The News Review:

- Zimbabwe: Pollution Sees Water Treatment Costs Rise
- Drought, Atlanta, Ga., global warming | Salon News
- JORDAN: Water contamination incidents highlight water shortage problem
- Huge Water Park Planned for Ariz. Desert

Zimbabwe: Pollution Sees Water Treatment Costs Rise
AllAfrica.com – Nov 19, 2007
Environmental experts say untreated or partially treated effluents from municipal, industrial and mining wastewater discharges, urban storm water and runoff from agricultural, livestock and poultry operations has impaired the quality of water affecting the capacity of the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) to meet the growing demand for water in Harare. GA_googleFillSlot(“AllAfrica_Story_Inset”); "The price people pay for water is determined by three factors: The cost of transport from its source to the user, demand for water and price subsidies. In Harare water is still cheap because Zinwa is heavily subsidised by the Government," said a Harare water engineer. "Water treatment costs have risen sharply in recent years because of excessive pollution.

Drought, Atlanta, Ga., global warming | Salon News
Salon – Nov 19, 2007
” (Notice, by the way, how many “records” are being set nationally and globally in these drought years; how many places are already beginning to push beyond history, which means beyond any reference point we have. ) And then there’s the Southeast, 26 percent of which, according to the National Weather Service, is in a state of “exceptional” drought, its most extreme category, and 78 percent of which is “drought-affected. ” We’re talking here about a region normally considered rich in water resources setting a bevy of records for dryness. It has been the driest year on record for.

JORDAN: Water contamination incidents highlight water shortage problem
Reuters AlertNet – Nov 19, 2007
People there told IRIN the water in their taps had turned yellow and feared their health was at risk. “We don’t know what we are drinking, but for sure it is not pure water,” said Mahmud Abdullah, a van driver who works in the camp’s vegetable market. The government immediately shut down the water supply after experts realised the water had been contaminated by sewage. Last July, nearly 1,000 people from a village near the northern city of Mafraq were rushed to hospital suffering from severe diarrhoea and high fever caused by a parasite, Cryptosporidium, which, specialists said, made its way into the local water system. Investigations showed the source of the disease was the worn out water network supplying the town. On 28 October, another town, Sakib, near the Roman city of Jerash, saw at least 400 people rushed to hospital complaining of the same symptoms. The government tried to blame a small local restaurant for selling spoiled food, but residents insisted the reason was contaminated water…
Officials from the Ministry of Water say such a project is the only viable solution to end this conundrum. A feasibility study is being conducted by an international consortium funded by the World Bank to determine the US$5 billion project’s feasibility and its impact on the environment. “We will not rest until the Dead Sea Canal project is completed, but because of Jordan’s limited financial resources we will not be able to end this debacle without international assistance,” added Hiari. Refugee influx blamed Officials from the Ministry of Water and Irrigation blame an “unexpected growth in the population” for dwindling water supplies. “The network was built to sustain a population growth at normal levels, but the sudden flood of refugees from Iraq has been detrimental to the water network,” said Nael Zu’bi, a spokesman for the Ministry of Water. Jordan has been saddled with nearly half a million Iraqi refugees. In the past 15 years over 1.

Huge Water Park Planned for Ariz. Desert
FOX News – Nov 19, 2007
Project organizers say they won’t tap Mesa’s drinking water supplies to fill the park. Instead, they plan to draw from a well that has elevated levels of arsenic, which makes its water unsuitable for drinking. The Waveyard will build a treatment plant to make the water safe for swimmers. Rita Maguire, a former director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources who studied water availability for Waveyard developers, said the project will not use any more water than one of Arizona’s many golf courses. “Initially, the reaction is, ‘Oh my. Is this an appropriate use of water in a desert?’” “But recreation is a very important part of a community. And if you can make the use of that water in a highly efficient way, it’s a smart choice,” she said.