The News Review:

- Eritrea: Potable Water Supply Project And Youth Center Constructed in…
- Thirsty counties seek to tap rivers
- ADB and Timor-Leste, Helping Dili Get Better Access to Safe, Reliable…
- South Florida builders may face tougher water restrictions

Eritrea: Potable Water Supply Project And Youth Center Constructed in…
AllAfrica.com – Dec 22, 2007
com (Asmara)22 December 2007Posted to the web 24 December 2007ArezaA 2. 6 million Nakfa potable water supply project and a youth recreation and training center have been constructed in the Areza sub-zone at a cost of 400,000 Nakfa. The Administrator of the sub-zone, Mr. Mohammed Hamid, said that the inhabitants of Areza now have access to potable water supply thanks to the project. GA_googleFillSlot(”AllAfrica_Story_Inset”); Also speaking during the inauguration ceremony of the potable water supply project, the Administrator of the Southern region, Mr. Mustafa Nurhusein, noted that it is part of the on-going endeavors to promote potable water supply in all corners of the country and that efforts to this end would be reinforced.

Thirsty counties seek to tap rivers
St. Petersburg Times – Dec 22, 2007
The era of pumping cheap water from the aquifer has come to an end in Central Florida, just as it did in Tampa Bay a decade ago. For utilities and water managers wary of the risk and expense of desalination, river water is the next obvious source. But a state law to develop alternative water supplies was not meant to allow direct withdrawals from rivers. And environmentalists say the drying of the aquifer should not be a signal to tap the nearest river. Along with the worsening drought, some say, it's a sign that Central Florida residents should reconsider draining environmental treasures to feed golf courses, subdivisions and theme parks. "We've already mismanaged the Floridan Aquifer, one of the greatest sources of freshwater in the world," said Jimmy Orth, executive director of St. Johns Riverkeeper advocacy group.

ADB and Timor-Leste, Helping Dili Get Better Access to Safe, Reliable…
Harold Doan and Associates (press… – Dec 22, 2007
19 2007The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will help the Government of Timor-Leste improve water supplies in the capital, Dili. The Dili Urban Water Supply Sector Project will provide good quality water, continuously for 24 hours a day, to approximately 30% of all Dili households, businesses and institutions. Most target beneficiaries come from poor or low income households. Experience shows that easy access to clean water benefits the urban poor most, especially women. The total project cost is estimated at $7…
Improving water supplies in Dili city is now an urgent priority. Dilis population is growing rapidly, but water supply services have only been partly rehabilitated since widespread destruction in 1999. Dili city has good water treatment plants, water storage facilities, and main distribution pipes. But inside the citys neighborhoods, the water is mostly lost through leaky pipes or is pilfered. Few customers pay for their water. The project will work intensively in six target neighborhoods containing 1,000 water connections each. New local pipes will be laid, water leaks will be repaired, and water connections with meters will be installed.

South Florida builders may face tougher water restrictions
Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel – Dec 22, 2007
Forecasts for a drier than normal dry season prompted the broad-reaching restrictions. Lake Okeechobee, South Florida’s primary back-up water supply, already sits 5 feet below normal at the start of a dry season that stretches through winter and spring. That is positioning South Florida for back-to-back years of drought, leaving less lake water to refill irrigation canals, restock drinking water well fields and replenish the. Landscape watering claims about half of South Florida’s public water supply. Tougher temporary watering restrictions are intended to get the region through the dry season…
District officials maintain they do not have direct control over development guidelines. They are creating draft laws that cities and counties could adopt to require more water-friendly building practices. Critics say an agency charged with protecting water supplies should not shy from a more direct role in setting development standards. “For you to say you don’t do planning and zoning is a dodge,” longtime water activist Rosa Durando told district board members at their December meeting. “Pick up the reins again and play a role. Andy Reid can be reached at.