Blue Planet Links does not guarantee the accuracy or objectivity of the information presented on listed websites or publications. We have attempted to present a variety of perspectives on the issues in the hope that the more you know, the more likely you are to influence and make wise public and personal decisions to promote healthy oceans and fresh water.
© 2012 Blue Planet Links
Water resource management & technology
Links to a zillion things you can learn about H2O
Amazing water! It's probably our most valuable natural resource. Nothing can live without it. As the world's population grows, we use more, poison more, and waste more H20 every day. Learn more:
Dry Spring: the Coming Water Crisis of North America
"Weather is changing. Get ready for it." Weather is felt most tangibly through water: rain, snow, flooding, drought, ice. In Dry Spring by Chris Woods, we learn how climate change is already affecting North American orchardists, fishers and people who live on the coast. Wood offers some suggestions about how to mitigate the worst effects.
Economist
With some sifting, you'll find in-depth articles on water and economics, politics, business, technology, pollution, climate change, resource extraction and more.
Environmental Expert.com
http://www.environmental-expert.com/
Type "water" in search engine under ARTICLES and PUBLICATIONS for access to articles and papers, most on technical aspects of water management, treatment and pollution.
International Water Management Institute
http://www.iwmi.cgiar.org/
Non-profit scientific research organization specializes in water use in agriculture and integrated management of water and land resources, in Asia and Africa. Read about IWMI projects: one of WATER FOR AGRICULTURE'S research objectives is to re-think the role of irrigation in food production, poverty eradication and environmental security. GROUNDWATER studies consider the socio-economic aspects of groundwater.
Managing watersheds: Murray Creek
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/westcoastnews/story.html?id=e5b5f387-2638-4863-9463-77d817bd6058 Rivers have been compared to the blood system in a human body. Here's a story that stresses the importance of watersheds through the rehab of Murray Creek in northern BC.
Ocean thermal energy conversion
Turning temperature differences between cool and less cool parts of the ocean into energy is a challenging, developing technology, described in detail by the US National Renewable Energy Lab www.nrel.gov/otec/ (although NREL is no longer working on OTEC), as well as in en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_thermal_energy_conversion. Latest developments and news about OTEC are at www.otecnews.org. Google "ocean thermal energy conversion" for a great variety of images.
Polaris Water Sustainability Project
University of Victoria policy researchers investigate public poilcy options related to water sustainability. Publications suggest that an ecosystem-based paradigm is necessary for sustainability of water resources, requiring an integrated approach by all levels of government, business, industry and society. "Peeling Back the Pavement" offers a blueprint for reinventing rainwater management.
Rainwater harvesting
Besides the obvious advantage low-tech rainwater harvesting offers for domestic water, the "extra" can provide farmers with higher and faster growth, more harvests, or different crops, e.g. rice and vegetables rather than sorghum and maize. Google site offers dozens of diagrams, basic information about rainharvesting and rainharvesting projects.
Science and Technology Sources on the Internet
http://www.library.ucsb.edu/istl/97-summ...
An extensive list of Internet Resources for Water, offered by the Santa Clara Valley Water District.
Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI)
http://www.siwi.org/
Swedish policy think tank "contributes to international efforts to combat the world's escalating water crisis". Administers annual Stockholm Water Symposium as part of World Water Week, and provides international awards. See various summaries of Symposium talks on major issues, e.g. balancing upstream and downstream water use, balancing consumptive use and aquatic ecosystems.
Sustainability of Semi-arid Hydrology and Riparian Areas (SAHRA)
http://www.sahra.arizona.edu/
Arizona-based science and technology centre which promotes the sustainability of semi-arid and arid regions (1/3 of the earth's land) through education and research. Also has world Water News Watch, educational resources.
Thames flood barriers
www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/floods/117704.aspx A rather stilted animation shows how a new system of barriers will protect London, UK against floods from an overflowing Thames River. Site also includes general information on floods.
The Ocean Renwable Energy Group
Oreg "aligns industry, academia and government to ensure Canada is a leader in providing ocean energy solutioms". Information on wave, tidal and river energy generation and technology.
Water Canada Magazine
"The Complete Water Magazine" offers plenty for Canadian water managers and suppliers, but also water news and political issues, and Water's Next, an annual award to people "who have made signicant contributions to Canada's waterscape": leaders who have come forward with innovative technology, research or new solutions to water challenges.
Water Environment Federation
http://www.wef.org/education/
Click on AQUAVENTURER for a global timeline of water treatment, from sewers in ancient Rome through into the future. Click GO WITH THE FLOW to follow wastewater as it moves through treatment sequences. WEF is an organization of water quality professionals.
Quick Facts About Water
- Water covers 70% of Earth's surface. (That's why astronauts in space dubbed it "The Blue Planet".)
- Only 1% of this resource is drinkable. About 97% is ocean water: salty, unpotable and not usable for irrigation. The other 3% is fresh water, but nearly one-third of that is locked up in the form of glaciers and ice fields.
- The world's population more than tripled in the last century, but during the same time, our consumption of water increased six times. The U.S.A. and Canada, in that order, use the most water per capita.
- Agriculture is the largest user of water world-wide, consuming about 68%. Industry uses 22%.
- Water is life: we might survive a month without food, but less than a week without water.
- Water is weather: rain, snow, ice - and drought. It determines what we eat, what we grow, and what plants, animals and water life thrive.