Archive for the 'policy' Category

Unsolved Coal Ash Problem

Published on 09/06/2010 in contaminated water, policy and rivers. 0 Comments

Photo retrieved from: www.delawareonline.com

“Last Monday, the E.P.A. held the first in a series of regional hearings on two quite different proposals governing how coal-fired power plants dispose of waste.

One proposal, favored by public-interest groups and by agency scientists, would replace a patchwork of uneven — and in many cases weak — state regulations with new national standards. It would formally designate coal ash as a hazardous waste under federal law, require industry to phase out porous sludge ponds, replace them with sturdy, leak-proof facilities, and take other protective steps.

The competing proposal would establish federal guidelines for disposal but leave enforcement to the states. It would also preserve coal ash’s status as a nonhazardous substance. Though the proposal barely improves on the status quo, the Office of Management and Budget — after heavy lobbying by the coal industry — agreed to give it equal billing in the public hearings.

The tougher proposal is obviously better. Coal ash, the byproduct of coal combustion, is a huge problem. Its toxins — which can include arsenic, lead and other heavy metals — can poison local water supplies. America’s power plants produce 130 million tons of the stuff every year, enough to fill a train of boxcars stretching from the District of Columbia to Australia.”

Can China Save the Beleaguered Yangtze River?

Published on 09/05/2010 in contaminated water, dams, policy, rivers and world water supply. 0 Comments Tags: China water supply, Yangtze River.

Photo retrieved from: AlterNet.org

“Overfishing, pollution, and habitat fragmentation from dams — including the massive Three Gorges Dam — have brought the Yangtze to its current state. With more dams planned and Chinese officials intoxicated with unbridled economic growth, the future looks just as grim for the Yangtze’s vanishing species. Much of the river basin “will soon be a mere semblance of its natural state, offering few prospects for persistence of what remains of the river’s unique biodiversity,” says David Dudgeon, an aquatic ecologist at the University of Hong Kong.

“All is not yet lost, however. Seasonal fishing bans have given some species a breather. “We can save the remaining ecology of the Yangtze,” argues Xie Songguang, an ecologist at the Institute of Hydrobiology in Wuhan. The potential savior that he and others are counting on is a 10-year fishing moratorium. Such a ban may seem drastic, but it would have a tiny effect on fish markets, as the Yangtze supplies less than 1 percent of China’s freshwater fish production, including aquaculture. A ban is feasible — if the political willpower can be summoned to implement it. With the Yangtze’s ecological health in obvious decline and the economic toll of a ban manageable, the prospects for a moratorium are looking better and better, experts say.”

Watsonville Misses State Deadline For Fluoride Answer But Committee Recommends Going Ahead With Contract To Pay For Fluoridation

Published on 09/02/2010 in contaminated water, policy, tap water and water technology. 0 Comments

Photo retrieved from: www.oralanswers.com

“The city is under pressure from the state to sign off on the contract, which will provide $1.6 million to build a fluoridation system.

Cities with populations of 10,000 or more are required to fluoridate if an outside entity is willing to pay. The California Dental Association Foundation offered the city money to construct the system and operate it for two years. In January, the City Council in a 4-3 vote rejected a contract that had been two years in the making and appointed the committee to negotiate with the foundation to resolve outstanding issues, such as liability protections.

As negotiations dragged on, state officials became impatient, and on Aug. 19 issued the city a citation and warned of $200 a day fines.

“They are very serious. They want us to move forward with fluoridation,” Palacios said.

Mayor Pro Tem Nancy Bilicich served on the ad hoc committee with Councilman Manuel Bersamin and Councilwoman Kimberly Petersen, and opposed the contract.

Bersamin and Petersen, who voted for the contract, could not be reached to comment.

Bilicich said she didn’t think the contract gave Watsonville enough protection against liability if any lawsuits were filed.

Though Bilicich said the committee was close to a final decision before the citation and wasn’t influenced by it, she said the city’s in a tough spot. The issue of whether to fluoridate has been contentious.

“If we agree with the contract, someone in the community is going to file a lawsuit,” Bilich said. “If we don’t agree, the state is going to fine us.”

En Víspera Del COP16, México Es Viable En Sustentabilidad: Sandra Herrera Flores

Published on 08/31/2010 in policy, solutions and outreach, spanish and wastewater. 0 Comments

Foto encontrado en: www.cinu.org.mx

“En material de fortalecimiento al medio ambiente la subsecretaria Sandra Herrera Flores, afirmó que el presidente Felipe Calderón considera como insoslayable abatir el rezago en materia de residuos e impulso al reciclaje porque “el tema no se circunscribe al agotamiento de recursos naturales sino de los renovables como el agua”. En entrevista con Organización Editorial Mexicana (OEM), Sandra Herrera Flores, afirmó que “los mayores cuerpos de agua se ubican en el sur-sureste del país, aunque la actividad económica y de la población corren del centro hacia el norte”.

* Definición

¿Cuáles son las funciones de la subsecretaria de Fomento y Normatividad Ambiental de la Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (Semarnat)?

-Somos responsables de las normas ambientales que rigen las actividades económicas, así como de aquellas publicadas para proteger especies en peligro de extinción y áreas vulnerables en materia de recursos naturales, sin olvidar la normatividad de las descargas de aguas residuales a los cuerpos de las aguas nacionales.

¿Qué ocurre con las aguas de drenaje municipal?

-Para que estos cuerpos puedan descargarse a los nacionales, deben cumplir con ciertas características para lo cual la administración del presidente Calderón trabaja arduamente en las plantas de tratamiento del vital líquido que observaban un rezago en el país.”

Leer mas: El Occidental

lily victoria

Nuclear Plant’s Use Of River Water Prompts $1.1 Billion Debate With State

Published on 08/27/2010 in policy and rivers. 0 Comments Tags: Hudson River.

Photo retrieved from: www.nytimes.com A canal carrying water used at the Indian Point nuclear power plant and soon to be reintroduced into the Hudson River. The use of river water and the effect on wildlife has caused disagreement.

“BUCHANAN, N.Y. — Just beneath the wind-stippled surface of the Hudson River here, huge pipes suck enough water into the Indian Point nuclear plant every second to fill three Olympic swimming pools. And each second they take in dozens of organisms — fish and crabs, but mostly larvae — that are at the center of a $1.1 billion debate: should the plant have to put in cooling towers that would vastly reduce the intake of water?

Yes, says New York State, which puts the annual death toll at nearly a billion organisms and is withholding a water permit that the plant would need to extend its initial 40-year operating license.

No, says Entergy, the plant owner, which argues that more fish could be saved by installing a different water-intake system. It warns that, if built, the cooling towers would pump tons of pollution into the air of New York’s northern suburbs — and that Westchester County already fails to meet national air quality standards for particulates.”

Le Urge A La Riviera Megaproyecto De Agua

Published on 08/25/2010 in policy, rivers, spanish, water technology and world water supply. 0 Comments

Foto encontrado en: www.artisanstable.com

“Los detalles del proyecto para un megaacueducto lo presentó de viva voz el presidente Héctor Paniagua, con el cual podrá dotarse de agua tanto a la zona hotelera en crecimiento, como a todos los pueblos integrados en la parte norte de la Riviera Nayarit integrados en el municipio de Bahía de Banderas.

“El problema del agua no la vamos a resolver con un pozo aquí o con otro pozo allá. Se debe prevenir el crecimiento hotelero y urbano de toda la costa norte y esto sólo podrá lograrse con un mega acueducto”, señaló Héctor Paniagua ante importantes funcionarios federales y del estado.

El Presidente hizo una referencia definitiva: enormes acueductos se construyeron en siglos pasados, incluso nuestras razas indígenas los hicieron, entonces, ¿por qué no se puedan hacer ahora con tantos elementos técnicos a favor?

El argumento de Paniagua fue contundente, Eugenio Amador Quijano, del Fonain, y Felipe Prado Hopfner, secretario de Planeación, estuvieron de acuerdo para que el Gobierno municipal, por conducto del ingeniero Merced Venegas, director del Oromapas, presente el estudio para que con dinero del Fondo Nacional de Infraestructura participe en este ambicioso proyecto que garantizará agua a toda una enorme zona en crecimiento turístico y crecimiento urbano que es la costa de Bahía de Banderas.

Sobre este tema, el presidente Paniagua abundó lo siguiente: El Río Ameca cuenta con abundante corriente que es aprovechada en pequeña escala. Debemos aquí crear proyectos para el crecimiento en una zona de enorme futuro turístico, pero sobre todo para resolver la falta de agua de los pueblos desde Corral del Risco hasta Lo de Marcos.”

Leer mas: El Occidental

lily victoria

Conservation key in dealing with Delta water supply impact

Published on 08/20/2010 in policy and solutions and outreach. 0 Comments Tags: sacramento san joaquin delta water supply.

Photo retrieved from: greenzer.com

“Most of us don’t think about the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta very often. Even those of us who have visited the Delta for a fishing trip, a boating excursion or to see some of the historic Delta towns, often skip over headlines about the ecological struggles of the Delta and the impact on the state’s water supply.

“It’s time to start paying attention. The health of the Delta is already having a big impact on Santa Clara County’s water supply. Due to several years of drought and new regulatory restrictions to protect Delta fish, we’re receiving only a fraction of our imported water allocations. Because more than half of our water comes from Sacramento and San Joaquin River watersheds, delivered through and around the Delta, the Delta’s health is vital to our residents and local economy.

“Santa Clara Valley Water District is actively working with fisheries experts, environmental groups and other water agencies on the Bay-Delta Conservation Plan to meet the goals of restoring Delta ecosystem health and improving water supply reliability. Meanwhile, we are actively expanding recycled water, conservation and other local programs to reduce our dependence on water conveyed through the Delta and as part of our long-term strategy to meet future water supply needs.

“The Santa Clara Valley Water District’s board of directors has continued the call for mandatory conservation measures, partly in response to these Delta issues. We applaud the residents and businesses that have heeded the call. However, increased and continued conservation needs to become the new norm in Santa Clara County.”

Something’s not right about this California water deal

Published on 08/19/2010 in policy and privatization. 0 Comments Tags: Kern Water Bank, water privatization.

Lawsuit challenges control of Kern Water Bank

The Kern Water Bank is shown 15 miles west of Bakersfield in this Jan. 6, 2009, photo. (AP Photo/Contra Costa Times, Karl Mondon) Photo retrieved from BakersfieldNow.com

“Students of California’s history of gold and oil rushes know it’s filled with examples of profiteering, conspiracy, influence-peddling and other chicanery.

“So there’s no reason the story should be any different with that liquid gold of the 21st century, water.

“That’s the theme of a lawsuit filed a few weeks ago alleging there’s something smelly about how a group of private interests — notably a huge agribusiness owned by the wealthy Southern California couple Stewart and Lynda Resnick — got control of an underground water storage project the state had already spent $75 million to develop.

‘The lawsuit was filed by a group of water agencies and environmental groups contending that the transaction was essentially a gift of public property to private interests and therefore violates the state constitution.

“They’re asking a judge to reverse the deal. That way, they contend, the storage facility can be integrated into the state’s water management plan, so a precious and dwindling natural resource can serve everyone in the state, not just a few powerful farm companies and real estate developers.”

Groundwater is a private property right, Texans say

Published on 08/17/2010 in groundwater, policy and privatization. 0 Comments Tags: groundwater rights, Water rights.

Photo retrieved from: www.crwr.utexas.edu

“Texas landowner groups have joined forces in an effort to ensure that groundwater continues to be recognized as a vested, real private property right. The groups will host educational forums throughout the state to help the public understand current groundwater ownership issues.

“Groundwater is owned by private landowners,” said Dave Scott, TSCRA president and rancher. “The Texas Constitution and more than 100 years of case law support this. Unfortunately this property right is under attack. Landowners must defend their ownership of groundwater on the legal, regulatory and legislative fronts.”

“There’s no doubt that secure, protectable property rights best assure conservation and stewardship of all resources, including groundwater,” said Texas Wildlife Association President Tina Y. Buford. “The way private landowners, acting as land stewards, manage their property directly influences quantity and quality of groundwater available to all Texans.”

“According to estimates by the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB), by 2060 Texas’ population will more than double, increasing its water demand by 27 percent. Because groundwater from Texas aquifers supply more than half the water for the state, it is critical that groundwater resources be managed to provide for current and future use.”

Water bond delay: When a Loss is still a victory

Published on 08/12/2010 in dams, desalination, policy, privatization and solutions and outreach. 0 Comments

Elanor Starmer, Regional Director @ Food & Water Watch

On Monday night, the California legislature voted on a proposal to postpone Proposition 18, the $11 billion water bond, to the 2012 ballot. For bond opponents, there were moments of celebration, as when Assemblymember Jared Huffman (D-Santa Rosa), a bond supporter last year, spoke in favor of pulling the bond from the ballot indefinitely. There were also moments of frustration, as when bond opponent Sandre Swanson (D- Alameda/Oakland) flipped his vote last minute and opted to keep the bond afloat for another two years.

In the end, the push to postpone the bond to 2012 passed by the smallest of margins. It’s not what bond opponents wanted. Ideally, the legislature would have seen the light and scrapped it altogether, or let the voters pull the plug this November so we could get to work on better approaches.

Voters approve Pajaro Valley water pumping fee: New rates go into effect Oct. 1

Published on 08/11/2010 in groundwater and policy. 0 Comments Tags: groundwater fees, groundwater pumping, Pajaro groundwater fee.

Photo retrieved from: WatsonvilleWetlandsWatch.org

“WATSONVILLE – The Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency’s two-year struggle for financial solvency came to an end Tuesday with a successful passage of a new fee on groundwater pumping.

“Fewer than 50 percent of the mail-in ballots sent to Pajaro Valley well owners were cast, but 72 percent of the votes went in favor of the fee that will enable the agency to operate water projects, pay its debts and turn its attention to finding solutions to groundwater overdraft.

“The new rates – $156 to $195 an acre foot of groundwater, along with a separate charge of $306 per acre foot of delivered irrigation water – will raise $10 million annually, and will go into effect Oct. 1.

“This vote shows that the water users themselves see the need for concerted action to reduce the overdraft, find new supplemental water supplies, and increase conservation,” said Rosemarie Imazio, board chair. “This positive outcome is the result of a tremendous commitment of time and energy by the agency board, staff and the public, which recognizes the need for strong and effective local control and management of this critical resource.”

California Puts Off Huge Water-Upgrade Effort

Published on 08/10/2010 in policy. 0 Comments

Photo Retrieved from: pe.com

“California lawmakers have voted to delay putting an $11.1 billion water bond to voters, extending a battle to rework the biggest effort in decades to upgrade the state’s water system.

“The legislators also agreed to lengthen the terms of California’s nine water commissioners appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a change that some critics of the governor say could give him influence over the direction of the state’s water projects after leaving office in January. The commissioners’ terms would have ended at a various times over the next few years; they will now all hold their positions until May 2014.

“The postponement—approved by narrow majorities in both statehouse chambers late Monday—is part of a broader struggle to improve California’s ailing water system. The Golden State’s frequent droughts and growing population place special demands on an aging water system, which itself causes major environmental damage.

“Water is a perennial hot-button issue in the state, where urban areas, powerful agricultural interests and the politicians that support them battle for control of the resource.

“The bond, part of a set of water-related bills approved by the legislature last year, is a test case for how well California can balance environmental concerns with water demand from farmers, consumers and businesses. The bills called for projects including ecosystem restoration, water conservation, groundwater monitoring and construction of water storage, such as dams and reservoirs.

“Some of those projects are moving forward, but the bond requires the approval of California’s voters. On Monday night, lawmakers agreed to move that vote from Election Day in November to 2012, due to fears that voters would reject the measure.”

Despite dam-building, enviros pump money into governor’s water bond

Published on 08/08/2010 in dams and policy. 0 Comments Tags: california water bond, San Joaquin dam.

Prop. 18 would built a dam upstream of the Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River. Photo retrieved from: CaliforniaWatch.org

“Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s plan for a $11.4 billion state water bond – conceived last summer in the third year of a crippling drought – is on the bubble, as the San Diego Union Tribune’s copy desk has punned.

“The ballot measure was intended to restore the collapsing ecosystem of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, promote water conservation and, not incidentally, build a giant dam on the San Joaquin upstream of the mammoth Friant Dam in Fresno County.

“Analysts concerned with California’s fiscal health wondered whether a state already staggering under the burden of a multibillion-dollar deficit should saddle itself with billions in new debt.

“Meanwhile, the dam proposal roused the ire of the Sierra Club and a long list of other green groups. They noted that most western states are demolishing dams out of environmental concerns, not putting up new ones.

“The consumer group Food & Water Watch, which opposes Prop. 18, contends that some green organizations lining up behind the water bond could benefit from its passage.”

Stalling on the water bond is good for private interests, bad for average Californians

Published on 08/06/2010 in policy and privatization. 0 Comments Tags: california water policy, prop 18.

The Columbia irrigation canal draws river water east of Mendota in Fresno County. (Photo by Michael Macor / The San Francisco Chronicle)

“Legislation to delay the $11 billion water bond is expected to be taken up in the State Legislature on Monday. Sadly, this stalling tactic is an attempt to pull a fast one on voters.

“Supporters of the water bond, which would cost California taxpayers $22 billion over 30 years, hope that in two years voters will forget how bad it is. That will also give bond supporters time to gather the millions of dollars needed to push their message out statewide. We shouldn’t be fooled: a vote to postpone this bad bill is a vote to keep it on life support.

“While pulling the plug on the water bond now and starting anew is the best thing for California, the second best option is to let Prop 18 go to the ballot in November. If our Bay Area legislators want to do right by the public, they will vote against A.B. 1265, the bill to postpone the water bond to 2012.

“The battle over the bond has been framed in many circles as a battle between farmers and fishermen, or between Northern and Southern California. But a report released by Food & Water Watch yesterday suggests that the real battle is between private and public interests, with private interests across the state set to gain measurably if the bond is passed. Peter Gleick’s post on Tuesday highlighted what Proposition 18 actually says and does. Now with this report, we know who stands to benefit most from the bloated bond and it’s not the general water-drinking public. That will continue to be the case two years from now.

“We find that bond beneficiaries would include the Obayashi Corporation, a large Japanese contractor working on the San Vicente Dam in San Diego; Warren Buffet, whose Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary Pacificorp would have costs associated with the removal of its dams on the Klamath River offset by bond funds; and Cadiz, Inc., which could access bond money for a groundwater bank in the Mojave Desert where it would store Colorado River water and resell it at a profit to Southern California communities.”

Pacific Institute Analyzes the 2010 California Water Bond

Published on 08/05/2010 in policy and solutions and outreach. 0 Comments Tags: california water bond, pacific institute.

It is a critical time in California water policy.
At the end of 2009, a series of water-related bills was passed by the California Legislature, with the intent of moving the state out of decades of gridlock over water resource management. Simultaneously, the Legislature approved an $11.14 billion bond called the “Safe, Clean, and Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act of 2010” to fund water system upgrades. This is the largest water bond in 50 years, yet the costs and benefits of the bond have not been fully assessed by an independent organization. The Governor recently proposed postponing the bond, but the Legislature has not yet taken the action required to have it pulled off of the November ballot.

The Pacific Institute’s Water Program and Community Strategies for Sustainability and Justice Program have collaborated on an independent analysis of the bond and released the report: The California 2010 Water Bond: What Does It Say and Do? The questions addressed by our analysis include:

What does the bond language actually cover and say?
How does the bond compare to past water bonds in size, definitions, and scope?
How will the bond be allocated among different funding priorities?
What are the governance implications of the bond?
What options are available for funding water system improvements?
What effect would the bond have on other critical public services and projects funded by the state?
How are the water needs of disadvantaged communities addressed by the bond?

The full report of our independent analysis of the 2010 Water Bond is available, as well as three NEED TO KNOW Information Sheets.

chrismorrow

Elite Science Panel Wades Into California Water War

Published on 08/02/2010 in groundwater, policy and water wars. 0 Comments

Photo Retrieved from: wikipedia.org

“Scientists tasked with unraveling one of the nation’s most vexing environmental puzzles started their first field trip to the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta at a fish processing facility here near one of the estuary’s major water-pumping stations.

“Assembled by the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists — 15 experts in estuarine ecology, hydrology, fisheries science and water resources engineering — were gathering information for a series of reports that could influence management of the West Coast’s largest estuary for decades to come.

“The stakes for the two-year study are high. All around the delta, demand for water is growing — water for endangered fish, for farms and for 25 million people. Political pressure from California’s senior U.S. senator, Democrat Dianne Feinstein, and others finally forced the White House to order the review this spring.

“So the National Research Council panel has parachuted into a decades-long environmental battle being fought over a 700-mile-long maze of shipping canals, rivers, levees and aqueducts. The scientists are moving at a rapid clip to satisfy political pressure on all sides as they try to get a clear picture of the science behind two federal recovery plans for endangered chinook salmon and delta smelt and a number of proposals aimed at solving regional water problems.”

UN Recognizes Access to Clean Water as a Human Right

Published on 07/30/2010 in groundwater and policy. 0 Comments

“Access to clean, safe drinking water is now an official basic human right everywhere in the world, like the rights to life, health, food and adequate housing. The water rights resolution was approved late Wednesday by the United Nations General Assembly, not unanimously, but without opposition.

“Safe and clean drinking water and sanitation is a human right essential to the full enjoyment of life and all other human rights, the United Nations General Assembly declared Wednesday, voting to expand the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to include the right to clean water and sanitation.

“The 192-member Assembly called on United Nations member states and international organizations to offer funding, technology and other resources to help poorer countries scale up their efforts to provide clean, accessible and affordable drinking water and sanitation for everyone.

“Introduced by Bolivia, the resolution received 122 votes in favor and zero votes against, while 41 countries abstained from voting.

“The text of the resolution expresses deep concern that an estimated 884 million people lack access to safe drinking water and a total of more than 2.6 billion people, 40 percent of the global population, do not have access to basic sanitation. About 1.5 million children under the age of five die each year because of water-related and sanitation-related diseases.”

Rick Longinotti: City should wait on UCSC water decision

Published on 07/29/2010 in desalination and policy. 0 Comments Tags: Loch Lomond reservoir, Rick Longinotti, Santa Cruz desalination project, Santa Cruz water supply.

Loch Lomond Reservoir. Photo retrieved from: CityofSantaCruz.com

“In 2006, city voters passed Measure J with an 80 percent majority. Under Measure J any new water service for UC Santa Cruz expansion would have to be approved by voters. UCSC immediately filed a lawsuit to overturn Measure J, and UCSC lawyers were successful on a technicality: the notice of the City Council hearing putting Measure J on the ballot wasn’t printed in the paper on time.

“The recently released Environmental Impact Report for the UCSC water service extension confirms what city voters had expressed: Our water supplies are already stretched. The EIR states, “There are inadequate water supplies to serve the project under existing and future multiple dry year drought conditions.” The EIR considers this water inadequacy in dry years a “Significant Unavoidable Impact.” Under state law a project with such impacts cannot be approved unless the approving agency in this case the City Council makes a statement of “overriding consideration.” That’s a claim that the project’s benefits outweigh the significant impact it will cause. The following may help readers decide if that is the case.

“Water for UCSC expansion would come from the city’s water savings account, Loch Lomond. According to a Water Department 2004 report, “It is important to note that, even in normal water conditions, three of the four major sources are presently being utilized at maximum capacity for a significant portion of the year… What this means operationally is that any future increase in seasonal or annual demand for water will be felt through greater and greater withdrawals from Loch Lomond reservoir.”

US Senate bill to force fracking fluid disclosure

Published on 07/29/2010 in contaminated water and policy. 0 Comments Tags: fracking bill, fracking disclosure, fracking fluid, hydraulic fracturing and water.

Photo retrieved from: MSNBC

“WASHINGTON, July 28 (Reuters) – The U.S. Senate energy bill is supposed to promote vehicles fueled by natural gas, but industry is crying foul over provisions they say undercut a drilling technique essential to boosting domestic gas output.

“The bill proposed by Senate Democrats would force companies using the hydraulic fracturing technique to tap shale gas to disclose by 2012 the chemicals used when drilling each well.

“Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, injects a mixture of water, sand and chemicals into rock formations at high pressure to force out oil and natural gas.

“Environmentalists assail drillers for keeping secret the chemicals they use in fracking, saying the mixture is toxic and may be poisoning groundwater in the drilling process.

“They argue the practice should not be exempt from the federal Safe Drinking Water Act.”

Kalahari Bushmen to appeal against court ban on well in game reserve

Published on 07/22/2010 in drought, groundwater and policy. 0 Comments

“Africa’s oldest inhabitants pitched against autocratic Botswana government are forced to truck water 300 miles across desert.

“The Kalahari Bushmen are to appeal against a decision by the Botswana high court forbidding them to use a well in the central Kalahari game reserve, one of the driest regions in the world, a spokesman announced today.

“The Bushmen, Africa’s oldest inhabitants, won a ruling in 2006 against eviction from the game park, hailed as a victory for indigenous peoples around the world. Hundreds returned to their home villages but they have been prevented from reopening the well or drilling a new one.

“The government argued that the Bushmen’s presence in the reserve was not compatible with preserving wildlife and that living in such harsh conditions offered few prospects. The Bushmen took their case to the high court, and the judge this week ruled against them.

“The decision doesn’t make any sense,” said a community spokesman, Jumanda Gakelebone. “We are going to appeal.”

“For now, the 500 Bushmen have to truck in water from the nearest settlement with a public borehole, 300 miles away.”