Sometimes, oftentimes, we so-called "alarmists" are spot on - "Drought leaves millions in #Uruguay without tap water fit for drinking - After years of underinvestment, reservoir has had to be topped up from estuary, raising health concerns - More than half of Uruguay’s 3.5 million citizens are without access to tap #water fit for drinking, and experts say the situation could continue for months.

Some had predicted the crisis years ago when pointing out the vulnerability of the single reservoir supplying water to the metropolitan area around the capital, #Montevideo.

By Latin American standards, Uruguay is a high-income country and it has historically thought of itself as having abundant water resources. Those who warned of diminishing supplies were considered catastrophists and investment was postponed.

Three consecutive years of #drought have almost emptied the reservoir of fresh water, and to avoid shortages the state-run water supplier, OSE, has since the beginning of the year been gradually adding brackish water from the Rio de la Plata estuary.

By early May the mix had reached the maximum levels of sodium and chlorides recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), and now it has double those levels, giving the water a repulsive taste and raising questions about potential effects on health.

Authorities maintain that the chemicals only affect the taste and smell of the water and do not necessarily pose a risk to most people’s health.

Some vulnerable groups such as babies, pregnant women and people with health conditions have been warned against drinking the water but there have been conflicting claims about its safety for the broader population."

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/15/drought-leaves-millions-in-uruguay-without-tap-water-fit-for-drinking

#Water #WaterRights #SouthAmerica #LatinAmerica #Colonialism #CleanWater #DrinkingWater #Drought #Climate #ClimateCrisis #Klima #Klimakrise #Capitalism #CapitalismKills #Kapitalismus

‘It’s pillage’: thirsty Uruguayans decry Google’s plan to exploit water supply - Country suffering its worst #drought in 74 years, with government even mixing saltwater into drinking supply.

A plan to build a Google data centre that will use millions of litres of water a day has sparked anger in #Uruguay, which is suffering its worst drought in 74 years.

Water shortages are so severe in the country that a state of emergency has been declared in #Montevideo and the authorities have added salty water to the public drinking water supplies, prompting widespread protests.

Critics claim that the government is prioritising water for transnationals and agribusiness at the expense of its own citizens. Daniel Pena, a researcher at the University of the Republic in Montevideo, said: “Only a tiny proportion of water in Uruguay is used for human consumption. The majority is used for big agro industries, such as soya, rice and wood pulping. Now we have #Google planning to use enormous quantities of water.”

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/11/uruguay-drought-water-google-data-center

#Water #WaterRights #SouthAmerica #LatinAmerica #Capitalism #CapitalismKills

In-depth article about what it takes to get back something that always belonged to you.

'This #NativeAmerican Tribe Is Taking Back Its #Water'
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/native-american-tribe-pima-indians-taking-back-water-180981542/

#Smithsonian #WaterRights

@WBOrcutt

Yeah, I'm definitely not disagreeing. Indeed there's a strong case for more plant-based food. But I'm not sure that the immediate problem in the US southwest. As I see the problems, and I'm not a total expert, this is just an impression, they are:

Water needs to be publicly managed, or we will the darkest side of capitalism as companies attend to own and manage water for profit.

Some ventures just waste water. Arizona's economy seems to partly depend on things like golf courses that can't be justified under any reasonable theory. Yes, getting rid of them does disrupt economies, but that's because economic rewards presently favor the few who exploit extractivist externalities against the needs of the many.

Implicit in this last point is that the metrics have to be repaired so that they are reporting success when the world is healthier. Our present system assumes that if money is being made, things are good, and if status-quo money-making drops off, an error must have been made. Economics and money exist to dynamically communicate societal priorities, so if those priorities are telling us to waste public resources, that's not a bug in the actions but in the way our economic system values and reports the action.

Part of public management needs to be understanding how to manage the balance between people and corporations. I've seen lots of articles that suggest that companies growing water-intensive food for profit is leaving the local area without enough water, and that if hose activities were not there, the public would not be nearly as threatened.

Now, there is some good that comes of growing crops where we can, but the idea that this can be done without public dialog and compromise, that it works to use only private mechanisms, does not withstand the laugh test. I'm fine about systems taking a task private when they can show good results by fairly independent metrics, but "money" is not a meaningful metric when talking about life-sustaining natural resources. It becomes instead a tool of tyranny and the unjust enrichment of a few.

We are at a point where resources in the world are finite, and we need adult conversations on what that means.

Additional reading from me:
http://netsettlement.blogspot.com/2019/09/losing-ground-in-environment.html

#Climate #ClimateCrisis #ClimateEmergency
#Water #WaterRights #sustainability #environment
#society #planning

This story about dwindling water availability in Arizona has that "canary in the coal mine" kind of feel. It's definitely worth a read.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/rio-verde-water-access-1.6749754

#Climate #ClimateCrisis #ClimateEmergency #Water #WaterRights

‘In California's Imperial Valley, Farmers Brace for a Future with Less Colorado River Water’
#WaterNews #WaterJustice #LATimes #IanJames

“Since its founding in 1911, the #ImperialIrrigationDistrict has held some of the most senior #WaterRights on the #ColoradoRiver, and it is among the last in line to take cuts. Its water rights, which date to 1901, support the local farm economy and sustain a substantial portion of the nation's food supply.

“But as the Colorado's largest reservoir declines closer to ‘dead pool’ levels, politicians and water managers in other states are calling on the IID to make cuts beyond 9% that the agency has pledged to make starting this year. They say that the dire state of Lake Mead warrants larger cuts, and that much of the reductions will need to come from agriculture. …

“The demands have struck an anxious chord among Imperial Valley growers, who say their way of life could be threatened and the country's food security is at stake.”

https://www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/in-californias-imperial-valley-farmers-brace-for-a-future-with-less-colorado-river-water/ar-AA16NxSl

As the Colorado River is stretched thin by drought, can the 100-year-old rules that divide it still work?

From mountain ranches in Wyoming to vegetable fields in Yuma, water users look for ways to keep the Colorado River flowing. #WaterManagement #WaterRights #ColoradoRiver

https://www.azcentral.com/in-depth/news/local/arizona-environment/2022/11/20/drought-colorado-river-compact-water/9213329002/

Tribes in the Colorado River Basin are fighting for their water. States wish they wouldn’t.

https://grist.org/indigenous/colorado-river-tribal-water-rights-navajo-nation-arizona-nevada-drought-data/

#indigenous #environment #ecology #WaterRights

Tribes in the Colorado River Basin are fighting for their water. States wish they wouldn’t.

"Indigenous nations have significant water rights, but many lack the infrastructure to take advantage of them."
#ClimateChange #WaterManagement #WaterRights #Drought

https://grist.org/indigenous/colorado-river-tribal-water-rights-navajo-nation-arizona-nevada-drought-data/