(May 5, 2009, AutoBlogGreen)
The nail in the coffin of corn-based ethanol might be made of water. The magazine Environmental Science & Technology has published an article that pegs the amount of water needed to make enough corn ethanol to move a vehicle one mile at 50 gallons. That’s pretty high.
ES&T calculated the amount of water [...]
(April 26, 2009, The Sacramento Bee)
Any doubt that California is hip-deep in an epic struggle for water was put to rest earlier this month when an estimated 10,000 farmers and farmworkers marched 50 miles across the gasping San Joaquin Valley.
The goal was to heighten awareness about their water shortage, brought about by a third [...]
(April 26, 2009, The Oregonian)
“People think oil is something to fight about. Wait until we start running out of water,” said state Rep. Mike Schaufler, D-Happy Valley.
A handful of big farmers and their utility company engineered Oregon Oasis to get that water. They bought political access and nearly got their way.
“People who are well funded [...]
(April 22, 2009, The New York Times)
Farmers in the state’s drought-stricken agricultural basin will finally get a meager supply of federal water to help irrigate crops this summer. Federal officials said storms in March allowed them to increase the amount of water sent to customers south of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Water districts that supply [...]
(April 1, 2009, The Associated Press)
Many farmers in this northern Colorado plains region are struggling to keep their crops irrigated and stay afloat as they find themselves on the wrong side of state water rules dating back to the 19th century.
The farmers around Wiggins, population 830, recently lost a lengthy war over access to the [...]
(Feb. 17, 2009, The Wall Street Journal)
Taking a Cue From Carbon Tracking, Companies and Conservationists Tally Hidden Sources of Consumption
It takes roughly 20 gallons of water to make a pint of beer, as much as 132 gallons of water to make a 2-liter bottle of soda, and about 500 gallons, including water used to grow, [...]
(Feb. 10, 2009, The Wall Street Journal)
MENDOTA, Calif. — Dwindling water supplies are compounding economic woes in California’s Central Valley, causing farmers to leave fields fallow and confront the prospect of going under.
The state’s water supply has dropped precipitously of late. California is locked in the third year of one of its worst droughts on [...]
(Feb. 6, 2009, China View)
Beneath a cloudless blue sky, the withered wheat grass barely 2 inches high slumped over gray, parched ground in Wei Liuding’s field.
A mere spark would set the field alight at this time of the year when the field should be green.
“I haven’t seen such a severe [...]
New World Economic Forum Water Initiative Report, 2009: World Toward Water Bankruptcy; Water Bigger Than Oil within 20 Yrs! (LeakBird)Yesterday the World Economic Forum (WEF) released its Water Initiative, 2009 Report from Davos, Switzerland. You can download the PDF from the Council on Foreign Relations’ (CFR) website.
The report is nothing short of shocking:
Within 20 years entire grain crops equivalent to India and US lost
Within 20 years water more mainstream, bigger-better investment/ biz than oil
Water [...]
(Jan. 11, 2009, Des Moines Register)
Monsanto said last week it’s seeking regulatory approval of drought-tolerant corn, a crop that will mark a major milestone in agricultural biotechnology.
Farmers won’t be planting the seeds for a while, however. Monsanto officials said they hope to have the corn on the market in 2012, depending on how long it [...]
