Water News
Alberta Water News is a free, subscription-based service that provides the latest information on water news across Alberta and upcoming events.
The news is distributed weekly on Mondays via a collated email and Monday to Friday via WaterPortal social media (X was Twitter). Please note that news will not be distributed on Holiday Mondays and will be released the following Tuesday.
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Compare and contrast: Why the ‘wettest place on Earth’ is facing a water crisis
BBC News
The Northeast Indian town of Sohra regularly receives a downpour of continuous rainfall, sometimes for eight days at a stretch. But today, locals in the area are facing a severe water shortage. They now walk long distances daily and resort to unconventional methods to fetch water for basic, everyday use. What’s behind the water crisis in the ‘wettest place on Earth’?. Click here to continue reading
Compare and contrast: Global water crisis fuelling more conflicts, UN report warns
Al Jazeera
Water resources under stress as economies and populations grow with 2.2 billion people lacking clean drinking water. Increasing global water scarcity is fueling more conflicts and contributing to instability, the United Nations warns in a new report, which says access to clean water is critical to promoting peace. Click here to continue reading
PSA: The City encourages residents to be water-wise and use a rain barrel this spring
City of Calgary
Calgary is currently experiencing drought conditions. Together we can make every drop count in our yards by using water wisely. Harnessing rainwater for watering your yard and garden is a simple, yet effective way to reduce your water use by acting as a backup source of water during this drought. Click here to continue reading
Compare and contrast: Regulators urged to act over water companies’ record sewage discharge
The Guardian
Government asked to put ‘people and planet before profits’ as analysis shows potential illegal discharging of raw sewage. Analysis of the latest data shows that more than 2,000 overflows owned by a number of companies are discharging raw sewage into rivers and seas at a scale that should spark an immediate investigation into illegal breaches of permit conditions. Click here to continue reading
Compare and contrast: Land under water: What causes extreme flooding?
Science Daily
If rivers overflow their banks, the consequences can be devastating — just like the catastrophic floods in North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate of 2021 showed. In order to limit flood damage and optimize flood risk assessment, we need to better understand what factors can lead to extreme forms of flooding and to what extent. Using methods of explainable machine learning, researchers have shown that floods are more extreme when several factors are involved in their development. Click here to continue reading
High and dry: The rising tide of flood risks and the insurance dilemma
Canadian Climate Institute
A national low-cost insurance program tied to a broader strategy could help long-term flood resilience in many communities across Canada. Click here to continue reading
Compare and contrast: India’s Bengaluru fast running out of water – and it’s not summer yet
Al Jazeera
Bengaluru, the city of lavish headquarters of multiple global software companies in southern India, is drying up. Residents say they are facing the worst water crisis in decades as they witness an unusually hot February and March. Water experts fear the worst is still to come in April and May. Click here to continue reading
Compare and contrast: Where Water Stress Will Be Highest by 2050
Statista
As this infographic based on projections by the World Resources Institute (WRI) shows, 51 of the 164 countries and territories analyzed are expected to suffer from high to extremely high water stress by 2050, which corresponds to 31 percent of the population. Click here to continue reading
Compare and contrast: Climate change puts global semiconductor manufacturing at risk. Can the industry cope?
The Conversation – Canada
Despite the industry’s dependence on water, little attention has been paid to how changing environmental conditions may impact it. Globally and regionally there are signs of trouble. Click here to continue reading
Compare and contrast: South Texas lawmaker asks governor declare emergency due to ‘water crisis’
CW39
A South Texas lawmaker is asking for additional state assistance to save agriculture in the region, which is suffering due to a lack of water to grow crops. He also asked for greater pressure on Mexico to comply with the boundary waters treaty. Click here to continue reading