Water-another global 'crisis?'

Water-Another Global "Crisis?"


If you look at the numbers, it is hard to see how many East African communities made it through the long drought of 2005 and 2006.

Among people who study human development, it is a widely-held view that each person needs about 20 litres of water each day for the basics - to drink, cook and wash sufficiently to avoid disease transmission.

Yet at the height of the East African drought, people were getting by on less than five litres a day - in some cases, less than one litre a day, enough for just three glasses of drinking water and nothing left over.

Some people, perhaps incredibly from a western vantage point, are hardy enough to survive in these conditions; but it is not a recipe for a society that is healthy and developing enough to break out of poverty.

"Obviously there are many drivers of human development," says the UN's Andrew Hudson.
"But water is the most important."

At the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), where Dr Hudson works as principal technical advisor to the water governance programme, he calculated the contribution that various factors make to the Human Development Index, a measure of how societies are doing socially and economically.

"It was striking. I looked at access to energy, spending on health, spending on education - and by far the strongest driver of the HDI on a global scale was access to water and sanitation."
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Yes, access to water and sanitation is the strongest driver of human development yet it is the one issue still put on the backburner in consciousness. Even in President Obama's 'stimulus' bill water, access to it, pollution of it, and fixing its infrastructure have been given little attention at a time when it is paramount not only in relation to climate change and envionment, but also to health and economy as the entire Southwest United States is in an unprecedented drought that threatens food and water security. It is frustrating to know the implications of apathy and see it practiced by those who have the power to change it.

For the past few years I have done much reading, research, writing, blogging and hopefully spreading of awareness of this important crisis that faces our world. As humans we have done a good job of betraying our own future. We have constantly and consistently taken those things of little significance and given them top billing over what sustains us, and we are now paying the price for it.

There really are days when I am then at a loss for words in trying to relay the importance of changing those priorities.

Russia and Central Asian Water

Russia And Central Asian Water

Excerpt
by John C.K. Daly

An integral element of the new Eurasian "great game" between Russia and the United States is a tussle for control of the Caspian's hydrocarbon riches and those of former Soviet republics farther east. But Russia is making a diplomatic play on another key resource -- water.

Russian and foreign energy consortia remain largely focused on the region's rich oil and natural gas reserves. Within the "Stans" -- former Soviet republics Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan -- an added element in the matrix is water, used by Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan largely to generate hydroelectric power, while the downstream states of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan view it as a resource for supporting agriculture rather than an energy source.

In the 17 years since the Soviet Union collapsed, the Central Asian nations emerging from the debris have yet to resolve the issue of an equitable distribution of the arid region's most precious resource. The most significant amounts of oil and gas are found in the westerly "Stans" of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan; the region's aquatic reserves are largely under the control of the most easterly (and poor) mountainous states, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, which between them account for more than 85 percent of the region's groundwater reserves, primarily in the form of alpine glacial runoff that feeds the region's two largest rivers, the Syr Darya and Amu Darya.

Earlier this week Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, during a state visit to Uzbekistan, weighed in on the issue, telling journalists: "The construction of hydropower stations in Central Asia should meet the interests of all neighboring countries and should correspond to international rights' norms of transboundary rivers' usage. It is impossible to act in isolation. It can cause tensions which can only be solved not by economic but by political means. ...

"Hydroelectric power stations in the Central Asian region must be built with consideration of the interests of all neighboring states," he said, adding, "If there is no common accord of all parties, Russia will refrain from participation in such projects."

Medvedev's comments delighted his hosts, who have argued that if Tajikistan proceeds with constructing its planned Rogun hydroelectric cascade, which would be Central Asia's largest, it would severely impact the water needs of downstream states. Uzbek President Islam Karimov stated: "I would like to especially speak on one issue. Uzbekistan counts on Russia's well thought-out and considered position on issues relating to the implementation of hydropower projects in the Central Asian region."

Sayfullo Safarov, deputy director of Tajikistan's Center for Strategic Studies, opined that Medvedev's statement "regarding the region's water question is most likely a diplomatic dodge of this problem," adding that while Moscow is interested in normal relations with all Central Asian nations, the water issue remains today the "most painful" unresolved issue in fostering the relations.

Building Rogun is beyond Dushanbe's capabilities; the government was forced to announce a tender for participation in the project, because the cost of the work was appraised at $5 billion to $6 billion.

Medvedev's statements caused Tajikistan to deliver a diplomatic protest, fearing that Moscow was favoring Tashkent's position over its own. There are, however, alternatives to gigantic Soviet-legacy projects like Rogun, first begun in 1976, such as smaller, more numerous hydroelectric facilities that would alleviate many of the downstream nations' concerns and have been advocated by Western specialists with such institutions as the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and the Asian Development Bank.

The equitable division of these waters remains at the heart of the contentions, with the downstream agrarian states both seeking regular water discharges for irrigation while maintaining that water is not a resource for which they should be charged. In turn, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan maintain that if fiscal or energy assistance is not received to tide them over through the bitter winter months, they will release the water during the autumn and winter to generate electricity as they have no other power options, whatever the agrarian concerns of their downstream neighbors.

It is not as if the Stans have not attempted to grapple with the issue. In 1992 the five countries established the Interstate Coordinating Water Commission to formulate a regional solution to the problem, but despite more than 50 meetings during the last 16 years, little of note has been accomplished, leaving each country to pursue its own interests or bilateral relations.

end of excerpt:

To me it does not seem feasible for Central Asia to now be pursuing hydoelectric projects (dams) in light of the persistant and pervasively severe drought that has been affecting water resources and agriculture in this area of the world for several years already:

Central Asia Drought

Also, with population movement in recent years due to these conditions there are more people living in landlocked areas with less arable land who depend on that land for food. This is also the area of the Syr Darya and Anu Darya Rivers which are fed by glaciers that are now receding due to climate change.

I believe in the future it will become harder for countries to come together to work out plans for hydroelectric power in regions such as this when food is scarce due to lack of water resources. This is why I am such a big proponent of solar energy. It would surely solve their water management problems in this region. At least in regards to having more to use for agricultural purposes. I also notice that in these articles when leaders of countries speak on this they rarely mention conservation, more efficient irrigation methods, and switching to different crops to be grown to save water. Cotton is a popular crop grown in this region, but it is also very water intensive.

With a humanitarian crisis already affecting millions in this area due to the depletion of the Aral Sea for agriculture years ago, I would hope people in this region would learn from the mistakes of the past.

From a strategic standpoint it also now makes perfect sense as to why the Russian president has now volunteered to "help" America in Afghanistan. It takes water to extract natural gas. Water surely will be and is fast becoming the new oil.

World's Glaciers Shrink In Alps, Andes for 18th year

World's Glaciers Shrink for 18th Year in Alps, Andes

Excerpt:

Glaciers from the Andes to Alaska and across the Alps shrank as much as 3 meters (10 feet), the 18th year of retreat and twice as fast as a decade ago, as global warming threatens an important supply of the world’s water.

Alpine glaciers lost on average 0.7 meters of thickness in 2007, the most recent figures available, data published today by the University of Zurich’s World Glacier Monitoring Service showed. The melting extends an 11-meter retreat since 1980.

“One year doesn’t tell us much, it’s really these long-term trends that help us to understand what’s going on,” Michael Zemp, a researcher at the University of Zurich’s Department of Geography, said in an interview. “The main thing that we can do to stop this is reduce greenhouse gases” that are blamed for global warming.

The Alps have suffered more than other regions with half of the region’s glacier terrain having disappeared since the 1850s, Zemp said. Almost 90 percent of the glaciers in the Alps are smaller than 1 square kilometer (0.4 square mile) and some are as thin as 30 meters, he said.

snip

Some glaciers in the Alps, including Italy’s Calderone, have shrunk so much it’s becoming difficult to take accurate measurements, Zemp said. Such ice has not recovered from the 2003 European summer heat wave that melted the snow, revealing darker ice underneath which heats up faster than whiter surfaces.

The global average temperature has risen 0.76 degrees Celsius (1.4 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times as humans used more fossil fuels to generate energy and power machinery, according to the UN’s Environment Program.

Ice melt is even speeding in Greenland. In 2007, U.S. scientists discovered that water from melting glaciers, draining from a 5.6 square-kilometer lake on Greenland’s ice sheet, reached a peak flow exceeding that of Niagara Falls.

There are gaps in data for many glaciers in the Himalayas, Zemp added. Central Asia has been highlighted by the UN’s Environment Program as being most at risk from melting glaciers as China and India, home to a third of the world’s population, depend on summer melted water from mountain ice to feed rivers.

India’s Chhota Shigri and Hamtah glaciers both lost about 1.4 meters of thickness in 2006 with no new data available for 2007, according to today’s report.

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What will we do when the well runs dry?

Who will we blame?

We were warned.

The case of Gaza: water scarcity and conflict

Environmental Scarcity And Violent Conflict


This case study is a few years old but unfortunately it is still relevant in regards to the current socio-economic and political conflict we see playing out in this region. The Middle East is traditionally a water scarce area with the Palestinian people in Gaza sharing the brunt of that scarcity. This is due to pollution, agriculture, overpopulation, and salinity of the the limited water supply due to seawater encroachments and other chemicals into the Mediterranean Coastal Acquifer and other water sources up the Mediterranean coast. It is also due to the inequitable distribution of this resource by the Israeli government in this area, which I believe is one of the catalysts for this ongoing conflict.

In all of the back and forth rancor of both sides regarding this it appears that this socio-economic and humanitarian reason has been overlooked. What the people of Gaza need is WATER. Water they can use to farm again. Water to sustain their lives and those of their children. This is why I believe that in order to see any kind of peace in this region Palestinians and Israelis along with other countries in this region (Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan) must come to an agreement to truly share the limited water resources of this area equitably, especially in light of the effects of climate change (drought) added to this mix. Look at any area of the world in any country that is water deprived for any long period of time and you will see war. You will see terrorism. You will see protest.

I do not think it is as simple or black and white to see this only as a battle against Islamic extremism. It would be naive to think that Israel and other countries in this region do not know how precious water is and will be in the coming years. It is even more precious than oil. This then goes beyond the politics and religion of it to the humanitarian core of who we are and our ability to see people as human beings despite our differences. And where water is concerned that is imperative.

Water is a complex issue here and one I actually believed could bring peace to this region as it has traditionally brought people together in a common cause rather than tearing them apart. However, in this case water appears to be the precipitator of conflict as the Palestinians need it and the Israelis want it as they look to a growing population as well. The Gaza Strip and the West Bank both lie on two of the largest acquifers in this region, so again, that does not bode well for peace with parties unwilling to see water as a human right beyond just a commodity.

I will be posting more information on water scarcity in Gaza/Israel and this region as I come upon it. I wanted to address this because to me this is important in understanding some of the root causes for conflict in this region. And to also state that without water, food, land, or freedom, you could blow every member of Hamas off the face of the Earth and terrorism will remain. It is the root causes that we must address now in order to have any chance of salvaging any sort of peaceful existence for the people of Gaza and Israel.
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From the link:

"In August of 1993, Israel did indeed "off-load" Gaza, ceding partial power to a Palestinian administration. Amid much ceremony on the White House lawn, Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) chairman Yasir Arafat shared a reluctant handshake as U.S. president Bill Clinton bid them "shalom, salaam, peace." However, the transition to Palestinian self-government in Gaza has proved anything but peaceful. As of mid-1995, Israeli security forces continued to clash with Palestinians on the edges of the autonomous areas; within Gaza, confrontations between the new Palestinian administration and its Islamic opposition have sometimes turned violent; and Islamic militants have launched suicide bomb attacks against Israeli targets in an attempt to derail the peace talks. In the two years since the "Gaza-Jericho first" accord, hundreds have been killed in continuing violence.3

The Western media usually explain this conflict as a result of the spread of fanatical Islamic fundamentalism in the Territories. Yet this focus often distorts rather than clarifies the roots of violence, by giving insufficient consideration to underlying political, economic, and ecological conditions.

In the case of Gaza, years of occupation and resistance have interacted with severe resource scarcities to produce a dismal socio-economic environment, which has raised the probability of seemingly "irrational" violence. Where opportunities for peaceful expression of deep grievances appear inadequate and living conditions are desperately poor, violent self-sacrifice may take on its own peculiar logic. As Mustafa al-Masri, a psychiatrist at Gaza's only community mental health program, says: "In the hopelessness and helplessness of this world, there is the bright promise of the next life."4

While the links between environmental scarcity and conflict in Gaza are complex, it is clear that over the years water scarcity has worsened socioeconomic conditions. These conditions, in turn, have contributed to the grievances behind ongoing violence against Israel and tensions among Palestinians in Gaza. To describe this relationship, we provide an overview of Gaza's recent political history and then analyze the current state of water scarcity and its impact on economic and political stability.

We must note, however, that our analysis has been hindered by a critical shortage of good data.5 Any information on water is politically sensitive. No figure on population, water supply, or consumption stands uncontested. The situation is further complicated by the fact that resources and population in Gaza are administered by several authorities, including the UN Relief Works Agency (UNRWA), the Israeli military government, and the Palestinian Authority (PA). The PA took over the administration of Gaza's agricultural water supply in May 1994. The Gaza Agricultural Department, while staffed with experienced Palestinian water professionals, had been deprived of resources, staff, equipment, and training throughout the occupation.6 The lack of sufficient institutions for water management under the PA further limits the availability of accurate data. Despite data problems, however, few deny that the water situation in Gaza is now desperate."

Lesotho Dam Project: Taking From the Poor To Benefit The Rich?

Africas biggest water project to enter second phase

South Africa has approved the second phase of a multi-billion dollar water project in landlocked Lesotho to ensure a secure future water supply in its industrial hub, the water minister said Thursday.

The Lesotho Highlands Water Project, one of the world's largest infrastructure projects under construction, is an intricate network of tunnels and dams diverting water from Lesotho's mountains to South Africa.

"This project ... will at a projected cost of 7.3 billion rand (710 million US dollars/560 million euros) include construction of the Polihali Dam in Lesotho," Water Minister Lindiwe Hendricks told journalists in Cape Town.

Hendricks said the project was a strategic intervention to ensure the water security of the country's richest province Gauteng, which is expected to increase its water requirements by more than 30 percent in the next 20 years.

The project would augment the Vaal River System, which supplies water to 60 percent of the country's economy. According to Hendricks the second phase of the project was chosen as an augmentation method as water could be transferred to South Africa under gravity without pumping, and was the least energy intensive option.

The first phases of the project which was first conceived in 1954, included phase 1A, which began in 1984 and began delivering water in 1998, and phase 1B which began in 1998 and was inaugurated in 2004.

While the project delivered kilometres of tarred roads and power lines and provided thousands of jobs in the largely rural tiny mountain kingdom, it came under fire from civic groups for displacing up to 20,000 people.

Critics argued the project changed once remote mountain communities by introducing AIDS, alcoholism and prostitution, and caused the loss of farming and grazing land.

The project also resulted in convictions of some of the world's largest engineering firms, after massive corruption was uncovered in 1999. More than 12 multinational firms and consortiums were found to have bribed the chief executive of the project, who is currently serving a 12-year prison sentence.
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Dams are just another way to commoditize water and displace the poor while bringing pollution and environmental devastation. In the case of the Polihali Dam that is part of the Lesotho project, about 20,000 people have been displaced from their homes after their land was submerged to make way for the dams. If you read the article it claims the reason for this is to "ensure the water security of the country's richest province Gauteng." So in order to supply water to the "richest" province where obviously conservation is not required nor dealing with overpopulation, they take it from the poor in Lesotho by diverting water from their mountain homes. And then on top of this, blame farmers for taking the water and wasting it? Perhaps if these poor farmers had the tools necessary to irrigate crops in ways that would conserve water (drip irrigation) they could share it.

I never understood what gave any government the right to think it could simply take water from the poor simply to send it down to the richest area that will get richer off of selling it. It seems to me for the money they will spend building this dam it could have gone to better use in conservation education and effective irrigation instead of kickbacks and bribes. This seems to be a common tale in the world of dam building and it is a tale that has also led to the destruction of beautiful places in our world and the lives of those that were abruptly and in many instances unfairly changed by those with greed as their true motive.

Will this be the fate of our world landscape? Monstrous dams and desalination plants dotting the beautiful landscapes all because humans do not have the moral will to conserve water with governments looking to make profit from it? And of course, who suffers most from this? The poor.

Lesotho: Tales Of Resettlement

International Portal Of Corruption In Africa

State Dept. page on Lesotho

Look at this excerpt from the State Dept's own website and the use of the word "exploited" to describe its selling of water to South Africa. Lesotho is owned lock, stock, and barrel now by the World Bank: Exploitation indeed.

"Lesotho's economy is based on water and electricity sold to South Africa, manufacturing, earnings from the Southern African Customs Union (SACU), agriculture, livestock, and to some extent earnings of laborers employed in South Africa. Lesotho also exports diamonds, wool, and mohair. Lesotho is geographically surrounded by South Africa and economically integrated with it as well. The majority of households subsist on farming or migrant labor. The western lowlands form the main agricultural zone. Almost 50% of the population earns some income through crop cultivation or animal husbandry, with over half the country's income coming from the agricultural sector.

Water is Lesotho's only significant natural resource. It is being exploited through the 30-year, multi-billion-dollar Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP), which was initiated in 1986. The LHWP is designed to capture, store, and transfer water from the Orange River system and send it to South Africa's Free State and greater Johannesburg area, which features a large concentration of South African industry, population, and agriculture. Completion of the first phase of the project has made Lesotho almost completely self-sufficient in the production of electricity and generated approximately $24 million annually from the sale of electricity and water to South Africa. The World Bank, African Development Bank, European Investment Bank, and many other bilateral donors financed the project. Lesotho has taken advantage of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) to become the largest exporter of garments to the U.S. from sub-Saharan Africa. Exports totaled $437 million in 2007. Employment reached 40,000. Asian investors own most factories.

Holding Corporate Water Accountable

Holding Corporate Water Accountable


Great to see this happening in America. We need to see more of it in the coming year to hold corporations like Coca Cola, Nestle Water, Pepsico, and other corporate water companies accountable for their contribution to water waste, climate change, pollution, water scarcity, and poverty in this world along with their attempts to commoditize a human right. And imagine, Coca Cola comes up with the PR term "water neutral" to try to repair their image. What is it with these companies? Clean coal, water neutral, light cigarettes. Do they really think we are all that naive?



Coca Cola In India. Nothing less than criminal.

African ministers say share water to combat hunger

African ministers say share water to combat hunger

'African states lack the resources to deal alone with climate change and must share water better to feed growing populations, government ministers said at a water conference in Libya on Wednesday.

The world's poorest continent has failed to feed a fast-growing population due to under-investment, bad farm management and more frequent droughts and floods, leaving it hooked on food imports.

The cost of those imports soared to $49.4 billion in 2008 from $10.5 billion in 2005 as world prices jumped, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

That has put a massive strain on state budgets in countries that subsidize imports to make them more affordable.

Of 36 countries grappling with food crises, 21 are in Africa and the World Food Program estimates that nearly a sixth of the world's population -- almost 1 billion people -- are hungry.

African officials meeting over three days in the Libyan city of Sirte said governments should redouble a 2003 promise to commit 10 percent of national budgets to boosting farm output, according to their final declaration.

With droughts and flash flooding increasingly common, they called for more modern irrigation systems that store water and channel it where and when it is needed.

They agreed to seal more region-wide deals to share the water stored in rivers, lakes and underground.

Cooperation would be strengthened on weather forecasting and early warning systems to minimize the impact of drought, desertification, floods and pests.

"Together we must find concrete and effective measures to address the issues of water in Africa, in a spirit of shared responsibility," Jacques Diouf, Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, told delegates.

The ministers also decided to establish continent-wide information systems to better coordinate farm output and make commodity trade more efficient.

The skills and the resources to make Africa self-sufficient exist if only governments would cooperate on managing their water, delegates said.'
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And not only to combat hunger, but to combat war. This is the most crucial environmental crisis facing Africa right now: water scarcity. It is such because it is bringing with it hunger, famine, malnutrition, drought, disease, and war. A scarcity of water combined with a scarcity of education and opportunity to help the people of Africa become self sufficient is at the crux of the wars they face as well. However, so many countries in Africa are being run by corruption in order to take their resources as in the case of Sudan, that it is hard to now comprehend a pact that will allow the people the self determination they need to survive.

In my view there is also too much interference from government agencies such as the World Bank and WTO that prevent access to food and keep prices high thus perpetuating the poverty of countries in Africa that rely solely on imports of food, much of it now genetically modified in an attempt to force this technology on farmers for profit.

There is no reason why farmers in Africa cannot have access to natural seeds that will grow their own food naturally for them to stimulate the economies of their countries, save for a concerted effort by world organizations and governments to control the production and access to food and water for profit. And this I fear will become more prevalent due to climate change as we are seeing glaciers in Africa melting as well at a more rapid pace than predicted, which also puts water resources for many in jeopardy.

To come to an amicable agreement among African states to share water for agricultual purposes in an efficient way (drip irrigation particularly) is definitely a step in the right direction. The fulfillment of that goal however, is what is unclear at the moment as we see so much of Africa in the throse of turmoil, war, and corruption. Water is the key to their sustainability and must be made accessible to the poor without cost in order to allow them to be able to feed themselves and live with dignity. Water can combat hunger, war, disease, and hopelessness. It must be the lynchpin to any plan to lift Africa into a sustainable future.