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Articles on Drought

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Road collapse in northern Kenya due to flash floods on 22 November 2023. Photo by Luis Tato/AFP via Getty Images

East Africa must prepare for more extreme rainfall during the short rainy season – new study

Projections show that there’ll be Indian Ocean dipoles in the future – and that means more rainy days, and more extreme rainfall.
New Africa / Shutterstock

Would you drink recycled water?

Recycled waste water is perfectly safe to drink, but many people aren’t keen to use it for anything other than watering plants.
The 2016 El Niño drought in Malawi dried out maize fields, leaving only weeds. It caused a famine that left over 60 million people in Southern Africa dependent on food aid. Andrew Renneisen/Getty Images

El Niño: Malawi’s harvest of its staple food maize may fall by 22.5% this year

Food security experts recommend that rural farmers in Malawi be given access to irrigation systems to free them from reliance on rain, and find ways outside farming to earn an income.
India’s new water manual aims to establish continuous piped water supply for all Indians moving forward — a goal it is unlikely to achieve. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)

India’s new manual for water supply will replicate past failures

Achieving continuous supply requires both a realistic assessment of the situation and a realistic plan to meet the goal. The Government of India’s new initiatives have neither.
Heavy smoke from wildfires in northern Alberta and British Columbia fill the air at 9 a.m. in Yellowknife, N.W.T. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Bill Braden

COP28: How 7 policies could help save a billion lives by 2100

A recent study found one billion people are likely to die prematurely by the end of the century from climate change. Here are seven energy policies that could save their lives.
The Rio Grande, viewed from the Zaragoza International Bridge between El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. Vianey Rueda

The Rio Grande isn’t just a border – it’s a river in crisis

When the Rio Grande figures in US news reports, it’s usually in relation to stories about immigration, drug trafficking or trade. But the river is also an important water source – and it’s shrinking.
In 2022, California built an emergency drought barrier across the West False River near Oakley to protect against saltwater intrusion. AP Photo/Terry Chea

What is seawater intrusion? A hydrogeologist explains the shifting balance between fresh and salt water at the coast

Saltwater intrusion is bad for human health, ecosystems, crops and infrastructure. Here’s how seawater can move inland, and why climate change is making this phenomenon more frequent and severe.

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