GreenWatch

B. McPherson Indus River water for a parched Pakistan We live on a water rich planet. Most of the Earth is covered in oceans, some water is locked into ice, some hidden deep underground. Only about 2% of the world’s water is available and useable to humanity. As the climate changes, weather patterns also change. Some areas will receive more water than before and others, less. Currently the monsoon rains are refilling reservoirs in SE Asia.  The rains are filling to the brim the second largest dam in India. Located in the Punjab area, the dam is currently holding back 1647.87 feet of water(ref: Times of India ). Authorities are watching the situation carefully as this is the most water held to date. Currently authorities plan to empty the spillways if it reaches 1650 feet. When the monsoons deliver their water to the Indian sub-continent, people scramble to make the most of the bounty. Reservoirs are filled, irrigation is assured and the earth springs up green from ...

B. McPherson Water, the Blue Gold, will become the next global flashpoint. Texas is confronting New Mexico in the Supreme Court over water. Texas and much of the US interior has been struggling with multi year drought conditions and the lack of water is reaching a crisis point. Texas is maintaining that New Mexico is pumping water out of the ground at a rate that impinges on Texas’s supply and violates treaties agreed to. New Mexico for its part is maintaining that the most recent treaty was forced on them and they need the water for their purposes. This spat between states is a microcosm of what is happening around the world where potable water is concerned. While North America is engaged in a rush to extract oil and gas resources, and endangering the water supplies by pumping toxic chemicals under pressure into the ground(fracking), the country famed for its massive pool of oil Saudi Arabia, is rapidly running out of water. That kingdom has supplied petroleu...

B. McPherson People are gradually waking up to the fact that the most precious resource we have is water. Without it life as we know it would not exist. Along with that realization is the knowledge that water is a finite resource. Many of the world’s people do not have access to clean abundant water. Here on the west coast of Canada many refer jokingly to the ‘wet coast’ because of the teeming rainfall in winter. Few realize that much of the east coast of Vancouver Island has a true Mediterranean climate with sparse rainfall in the summer months. As the world’s climate changes there is increasing uncertainty in the reliability of the rainfall or that the snow pack on the mountains will be sufficient to supply ample water to the people and the environment. The City of Nanaimo is a small, sprawling town that looks to expand its population. Currently there is enough water to supply about 100 000 people and their households. Aging infrastructure and expanding population ar...

By B. McPherson Survival International is highlighting the plight of the native people of the Omo Valley in Ethiopia. The Omo River is in the process of being dammed. The dam, Gibe III, of questionable legality, is being built in conjunction with an Italian firm. When it is complete, it will hold back the lifeline to as many as 100 000 people and prevent the annual flood which renews the cropland. When this mega project is completed, there will be a series of five dams along the Omo River, changing it forever. The series of dams will generate large amounts of electricity, with enough surplus to export energy to neighbouring Kenya, Sudan and Somalia. The expected sale of the electricity when the dam is operational is expected to bring in over $4 million in foreign money each year to the Ethiopian economy. In addition to the people who will be displaced by the flooding of the land behind the dam, a further 200 000 are expected to have their already harsh lives made more difficult by the...