Monthly Archive for October, 2011

How the Global 1% Shape the World’s Development Agenda

Published on 10/31/2011 in dams, displacement of people, hydropower, peak water, policy, privatization, rivers and water wars. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

G20 party. Retrieved from: www.internationalrivers.org

“The infrastructure sector is a key example for the G20’s powerful role behind the scenes. The group has commissioned a high-level panel of experts to prepare recommendations on future infrastructure investment in Southern countries. This panel brings together 17 leading representatives of large corporations, banks and government agencies. Civil society groups and trade unions are absent from its roster. The panel has just submitted its recommendations to the G20’s heads of state, who will convene for their annual meeting in Cannes/France next week. The new report illustrates what is wrong with delegating extensive powers to an exclusive body like the G20:

  • Public interest ignored: In its early announcements, the high-level panel narrowly focused on the promotion of economic growth, at the exclusion of poverty reduction, environmental protection, and human rights. In its new report, the panel will recommend six criteria according to which the World Bank and other funders should prioritize their future projects. As the Boell Foundation reports, these criteria include issues such as regional integration and attractiveness for the private sector. They are silent on poverty reduction, protection of the environment and even climate change.
  • Big is beautiful: The high-level panel was asked to identify a number of projects which exemplify the new approach to infrastructure development. Early on, this list included a transmission line between Ethiopia and Kenya and the Inga hydropower scheme on the Congo River. The transmission line will depend on the completion of the controversial Gibe III Dam on the Omo River, which violates numerous international agreements and will impoverish up to 500,000 indigenous people. The Inga dams will cost billions of dollars and will generate electricity for aluminum smelters and far-away urban centers, but will ignore the needs of Africa’s rural poor. The first two stages of the hydropower scheme have turned out to be white elephants and monuments of corruption. Scientists have warnedthat the proposed new dams may have “truly alarming” impacts on the capacity of the Atlantic Ocean to absorb greenhouse gases from the atmosphere.”

Read more: International Rivers

 

lily victoria

Historic Dam Removal

Published on 10/31/2011 in aquatic ecosystems, dam removal, dams, rivers and solutions and outreach. 0 Comments Tags: , .

Elwha Dam. Retrieved from: www.nationalgeographic.com

“For 98 years, the 125-foot high Condit Dam in southeastern Washington State held back the White Salmon River, creating a serene lake, but choking off the waterway to salmon. Wednesday, in an historic effort, the dam was dramatically breached, and ecologists hope the increased flow of water will restore the waterway to fish and other aquatic organisms, as well as the birds and mammals that rely on them.

The dam removal comes just weeks after dismantling began on the Elwha Dama few hours to the north. Demolition of the Condit occured with a bang, compared to the virtual whimper of the Elwha. At that site, downstream from Olympic National Park, engineers are dismantling the two dams slowly, in a process that’s expected to take three years. They say a quicker removal would endanger the area due to the higher amount of silt in the lake.

Silt is still readily apparent in the dramatic video above, both in the darkly colored water rushing from underneath the conrete and in the fast-emptying lake.”

Read more: National Geographic

 

lily victoria

Drought’s Economic Impact Spreading Across Texas

Published on 10/29/2011 in drought, hydrology, lakes, peak water and water shortage. 0 Comments Tags: .

Photo retrieved from: www.texastribune.org

“A year into the driest stretch in recorded state history, most Texans are still far from running out of water. But the devastating economic impact is beginning to extend beyond rural agriculture and into tourism, real estate and other staples of more urbanized economies.

The tiny town of Robert Lee, the self-described “Playground of West Texas,” is already reeling from these problems.

A few miles west of town, the E.V. Spence Reservoir, normally at least three times the size of downtown, is now 99.55 percent empty. The lake not only serves as the sole water supply for the town’s 1,049 residents but is also a highly valued component of its economy.

When the lake is at healthier levels, Robert Lee Mayor John Jacobs said, the average wait time at the boat ramps on holidays and weekends is half an hour. Now, he said, there’s no place to put a boat, and the steady stream of out-of-towners from Midland and other West Texas cities has dwindled considerably.”

Read more: The Texas Tribune

 

lily victoria

Bangkok braces for flooding from high tides

Published on 10/28/2011 in displacement of people and floods. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Chinatown residents make their way through a flooded street on Wednesday. The water has caused problems for small vehicles and led to traffic congestion.

Retrieved from: CNN

“Bangkok, Thailand (CNN) — Severe flooding in Thailand Friday threatened central areas of Bangkok, a bustling capital barely above sea level and facing inundation at the next high tide predicted at 13 feet.

“Residents who decided to stay in their homes despite government pleas to get out waited anxiously to see if the highest tide, forecast for Saturday afternoon, would overwhelm defenses along the Chao Phraya River and its many canals.

“Bangkok’s outer suburbs are already submerged but the the central city has so far been largely spared the misery Thailand has been suffering for months in the nation’s worst flooding since 1942.

“But now the city must face two converging demons of water.”

Read more: CNN

chrismorrow

Hundreds Occupy Belo Monte Dam Site in Brazilian Amazon

Published on 10/28/2011 in dams, displacement of people, hydropower, policy, privatization, riparian zone and rivers. 0 Comments Tags: , .

Photo retrieved from: www.americanifra.com

“Altamira, Brazil – Hundreds of indigenous leaders, fishermen and riverine people from the Xingu River basin have gathered to occupy the Belo Monte Dam construction site in a peaceful protest to stop its construction in Altamira, located in the state of Pará in the heart of the Brazilian Amazon. They have vowed to permanently occupy the site and are calling on allied organizations and movements to join them.

The Trans-Amazon Highway (BR-230) has been blocked around the Santo Antônio village, where it passes the proposed construction site. Groups are demanding the presence of a Brazilian government high-level official at the site to initiate a new round of negotiations that are transparent, inclusive and respectful of the rights of local people affected by the dam.

“Belo Monte will only succeed if we do nothing about it. We will not be silent. We will shout out loud and we will do it now,” said Juma Xipaia, a local indigenous leader. “We only demand what our Constitution already ensures us: our rights. Our ancestors fought so we could be here now. Many documents and meetings have already transpired and nothing has changed. The machinery continues to arrive to destroy our region.”

The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the Organization of American States (OAS) has requested explanation as to why the Brazilian Government did not act to ensure the rights of indigenous peoples affected by the dam, as requested by the IAHCR in April. According to the OAS, the Brazilian Government has an obligation of consulting and informing indigenous peoples who will be affected by the dam prior to construction.

Yesterday, the government of Brazil refused to attend a closed hearing convened by the IAHCR intended to foster dialogue toward resolving conflict and discuss failures in protecting the rights of indigenous peoples threatened by the proposed Belo Monte Dam. Plans for the project ignore international protections such as the right to free, prior and informed consent, and jeopardize the health, livelihood and ancestral lands of thousands of indigenous peoples.”

Read more: Amazon Watch

 

lily victoria

Is the EPA Selling Out Your Water?

Published on 10/28/2011 in peak water, policy, privatization, tap water and water rights. 0 Comments Tags: , .

Photo retrieved from: www.commondreams.org

“Across the U.S., privatization has been linked to deteriorating water quality , rate hikes, job force reductions and poor customer service.

If there is any money to be made in water privatization, it’s among wealthy corporations and their shareholders, who time and time again have proven that they are not responsible patrons of common resources such as water. Privatization has led to disasters around the U.S. , especially in Illinois, where customers of the water systems purchased by Illinois American Water and Aqua Illinois over the last fifteen years have seen their water bills more than double on average since privatization.

The EPA should be ensuring the abundance of safe, clean, affordable water, not encouraging corporations to swindle more Americans.

Stoner is correct in her assessment of the challenges facing municipal water systems, which every year fall at least $22 billion short of the funds needed to safely and affordably deliver this basic resource to Americans. Many public water systems in the United States were built over a century ago, around the same time that Henry Ford was tinkering around with the first Model T.  Few people rely on cars from that era for their basic transportation needs, yet much of our water flows through pipes just as old.”

Read more: Common Dreams

 

lily victoria

‘Green peacemaking’ needed on Latin America’s environmental disputes

Published on 10/27/2011 in agriculture, aquatic ecosystems, contaminated water, dams, hydropower, management, mining, peak water, policy, privatization, rivers, tap water, wastewater, water diversions, water rights, water wars and world water supply. 0 Comments Tags: , , .

In 2007, Argentinians – fearful the Botnia paper mill would cause pollution – protested on a bridge on the border with Uruguay. Retrieved from: www.guardian.co.uk

“Policy experts believe access to water is the issue with the most potential for stoking conflict. The problem is likely to be exacerbated by climate change, because most of Latin America’s major river basins are shared and water disputes rapidly assume a political character.

Friction between Bolivia and Chile over the Silala river illustrates how water disputes can touch raw historical nerves. Similarly, long-standing border tensions between Nicaragua and Honduras have been complicated by the impact of Hurricane Mitch in 1998, which changed the flow of the Negro river.

Hydroelectric power also cranks up strains. The potential for dams on the Usumacinta river has been a historic focus of tension between Mexico and Guatemala, and opponents of Brazilian mega-dams on the Madeira river warn they will also affect Bolivia and Peru.

Strains in the La Plata river basin are likely to escalate as development fuels rapid growth. The proposed Hidrovía project to straighten the Paraguay-Paraná rivers for better navigation to landlocked Bolivia and Paraguay also threatens the Chaco-Pantanal wetlands.

Pollution stirs this volatile mix, as in the Botnia case. On the other side of Uruguay, at its border with Brazil, biocides and fertilisers used in rice paddies have contaminated run-off into the Patos-Mirim lagoon system, stoking water quality disagreements.

Migration resulting from land exhaustion or climate change is another major potential source of conflict, especially if it brings into contact peoples with pre-existing tensions. The migration of 300,000 peasants from El Salvador to Honduras in search of land in the 1960s helped to spark the brief but bloody “Soccer War” of 1969.”

Read more: The Guardian

 

lily victoria

California Water Commission delays efforts to condemn Delta Land

Published on 10/26/2011 in agriculture, aquatic ecosystems, displacement of people, management, policy, water diversions and water rights. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

Bradford Island

Retrieved from: SacBee

“The state’s first effort to condemn land for surveys related to a controversial water diversion project in the Delta did not go smoothly Wednesday.

“Members of the California Water Commission struggled to find a pressing need for such “drastic” action and said they need more information.

“The commission was scheduled to consider 24 requests by the Department of Water Resources to condemn private land – mostly in Sacramento County areas of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

“This was cut to nine at the last minute, however, because officials realized it would be “almost impossible” to consider all 24 at a single meeting, said Allan Davis, a senior land agent at DWR.

“After the first one raised major issues, the commission voted 7-1 to delay all of them to its November meeting.

“It’s hard to know what’s going on here,” commission chairman Anthony Saracino said.
Read more: Sacramento Bee

 

 

chrismorrow

Water use rising faster than world population

Published on 10/25/2011 in displacement of people, management and water shortage. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

A man walks along Lake Travis after water receded during a drought in Austin, Texas September 10, 2011. REUTERS/Joshua Lott

Retrieved from: Reuters

“Like oil in the 20th century, water could well be the essential commodity on which the 21st century will turn.

“Human beings have depended on access to water since the earliest days of civilization, but with 7 billion people on the planet as of October 31, exponentially expanding urbanization and development are driving demand like never before.

“Water use has been growing at more than twice the rate of population increase in the last century, said Kirsty Jenkinson of the World Resources Institute, a Washington think tank.

“Water use is predicted to increase by 50 percent between 2007 and 2025 in developing countries and 18 percent in developed ones, with much of the increased use in the poorest countries with more and more people moving from rural areas to cities, Jenkinson said in a telephone interview.

“Factor in the expected impacts of climate change this century — more severe floods, droughts and shifts from past precipitation patterns — that are likely to hit the poorest people first and worst “and we have a significant challenge on our hands,” Jenkinson said.

“Will there be enough water for everyone, especially if population continues to rise, as predicted, to 9 billion by mid-century?”

Read more: Reuters

sammykayed

Tennessee Waters Get Drug Test

Published on 10/23/2011 in aquatic ecosystems, contaminated water, rivers, tap water and waterborne diseases. 0 Comments Tags: .

Photo retrieved from: www.brightnepenthe.com

“Traces of chemicals that may disrupt hormonal and immune systems, including several personal care products, have shown up in the drinking water of six of 11 utilities tested across the state, according to a new report.

Testing of the lake, river and ground water at scores of utility intakes statewide, including in Nashville and nearby counties, disclosed these same substances and a variety of others.

Samples of the drinking water were taken at only a few locations for this study.

What impact, if any, that these small amounts of chemicals — measured in parts per trillion — might have on health and the environment in Tennessee is not known.

The materials included the insect repellent DEET, ibuprofen, caffeine, detergents, an antiseptic in some hand sanitizers, hormones and two chemical compounds found in plastics. One is BPA, which has been controversial in containers for infant formula and baby food.”

Read more: The Tennessean

 

lily victoria