The News Review:

- Stop taking water for granted, report warns Ottawa
- Bottled water drying up
- Limerick joins in ‘boil water’ warnings
- Penobsquis welcomes new water supply
- Massive Mechanical Mole Surfaces from Nearly Five-Year Journey …
- Start-up flirts with hi-tech water treatment systems

Stop taking water for granted, report warns Ottawa
The Canadian Press, OTTAWA 
An internal report drafted last December by Environment Canada warns that climate change and a growing population will further drain resources. “We can no longer take our extensive water supplies for granted,” says the report, titled A Federal Perspective on Water Quantity Issues. The Canadian Press obtained the 21-page draft report under the Access to Information Act. It suggests the federal government take a more hands-on role in managing the country’s water, which is now largely done by the provinces. Ottawa still manages most of the fresh water in the North through water boards. The Conservatives promised a national water strategy in last fall’s throne speech but have been criticized since for announcing only piecemeal projects.

Bottled water drying up
Toronto Star,  Canada 
Equally troubling, scarce energy and water resources are being expended needlessly to manufacture all those bottles to begin with. In a country where most citizens have ready access to clean – not to mention cheap – drinking water by simply turning on their taps, our obsession with the bottled stuff just doesn’t make sense. So why would municipalities that oversee drinking water supplies introduce bottled water to council meetings and recreation centres?High-end restaurants, grocery stores and workplaces will continue to offer bottled water as long as consumers demand it. Canadians are starting to make clear choices as they become more informed – aided by the proliferation of trendy metal bottles that make it easier to bring their own water from home. But municipalities should seize this opportunity to set a good example by ridding their facilities of bottled water and encouraging people to drink tap water or use drinking fountains instead. There are already signs the tide is turning. Toronto is taking a broader look at how to handle product packaging, including water bottles, as part of its waste diversion strategy, while the Toronto public school board is considering restricting bottled water sales.

Limerick joins in ‘boil water’ warnings
Irish Times, Ireland 
The areas affected are Ballyteige Upper, Ballyfookeen, Howardstown North, Cappanafaraha, Ballywillin, Ballyclough Upper, Ballyinoran, Garryfine, Knockaunavoddig, Garrane, Ballynoe, Mounteagle and Lotteragh Upper. Director of services Paul Crowe said the supply had been “under continuous surveillance” due to the heavy rainfall. “The surveillance subsequently identified E. coli in the water supply. ” He said water from the supply should not be used for human consumption until further notice. Water for drinking, brushing teeth and food preparation should be boiled and water from the hot tap is not safe to drink. Boil notices also remain in place in parts of Sligo and Meath.

Penobsquis welcomes new water supply
Times and Transcript, Canada 
Residents in these homes haven't been able to take tap water for granted in the last five years. During that time, water trucks have been delivering water to basement tanks in the village three times a week since the rural wells went dry. Residents largely blame nearby businesses like PotashCorp and Corridor Resources for the problem and don't agree with paying a user fee for the water they were once able to get for free. “Why should we have to pay for something we already had and it's no fault of ours that we lost it?” said Berniece Fanjoy, a senior in the area. Fanjoy said she left her home in the Penobsquis last fall because of the water problem. When it came down to it, she had to either move or sacrifice her health. With a heavy heart, she chose to move to an apartment in Sussex Corner.

Massive Mechanical Mole Surfaces from Nearly Five-Year Journey …
MarketWatch 
“For those of us who have followed this project since it firstappeared on the drawing board 20 years ago, this is truly a thrillingmoment,” said Metropolitan board Chairman Timothy F. “This is alandmark achievement for the Inland Feeder, a vital link in securing amore reliable, higher-quality water supply for Southern Californians. 8-mile Arrowhead West Tunnel is the last of three needed forthe 44-mile Inland Feeder, a high-capacity, gravity-fed water deliverysystem stretching from the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountainsto Metropolitan’s Colorado River Aqueduct in the Riverside Countycommunity of San Jacinto. Mining on the other two project tunnels–the4. 3-mile Arrowhead East Tunnel and 8-mile Badlands Tunnel–wascompleted last May and in July 2001, respectively.

Start-up flirts with hi-tech water treatment systems
Business Daily Africa, Kenya 
August 21, 2008: In the expansive and carefully furnished boardroom, Mr Clive Wafukho talks with the eloquence of a doctor. The managing director of Ivory Consult Ltd is not really explaining how bacteria conspire to cause disease – rather, an almost similar subject. Ivory Consult, the local water solutions provider, last year launched Water Pro, a division to supply hi-tech water treatment systems. Displayed in its showroom opposite Mr Wafukho’s office are treatment units he says the market is steadily warming up to. “We need to look at comprehensive solutions that can remove pollutants in water, which in our case range from fluoride, iron and manganese to nitrates and bacteria,” says Mr Wafukho. He says Kenyans are very conscious of the quality of water they drink. But in most cases many are forced to just boil it, in a population with little trust for government supplied water.