Monthly Archive for December, 2011

Page 2 of 3

Water Divide

Published on 12/20/2011 in desalination, hydrology, management, policy, tap water, water diversions, water rights and water wars. 0 Comments Tags: santa cruz city council, Santa Cruz water supply.

Santa Cruz. Retrieved from: www.goodtimessantacruz.com

“Neighboring water districts are required by the state’s Urban Water Management Planning Act to coordinate these plans, which Goddard says has resulted in some other shared ventures. One proposal explored in the city’s UWMP is a potential transfer between Santa Cruz and the Scotts Valley Water District, in which Scotts Valley would hand over a relatively small amount of recycled water (30 to 50 million gallons, or about just 1.5 percent of the city’s summer supply) for the city to use on Pasatiempo Golf Course. Santa Cruz would return the same amount, but of potable water, during the winter when they have excess surface flow. The project is about “sharing resources as a region as a way of solving problems,” says Goddard. Water Director Bill Kocher tells GT that all three parties—Santa Cruz, Scotts Valley, and Pasatiempo—are serious about the possibility, but that it will “not be quick, nor cheap.” The two main obstacles will be the golf course’s ability to finance the necessary improvements, and creating a means for moving the water. Still, the UWMP factors this exchange in as a potential water source starting in 2020.

But it’s another suggested water transfer that has stolen the spotlight as of late—heralded as a no-brainer by some desalination critics, recently studied as a regional solution by the county, and repeatedly held at arm’s length by skeptical Santa Cruz officials.”

Parks Chief Sets Conditions for Plastic Bottle Bans

Published on 12/16/2011 in bottled water and products. 0 Comments Tags: coca-cola company.

Retrieved from: www.banthebottle.net

“The director of the National Park Service, after blocking Grand Canyon National Park’s attempt to ban the sale of small plastic water bottles, will now allow such bans, but under a restrictive set of conditions, the park service announced on Thursday.

Jon Jarvis, the director, issued a policy directive to all parks this week requiring that any park contemplating such a ban comply with a detailed checklist calling for written reports on issues like the amount of waste to be eliminated and the effect on the revenue of concessionaires and nonprofit groups that support the parks. The policy also requires parks planning a ban to consult with the park service’s public health office on its potential impact.”

World Rivers Review

Published on 12/14/2011 in aquatic ecosystems, dams, peak water, rivers, species extinction, tap water, water shortage, waterborne diseases and world water supply. 0 Comments Tags: global water security and scarcity, world rivers review 2011.

Amazon River. Retrieved from: www.3.bp.blogpost.com

“Flying across any continent today confirms that the world’s rivers are dominant features in the landscape, and are places where humans and animals gather to reap the many benefits and services they provide. Rivers of all sizes all over the world have underpinned the process of human development. As we progress into the twenty-first century, this development process must now be reassessed. Across the world, we have mismanaged and in some places almost destroyed the core ecological fabric on which river health – and indeed our own survival – depends. Human-caused stressors now endanger the biodiversity of 65% of the world’s river habitats, putting thousands of aquatic wildlife species at risk.

One of the most comprehensive studies of global rivers to date has examined human stressors on all the major rivers of the world. This study, published in September 2010 in the journal Nature, evaluated the state of the world’s rivers by taking into account the major “ecological insults” we impose upon them. The 23 threat factors used in this analysis all have well-documented impacts on human water security and aquatic biodiversity. These were grouped according to their effects on river ecological health and biodiversity, and on human water security. Each of these threats was weighted separately, which is important since the effects of a factor such as nitrogen pollution on fish, for example, are not the same as its consequences for human water security.

Using geo-referenced global databases jointly developed by the team, the combined impact of these multiple threat factors can be displayed graphically, demonstrating global conditions across the 99 million km2 of major river basins included in the study.”

Delta plan faces water problems in a more comprehensive way

Published on 12/13/2011 in agriculture, aquatic ecosystems, contaminated water, oceans, policy, rivers, tap water, wastewater, water conservation and water wars. 0 Comments Tags: Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, southern california's water supply, water economics, water politics.

Retrieved from: www.ucdavis.edu

“For the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, one common point of agreement is that the estuary – which is critical for water delivery to nearly two-thirds of California – is facing serious challenges that must be addressed.

In 2006, the Bay Delta Conservation Plan was created to establish a process that would bring stakeholders together to forge an agreement on a path forward. This was not simply meant to be a path that led from bureaucratic process to bureaucratic process. It was meant to find a final, long-term solution to our water issues.

The Delta faces numerous stressors, including municipal wastewater and industrial discharges, invasive species, predation, power plant diversions, urban and agricultural runoff, diversions and in-Delta pumping, and ocean conditions, among others. The BDCP is an effort to address these in a more comprehensive way. It is one of the largest habitat conservation and restoration projects of its kind ever undertaken in the United States. In conjunction with ecological restoration, BDCP will also provide a more reliable supply of water to nearly 25 million Californians, as well as millions of acres of highly productive farmland in the San Joaquin Valley.”

Zombie Water Projects (Just when you thought they were really dead…)

Published on 12/12/2011 in desalination, groundwater, hydrology, lakes, oceans, peak water, policy, rivers, water diversions, water wars and world water supply. 0 Comments Tags: Great Lakes, Mississippi river.

Retrieved from: www.ducks.org

“But not all zombies are fictional, and some are potentially really dangerous – at least to our pocketbooks and environment. These include zombie water projects: large, costly water projects that are proposed, killed for one reason or another, and are brought back to life, even if the project itself is socially, politically, economically, and environmentally unjustified.

Here are four kinds of zombie water projects that have been repeatedly beaten down for a variety of reasons but that keep rearing their ugly heads. Keep those chainsaws lubed and fueled:

1. Water transfers from the Great Lakes or the Mississippi River or Alaska and Canada to the arid southwestern U.S.

These are perennial favorites: people look at the vast amount of water in the Great Lakes, or flowing down the Mississippi River, or flowing north to the Arctic Ocean and think, gee, what could make more sense than to take that water and move it to where we really need it, like California or Arizona or Las Vegas. After all, we’ve been moving water around since the beautifully designed Roman aqueducts, and even earlier. But most of these mega-projects are zombies – killed off years ago, only to linger, undead.”

The Shocking Republican Attack on the Environment and Our Drinking Water

Published on 12/11/2011 in agriculture, clean water act, contaminated water, groundwater, management, policy, rivers, tap water and waterborne diseases. 0 Comments Tags: chromium in drinking water, EPA, mercury, San Joaquin Valley, selium, texas' water supply.

Retrieved from: www.summittotalhealth.com

“This year, residents of Midland, Texas sued Dow Chemical for dangerous levels of hexavalent chromium in their drinking water. Chromium-6 is a cancer-causing chemical made infamous by Julia Roberts’ film, “Erin Brockovich.” There are currently no drinking water standards for chromium-6, and the chemical industry is delaying a new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency assessment labeling it a potent carcinogen.

This is far from an isolated scenario, threats to the public drinking water supply are national in scope. From the 1950s to the 1980s, trichloroethylene, a carcinogenic metal degreaser, lurked, undetected, in the drinking water at North Carolina’s Fort Lejeune — affecting up to one million marines and their families.

California’s San Joaquin River and San Francisco Bay Delta are contaminated with selenium and mercury.

Atrazine, an agricultural weedkiller, frequently pollutes groundwater across the Midwest corn-belt.”

Going Without Clean Water

Published on 12/10/2011 in agriculture, aquatic ecosystems, climate change, contaminated water, dams, management, peak water, policy, tap water, wastewater, water conservation, waterborne diseases and world water supply. 0 Comments Tags: access to clean water, water economics and politics.

Frozen Dragon Lake, Siberia. Retrieved from: www.nationalgeographic.com

“In the U.S., we use an average of 100 gallons each day for washing, cooking, cleaning, drinking, (and lawn watering).

This doesn’t account for the water that’s required to grow our food, manufacture our computers, or refine the fuels we rely on to drive our cars and keep our homes, and water, warm.

In other parts of the world, nearly 900 million people do not have access to the daily minimum water requirement of 5-13 clean and safe gallons, according to the United Nations (U.N.).

Thirteen gallons of water in the U.S. is enough to flush the average toilet five times, or run the dishwasher once, or take an approximately 10-minute shower. (Learn more with National Geographic’s waterfootprint calculator.)

Every other year, global water expert Peter Gleick publishes a status report on the world’s biggest water concerns—The World’s Water. In the seventh volume, released in October, Gleick and his research team single out climate change and transboundary water management; global water quality, including threats from sewage, fossil fuels, and hydrological fracking; China’s Dams; and U.S. water policy as potential problem areas.”

IS RAIN WATER AN INDUSTRIAL POLLUTANT?

Published on 12/10/2011 in contaminated water, management, policy and wastewater. 0 Comments

Retrieved from: www.sanjoseca.gov

“The case is Georgia-Pacific West, Inc. et al. v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled, reversing more than 35 years of practice and statutory interpretation, that runoff of rain water from forest roads that passes through one or more pipes or culverts constitutes point source pollution that must be permitted through the EPA’s NPDES program. 640 F.3d 1063. If this ruling is upheld, the EPA will be charged with regulating the runoff of uncontaminated rain water from vast areas of public and private land. It is not clear how many permits would need to be applied for and issued, but the number may be in the millions.

The defendants in the original action have now petitioned for certiorari in the Supreme Court, and the court’s response to that petition is expected on Monday. SCOTUS Blog lists the case as one of the “Petitions We’re Watching,” and you can read the 9th Circuit’s opinion and the petition for certiorari here. The petition states the issue presented as follows:”

Mekong Governments Delay the Xayaburi Dam Pending Further Study

Published on 12/09/2011 in dams, policy, privatization and rivers. 0 Comments Tags: Mekong river, Xayaburi dam.

Retrieved from: www.shophirom.com

“In a crucial decision for the people and ecosystems of the Mekong River Basin, the governments of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam agreed today to delay the Xayaburi Dam, the first of eleven dams proposed for the Mekong River, pending further study on the impacts of the proposed Mekong mainstream dams. Japan and other international donors will be asked to assist in conducting the studies. No timetable for the delay was announced.

The government representatives did not give a joint press conference, but rather spoke to journalists separately. Te Navuth, Secretary General of the Cambodian National Mekong Committee told reporters, “When the four member countries agreed to conduct a further study, this meant the construction would not start until we have a clear result.”

“Today the Mekong governments responded to the will of the people of the region. We welcome the recognition that not nearly enough is known about the impacts of mainstream dams to be able to make a decision about the Xayaburi Dam,” said Ms. Ame Trandem, Southeast Asia Program Director for International Rivers.”

E.P.A. Links Tainted Water in Wyoming to Hydraulic Fracturing for Natural Gas

Published on 12/09/2011 in contaminated water, fracking, groundwater, oil, policy and wastewater. 0 Comments Tags: EPA, hydraulic fracturning.

$09frackingmap-popup$

Retrieved from: www.nytimes.com

“Chemicals used to hydraulically fracture rocks in drilling for natural gas in a remote valley in central Wyoming are the likely cause of contaminated local water supplies, federal regulators said Thursday.

The draft report, after a three-year study by the Environmental Protection Agency, represents a new scientific and political skirmish line over whether fracking, as it is more commonly known, poses a threat in the dozens of places around the nation where it is now being used to extract previously unreachable energy resources locked within rock.

The study, which was prompted by complaints from local residents about the smell and taste of their water, stressed that local conditions were unusual at the site, called the Pavillion field, in that the gas wells were far shallower than in many other drilling areas around the country. The shallow depth means that natural gas itself can seep upward naturally through the rock, and perhaps into aquifers.”