In the fight against cholera, new research in the DRC suggests that the rehabilitation of water networks would be more sustainable than other interventions whose effectiveness is debatable.
Smoke billows from the High Park wildfire west of Fort Collins, Colo., on June 11, 2012, a year of historic drought across much of the western United States.
AP Photo/Ed Andrieski
Some observers have blamed recent wildfires on poor forest management, while others point to climate change. In fact, a climate scientist explains, reducing fire risks means tackling both issues.
Drinking water in Australia can be contaminated by natural and manmade processes, especially in communities. Innovation is needed to ensure water is ‘fit for purpose, place and people’.
Volunteers prepare to take flow measurements on Muddy Creek.
Centre County Pennsylvania Senior Environmental Corps
When people form local networks to take care of resources such as drinking water, they strengthen their communities. Technology can support these efforts and promote learning and innovation.
On the outskirts of Bangalore, families must piece together drinking water from communal supplies, intermittently available tap water, and “water ATMs”.
Access to water – not electricity – can have larger gains for health and well-being.
(Shutterstock)
Providing people with clean drinking water and sanitation is less expensive than grid electrification and it could improve more lives.
Homes surrounded by water from the flooded Brazos River in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in Freeport, Texas, Sept. 1, 2017.
AP Photo/Charlie Riedel
Many people board up their houses and stay in place during disasters – but often they aren’t prepared to go without water, power or transportation for days or weeks afterward.
Globally consumers are increasingly taking charge of their own drinking water supply.
Shutterstock
Unless African cities improve water management many will face severe water problems by 2035.
Elon Musk may be on the hot seat for political donations and slurs against a British cave rescuer in Thailand, but his offer to pay for water filters in Flint, Mich., is laudable.
(AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
An audit of Sydney’s drinking water has found worryingly high salinity. If the biggest water catchment in the country has problems, what about regional and rural Australia?
Toppled road sign for a closed water distribution center in Flint, Mich.
Cedric Taylor
Michigan officials have ended distribution of free bottled water in Flint, but many residents believe the city’s water crisis is not over and have lost all trust in government.
Long-eared Myotis bat (Myotis septentrionalis), photographed in Arizona.
Srikanth Vk
Scientists often use animals and plants as indicators to assess whether ecosystems are polluted. Tracking bats, which cover wide areas and need clean water, could become a way to find potable water.
Little Missouri River, North Dakota.
Justin Meissen
Recent research shows that US rivers are becoming saltier and more alkaline. Salt pollution threatens drinking water supplies and freshwater ecosystems, but there is no broad system for regulating it.
Lake Tarawera, seen from its outlet, has excellent but declining water quality.
Troy Baisden
The ecological health of New Zealand’s lowland rivers and lakes is in decline, but principles borrowed from drinking water safety could help reverse the degradation.
Every year councils around Australia compete to prove they have the best-tasting tap water in the country.
The Iguazu Falls in Brazil are part of the Guarani Aquifer, one of the world’s major underground reserves of fresh water. The 8th World Water Forum, part of 2018 World Water Day, is being held in Brazil, home to the most fresh water on Earth.
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Water is one of our most precious resources, yet it’s in danger. World Water Day reminds us of the need to develop policies and governance to avoid squandering water.
The Hawkesbury’s waters look beautifully natural but treated sewage makes up to 20% of the river flow where the North Richmond Filtration Plant draws its water.
Karl Baron/flickr
Perth is looking at recycling all its sewage in the city’s future water supply. But many Australians’ drinking water already contains indirectly recycled treated sewage.
Flooding is a common hazard in Nezahualcoyotl, a Mexican city just outside the nation’s capital.
AP Photos/Eduardo Verdugo
We think of Canada as a water-rich country, but we are not immune to water shortages or disasters. With some advance planning, Canada can avoid a water catastrophe.
Professor of Civil, Environmental & Ecological Engineering, Director of the Healthy Plumbing Consortium and Center for Plumbing Safety, Purdue University