Seas are rising, weather events are causing flooding, even a new Hollywood movie has water in its title.
Some places are running out of water.
A perfect storm of drought, rapid population expansion and change in the climate has cause the second largest city in Africa to shift into crisis mode.
Australia has faced a similar crisis.
Drought dries up reservoirs, population increases beyond infrastructure capacity, agriculture uses huge amounts of water, and conservation measures are not implemented or are able to keep up.
Groundwater recharge — the process of aquifers being replenished by rain and snowfall — is hotly debated in Michigan, where Nestle Waters North America pumps over 130 million gallons of water each year for bottling, depleting aquifers and in some cases collapsing the earth around them, according to some environmentalists.
Locally, we know this water as Poland Springs.
Ironic that the bottled water that has such an impact on the planet is the main way to survive against the lack of water in some countries.
On the local front, Tewksbury seems to be doing well with conservation, and small changes yield big results.
Let’s stay aware and keep conserving.