fall hardest on small communities with few resources.
Tagged under: PFAS aka Forever Chemicals | Health | Water Resources
Opinion | Arizona Is in a Race to the Bottom of Its Water Wells, With Saudi Arabia’s Help
2022-12-26 in The New York TimesTagged under: Farming | Colorado River | Rivers | Saudi Arabia | Water Resources
Lithium Mining Is Leaving Chile’s Indigenous Communities High and Dry (Literally)
2022-06-28 (or before) in Natural Resources Defense CouncilAs the metal fuels the clean tech boom, companies race to mine the Atacama Region. At stake: fragile ecosystems, scarce water resources, and ancient ways of life.
Tagged under: Lithium | Chile | Water Resources
Exhausted: How We Can Stop Lithium Mining from Depleting Water Resources, Draining Wetlands, and Harming Communities in South America
2022-06-28 (or before) in Natural Resources Defense CouncilMany green technologies, such as electric vehicles and renewable power plants, depend on lithium-ion batteries, which require lithium. Lithium may play a key role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but a climate-friendly future cannot come at the expense of destroying...
Tagged under: Renewable Energy | Lithium | Batteries | Greenhouse Gases | Wetlands | South America | Water Resources
As California's big cities fail to rein in their water use, rural communities are already tapped out | CNN
2022-06-05 by in CNNRural Californians live with the daily worry that they won't have enough water to bathe with or drink.
Tagged under: Drought | Fish | California | Trees | Water Resources
A race for lithium is sparking fears of water shortages in northern Argentina
2022-01-07 in Climate Home NewsThe salt flats of Catamarca hold rich resources for a green revolution, but the impact of mining on water sources has nearby communities worried
Tagged under: Argentina | Lithium | Water Resources
Bangladesh Really Is a Climate Success Story
2021-10-10 (or before) by in The AtlanticThe country shows the power of self-determination when it comes to development and climate policy.
Tagged under: Solar Energy | Extreme Weather | Climate Change | Geothermal Energy | Fossil Fuels | Economic Growth | Water Resources
‘There’s nothing you can do about it’: Drought threatens crops across Canada | Globalnews.ca
2021-09-06 (or before) in Global News Canada"You are seeing drought a lot more widespread and a lot earlier than on record and I've been farming for 15 years now and this is the driest I've ever seen it this early."
Tagged under: Farming | Drought | Water Resources
Nature-based solutions in action: Lessons from the frontline
2021-08-25 (or before) in BondFrom a farmers’ seed network in China that supports agroecology by conserving traditional seeds, to large-scale watershed management in glacial mountain ecosystems in Peru, this report highlights successful nature-based solutions.
Tagged under: Farming | China | Water Resources
$21 million in Beetaloo gas grants to face Federal Court challenge - Environmental Defenders Office
2021-07-29 in Environmental Defenders OfficeThe Environmental Defenders Office (EDO) has today filed urgent proceedings on behalf of the Environment Centre Northern Territory (ECNT), challenging the lawfulness of a Federal Government decision to grant up to $21 million to gas company Imperial Oil and Gas. The decision by the Commonwealth Minister for Resources and Water was announced earlier this month [...]Read More...
Tagged under: Water Resources
Global Land Outlook (GLO) | Knowledge Hub
2021-06-04 (or before) in Knowledge Hub | Knowledge HubThe premise of the Global Land Outlook (GLO) is that land, and its associated resources such as soil, water, and biodiversity, comprise a relatively fixed stock of natural capital. The increasing demand for land-based goods and services, and the way they are today produced is adversely impacting human health and the future sustainability of the planet.
Tagged under: Health | Water Resources | Sustainability | Capitalism
Fracking 101: What You Should Know - EcoWatch
2021-05-11 in EcoWatch - For a Healthier Planet and LifeFracking involves blasting water, chemicals and frac sand deep into the earth to break up rock formations and extract natural gas and crude oil. It's one of the most important environmental issues today, and a case study in how a new technology that offers immediate economic and political advantages can overpower environmental and health concerns.
Tagged under: Environmental Protection Agency USA | Water Resources | Fracking | Health | Economics
An Overview of Seabed Mining Including the Current State of Development, Environmental Impacts, and Knowledge Gaps
2020-11-15 (or before) in FrontiersRising demand for minerals and metals, including for use in the technology sector, has led to a resurgence of interest in exploration of mineral resources located on the seabed. Such resources, whether seafloor massive (polymetallic) sulfides around hydrothermal vents, cobalt-rich crusts on the flanks of seamounts or fields of manganese (polymetallic) nodules on the abyssal plains, cannot be considered in isolation of the distinctive, in some cases unique, assemblages of marine species associated with the same habitats and structures. In addition to mineral deposits, there is interest in extracting methane from gas hydrates on c...
Tagged under: Cobalt | Minerals | Methane | Papua New Guinea | Water Resources | Biodiversity Loss
Soil erosion: An agricultural production challenge | Integrated Crop Management
2020-09-20 (or before) in Integrated Crop ManagementSoil erosion is a gradual process that occurs when the impact of water or wind detaches and removes soil particles, causing the soil to deteriorate. Soil deterioration and low water quality due to erosion and surface runoff have become severe problems worldwide. The problem may become so severe that the land can no longer be cultivated and must be abandoned. Many agricultural civilizations have declined due to land and natural resource mismanagement, and the history of such civilizations is a good reminder to protect our natural resources.
Tagged under: Water Resources
UK Hydrological Status Update - May 2020 | UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
2020-05-27 (or before) in UK Centre for Ecology & HydrologyFor 2020 so far, the hydrological situation has been extremely mixed. In February we saw record-breaking rainfall and river flows, and one of the most significant flood events of recent years. Just a couple of months later, after a prolonged period of dry weather, records were broken at the other end of the hydrological spectrum. In the latest in a briefing note, this caused widespread and sustained flooding in many parts of the country.An exceptionally dry spring so far?March is often a 'transitional' spring month but the contrast between the UK Water Resources Portal. Figure right: April monthly mean river flows for the UK. Fr...
Tagged under: Extreme Weather | Extreme Rainfall | Drought | Predictions | Flooding | Rivers | Sea Level | Health | Water Resources
History’s Largest Mining Operation Is About to Begin
2020-03-09 (or before) by in The AtlanticIt’s underwater—and the consequences are unimaginable.
Tagged under: Oceans | Minerals | Papua New Guinea | Fossil Fuels | Namibia | Water Resources | India
Water Conflict - World's Water
2019-12-31 (or before) in World WaterIn an ongoing effort to understand the connections between water resources, water systems, and international security and conflict, the Pacific Institute initiated a project in the late 1980s to track and categorize events related to water and conflict, which has been continuously updated since. The database, updated in January 2019, presents the information as a chronology and map. Use the links below to explore the chronological list of events or the interactive events map.
Tagged under: Conflict | Water Resources
Device could bring both solar power and clean water to millions
2019-07-09 in The GuardianResearchers say one invention could solve two problems for people lacking basic resources
Tagged under: Renewable Energy | Solar Energy | Health | Water Resources
World Resources Institute | Making Big Ideas Happen
2018-12-11 (or before) in World Resources InstituteA global research nonprofit working on six critical goals that the world must achieve this decade in order to secure a sustainable future: climate, energy, food, forests, water, cities & transport.
Tagged under: Trees | Water Resources | Sustainable Cities
Water shortages may make fracking impractical, industry says
2013-11-27 in The GuardianQuantities required for the fracking process may make it problematic in areas of the UK where resources are scarce
Tagged under: Fracking | Fossil Fuels | Water Resources
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