In The News

PFAS Contaminated Water and Food: Guardian

Tom Perkins February 8, 2020
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, are a group of about 5,000 manmade fluorinated chemicals, widely used to produce waterproof and stain-resistant textiles. These chemicals, which don’t break down naturally, are known as “forever chemicals.” But they are also water soluble, polluting soil and nearby drinking-water sources.” It is estimated that PFAS are in 99% of Americans’ blood, and...

Looming Water Crises: New York Times

Somini Sengupta and Weiyi Cai August 6, 2019
About 25 percent of the world’s human population confronts severe water shortages. The Water Resources Institute reports that 17 nations are under extremely high water stress. Reasons for shortages vary including waste, pollution and excessive reliance on groundwater. “Climate change heightens the risk,” report Somini Sengupta and Weiyi Cai for the New York Times. “As rainfall becomes more...

1.2 Million Without Water: Manila Times

Jordeene B. Lagare March 16, 2019
Sections of metropolitan Manila, the capital city of the Philippines, suffer from a severe water shortage with service disruptions anticipated until rain arrives. The rainy season does not begin for another three months, and authorities are rationing water. “The water agency said all of its customers would have no water from six to 20 hours every day,” reports the Manila Times. “Although the...

DW: EU Reaches Agreement on Single-Use Plastic Ban

December 19, 2018
Plastic is made of oil and consists of large polymers that do not break down quickly, adding to waste management challenges. Most plastic waste ends up in the world’s oceans with microbeads and other forms of plastics finding their way into the food chain and seafood consumed by humans. China ended accepting imports of plastic waste for recycling this year, with global implications, forcing major...

Reuters: Clean Coal Fails to Deliver Smog Cuts

Tim McLaughlin December 4, 2018
Coal producers insisted that chemical treatments could reduce emissions. US electric company Duke Energy reports that refined coal “regularly fails to deliver on its environmental promises,” releasing more nitrogen oxide, not less. “The utility also discovered that one of the chemicals used to refine the coal, calcium bromide, had reached a nearby river and lakes – raising levels of carcinogens...

South Asia Journal: India-China Water Sharing Data

Chandan Kumar Duarah September 29, 2018
Dams, volatile weather patterns, pollution complicate the water supply from cross-border rivers, increase environmental hazards and even brings ruin to some communities in China and India. The two countries have shared hydrological data since 2006 with some disruptions, such as damaged equipment due to flooding. But improved technologies, including satellite imagery, and increased cooperation...

Esquire: The Water Crises Are Here

Alec Wilkinson August 29, 2018
Earth has a limited supply of water, and an increasing amount could become unusable due to every imaginable contamination, explains Alec Wilkinson in an article for Esquire. “Water cannot be created or destroyed; it can only be damaged,” he writes. “Having evaporated from lakes and rivers and oceans and returned as snow and rain, the water we consume has been through innumerable uses. Dinosaurs...