Recent deadly wildfires and mudslides that happened after California’s years-long drought have prompted some green building experts to turn to technology to help improve the built environment and protect peple and their homes from natural disasters. Improvements touch on everything from soil moisture and irrigation, indoor water use, sustainable building materials and air quality. Technology […]
The fertile agricultural lands of America’s High Plains are rich and produce $35 billion in crops annually, but to do so farmers are over-pumping the vital Ogallala Aquifer for irrigation and now it’s drying up. This has caused major downsides for Colorado and the region, with 358 miles of rivers and streams gone, fish disappearing […]
Citing problematic plastic pollution and plastic’s high oil and water use in manufacturing, the chief of Iran’s Department of Environment, Issa Kalantari has mandated all organizations associated with it to ban the use of bottled water throughout the whole country. The world renowned water scientist explained that large-scale waste production, particularly for non-biodegradable plastic waste, […]
A new study on rising temperatures from climate change found that many places will lose moisture and become more arid if average global warming doesn’t remain below 1.5° Celsius. Regions most affected by increased desertification and drought support about 20 percent of the world’s population and could have significant effect on water resources. Per the […]
Water is used both domestically and for agriculture and industry in the production of everything from food to paper. In this book about industrial water footprints, the creator of the concept – Arjen Hoekstra – discusses how freshwater is used to produce the goods and services consumed by individuals, communities and businesses. [Amazon]
LA is the hub of denim research and manufacturing but that status is being threatened by labor-wage issues, immigration reform and drought (denim production has a high virtual water use). Find out more on this tour of the Citizens of Humanity denim factory. [Fashionista]
According to a new survey of more than 3,000 US adults, 35 percent of water drinkers say they drink only or mostly tap or filtered water, while 31 percent drink only or mostly bottled water. Sixty-three percent of Americans say bottled water is among their most preferred beverages, followed by coffee. [FoodBev Media]
Schools in San Francisco and elsewhere are lowering their carbon emissions and water footprints by reducing the amount of meat and dairy products they offer in school lunches. According to a new study by Friends of the Earth in collaboration with the Oakland Unified School District, by serving more plant-based nutritious meals and reducing meat […]
A new study in Nature Geoscience finds that global redistribution of the 14 crops that make up 72 percent of global harvests – peanuts, corn, millet, oil palm, rapeseed, rice, roots, sorghum, soybean, sugar beets, sugarcane, sunflowers, tubers and wheat – could significantly reduce water stress by making rain-fed production less susceptible to dry spells […]
