Energy16
-
White Paper Release: Addressing the Water Crisis in Gujarat, India
In honor of World Water Day, Columbia Water Center is releasing a new White Paper: Addressing the Water Crisis in Gujarat, India. The paper presents the results of Columbia Water Center’s study of the severe groundwater crisis in the Mehsana region of Northern Gujarat, India. The study concludes that the current pattern of groundwater exploitation…
-
Ethanol’s Impacts on Our Water Resources
Ninety-five percent of ethanol in the U.S. comes from corn, but corn-based ethanol is controversial because of the amount of land required to grow the crops, and because of its effect on food prices and water resources.
-
New York Times Raises Concerns about Hydrofracking
An article in the New York Times has prompted debate over the effects of hydrofracking, a means of obtaining natural gas, on drinking water supplies.
-
Aditya Birla Group and EDF Group Join the Earth Institute Corporate Circle
The Earth Institute is pleased to welcome the the Aditya Birla Group and the EDF Group into the Corporate Circle, a collective partnership of leading corporations from across the globe committed to pursuing sustainable development objectives. The Aditya Birla Group, the Corporate Circle’s newest Strategic Partner, is a $29 billion corporation in the league of…
-
Finding Answers to the Worsening Water Crisis in Gujarat, India
As explained in a recent blog post, falling groundwater levels in the Northern regions of the state of Gujarat, India, are reaching dramatically dangerous proportions. Columbia Water Center (CWC), however, believes that there are numerous technologies and practices that could save significant amounts of water and energy. Farmers have shown interest in applying them, but…
-
Desalination: Yesterdayʼs Solution (part 3)
Worldwide, humans have quickly and wastefully consumed water from the cheapest sources by over-pumping aquifers and over-allocating rivers. Weʼve turned to technology to eek out more but technology is not without its costs. Every remaining incremental gallon of water will come at a higher and higher price. Are we nearing a breaking point?
-
Despite Grim Water Futures, China and US Discuss Everything but Water
Notably absent from this week’s program is any planned dialogue regarding energy demand and water supply, two issues whose inverse trajectories are threatening the environmental and economic futures of both nations.
-
Desalination: Yesterdayʼs Solution (part 2)
Everyone has skeletons in their closets, desalination is no exception. Burying them does a disservice to the millions of public dollars that have been invested. Letʼs celebrate their weaknesses so that we may never repeat their mistakes. There may be many dozens of such projects, but here are a few that have experienced their share…
-
The Worsening Water Crisis in Gujarat, India
For more than three decades, the farmers in Northern Gujarat State, in India, have produced abundant food crops, and have had a thriving dairy industry. In order to make that happen, they have been using once plentiful underground water resources. Because local aquifers are being replenished more slowly than the water is being withdrawn, groundwater…