Biofuels, food crops straining world water reserves: experts

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Agence France-Presse

Biofuels, food crops straining world water reserves: experts
by Nina Larson
Sat Aug 23, 10:46 PM ET

STOCKHOLM (AFP) - Burgeoning demand for food to feed the world's swelling population, coupled with increased use of biomass as fuel is putting a serious strain on global water reserves, experts said

"If we look at how much more water we will need for food and how much more for biomass for energy going forward ... it is quite worrying," said Jan Lundqvist, who heads the scientific programme at the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI).

Global food needs are expected to roughly double by 2050, at the same time as climate change and dwindling oil reserves are pressuring countries to set aside ever more land for producing biomass to replace greenhouse gas-emitting fossil fuels.

These parallel global trends risk colliding with "the water-constrained biophysical reality of the planet," according to SIWI, which hosted the the World Water Week in the Swedish capital last week.


Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080824/sc_afp/environmentwaterfoodbiomass;_ylt=A0wNcx5HKrFIIjMBSTGs0NUE

[mwb970]

1. Too many people.

Nature will find a way to thin the herd. It won't be pretty.

[MadHound]

2. Tell you what, you want more water for the world,

Stop having people moving out to the goddamn desert and thinking that they could, and should, turn it into that green green turf of Kentucky. The local ecosystems of areas such as Phoenix, Las Vegas and Los Angeles weren't designed to hold hundreds of thousands or millions of people, much less make the desert bloom in people's front yards and endless golf courses. These cities and the residents within them have managed to live thrive and survive out in the desert only by sucking down water sources that aren't theirs, to the point where they are negatively impacting the rest of the country.

The Ogalala aquifer is somewhere between half and two thirds gone thanks to the developments in Arizona and New Mexico. This is the aquifer that supplies water for our bread basket. Half gone at best, all to fulfill some idiot's dream in Alberqerque of having a green, green front yard. The Colorado river, bless its heart, now is long used up before it reaches the ocean. The desert regions it travels through suck out its water to the point where it is literally gone, a dry ditch, by the time it reaches the ocean.

And now they're tossing out the possibility of piping water from back out east to the desert. Fuck that! Rather these people should realize that they are living an unsustainable life and move back east, and leave the desert to the plants and animals. If we don't do that, these desert cities will continue to suck water from the rest of the country until there is none left for anybody. But hey, that Arnie Palmer golf course out in the desert will still continue to be a lovely shade of green until the very last:eyes:

[iamjoy]

3. I Agree Half Way

Some may feel the east is overcrowded and prefer the open space of the west. Also, there is much to be gained in these states - solar energy and wind energy for one.

That being said, I agree that people in Phoenix and Albuquerque shouldn't expect green lawns and golf courses. It is an unnecessary drain on the world's water resources.

Under any kind of cap and trade or carbon tax system people of this region could benefit (economically) from the renewable energy that is a more realistic option there than in the east. Maybe they should have to pay more for water - so much so that they have real incentives to conserve. There are ways to structure utility rates to allow consumption for genuine need to not pose an economic hardship on the needy but make luxury or vanity use economically unattractive.

I am from Florida and we have gone through a mini version of this. When we have a drought, the water management board imposes restrictions on how frequently (and when) we can wash our cars or water our lawn. It has its flaws. Golf courses seem to be exempt (go figure) and we don't place restrictions on individual use of well water even though that drains the aquifer. Georgia has followed these conservation measures. So, when Georgia had a drought, they wanted to replenish Lake Lanier by reducing the water flow into the Apalachicola Bay (home to lots of marine wildlife). Georgia Governor Purdue tried to play it like he was trying to get water to people, Florida was trying to keep it for mussels. Even Florida Republicans saw through that bit of doublespeak. Besides the whole state's water ecosystem depending on what happens in Apalachicola, the bay has a large commercial fishing industry. So, you see, the water debate between Florida and Georgia was not about people vs. mussels it was about Golf players vs. Fishermen

Anyway, the point is, the water problem is not restricted to the west. The whole country needs to think about how we use our water. I use it sometimes for convenience, but really am beginning to think that bottled water should be banned or at least so heavily taxed as to become unappealing. That must be coupled with incentives for more public places to offer cold filtered water (in reasonable amounts) to anyone providing their own bottle. The stuff in water fountains is not often not cold and at least here in Central Florida tastes nasty this should be changed to provide incentives to use it instead.

[NashVegas]

4. The East Isn't Over-Crowded

It's that it's more difficult for corporate entities to get their Branded architecture on the skyline, compared to the ease which they're able to do it in the suburbs and newly developed / under-developed areas.

[Bette Noir]

5. My simple question:

Why doesn't every coastal town in America, if not the world, have a desalinization plant? It couldn't be more expensive, than, say, the ships and bombers that were built for WWII.

It'd certainly be more politically do-able than asking people not to be born, or fobidding gardens. They can take my roses when they pry them from my cold, dead hand.