The Stream, March 6: More Than 1 Million Syrian Refugees

There are now more than 1 million Syrians either registered as refugees or being assisted as refugees, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency. The scale of the refugee crisis is putting increasing pressure on the housing, food and water resources of host countries and camps, and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees described Syria as “spiraling towards full-scale disaster.”

In Ecuador, oil prospecting is becoming an increasingly contentious issue in remote areas of the Amazon, where some residents welcome the economic benefits of exploration and others fear environmental damage, the Guardian reported.

Morocco’s plans to boost energy production from wind and solar could cut the country’s annual fossil fuel imports by the equivalent of 2.5 million metric tons of oil, Reuters reported. While individual solar projects are not expected to have a large impact on water resources, a large industry could add a strain on water supplies in arid areas of the country.

This article posted on the Guardian‘s Environment Blog warns that food riots could become “the new normal” as food prices remain at a high level, and food supplies become more vulnerable to severe droughts and floods.

Researchers in Texas will begin to study water quality issues in Baffin Bay near Corpus Christi after finding evidence that some fish, including commercially harvested black drum, could be starving, according to the Corpus Christi Caller Times. Changes in salinity, algal blooms, and agricultural and terrestrial runoff, will be examined.

The Stream is a daily digest spotting global water trends. To get more water news, follow Circle of Blue on Twitter and sign up for our newsletter.

Codi Kozacek

A news correspondent for Circle of Blue based out of Hawaii. She writes The Stream, Circle of Blue’s daily digest of international water news trends. Her interests include food security, ecology and the Great Lakes.
Contact Codi Kozacek