• New mercury detector developed

    University of Massachusetts researcher develops new mercury detector which detects minute quantities of mercury even in the presence of other metals

  • Ocean changes may trigger U.S. megadrought

    From AD 800 to 1250 the North American continent suffered from an exceedingly dry period; experts build climate model which shows that the warming of the oceans may lead to another long parched period — what they call “megadrought”

  • New method to treat deadly water-polluting fish disease

    Viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS) has caused massive declines in population among fish species, ranging from walleyes to salmon, in all of the Great Lakes except Superior; new water treatment method could help keep a deadly fish disease out of Lake Superior

  • Nanotechnology-based biosensor

    NASA develops nanotechnology-based biosensor that can detect trace amounts of specific bacteria, viruses, and parasites; New York-based Early Warning, Inc. will initially market the sensor to water treatment facilities, food and beverage companies, industrial plants, hospitals, and airlines

  • New London mayor approves desalination plant

    Boris Johnson has just been elected mayor of London, and one of his first acts in office was to withdraw of the legal challenge launched by his predecessor, Ken Livingstone, against a desalination plant to be built on the banks of the Thames; the plant will be the first in London to take water from the tidal stretch of the Thames, removing salt from the water

  • Australian budget tackles environment concerns

    New government budget show government’s intent to tackle Australia’s growing water problems; critics charge that the government has not gone far enough to save the Murray-Darling Basin; the huge river system is drying up under the pressure of Australia’s epic drought and excessive water extraction for irrigation

  • Lessons from Kazakhstan about safe water

    A key UN Millennium Development Goal (MDG) is to halve the number of people without access to safe drinking water and sanitation by 2015; research shows, however, that the MDG definition is too narrow and can be misleading

  • Herbicide-tolerant crops can improve water quality

    One of the major sources of water contamination is herbicide pollution; scientists find that using herbicide-tolerant crops — and replacing some of the residual herbicides with the contact herbicides —significantly reduces water pollution

  • DEET found in Chicago drinking water

    Low levels of bug repellent found in Chicago drinking water; the city water authorities say the amounts are too small to worry about, but a Duke University expert says finding raises a red flag

  • Desalination can boost U.S. water supplies

    More than 97 percent of the Earth’s water — seawater and brackish groundwater — is too salty to use for drinking water or agriculture; new report says that desalination would be a good way to meet water shortages in the United States, but that the environmental impact of large-scale desalination campaign should be carefully studied

  • How much water is needed to produce various types of energy?

    Most of the energy we consume requires the use of water for its generation; water is a dwindling resource, so researchers wanted to know how much water is required to produce different types of energy

  • Emerging water contaminants a growing worry

    As worries about pharmaceutical contamination of U.S. drinking water increase, a non-profit organization increases its efforts to build a coalition of organizations to research the issue

  • AWWA urges scientific approach to pharmaceuticals in drinking water

    The sky may not be falling: Stories about pharmaceutical traces in U.S. drinking water abound, but an expert from Southern Nevada Water Authority testifies before Senate subcommittee that worries about the ill effects of such traces are exaggerated

  • Chicago testing Lake Michigan water for drugs

    Lab tests found traces of pharmaceuticals in the water of Lake Michigan, the source of drinking water for millions in the greater Chicago area; city water authorities launch a thorough water testing campaign

  • The (water) war between the states

    Florida governor speaks out against federal water plan