Author Archive for Sami Oueida

Mysterious GREEN water grosses out locals in New Jersey as officials insist it’s safe to drink

Published on 05/18/2012 in peak water and tap water. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

It Ain't Easy: The water in Toms River has become green and water experts insist that despite its hue, it's safe to drink

Retrieved from: Daily Mail

“The water in the coastal town has actually become green thanks to an overabundance of iron, though water experts insist that despite its hue, it’s safe to drink.

The tinted tap is unnoticeable in small amounts, such as a glass of water, but in larger pools and tubs, the disturbing coloration comes out loud and unclear.

” ‘The water meets drinking water standards set by the NJ Department of Environmental Protection and the US Environmental Protection Agency,’ NJAM spokesman Richard Barnes said.

“ ’A person would have to drink 24 liters of this water to equal the amount of iron found in a daily multi-vitamin.’ ”

Read more: Daily Mail

Sami Oueida

Gas ‘fracking’ gets green light

Published on 04/25/2012 in fracking, natural gas drilling, peak water and policy. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Retrieved from: The Guardian

“Ministers have been advised to allow the controversial practice of fracking for shale gas to be extended in Britain, despite it causing two earthquakes and the emergence of serious doubts over the safety of the wells that have already been drilled.

“The experts say hydraulic fracturing, whereby a well is drilled hundreds of metres deep and pumped full of water, sand and chemicals in order to release methane gas, should be allowed on a wide scale, although they accept that two small earthquakes in Blackpool last spring were caused by the first stages of fracking activities in the only British plants operating.

The government’s own data revealed serious questions around the safety of fracking in areas of known seismic activity, such as the two wells in Lancashire, because of evidence that the resulting earthquakes have damaged the integrity of at least one well. There is also apparent confusion over which government agencies should be overseeing the process to ensure its public safety, with the responsibility shared among several bodies that appear not to be co-ordinating.

“Environmental groups are worried not just about the potential dangers from earth tremors caused by fracking, but about the effects on the UK’s push to tackle climate change. Last month, the chancellor, George Osborne, and the new energy secretary, Ed Davey, launched a new “dash for gas” when they announced measures to encourage the building of new gas-fired power stations across the UK. Green groups argue this will put carbon-cutting targets out of reach, by locking in high-carbon emitting infrastructure and crowding out investment in renewables. “We should be developing the huge potential of clean British energy from the sun, wind and waves, not more dirty and dangerous fossil fuels,” said Atkins.”

Read more: The Guardian

Sami Oueida

Restrict shale gas fracking to 600m from water supplies, says study

Published on 04/25/2012 in contaminated water, fracking, groundwater, natural gas drilling and peak water. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

Retrieved from: The Guardian

“Controversial “fracking” for shale gas should only take place at least 600 metres down from aquifers used for water supplies, scientists said on Wednesday.

A new study revealed the process, which uses high-pressure liquid pumped deep underground to split shale rock and release gas, caused fractures running upwards and downwards through the ground of up to 588 metres from their source. The research, published in the journal Marine and Petroleum Geology, found the chance of a fracture extending more than 600 metres upwards was exceptionally low, and the probability of fractures of more than 350 metres was 1%.

Researchers said the study showed it was “incredibly unlikely” that fracking at depths of 2km to 3km below the surface would lead to the contamination of shallow aquifers which lie above the gas resources.

“The researchers from Durham University, Cardiff University and the University of Tromso, Norway, looked at thousands of natural and induced rock fractures in the US, Europe and Africa, and found none of the artificially caused ones were more than 600 metres.”

Read more: The Guardian

Sami Oueida

US government releases ‘fracking’ gas rules

Published on 04/19/2012 in contaminated water, fracking, management, oil, peak water and policy. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Retrieved from: wtfrack.org

“The US government has released long-awaited rules on “fracking”, the process  used to unlock oil and gas deposits hidden deep in rock formations that has revolutionised  the domestic energy sector.

From 2015, oil and gas companies will be required to capture methane and  other pollutant gases that are byproducts of fracking, which involves pumping a  mixture of water and chemicals at high pressure to crack the surface of rock  formations.

The guidelines, issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, represent the  first federal clean air standards for fracking, the technology that has  underpinned the breakneck growth of the shale oil and gas sector and holds out  the hope of eventual energy independence for the US.

But they grant energy companies more than two years to meet the new  standards, and do not cover wastewater produced by fracking, an  increasing focus for critics of the industry.”

Read more: Financial Times

Sami Oueida

Merck and Safe Water Network Launch Initiative to Improve Water Access and Help Reduce the Impact of Water-Borne Disease in India

Published on 04/16/2012 in contaminated water, management, peak water and solutions and outreach. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

Retrieved from: SafeWaterNetwork.org

“Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, and Safe Water Network, announced the launch of a three−year, $1.5M partnership to increase access to safe water and reduce the impact of water-borne disease among impoverished communities in Andhra Pradesh, India.

This initiative addresses a critical need in India where an estimated 70 − 80 percent disease is related to water contamination and poor sanitation, and where more than 120,000 children under the age of five die each year from rotavirus diarrhea alone.

“India faces significant water and sanitation challenges. Seventy−five percent of the country’s surface water is contaminated by human, agricultural and industrial waste[2], while half of the country’s population lacks access to basic sanitation[3]. Those living in urban slums and rural environments are most affected. In many areas of the country, a growing dependence on groundwater for drinking is associated with a rise in health problems due to fluoride, salinity, water-borne pathogens, nitrate and other contaminants found in the water. In Andhra Pradesh, only 31 percent[4] of households treat their water before use, and 43 percent[5] of children under the age of five are stunted, a common result of frequent episodes of diarrhea.

This joint effort draws on Safe Water Network’s field experience in India, Ghana and Kenya to address the operational, economic, cultural and environmental challenges to safe water access. The team will apply a rigorous method to data collection and analysis to produce effective demand generation and education methods that can be replicated at scale throughout India.

The initiative will add a dozen sites to Safe Water Network’s existing field projects in Andhra Pradesh, which already provide nearly 40,000 people access to clean water. The additional sites will provide safe water access to another 20,000 – 30,000 people. Each phase of the initiative will be documented, including the data on health outcomes. Key findings will be shared with the water and sanitation sector as well as other organizations to help them address the global water crisis.”

Read more: Safe Water Network

Sami Oueida

Water Wars: Why India and Pakistan Are Squaring Off Over Their Rivers

Published on 04/16/2012 in agriculture, dams, drought, hydropower, peak water, policy and water wars. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Photo retrieved from: TIME world

“India’s Wular Lake, a popular picnic and tourist spot nestled in the Kashmir Valley, is an unlikely site for conflict. But India’s plan to build a structure on the Jhelum River at the mouth of the lake that will allow it to release water during the river’s lean winter months has outraged neighboring Pakistan, which believes the project will give India the power to control how much water flows downstream to its farmers. After two and a half decades of deadlock and 15 marathon rounds of bilateral talks — the most recent occurring in late March — the countries appear a long way from finding common ground.

The dispute isn’t the first of its kind, nor will it be the last. The waters of the Indus River and tributaries like the Jhelum — and the dams built on them by India — have long been one of the main points of contention between the rival neighbors, along with the disputed region of Kashmir itself and cross-border terrorism. Pakistan, whose agriculture-dominated economy is heavily reliant on the Indus and its tributaries, fears upstream dams allow India to manipulate the flows of water as it sees fit. Many in Pakistan accuse New Delhi of wantonly exacerbating the country’s dire water shortages, choking its agricultural production and ruining livelihoods.

“Indeed, India has ramped up its hydroelectricity projects in recent years to try to boost its woefully inadequate power supplies. The government has a total of 45 projects either already completed or in the proposal stage on the western rivers, some as large as 1000 megawatt and many as small as 2 and 3 megawatt. This expansion has irked Islamabad. “India is putting more and more restrictions and constrictions on Pakistan’s waters,” Kamal Majidulla, Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani’s special assistant on water resources and agriculture, tells TIME.

A 2011 U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee report said that studies show no single dam will affect Pakistan’s access to water, but the cumulative effect of multiple hydroelectric projects could give India the ability to store enough water to limit Pakistan’s supply at crucial moments in the growing season. India has never abused its water supplies in this way, the report adds, and New Delhi rejects the theory as an unsubstantiated hypothesis. But the report’s observations serve as a suitable analogy for India and Pakistan’s water conflicts overall. While no single legal or diplomatic tussle will rupture the fragile relations between the countries, the cumulative effect of a series of standoffs could cause tensions to boil over.”

Read more: TIME

Sami Oueida

Drought risks killing off British wildlife

Published on 03/19/2012 in drought and peak water. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Wildlife ranging from dragonflies to water voles will be severely hit if the drought gripping parts of England continues, the Environment Agency has warned

Retrieved from: The Telegraph

“Following the driest 18 months on record for some parts of the country, streams and rivers are drying up leaving insects, fish, mammals and amphibians fighting for survival.

Newly hatched tadpoles of frogs, toads and newts are under threat while wading birds such as snipe, curlew and lapwings will suffer from a lack of moist soils in which to find food such as worms for themselves and their young.

In drought-affected areas, some streams, ponds and shallow lakes are likely to dry up before aquatic insects such as dragonflies have taken wing, which will cause them to perish, experts claim.

“The Environment Agency warned that many species have declined in much of England in recent years and the drought could sound the death knell in some smaller breeding sites.

Forest fires will be of increasing concern in the English countryside, the agency said, while some trees including beech and birch could die off in the face of the drought.”

Read more: The Telegraph

Sami Oueida

Olympics kept from going brown by watering cans and recycled sewage water

Published on 03/19/2012 in drought, graywater, peak water, wastewater and water shortage. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

Retrieved from: The Telegraph

“Gardeners are also preparing to use “grey water” – domestic waste water – to help irrigate the million square meters of meadows, wetland and woods at the East London site.

The emergency measures are being drawn up ahead of Thames Water’s hosepipe ban, which comes into force on April 5 as the worst drought in 30 years spreads across England.

“But the gardens around the main events, which are meant to provide an attractive backdrop for athletes and spectators, may be badly affected by the drought.

Soil moisture levels in areas of the South East of England are now lower than the spring before 1976 when most gardens and parks went brown.

“The Olympic “ecological park” is supposed to bring back wildlife to the area. But the Environment Agency has warned that birds, frogs and dragonflies will struggle to survive this summer without enough water.”

Read more: The Telegraph

Sami Oueida

Water firms banning hosepipes lose 300m gallons a day in leaks

Published on 03/19/2012 in drought, management, peak water, policy and water conservation. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

Photo retrieved from: Daily Mail online

“The seven water firms due to impose hosepipe bans are losing almost 300million gallons a day through leaks.

The huge volume disappearing down the drain would be enough to supply the daily needs of 11million people.

Two of the biggest companies involved, Anglian and Southern, are introducing rationing despite the fact they have missed official leak reduction targets.

Consumers will be angry that companies are imposing restrictions backed by a £1,000 fine before they meet their own obligations to save water.

Between them, the seven companies are wasting 286million gallons or 1,299.2million litres of treated water every day, the equivalent to 520 Olympic-size swimming pools.”

Read more: Daily Mail

Sami Oueida

Moleps water blues to end soon – Kedikilwe

Published on 02/29/2012 in agriculture, boreholes, management, peak water, policy and water technology. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

Retrieved from: Mmegi Online

“Addressing a Kgotla meeting in Molepolole yesterday, the minister said that in an endeavour to stop enormous water losses in the area, WUC intends to introduce a system that will be operated from any place in the country to instruct a borehole to pump a certain amount of water at a certain pressure into a certain tank. This would stop water losses since measurements would be set in place, he said.

He noted that usually enormous amounts of water gets lost in overflowing reservoir tanks especially if there is no one to stop the borehole from pumping.

“The system is already in place in 216 of the 373 villages that WUC has taken on board.  We hope that we will have it here in Molepolole in July this year,” he said. The project will not cost anything less than P3 million, he said.

Also, WUC has identified and fixed 21 leaking pipes. The project is expected to end this month. It had been reported previously that the village loses about 32 percent of potable water underground due to leaking pipes.

The minister furthermore said that they are expecting about P3 million to buy three bowsers that will help provide water in the village.”

Read more: Mmegi

 

Sami Oueida