The Stream, November 5: Saudi Arabia Will Import All of Its Wheat to Save Water

The Global Rundown

Saudi Arabia announced plans to import all of its wheat next year, completing a transition from domestic farms that were drawing down water supplies. South Africa said it will declare two more provinces as disaster areas due to a severe drought, and officials in Gaza blamed Egypt’s tunnel-flooding efforts for contaminating groundwater. The Arctic Ocean will remain devoid of sea ice for 60 days more each year by midcentury, scientists found. The U.S. Senate voted to approve a measure blocking the implementation of the new clean water rule.

“We respect our neighbours, we love Egypt, but our neighbours are making our life harder.”–Mahmoud Bakeer, a resident of Gaza, on Egypt’s operations to flood Palestinian tunnels that it says are used for smuggling weapons. Palestinian officials say that the flooding is contaminating underground water supplies. (Reuters)

By The Numbers

2 provinces Additional number to be declared disaster areas due to a drought in South Africa that is disrupting crop planting and forcing water restrictions in some cities. Reuters

53-44 U.S. Senate vote to approve a resolution to prevent the implementation of the Environmental Protection Agency’s new clean water rule. A bill to force the EPA to rewrite the rule was defeated on Tuesday. The Hill

Science, Studies, And Reports

The number of days that water in the Arctic Ocean will remain open and devoid of sea-ice will increase significantly by the middle of the century, according to a study published in the journal Nature Climate Change. Depending on the area, open water could persist for between 60 and 100 days longer than it currently does. Scientific American

On The Radar

Saudi Arabia plans to import all of its wheat next year as domestic farms stop growing the crop to conserve water. Estimates place the country’s 2016 imports at 3.5 million metric tons, ten times the amount it imported in 2008. Bloomberg

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