The Headlines
San Carlos Lake faces drought crisis - To save fish, officials halt water releases
- Arizona Republic, AZ
The Cost of Renewable Energy
- The Mark, ON
California bond allows private companies control of water
- Mother Nature Network
Massive spill pollutes Patapsco -
22 million gallons of sewage flows into river
- Maryland Gazette
Environmental groups accuse IDEM of failing to protect water laced with PCBs, mercury, aluminum, nutrients, cyanide and zinc
- Star Press, IN
Pressing the EPA to act on water pollution
- Washington Post
Sheyenne sulfate levels too high: Report
- Winnipeg Sun, MB
Ont. files motion backing U.S. Supreme Court suit over Asian carp
- Hamilton Spectator, ON
Hands off the watershed
- New York Times
Permafrost thaw may accelerate Arctic groundwater runoff
- Science Daily
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The Issues
Shortage
Our urban population is increasing, our water resources depleting. Increasing periods of drought are expected in parts of the US and Canada. Desalination offers a promising solution, but is also very energy/emission intensive. North Americans overuse water. Meters put a price on water and encourage conservation but they also lead to water rate hikes as water use and revenue decline.
Energy
Green energy solutions reduce emissions but are water-intensive. Technological breakthroughs may be the key to finding our way to a more earth-friendly civilization.
Sewage
Climate change's extreme weather events challenge combined wastewater/storm water sewer systems leading to widespread sewage spills in our waterways.
Chemicals
Of the over 80,000 chemicals in use today only 200 are regulated. Our lakes, rivers and oceans are laced with cocktails of chemicals at low levels, the long-term synergistic effect of these chemicals on humans is not known.
Enforcement
As confirmed in a recent NYT's study, clean water regulations are largely overlooked as they reveal problems that are costly to resolve and often conflict with economic revenue.
Watershed Management
Conflicting interests rule our watersheds. Regulations, agreements and controls are century-old favouring shipping, fishing and agriculture. Water shortages and pollution demand new solutions that threaten this status quo.
Invasives
Aquatic invaders are non-native species, whose introduction causes damage to the host ecosystem. They thrive in the absence of their native predators and have the potential to drastically alter habitat, rendering it inhospitable to native species. Annually, the problem is responsible for billions of dollars in lost revenue and control measures.
Nano
The promise of nano is breathtaking. Its very efficiency could however prove to be lethal if misused or accidently released.
Privatization
Stricter water regulations, toxic contamination and crumbling infrastructure are increasing the cost of supplying clean drinking water. Governments are broke, private companies step in. As they commodify our water, free access to it is increasingly threatened. Will they do the right thing? Our very survival depends on it.
The Arctic
As the ice melts, the premafrost releases its methane and coastal water rises, gas and oil producers are gearing up to access the fossil fuel below, further heightening the risk of contaminating this pristine land and our world. As the Northwest Passage becomes more navigable, it also begs the question as to who will control this new passageway.
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The Stories
Arctic Melt
According to Environment Canada senior climatologist David Phillips, the big Arctic melt of 2007 which shocked scientists and served as an environmental wake-up call for the planet is the top weather story of the decade, if not the past 100 years. Dr. David Barber, director of Winnipeg's Centre for Earth Observation Science, now predicts the Arctic could be free of summer ice and navigable within the decade, saying the ice cap is shrinking and deteriorating. - See The Arctic Puzzle
Drought
Although drought conditions in the Southeastern US considerably improved, Texas and California were hard hit in 2009. In August, exceptional drought covered 32 million acres in Texas costing over $4 billion in losses and shrinking lakes to unprecedented levels. Meanwhile California faced its worse water shortage ever theatening the very survival of the state's agricultural industry. In Canada, Alberta was ravaged by drought conditions not seen for decades.
Red River Flood
In late March of 2009, the Red River of the North rose to a level never seen in recorded history. The river's level stood at 40.37 feet surpassing the previous record of 40.1 feet reached in 1897. It was the third worse flood in 100 years for both Manitoba and North Dakota. See Red River Rising
Halifax Sewage Saga
For two and a half centuries, millions of litres of raw sewage were discharged untreated directly into Halifax Harbour. On February 11, 2008 a CAD$333 million treatment facility in downtown Halifax officially commenced operation. However, less than a year later, a malfunction at the plant once again sent raw sewage into Halifax harbour, a situation that was only resolved in December of this year. Related Articles
Toxic Water
In September 2009, The New York Times published a study revealing that violations of the Clean Water Act had risen steadily across the nation in recent years. In the last five years alone, chemical factories, manufacturing plants and other workplaces have violated water pollution laws more than half a million times. The violations range from failing to report emissions to dumping toxins at concentrations regulators say might contribute to cancer, birth defects and other illnesses. See Related Articles
Alberta Oil Sands
Water and emission-intensive oil sands extraction got a further black eye when more than a thousand ducks were found dead in one of Syncrude's tailing ponds. A University of Alberta study published in December also revealed that levels of toxic chemicals in the Athabasca watershed are up to 50 times higher downstream of oilsands developments. See Oil Sands Report
Water in Space
2009 was a great year for space exploration as water and space telescopes dominated. Water was proven to exist on the Moon and Mars and is thought to be present in moons of Jupiter and Saturn. Related Articles
Asian Carp Invasion
The introduction of the Asian Carp species dates back to January of 2000, when catfish farms in the south were importing them to control pests. The fish have since spread throughout the Mississippi River system. Millions of dollars of taxpayer money have been spent to try to keep these foreign species from swimming into the Great Lakes. Some scientists say their presence in the Great Lakes would be an "ecological disaster." Lately, evidence of an Asian Carp species was found above an electric barrier designed to prevent their movement into the Great Lakes. Related Articles - Chronicles Carp Report
Blue Green Algae
Cyanobacteria is the scientific name for blue-green algae, or "pond scum." Cyanobacteria form in shallow, warm, slow-moving or still water. They are made up of cells, which can house poisons called cyanobacterial toxins. The increased presence of phosporous in water as well as global warming are seen as the major causes for the spread of blue-green algae. Last summer blue-green algae were widespread in both Canada and the US with toxic blooms causing the death of dogs in Minnesota and Ontario. Related Articles
Aging Infrastructure
Water infrastructure across North America is aging and in need of repair. Although large sums of stimulus funds were provided for infrastructure projects in the US and Canada, the problem is far from solved. Over the past year, hundreds of broken water mains and sewage overflows caused havoc in cities and polluted waterways across the continent. See Water main breaks 1/2/09
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