Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
Water is life, water is food, leave no one behind. That’s the theme of a conference taking place in Vancouver Monday that brings together experts and policymakers to tackle water scarcity, and to find ways to protect this vital resource as the planet heats up from global warming. UBC, SFU and the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization are hosting the official North America World Food Day event at the Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue.
Water scarcity is a pressing global challenge, and researchers at the University of Waterloo are turning to insects for inspiration to address the problem. A research team at the university has developed technology inspired by spiderwebs and Namib desert beetles, both of which capture moisture from the air and convert it to fresh water. The research is led by Prof. Michael Tam, University Research Chair in the chemical engineering department, and two students, Eva Wang and Weinan Zhao. The team aims to use the techniques perfected by insects and upscale them to deliver larger volumes of water for society.
Activities under the agreement include providing technical assistance, strengthening the leadership and active engagement of women farmers in the promotion and adoption of climate smart agriculture, improving agricultural value chain efficiency and rural electrification. Furthermore, the activities will also provide updated digital tools for a more sustainable natural resource management in agriculture.
The Bioenergy and Bioproducts Research Lab on the Agricultural Campus focuses on converting abundantly available and low-valued biomass waste into high-value materials for environmental remediation applications, primarily on wastewater treatment. “We are working with organic waste and turning it into something useful,” says Sophie He, Department of Engineering. For example, Dr. He and her team are converting spent coffee grounds, flax shives, barley straw and sawdust to biofuels or biocarbon materials.
Waves of torrential rainfall drenched California into the new year. Snowpacks in the Sierra Nevada Mountains have swelled to more than 200% their normal size, and snowfall across the rest of the Colorado River Basin is trending above average, too. While the much-needed water has improved conditions in the parched West, experts warn against claiming victory. About 60% of the region remains in some form of drought, continuing a decades-long spiral into water scarcity.
It took until 2022, but water finally made it onto the official agenda of a UN Climate Change Conference. ‘Water Day’ was designated for November 14 at the recent COP27 climate change conference in Egypt where 190 countries had assembled to discuss climate action. Water Day discussions covered water scarcity, drought, early warning systems, and cross boundary cooperation, with one entire session devoted to the critical importance of monitoring and managing river basin systems.
From nutrient-rich wetlands and 100,000 lakes to a dry southern region and an Arctic port, Manitoba is a province defined by water — after all, nearly a fifth of the province is covered in it. Now, in an update nearly 20 years in the waiting, the Manitoba government has released a strategy to manage its water resources — factoring in the impacts of a warming climate for the first time.
While delegates at the COP27 climate conference discuss the shared problem of climate change, each country will face its own challenges and threats. In February, the U.N. climate science agency released a major report on adapting to a warmer world - and detailed how that effort would differ from place to place. While some countries see glaciers melt or coastlines rise, others will contend mostly with raging wildfires and extreme heat, the report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said.
Drought-stricken countries, led by Senegal and Spain, announced an alliance Monday to help each other manage water scarcity by sharing technology and expertise. The announcement was made on the sidelines of the U.N. climate conference, COP27, which is taking place in the sun-baked Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh after a fifth failed rainy season on the Horn of Africa.
Pipelines could be coming down the pike as a coalition of farmers, industry experts, and local politicians are attempting to construct an irrigation network across Niagara to stave off the worsening effects of climate change. Finding a solution to water scarcity has become more and more pressing as climate change has led to an increase in droughts across the Niagara region.
Drought and water scarcity continues to affect the west coast, south coast and northeastern areas of B.C. that have experienced little to no rainfall over the past five weeks with continued dry weather in the forecast. Areas under Drought Level 4 include the Fort Nelson basin, the Sunshine Coast basin, Lower Mainland basin, and the east and west Vancouver Island basins. At Drought Level 4, conditions are extremely dry and adverse effects to socio-economic or ecosystem values are likely.
Sometimes there’s too much water; sometimes not enough. A major challenge with global heating is that it doesn’t necessarily cause more or less of something in a specific geographic area (hotter, colder; wetter, dryer); it just makes everything less predictable and often more extreme. Consider some late-summer headlines. Pakistan “faces ‘monsoon on steroids’ as more flood warnings issued”. In Spain, “Historic monuments resurface as severe drought shrinks reservoirs.” Melting Greenland ice is “set to raise sea levels by nearly a foot”. In Jackson, Also, in the U.S., “As Colorado River dries, the U.S. teeters on the brink of larger water crisis”.Mississippi, the “water system is failing, city will be with no or little drinking water indefinitely”.
This week we celebrated World Water Day (March 22), which addresses water scarcity, sanitation needs, and access to clean water globally, so it only makes sense that this week’s column is about, you guessed it: Water. Many factors affect water quality, like acidity (pH balance), dissolved solids, gases like radon, hardness, and sediment. We can’t control all these factors, but homeowners can introduce systems that will enhance the water quality you use and consume and thus improve the quality of your life.
As recently as Christmas, it looked like California’s devastating drought could—if not fully disappear—at least be on track for serious improvement by spring. That’s no longer the case. California’s snowpack was promisingly high at the start of the year after Pacific storms in October and December delivered a round of heavy rains and deep snows. But it has since dropped below where officials hoped it would be for this time of year after those early-season cloudbursts turned out to be isolated events.
Did you know there are more people in India with access to a cellphone than a toilet? Or that burning the world’s annual human waste output could yield the equivalent of $9.5 billion in non-renewable natural gas? Or that, every day, about 2,020 hectares of irrigated land worldwide becomes unfarmable because of salty soil? These findings, on water scarcity and environmental health, are considered groundbreaking in the scientific community. They also offer a snapshot into the extensive resumé of a Hamilton-based think-tank.
A water crisis is looming because of climate change, a new report warns. Floods and droughts are increasingly on the rise, and the number of global citizens facing water scarcity is expected to soar. Meanwhile, management, forecasting, and financial solutions are thought to be gravely “insufficient”. The report, The State of Climate Services 2021: Water, has suggested that by 2050 more than five billion people will have inadequate access to water at least once monthly, up from 3.6 billion in 2018.
Where fly fisherman Shane Olson once paddled summer tourists around in a boat, he now guides them by foot – carefully navigating shallow waters one step at a time. “Every year, these rivers seem to be getting smaller, faster,” Olson, 48, said, whipping a gleaming fishing line over the Crowsnest River about 70 kilometres from the U.S. border. It is an alarming trend in Canada’s breadbasket, and a sign of water scarcity to come as climate change speeds the melting of Rocky Mountain glaciers feeding rivers that deliver water to some seven million people across the Prairies.
In 1995, a highly-respected water expert in South Africa, Bill Pitman, in very concise terms illustrated that the country, already battling a growing lack of water then, would likely run out in 25 years if it did not increase its supply. Twenty-five years have now passed and the country is thirstier than ever. The recent water crisis in Cape Town is just one manifestation of the nation's chronic water scarcity. And there is likely more water trouble ahead. Water scarcity issues have been vexing experts for decades. Scientists developed and debated various water scarcity concepts, indicators, and projections, essentially saying that it is a global issue with strong local specifics. Worldwide estimates of people affected by water scarcity vary accordingly and get gloomier with time.
As an extreme drought grips California, making water increasingly scarce, thieves are making off with billions of gallons of the precious resource, tapping into fire hydrants, rivers, and even small family homes and farms. State and local officials say water theft is a long running-issue, but the intensifying drought has driven the thefts to record levels as reservoirs dry up and bandits make off with stolen water, often to cultivate the growth of illegal marijuana crops.
Water scarcity in rural Alaska is not a new problem, but the situation is getting worse with climate change. Lasting solutions must encourage the use of alternative water supplies like rainwater catchment and grey water recycling. They must also address the affordability of water related to household income, say researchers from McGill University. Washing hands with clean water is something most people take for granted, yet for Alaska's rural residents, this is often not the case. When people pay for water by the gallon, serious thought is given to how much is used – even during the COVID-19 pandemic.
![Canada contributes to financing a project to enhance climate resilience of Southern Iraq's agriculture sector and empower women as change agents [EN/AR]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/583ca2f2d482e9bbbef7dad9/1689560571658-JJ7BD8XAQGWBRXEEPM0J/Screenshot+from+2023-07-16+20-22-43.png)
