The Stream, February 9, 2021: Himalayan Landslide Wreaks Havoc In Northern India

YOUR GLOBAL RUNDOWN

• A massive landslide in India causes flash floods throughout Uttarakhand state.
• A federal court orders a Flint attorney to stop spreading misinformation about a proposed settlement of Flint water crisis civil lawsuits.
• Nevada’s water authority could invest millions in a water-recycling program to receive a share of California’s Colorado River water.
• Sudanese officials warn that a controversial dam in Ethiopia is a national security risk for their country.

A new study of glacial floods in Peru is being used as evidence in a climate lawsuit.

“The ongoing and frightening, deadly flood risk is indeed a consequence of human influence on the climate.” – University of Oxford climate researcher Rupert Stuart-Smith. Inside Climate News reports that a new study is being used as evidence in a climate lawsuit in a regional court in Germany. The study found a direct link between global warming and the growing risk of flooding in Huaraz, a mountain city in Peru. The lawsuit was filed by a Huaraz resident against the German energy giant RWE, asking the company to pay around $20,000 for better flood protection for the city. The study, published in Nature Geoscience, concluded with 99-percent confidence that human-caused warming is increasing the threat of floods that could trigger mass evacuation in the city and wash away residents’ livelihoods.

IN RECENT WATER NEWS

In Case You Missed It:

HotSpots H2O: Amid Water Crisis, Recent Storms Provide Some Relief to Istanbul – Recent storms provided relief to drought-stricken Istanbul and surrounding areas, leaving parched reservoirs in better shape than in mid-January, when water levels fell dangerously low.

What’s Up With Water – February 8, 2021 – This week’s episode covers a rejected plan to expand two coal mines in New South Wales, a new national budget in India that includes a large boost for water infrastructure and activists in northern Minnesota who are opposing the replacement of Enbridge’s Line 3 oil pipeline.

Landslide Causes Flash Flood In India

A mountain landslide that released a rock and ice avalanche in the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand destroyed two dams and caused massive, sudden flooding throughout the region. Monday evening, CNN reported that 26 bodies have been recovered and at least 171 people have been reported missing. Based on analysis of satellite imagery, the disaster appears to have been triggered by the sudden fracture of a mountain flank high in the Himalaya.

In context: Himalayan Meltdown

TODAY’S TOP WATER STORIES, TOLD IN NUMBERS

200+ FLINT RESIDENTS 

A federal court judge ordered attorney Loyst Fletcher Jr. to stop sharing “incorrect, misleading or improper” information with local residents about the proposed $641 million settlement of Flint water crisis civil lawsuits, MLive reports. Fletcher sent information about the settlement to more than 200 residents, including a form letter they could mail to U.S. District Court Judge Judith Levy that contained “multiple inaccurate statements” about the settlement agreement.

$750 MILLION

The Southern Nevada Water Authority might invest up to $750 million in a water treatment project that could result in Nevada getting some of California’s share of Colorado River water. Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that the project would take highly treated wastewater in the Los Angeles area and inject it into aquifers, making the water available for use again. By funding the project in Southern California, the Southern Nevada Water Authority expects to receive an additional 20,000 to 30,000 acre-feet of Colorado River water per year.

ON THE RADAR

Al Jazeera reports on the continuing dam dispute in the Nile basin. Sudan said that Ethiopia filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam reservoir would threaten its national security. The statement from Sudan’s Irrigation and Water Minister Yasser Abbas comes amid increased tensions between Ethiopia and Sudan following skirmishes along the Al-Fashaqa border region, where Ethiopian farmers cultivate land claimed by Sudan. Ethiopia did not immediately react to the statement, but it began filling the reservoir last summer despite objections from Egypt and Sudan.

In context: HotSpots H2O: Tensions Rise in Horn of Africa as Ethiopia Fills Controversial Dam

Jane Johnston

Jane is a Communications Associate for Circle of Blue. She writes The Stream and has covered domestic and international water issues for Circle of Blue. She is a recent graduate of Grand Valley State University, where she studied Multimedia Journalism and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. During her time at Grand Valley, she was the host of the Community Service Learning Center podcast Be the Change. Currently based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Jane enjoys listening to music, reading and spending time outdoors.