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February 25th, 2013
08:52 AM ET
The coming water wars?
For more What in the World, watch GPS on Sundays at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. ET.
By Global Public Square staff
Imagine a large body of water ? about the size of the Dead Sea ? simply disappearing. It sounds like a science fiction movie. But it?s not. It?s happening in real life ? and we've only just found out.
A pioneering study from NASA and the University of California Irvine shows how the Middle East is losing its fresh water reserves. As you can see from the satellite imagery in the video, we?re going from blues and greens, to yellows and reds: that?s 144 cubic kilometers of lost water between 2003 and 2009. What do we mean by ?lost water?? Most of it comes from below the Earth?s surface, from water trapped in rocks. In times of drought, we tend to drill for water by constructing wells and pumps. But the Earth has a finite supply. NASA?s scientists say pumping for water is the equivalent of using up your bank savings. And that bank account is dwindling.
This could have serious implications. Conflicts over water are as old as the story of Noah ? in 3,000 BC. The Pacific Institute lists 225 such conflicts through history. What?s fascinating is that nearly half of those conflicts took place in the last two decades. Are we going to see a new era of wars fought over water?
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February 25th, 2013
08:52 AM ET
The coming water wars?
For more What in the World, watch GPS on Sundays at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. ET.
By Global Public Square staff
Imagine a large body of water ? about the size of the Dead Sea ? simply disappearing. It sounds like a science fiction movie. But it?s not. It?s happening in real life ? and we've only just found out.
A pioneering study from NASA and the University of California Irvine shows how the Middle East is losing its fresh water reserves. As you can see from the satellite imagery in the video, we?re going from blues and greens, to yellows and reds: that?s 144 cubic kilometers of lost water between 2003 and 2009. What do we mean by ?lost water?? Most of it comes from below the Earth?s surface, from water trapped in rocks. In times of drought, we tend to drill for water by constructing wells and pumps. But the Earth has a finite supply. NASA?s scientists say pumping for water is the equivalent of using up your bank savings. And that bank account is dwindling.
This could have serious implications. Conflicts over water are as old as the story of Noah ? in 3,000 BC. The Pacific Institute lists 225 such conflicts through history. What?s fascinating is that nearly half of those conflicts took place in the last two decades. Are we going to see a new era of wars fought over water?
...