Every day the most important news on water and sanitation from around the world, compiled by the Blue Community Network, defending water as a common, public good and a human right.
Alaska Native Corporation partners with Indigenous water company to cut plastic waste
Alaska Native Corporation partners with Indigenous water company to cut plastic wasteHuna Totem Corporation expects to eliminate 15,000 pounds of plastic waste this year through a partnership with an Alaska Native-owned water company that packages glacial water in reusable aluminum bottles.
The Alaska Native village corporation will sell Utqiaġvik, Alaska-based Kuuk Water’s products at its cruise destinations, starting with Icy Strait Point near Hoonah. The port expects to sell 300,000 bottles during the 2025 season, replacing single-use plastic bottles with aluminum containers that can be reused up to 10 times.
“Every business venture we undertake and every decision we make is rooted in our deep respect for the land,” said Huna Totem President and CEO Russell Dick. The aluminum bottles feature Tlingit designs created exclusively for Huna Totem.
Read Tribal Business News / Tags: US – BottledWater – Plastics
Increasing contamination with the environmental chemical TFA: the ticking time bomb in Swiss water
Increasing contamination with the environmental chemical TFA: the ticking time bomb in Swiss waterTFA is contaminating groundwater across the country. This was previously considered harmless. However, the EU is now carrying out a reassessment. If it introduces a strict limit value, this would be the worst-case scenario for the Swiss drinking water supply.
Tap water in Switzerland is still safe to drink, whether at home or from public fountains. However, water suppliers are concerned. “We are concerned about the quality of our most important drinking water resource: groundwater,” says Christos Bräunle, spokesman for the Swiss Water, Gas and Heating Association (SVGW).
The reason for this concern is increasing contamination by chemical substances, ‘be it nitrate, degradation products of pesticides or, more recently, these persistent chemicals such as TFA or PFAS,’ explains Bräunle.
Read SRF (Swiss Public Broadcast) (German) / Tags: PFAS – Switzerland
UK: MPs ask minister if he will claw back Thames Water executive bonuses
UK: MPs ask minister if he will claw back Thames Water executive bonusesChair of troubled firm admits 21 senior managers were paid 50% of base salary on 30 April.
The environment secretary has been asked if he will claw back controversial bonus payments to Thames Water senior executives after it emerged some bonuses had already been paid out.
Last month, Steve Reed vowed to block bonuses that Thames Water proposed to pay to managers at the beleaguered company. The firm’s chair has been forced to admit that bonuses have already been paid to executives out of a £3bn emergency loan paid by creditors for the purpose of rescuing Thames from financial collapse.
Read The Guardian / Tags: UK
South Africa: Department unlocks rural water solutions through partnerships in Eastern Cape
South Africa: Department unlocks rural water solutions through partnerships in Eastern CapeIn a decisive move to address water scarcity in rural areas, Water and Sanitation Deputy Minister Sello Seitlholo, has led a high-impact community engagement in the Eastern Cape, which has showcased the importance of government-civil society collaboration in unlocking sustainable access to clean water for underserved communities.
Held on Friday at Njijini Village, Mount Frere, the engagement was hosted in partnership with the Unity Water Foundation, underscoring a shared commitment to improving water security through inclusive and community-driven solutions.
Read SA News / Tags: SouthAfrica
The US Badly Needs Rare Minerals and Fresh Water. Guess Who Has Them?
The US Badly Needs Rare Minerals and Fresh Water. Guess Who Has Them?As China tightens its grip on critical resources, Trump eyes Canada’s riches.
Rain fell for the first time on the highest point of the Greenland ice sheet in August 2021, seen by scientists as a foreboding precedent for sea level rise and the planet. But not everyone was alarmed. The melting of ice caps began exposing virgin ground for mining, including what has been touted as some of the largest deposits of rare earth elements, or REEs, in the world.
Blue Community co-founder Maude Barlow is quoted in this article.
Read The Walrus / Tags: US – Canada – MaudeBarlow
Australia: Sewage spills in Perth’s south leave Bruce Lee Reserve in Beaconsfield covered in wastewater
Authorities say it could take days to fix a burst wastewater main that kickstarted a number of sewage spills in Perth’s southern suburbs over the weekend, with residents still reeling from the stench of wastewater that inundated local parks.
The problems started when a sewerage pipe burst on Friday morning in the suburbs of Hamilton Hill and Spearwood, causing wastewater to flow down a residential street, into two homes and the front yards of another four.
Read ABC News / Tags: Australia – Sanitation
Australia: Victoria is in the grip of drought, but what’s different about this one?
The record-breaking drought crippling South Australia, Victoria and parts of New South Wales and Tasmania feels different to those farmers have endured before.
For many farming families, the slow creep of failed seasons, sold-out hay and rising costs continues to cascade into a deeper crisis day by day.
It will stay that way until there’s decent rain and the ground is warm enough to grow feed — which could take weeks, if not months.
The Victorian Country Hour has been touring the state’s drought-affected regions and it’s clear to me that Australian farmers are changing the way they deal with extreme pressure.
Read ABC News / Tags: Australia – WaterCrisis
Turkmenistan’s deepening water crisis could have far-reaching regional consequences
Turkmenistan’s deepening water crisis could have far-reaching regional consequencesThe vast, arid landscapes of Turkmenistan, stretching across Central Asia, are facing a profound and growing threat—a deepening water crisis that casts a shadow over its future stability, as well as over the security of the entire region. While often overshadowed by other domestic problems, the struggle for water in Turkmenistan is a critical issue demanding immediate attention. Exacerbated by a changing climate, almost a century of unsustainable practices, and new regional developments, this crisis is not just an environmental problem—it’s an unfolding human tragedy that could have significant economic and political ramifications well beyond its borders.
Read Atlantic Council / Tags: CentralAsia – WaterCrisis
A very long Nile, or 6,650 km of problems
A very long Nile, or 6,650 km of problemsWho owns the water of the Nile and what is its most dangerous inhabitant? Most of us know very little about the world’s longest river, and it’s high time to change that. Especially since, according to scientists, the Nile is shrinking with each passing decade, while the lives and well-being of more than 300 million Africans depend on its waters.
From its source in western Tanzania, it flows through 11 African countries before emptying into the Mediterranean Sea in Egypt. For local communities, it is a lifeline – a source of water, a place to bathe, and a fishing ground. Unfortunately, it also harbors danger, and contrary to popular belief, it’s not the crocodile, but… the snail.
Read Water Issues / Tags: Egypt – Africa
Elif Shafak: our rivers are dying – and it’s a feminist issue
Elif Shafak: our rivers are dying – and it’s a feminist issueIt is women, children and the poor who so often bear the greatest burden of climate change.
Climate crisis is, essentially, the story of water. It is a story of troubling extremes: floods and droughts. In the words of Emily Dickinson: “Water, is taught by thirst. Land–by the Oceans passed.” That thirst is growing, as demand for fresh water will outstrip supply by 40% by the end of this decade, according to the Global Commission on the Economics of Water. Already half of the world’s population is experiencing water scarcity.
Nigeria: Lagos bans single-use plastics amid mounting waste crisis
Authorities in Nigeria’s commercial hub, Lagos, have announced a ban on single-use plastics as part of efforts to tackle the city’s worsening waste problem. Large quantities of plastic waste often end up in the ocean, littering the coastline and posing environmental risks. Local officials say the ban is the latest in a series of steps aimed at addressing the city’s long-standing waste management challenges.
