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Water, Energy, Food Rising demand for trains and trucks to transport materials for the booming U.S. oil and gas industry is pushing more shipments of grain onto the nation’s river barges, Reuters reported. Record corn and soybean crops this fall are expected to further strain the river transport network, which is already under stress from […]
Water Shortages Water levels in the primary reservoirs that supply Sao Paulo, Brazil’s largest city, have reached just 7.6 percent of capacity—worse than before the city’s utility tapped the “dead” water volume at the bottom of the reservoirs in May, Bloomberg News reported. The city is now turning to the very last level of water […]
Pollution Emissions of pollutants in China’s waterways, including nitrogen and organic pollutants, have already declined by slightly more than the 2 percent goal set by the government in 2014, Reuters reported, citing government officials. China is also considering an additional $US 326 billion plan to clean up wastewater and restore its lakes and rivers. Drought […]
Pollution The Buenavista copper mine in northern Mexico has spilled toxic waste into the Sonora River basin for the second time in two months, prompting the government to warn nearby residents not to use the water, the Associated Press reported. The mine is already facing a cost of $US 151 million to clean up a […]
The potential for violence, conflict, and government upheaval arising from natural resource scarcity and a warming planet continues to catch the eye of America’s top spooks. “Competition for scarce resources, such as food, water, or energy, will likely increase tensions within and between states and could lead to more localized or regional conflicts, or exacerbate […]
Better plans and more data are needed to guide response. Photo © Heather Rousseau / Circle of Blue Natural gas wells dot the landscape in Garfield County, in northwest Colorado. Energy is the theme of the first of four drought meetings this fall hosted by the Western Governors’ Association, a forum for state leaders. Click […]
Water Supply As water supplies continue to decline in Tehran, Iran is spending $US 11 million to complete a new water treatment plant and mulling a plan to import water from Tajikistan, Bloomberg News reported. Officials are also considering stricter measures to get residents to reduce water consumption, which is much higher in the capital […]
Water Scarcity Shortages of water are hurting production at two major oil fields in southern Iraq, with one field citing water as a reason its output has declined 40 percent since last year, Reuters reported. Water scarcity in general threatens Iraq’s plans to grow its oil production capacity, which may rely on pumping seawater to […]
Mining An international World Bank tribunal in Washington D.C. is hearing final arguments this week in a court case between El Salvador and Australian mining company OceanaGold, which is suing the country for not permitting a gold mine that El Salvador says will pollute waterways, Inter Press Service reported. OceanaGold is asking for more than […]
Pharmacies, hospitals, and distributors are now authorized to collect narcotics, opiates, and other “controlled” drugs. Image courtesy of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency Volunteers display two jars full of medications collected a May 2011 U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration take-back event in Arizona. New rules allow pharmacies and hospitals to accept controlled substances for safe disposal. […]
More than five years ago, a state and federal task force charged with developing a strategy for shrinking the low-oxygen dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico called on the 12 member states to produce plans by the end of 2013 for addressing the root cause: too much fertilizer flowing from farm fields into rivers; […]
Water Supply An ongoing, severe drought in Brazil’s Sao Paulo state has prompted rationing for 2 million people in 18 cities and threatens the water supplies of 20 million people, Bloomberg News reported. Nonetheless, elected officials–many up for reelection this fall–are playing down the water crisis. North America’s “water tower”–the Rocky Mountains–is increasingly drying out […]
