The News Review:

- Aerosol Pollution Slows Down Winds And Reduces Rainfall
- Debunking the myths of Victoria’s water-saving
- Water crisis top priority for Turnbull
- Painful Images of Water Crisis Looming
- … of funds, lines decaying, Jal Sansthan pipes ‘dirty water’…

Aerosol Pollution Slows Down Winds And Reduces Rainfall
Science Daily – Science Daily (press release) – Jan 23, 2007
Smaller droplets in turn take longer to coalesce and form raindrops. In fact, rain may not ever happen, because if the clouds last longer they can end up moving to drier air zones and evaporating. Increasing California’s water woes "In California, [the wind reduction] may imply a 2 to 5 percent reduction in water supply, which translates into 0. 25 million acre feet less a year" Jacobson says. (An acre foot is the volume of water needed to cover one acre of surface area to a depth of one foot. ) This contributes to water scarcity in the state, which with its growing population will require an additional 4 to 6 million acre feet of water supply by 2010, according to the Association of California Water Agencies.

Debunking the myths of Victoria’s water-saving
The Age – Jan 23, 2007
Myth: Irrigators, including rice and cotton growers, usemassive amounts of water and the Government should target them, nothouseholds. Fact: Irrigation does use very large amounts of water butmost of it is in the Goulburn Murray system, and very little riceand cotton is grown in Victoria. The system is not connected toMelbourne’s water supply. The Government is investing hundreds of millions of dollars inprojects to improve irrigation efficiency. The $500 million WimmeraMallee pipeline is the largest rural water-saving project in thecountry and will save 100 billion litres of water now lost toevaporation and seepage. Myth: The Government is targeting gardeners rather thaninvesting in improved water infrastructure. Fact: In 2005-06, $73 million has been spent on upgradingMelbourne’s water infrastructure to reduce leaks…
Melbourne is being reconnected to new water from the TaragoReservoir, which was decommissioned in the early 1990s. Two major recycling projects are already recycling 12 billionlitres of water from Melbourne’s treatment plants. The easterntreatment plant will be upgraded for class A recycling and a studyis being conducted to use recycled water to coolthe power stations in the Latrobe Valley, thereby freeing morethan 100 billion litres of drinking water, the equivalent of aquarter of Melbourne’s supply. Major water projects for regional towns are also being supportedby the Government, including the Goldfields superpipe that willprovide 50 years of water for Bendigo and Ballarat and waterrecycling projects for the Latrobe Valley and Geelong. Gardeners do make a very important contribution to thewater-saving effort, particularly in the extreme drought we arefacing. Stage 3 restrictions will achieve additional water savingsof 20 to 25 per cent through summer and it is relatively easy toensure most people follow them. The Government is providing rebates on water-saving products toassist gardeners and we are working with nurseries to provideadvice about water saving in the garden.

Water crisis top priority for Turnbull
NEWS.com.au – Jan 23, 2007
article-tools –> January 23, 2007 03:45pm SOLVING the country’s water crisis would be a top priority, new federal Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull said today. Mr Turnbull was promoted to Cabinet today in a major ministerial reshuffle by Prime Minister John Howard. Mr Turnbull became Environment and Water Resources Minister, replacing Ian Campbell who was demoted to the human services portfolio. Mr Turnbull said he felt honoured by his appointment and said water issues would be at the top of his list of priorities. "We have to become the most efficient users of water anywhere in the world and we can do that," he said. "We have the technology, we have the skills, we have the commitment and the sense of national leadership…
”Labor’s water spokesman Anthony Albanese said the Federal Government’s water programs were “a tangled web of bureaucracy” and had failed to deliver. “John Howard has thrown Malcolm Turnbull into the muddle, hoping he can quickly deliver a coherent commonwealth water policy in the lead-up to the election,” Mr Albanese said. ”Australia needs a plan to promote water supply, not just a plan to promote Malcolm Turnbull. ”Mr Turnbull said his other main priority would be addressing climate change, the reality of which had been rammed home to many Australians because of the drought. He said one of the best ways to tackle global warming was to push ahead with the government’s plan to develop clean coal technologies and possibly introduce a carbon trading scheme. “I think carbon trading, carbon taxes, are all options for putting a price on carbon,” he said. But Labor’s environment and climate change spokesman Peter Garrett accused the Government of being in denial over climate change.

Painful Images of Water Crisis Looming
Bernama – Jan 23, 2007
Who would forget those trying days or even weeks when most taps in the Klang Valley simply ran dry! The water crisis was attributed to the long bouts of drought caused by El Nino. This year, 10 years later, history may repeat itself. Meteorologists worldwide have issued a warning on global warming and El Nino that could play havoc with global weather, and Malaysia is no exception. RED FLAG RAISED Water crisis and water rationing may well be knocking on our doors. Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Khir Toyo has already raised the red flag…
“The situation has thus affected projections made on water demands,” said the dean of the Chemical and Natural Resource Engineering Faculty of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Prof Dr Zaini Ujang, citing a report entitled “Malaysia, Water Industry Guide 2005″ which discusses the Master Plan For The Development of Water Resources in Peninsular Malaysia 2000-2050. The report also states that some states could also experience water shortages during periods of prolonged droughts exceeding four months. These are states with smaller land area and limited water resources within their boundaries when compared to other states, but their demand for water could be among the highest due to rapid economic development. Among them are Penang, Melaka and Perlis and they are likely to be joined by Selangor after 2007 and possibly by Negri Sembilan after 2020. INCREASING DEMAND FOR WATER Statistics obtained from the “Malaysia, Water Industry Guide 2005″ point out that in 2003 the treatment plant design capacity was 13. 343 million litres per day (MLD) but production was actually 11.

… of funds, lines decaying, Jal Sansthan pipes ‘dirty water’…
Ahmedabad Newsline – Jan 23, 2007
Local politicians, too, cover up such issues. The locals, meanwhile, are left in the lurch as the Jal Sansthan passes the onus to the government. The daily water supply is now restricted to merely half-an-hour, said Asif, a resident of Thakurganj, and its not safe to drink. We have to rely on a single hand pump in the area to collect drinking water. A recent LJS survey has found that Old City areas like Rakabganj, Aminabad, Daliganj and Aishbagh are more prone to leakages and contaminated water. Officials said old pipelines and illegal connections are the prime culprits for this. We are sending a fresh proposal to the government for maintenance and replacement of pipelines, the LJS secretary said.