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Are We Running Out of Water? Water Security Threatened by Droughts and Heatwaves Worldwide
Increased demand for water due to global population growth, coupled with the increasing frequency of extreme weather events, endangers our water security. Nonetheless, little is known about the relationship of water use by sectors and the occurrence of drought-heatwave events, particularly at the large scale.
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Desalination System Could Produce Freshwater That Is Cheaper Than Tap Water
Researchers are aiming to turn seawater into drinking water with a completely passive device that is inspired by the ocean, and powered by the sun. They developed a solar-powered device that avoids salt-clogging issues of other designs.
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With Automated Treatment, Affordable Water from Nontraditional Sources Can Flow to Underserved Communities
Researchers are developing advanced automation techniques for desalination and water treatment plants, enabling them to save while providing affordable drinking water to small, parched communities without high-quality water supplies.
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Wastewater Can Help Tackle Water Shortages
Europe has experienced severe heat and drought over the last few summers, and 2023 has been no different. Vast swathes of Central and Southern Europe are simply too dry from a lack of rainfall. Water shortages are causing tensions in some countries. But, for now, there’s enough water to go around. Using the precious resource more efficiently is key.
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State Pension Fund is Helping a Middle Eastern Firm Export Arizona’s Precious Groundwater
As rural Arizonans face the prospect of wells running dry, foreign firms are sucking up vast amounts of the state’s groundwater to grow hay for Saudi Arabia and other wealthy nations. The state’s retirement system invested heavily in a private land deal that allowed a foreign company to effectively ship Arizona’s scarce water supply overseas.
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Feds Ease Up on Colorado River Restrictions — for Now
The water shortage crisis on the Colorado River is improving, but it’s far from over. The water levels in the river’s two main reservoirs have begun to stabilize, lessening the need for states in the Southwest to cut their water usage. This year’s wet winter helped save the river from collapse, but a reckoning is on the horizon.
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Heat, Drought, Population Growth Stress Aquifers Which Supply Water to Millions of Texans
Diminishing springs and aquifers due to heat, drought and high for demand water highlight the urgency for Central Texas conservation districts to prioritize climate-focused management, potentially involving reduced pumping for sustainability.
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Texas Farmers Are Worried One of the State’s Most Precious Water Resources Is Running Dry. You Should Be, Too.
The Ogallala Aquifer serves farming communities in multiple states. When it runs dry, the agriculture industry in Texas and the nation is in jeopardy.
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The New Water Reuse Consortium Will Address Clean Water Access and Sustainability Challenges
The Water Reuse Consortium, a collaborative efforts of several academic institutions, is a 3-phase, $38 million program to tackle pressing water challenges through innovative research, education, communication, and collaborative efforts between government, local communities, industry, and academia.
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Tackling the World's Climate-Driven Water Crisis
A safe supply of clean water is necessary for human survival – yet 2.2 billion people around the world lack access to this basic human right. A global crisis is looming on water security, which has been escalated by climate change.
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New Nontoxic Powder Uses Sunlight to Disinfect Contaminated Drinking Water
A low-cost, recyclable powder can kill thousands of waterborne bacteria per second when exposed to sunlight. Scientists say the ultrafast disinfectant could be a revolutionary advance for 2 billion people worldwide without access to safe drinking water.
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Benefits of Lead- and Copper-Clean Drinking Water Far Exceed Initial Estimates
The cost-benefit analysis of the EPA’s Lead and Copper Drinking Water Rule Revision (LCRR) far exceeds the EPA’s public estimates and could help inform improvements to current regulations. (LCRR) costs $335 million to implement while generating $9 billion in health benefits annually, exceeding the EPA’s public statements that the LCRR generates $645 million in annual health benefits.
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New Tool Optimizes Irrigation
A new tool for designing and managing irrigation for farms advances the implementation of smart agriculture, an approach that leverages data and modern technologies to boost crop yields while conserving natural resources.
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Colorado River Water Plan Could Trigger Unprecedented Supply Cuts, Ripple Effects on Key Industries
Decades of drought and overuse have brought the river’s water levels to historic lows. States in the Lower Colorado River Basin — Arizona, California and Nevada — now must choose between one of three options proposed by the federal government. The economic impact of the river’s dwindling water supplies is could be disastrous.
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Forced Water-Use Cuts Made California More Waterwise
After a drought-stricken California lifted a year of mandatory water-use cuts that were effective in 2015 and 2016, urban water use crept back up somewhat, but the overall lasting effect was a more waterwise Golden State.
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More headlines
The long view
Unlocking Energy-Efficient Solution to Global Water Crisis
Researchers achieved a major breakthrough in Redox Flow Desalination (RFD), an emerging electrochemical technique that can turn seawater into potable drinking water and also store affordable renewable energy. Researchers achieved a major breakthrough in Redox Flow Desalination (RFD), an emerging electrochemical technique that can turn seawater into potable drinking water and also store affordable renewable energy.