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Record Dryness in US Northeast Should Change Water Behavior, Experts Say

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Sunday, November 24, 2024

DENVER (AP) — It hasn't been a typical fall for the northeastern United States.Fires have burned in parks and forests around New York City. Towns and cities in a stretch from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to south of Philadelphia had their driest three months on record, according to the Applied Climate Information System. Some reservoirs in the region are near historic lows.Major changes need to happen to avoid critical shortages of water in the future, even if that future isn't immediate. As the climate warms, droughts will continue to intensify and communities should use this one as motivation to put in place long-term solutions, experts say. “This is the canary in the coal mine for the future,” said Tim Eustance, executive director of the North Jersey District Water Supply Commission. “People should stop watering their lawns yesterday.”Eustance wants New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy to issue a drought emergency to increase people’s sense of urgency. Here are some ways to stretch water experts said could become necessary in the Northeast. Replenishing more water underground One important place water is stored is under our feet. Groundwater has dropped significantly over the years in parts of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey and New York. Groundwater makes up about half of New Jersey's drinking water. Sprawl and concrete can make it tough for rain to replenish the water underground. “New Jersey is ‘mall-landia.’ We have these giant parking lots that could be ways to reclaim water instead of having runoff,” Eustance said.In some other parts of the country there is increasing use of permeable asphalt, concrete and pavers that allow water to percolate into the ground and back into the aquifer. It would be up to municipalities to require that, he said.A faster way to replenish the aquifer is by injecting highly treated wastewater into it, something Los Angeles has been doing for years. It is dramatically adding to the city's available water. Virginia Beach, Virginia, is also pumping highly treated water back into its aquifer, and Anne Arundel County in Maryland is trying to pass legislation that would allow the same. Paying people to conserve In some places in the western U.S., getting paid to save water has long been an option. Some cities and counties pay dollars for every square foot of lawn torn out and replaced with native landscaping. Those policies are not nearly as widespread in the Northeast, said Alan Roberson, CEO of the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators. “The abundance has created a different perspective,” he said. This can make it hard to get people on board with conservation.Upgraded water meters can give customers details about their water use and help them see where they can save money when drought doesn't feel as urgent, said Beth O'Connell, chief engineer for Anne Arundel County, Maryland. Reusing water could become more common The concept is simple: capture water from the sink, clothes washer, shower and toilet, treat it to a high standard and use it again for nonpotable purposes: It can be sent back through pipes to flush toilets, cool buildings, water yards or help raise water levels in a river or aquifer. “One of the crimes I think, in America, is we use drinking water to water our lawns and flush our toilet,” Eustance said. Zach Gallagher is CEO of Natural Systems Utilities, which designs, builds and operates water recycling systems. He also is the father of three kids and lives in New Jersey, so this drought hits close to home.“I feel like I'm doing something that is going to be meaningful and leave something beyond for my children, and their children,” he said.Reuse can be a tool for both drought and flood, he explained. When a building can reuse its own wastewater and discharge it directly into a body of water, it eases stress on a city's fragile sewer system, which is a common vulnerability in old coastal cities. It also reduces demand on new water.Once open this summer, the company's redesign of the old Domino Sugar Refinery on New York’s East River will be able to treat 400,000 gallons (1.5 million liters) of wastewater a day, enough to cover a football field in nearly 15 inches (38 centimeters) of water. The cleaned water will be piped back into the new mixed-use buildings for flushing toilets, cooling and landscaping, with some of it discharged back into the river.Nonpotable reuse has a growing footprint in the eastern U.S., but scaling it to a regional level should be the next focus, O'Connell said. Planning for a future that includes extended drought can be costly. It could also require a shift in mindset from one of abundance to conservation, said Del Shannon, dam engineer and member of the American Society of Civil Engineers. He has worked on water projects around the world and said many developing countries are focused on getting reliable water for crops and drinking.“We need to treat our water and guard it as gently as those countries are."The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment.Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Photos You Should See - Sept. 2024

The U.S. Northeast is experiencing an unusually severe and widespread drought during months that are typically the wettest

DENVER (AP) — It hasn't been a typical fall for the northeastern United States.

Fires have burned in parks and forests around New York City. Towns and cities in a stretch from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to south of Philadelphia had their driest three months on record, according to the Applied Climate Information System. Some reservoirs in the region are near historic lows.

Major changes need to happen to avoid critical shortages of water in the future, even if that future isn't immediate. As the climate warms, droughts will continue to intensify and communities should use this one as motivation to put in place long-term solutions, experts say.

“This is the canary in the coal mine for the future,” said Tim Eustance, executive director of the North Jersey District Water Supply Commission. “People should stop watering their lawns yesterday.”

Eustance wants New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy to issue a drought emergency to increase people’s sense of urgency.

Here are some ways to stretch water experts said could become necessary in the Northeast.

Replenishing more water underground

One important place water is stored is under our feet. Groundwater has dropped significantly over the years in parts of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey and New York.

Groundwater makes up about half of New Jersey's drinking water. Sprawl and concrete can make it tough for rain to replenish the water underground.

“New Jersey is ‘mall-landia.’ We have these giant parking lots that could be ways to reclaim water instead of having runoff,” Eustance said.

In some other parts of the country there is increasing use of permeable asphalt, concrete and pavers that allow water to percolate into the ground and back into the aquifer. It would be up to municipalities to require that, he said.

A faster way to replenish the aquifer is by injecting highly treated wastewater into it, something Los Angeles has been doing for years. It is dramatically adding to the city's available water.

Virginia Beach, Virginia, is also pumping highly treated water back into its aquifer, and Anne Arundel County in Maryland is trying to pass legislation that would allow the same.

Paying people to conserve

In some places in the western U.S., getting paid to save water has long been an option. Some cities and counties pay dollars for every square foot of lawn torn out and replaced with native landscaping.

Those policies are not nearly as widespread in the Northeast, said Alan Roberson, CEO of the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators.

“The abundance has created a different perspective,” he said. This can make it hard to get people on board with conservation.

Upgraded water meters can give customers details about their water use and help them see where they can save money when drought doesn't feel as urgent, said Beth O'Connell, chief engineer for Anne Arundel County, Maryland.

Reusing water could become more common

The concept is simple: capture water from the sink, clothes washer, shower and toilet, treat it to a high standard and use it again for nonpotable purposes: It can be sent back through pipes to flush toilets, cool buildings, water yards or help raise water levels in a river or aquifer.

“One of the crimes I think, in America, is we use drinking water to water our lawns and flush our toilet,” Eustance said.

Zach Gallagher is CEO of Natural Systems Utilities, which designs, builds and operates water recycling systems. He also is the father of three kids and lives in New Jersey, so this drought hits close to home.

“I feel like I'm doing something that is going to be meaningful and leave something beyond for my children, and their children,” he said.

Reuse can be a tool for both drought and flood, he explained. When a building can reuse its own wastewater and discharge it directly into a body of water, it eases stress on a city's fragile sewer system, which is a common vulnerability in old coastal cities. It also reduces demand on new water.

Once open this summer, the company's redesign of the old Domino Sugar Refinery on New York’s East River will be able to treat 400,000 gallons (1.5 million liters) of wastewater a day, enough to cover a football field in nearly 15 inches (38 centimeters) of water. The cleaned water will be piped back into the new mixed-use buildings for flushing toilets, cooling and landscaping, with some of it discharged back into the river.

Nonpotable reuse has a growing footprint in the eastern U.S., but scaling it to a regional level should be the next focus, O'Connell said.

Planning for a future that includes extended drought can be costly. It could also require a shift in mindset from one of abundance to conservation, said Del Shannon, dam engineer and member of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

He has worked on water projects around the world and said many developing countries are focused on getting reliable water for crops and drinking.

“We need to treat our water and guard it as gently as those countries are."

The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment.

Photos You Should See - Sept. 2024

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Asheville restores drinking water 53 days after Hurricane Helene - but not all are ready to sip

Residents concerned as North Carolina city lifts boil advisory and scientists detect lead in water at area schoolsWhen the western North Carolina town Swannanoa was battered by Hurricane Helene in September, two large trees crushed Stephen Knight’s home. His family of six was launched into a complicated web of survival: finding a temporary home, applying for disaster relief, filing insurance claims.The new logistics of living included the daily search for food and water. Until earlier this week, most residents of this town east of Asheville had no drinkable tap water for 52 days. After the storm damaged infrastructure around the region, water had been partly restored in mid-October. It was good for flushing toilets but not safe for consumption. In some places, sediment left the water inky like black tea. Continue reading...

When the western North Carolina town Swannanoa was battered by Hurricane Helene in September, two large trees crushed Stephen Knight’s home. His family of six was launched into a complicated web of survival: finding a temporary home, applying for disaster relief, filing insurance claims.The new logistics of living included the daily search for food and water. Until earlier this week, most residents of this town east of Asheville had no drinkable tap water for 52 days. After the storm damaged infrastructure around the region, water had been partly restored in mid-October. It was good for flushing toilets but not safe for consumption. In some places, sediment left the water inky like black tea.Local government advised residents not to consume the water without boiling. People with illnesses or open wounds were also advised to skip showers. Parents were cautioned that children should keep their mouths closed while bathing to avoid accidental ingestion.Drinking the water, even after boiling, was the last-resort option, and bottled water became a precious commodity. In the first days after the hurricane, many hauled creek water in buckets to flush their toilets. People bathed and did laundry at public “comfort stations”. Tankers with clean water occupied vacant lots around western North Carolina. Churches, schools and fire stations became water distribution centers. Households changed their routines: Meals that required boiling in water – pasta or rice – fell off home menus. Families stockpiled clean water to mix baby formula, and washing dishes was often a matter of dipping dishes in a solution of bleach and water.As of 18 November, the city of Asheville lifted its boil advisory. That provided some relief to Knight, who works as a nonprofit communications director. Like many residents impacted by the hurricane, he “had to learn what terms like potable and turbidity meant” as they waited for repairs to the badly damaged water North Fork plant that serves much of the region. (Turbidity measures cloudiness caused by tiny particles in water and is a key indicator of water quality.) Residents constantly listened for reports about how long it would take to be able to drink, bathe and use water in their homes or workplaces again. Initial estimates suggested water restoration could have taken as long as December, and many feared their lack of water access could stretch into next year.The remnants of a waterline pile up downstream from North Fork reservoir, a main source of water for the city on 2 October 2024, after the line was destroyed during Hurricane Helene. Photograph: Jeff Roberson/APStill, some residents and institutions are not yet tapping into the newly restored city water supply, concerned that the water may still not be entirely safe. Lead was detected in water at seven area schools, a relatively common problem in American schools due to older pipes. For 19 days, the city of Asheville treated water with high amounts of chlorine in case harmful materials had seeped into the badly damaged system. But while chlorine is a decontaminant, it can also corrode pipes. Right now, no lead has been discovered in the water system’s source, but many North Carolinans are wondering: am I in harm’s way from toxic lead, which can cause serious and fatal illness, or other materials?Knight is skeptical of using city water for preparing food or washing dishes. He remarked that while the cloudiness in the North Fork reservoir’s water has dropped, it still isn’t back to pre-storm numbers. “I’m thinking, I need to order [wipes used for camping or outdoor use] because I still can’t use the water here.”According to the ABC affiliate WLOS, Mission Hospital, one of the region’s largest health systems, is currently using water from recently drilled wells and storage tanks at almost all its facilities, with the exception of a freestanding emergency room.Clear and effective communication and widespread testing will ensure there is not a second crisis in AshevilleSally A Wasileski SchmeltzerIn the immediate aftermath of the storm, Stephanie Allen, a mother of three, hung curtains outside and constructed a makeshift toilet with a five-gallon bucket. Recently, when her son had a high fever, she filled the bathtub with water to cool him down. But she recoiled at the water’s appearance and opted to give him a sponge bath instead.When asked if she would resume drinking Asheville city water in the near future, Allen was hesitant. “I’m not quite ready to drink from the faucet,” she shared. “I need more scientific studies and anecdotal evidence of its safety. More time”.In a open letter to public officials, the University of North Carolina Asheville professor Sally A Wasileski Schmeltzer urged further investigation and communication educating the general public about the risk of lead poisoning. Schmeltzer chairs the school’s chemistry department and specializes in environmental research.Among her recommendations: widespread testing for lead and copper for buildings built before 1988, when lead was commonly used. She also advocated for blood tests for people who consumed the water – even after boiling – and especially for infants, other children, and pregnant or nursing people. Free testing is available, but she noted that homeowners need to understand when and how to test their water and themselves.“ [P]otential damage to private plumbing could be much more widespread than just to those schools that were tested,” Schmeltzer wrote. “I understand that it is very important not to cause a panic. Yet clear and effective communication and widespread testing will ensure there is not a second crisis in Asheville and Buncombe county.”skip past newsletter promotionThe planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essentialPrivacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.after newsletter promotionSome residents were surprised when the Asheville water resources department spokesperson Clay Chandler said in a press briefing that water customers with pre-1988 plumbing should flush their cold water taps for 30 seconds to two minutes before consuming it “like before Helene”. Asheville is dotted with old homes and buildings; the city is known around the nation for its well-preserved, early 20th century Art Deco buildings. But many area homeowners weren’t aware of the need to flush their pipes before the storm struck. That public education will be a long-term project.Businesses will need more time, too, to recoup losses from property damage, closure and the costs of bringing in water to stay open, if they chose to do so.Meg Moore has worked for about two years at Cecilia’s, an Asheville staple selling an eclectic mix of empanadas, crepes and tamales.“To get a plumber in here and turn off piping to city water and redirect it to the water tote and make sure it gets continually filled with potable water, there is a price tag on that,” Moore said. Before water restoration, many businesses asked: “Is it worth the thousands of dollars to do all that, not knowing how long it would take for water to be restored?” Cecilia’s used bottled gallons of water as well as compostable plates and silverware, careful to conserve what little water they procured. The owners were able to keep serving customers through Cecilia’s food truck business, which requires less staff and significantly less water to operate. 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Despite back-to-back deals on water from Mexico, relief for South Texas farmers is far from certain

Texas agreed to take 120,000 acre-feet of water from Mexico this month, only after the U.S. and Mexico agreed to an updated treaty.

Sign up for The Brief, The Texas Tribune’s daily newsletter that keeps readers up to speed on the most essential Texas news. McALLEN –– South Texas farmers remain concerned about their access to water despite back-to-back announcements this month that signaled better days ahead. First, the U.S. and Mexico signed an amendment to an international water treaty that dictates how water is shared between the two countries. Then earlier this week, Texas agreed to accept a relatively small offer of water that would go toward paying off Mexico's current water debt while also bringing relief to farmers and ranchers whose land has gone dry in the face of the current water shortage. However, relief is still a ways off as the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, the state agency that decides how to allocate the water, has yet to give the green light for that water to be used. The water in question is 120,000 acre-feet from Mexico's San Juan River. Mexico had offered the water in October, but the irrigation districts that provide water to farmers and ranchers were hesitant to accept it. They worried that accepting water now would cut into their critical supply needed for farming next season. The change in the water treaty essentially forced the state's hand. Earlier this month, the U.S. and Mexico signed an amendment to the 1944 international water treaty that had been in the works for more than a year. The amendment gives Mexico more ways to deliver water it owes the U.S., including allowing them to meet their obligations by delivering water it doesn’t need from the San Juan and Alamo rivers, which are not managed by the treaty. Under the treaty, Mexico must deliver 1,750,000 acre-feet of water to the U.S. from six tributaries every five years. Four years into the current five-year cycle, Mexico has delivered just 427,914 acre-feet with a balance of more than 1.3 million acre-feet of water that is due by October 2025. 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‘Lead and Copper’ Shows How Water Poisoning Runs Downhill

A new documentary about the Flint water crisis draws out the complexities of the problem.

“There’s a definite sense of people being expendable in this country,” says University of Florida professor Riché Barnes in director William Hart’s new film, Lead and Copper. “And it usually runs across racial lines. When it gets outside of racial lines, it runs on economic lines.” Barnes’s observation underscores the moral clarity that Hart brings to his investigation of the Flint water crisis, which exposed an entire community to high levels of lead through contaminated drinking water. That clarity helps cut through the morass of finger-pointing and misinformation that various politicians and bureaucrats use to abdicate responsibility. Lead and Copper reminds viewers that these decisions threaten people’s lives. Although just forty miles from Lake Huron, Flint, a post-industrial city whose population has dwindled to a nearly 100-year low, has been getting its water via a pipeline through Detroit since 1967. To lower its water costs, the city contracted the construction of its own pipeline in 2013. The pipeline would not finish construction until 2018, so in 2014, the city started taking from the nearby, heavily polluted Flint River instead of continuing to draw from Detroit. Very soon, mothers such as Janae Young started noticing the strange color of their water and the sores and rashes that appeared on the bodies of their children. The film follows Young through the process of caring for her children, even after their burns subside. She spreads lotion on their bodies, takes them to numerous check-ups, and boils water before using it—at least until yet another functionary informs her that boiling is ineffective against contamination. Young and other residents report the problems to their local government, which is overseen by various state and federal agencies. The course of action should be simple, right? Instead of using clean, if expensive, water from Detroit, the city started getting cheaper, poisoned water from the Flint River. Surely, then, one of the multiple oversight agencies in place would just order Flint to keep getting its water from Detroit until its own pipeline project is completed. But as Lead and Copper reveals, no one in power pursued a simple solution. Instead, governors, city managers, and regulators alike evaded responsibility and let the citizens suffer. Hart identifies a number of key culprits, including an unelected city manager appointed by Michigan’s plutocrat governor, an intentionally unrepresentative water sampling process by the state’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and a lack of diligence from the federal EPA. The city only begins providing bottled water and testing kits to citizens after mother LeeAnne Walters marshals help from Federal EPA manager Miguel Del Toral and Virginia Tech professor Marc Edwards to draw attention to the problem. Together, Walters and Del Toral demanded that city officials stop using the polluted water and provide emergency provisions for Flint Residents. Hart employs several on-screen graphics to help clarify the crisis, including a sleek line-art map of the United States and animation illustrating the passage of time. As the camera pans across the map, the narrative turns its attention away from Flint to similarly affected neighborhoods in Newark, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C., in which the full scope of the problem is revealed. These visual elements don’t just provide clarification; they also underscore the complicated nature of the problem. One of the film’s most effective moments shows then governor of Michigan Rick Snyder at a Congressional hearing about the crisis in Flint, in which the late Representative Elijah Cummings, Democrat of Maryland, questions Snyder about the extent of his knowledge about the crisis in Flint. As the film features Snyder’s testimony, a simultaneous graphic element reveals that someone close to the governor raised concerns much earlier. With every spin of the dial, and with every expansion on the map, viewers see in clear, unmistakable terms what various government officials and politicians have tried to obscure: that the water poisoning started after the city manager, the mayor, or someone in government made a cost-saving decision, and the adverse effects flowed down to the most vulnerable. While Lead and Copper’s complex representation of the crisis often works to underscore the movie’s point that the least powerful suffer the most, the narrative sometimes gets unnecessarily muddy. The film’s talking heads include Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and former Flint Mayor Dayne Walling, two figures with far more influence than the mothers of afflicted children. The film allows both of these leaders to speak for themselves, rarely provides overt fact checks to their explanations, and therefore seems to endorse their claims that they, too, were duped by bureaucrats above them and helpless to change things. Lead and Copper also gets muddled when Edwards begins diagnosing the problems. Like a good professor, he shows the viewers physical evidence of the water poisoning, such as the thick lead pipes used in the houses of most Flint residents. He explains in simple terms that lead from the pipes seeps into the water unless certain chemicals are used, and that Flint neglected to use these chemicals. Edwards’s explanation makes sense, but he’s introducing a problem independent of the decision to get water from the Flint River. The use of lead pipes helps connect the problems of Flint to those of Newark, Washington, D.C., and several other locations listed in the movie’s final title cards. But without distinguishing between water poisoned because of pollution in the Flint River and water poisoned because of lead pipes that have been in place for decades, these revelations introduce issues beyond the city’s water source, unnecessarily complicating Lead and Copper’s central line of argument. In fact, all of the connections between Flint, Newark, and Washington, D.C. feel more like appendices than they do expansions of the film’s central theme. With so many people actively trying to obfuscate the facts, these instances can sometimes create more confusion than clarity. Despite these occasional problems, Lead and Copper is ultimately about the affected community members. The film reminds viewers that we are not helpless against structures that allow the powerful to carelessly poison Black and low-income families. The film might end in a terrifying set of statistics about counties across the country with high levels of lead in their water systems, but we first see footage of Janae Young educating an elementary class about recycling and LeeAnne Walters vowing to continue the fight. There’s much work to be done, but Lead and Copper can bring others along. Given the many held unaccountable and the work yet to be done in Flint, it’s not accurate to say that Lead and Copper has a happy ending. But when we see people working to save lives and deliver justice, viewers cannot help but believe that they can turn the flow of even a poisoned river. Lead and Copper is available to rent on streaming services everywhere starting Tuesday, November 19. Joe George is a pop culture writer whose work has appeared in Polygon, Slate, Den of Geek, and elsewhere. You can follow him on Twitter at @jageorgeii and read more at joewriteswords.com. Read more by Joe George November 21, 2024 2:13 PM

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Goodbye Microplastics: New Recyclable Plastic Breaks Down Safely in Seawater

A new durable, biodegradable plastic developed by researchers breaks down in seawater, offering a potential solution to microplastic pollution. This material, based on supramolecular structures, can be tailored for different uses and is fully recyclable, enhancing its environmental benefits. New Sustainable Plastic Researchers led by Takuzo Aida at the RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science [...]

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Scientists identify previously unknown compound in drinking water

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Youth

Vanishing Springs

The Florida you know is a lie. In contrast to what Americans have been told, Florida’s magic is not found in the giant mouse, the rolling green golf courses, or in the beachside palaces. The beauty and uniqueness of Florida is under our feet - the aquifer. This pure, crystal clear water is the life blood of our state and without it, life as we know it in the sunshine state would not exist. This life sustaining force is only seen where it bubbles up to the surface through Florida’s collection of 1,000 springs. These springs were originally what drew society to this land. Wealthy tourists in the 1900’s flooded the Florida springs seeking medicinal cures from its pristine waters. As springs became a popular tourist destination, spring houses were built around these pools of water. When this development began, the springs began flowing less and some eventually stopped altogether. People assumed this was the natural order of this wonder and moved on. Theme parks, golf courses and resorts were erected to entice tourists to visit Florida, the natural beauty of the state soon faded out of our memory. The springs of Florida now silently suffer from the effects of continued development in Florida. The current strain we are placing on the fragile ecosystem is choking the life out of our state. Overdevelopment is one of the leading forces that is damaging the springs. The once pure sources of water no longer boil up like a fountain the way they have for centuries. The water that the springs do produce is polluted by nitrates. This pollution fuels the growth of toxic algae blooms, which are taking over springs and the rivers they feed, thus putting our health at risk. Over 90% of our drinking water gushes out of these sapphire pools. These glorious reservoirs have begun to shrink. If something is not done soon, the springs will simply become part of Florida history. In southern Florida they already have. Springs once bubbled up all across the state. They were wiped out in South Florida decades ago by the ditching and draining of the landscape as well as over-pumping of the aquifer. This water was then sprayed on suburban lawns and farmers' fields, run through showers and flushed down toilets, turned into steam to crank turbines for electricity, or siphoned into plastic bottles for sale around the country. Because of poor use and neglect of our greatest resource, we will soon be without this supply of fresh water. Floridians regard their water supply as abundant and cheap, when the fact is it's neither. Until this attitude changes, the springs will not be rescued.

Water

Conservation

Health

THE WATER WILL TAKE US

This film tells the story of the victims of the flood of 2019 in Iran, which happened in the three provinces of North, Central and South of the country and left a lot of damages. The main narrators are three women who reveal the causes of this incident and mismanagements and tell the story of the people who were left to fend for themselves during the flood and after.

Water

Social Justice

Climate

A River Reborn

As the Little Conemaugh River winds through the Allegheny Mountains of Pennsylvania, it forms the backbone of a region with a legacy of industrial might. And like a scribe, the river carries the weight of that history - mile after mile devoid of life, poisoned by toxic pollution from countless abandoned coal mines. Generations of residents and neighbors have turned their back on the river, believing the damage to be irreversible and scolding their children for playing in its orange waters. But a decade-long effort from a coalition of local groups has begun to reveal a different future for the Little Conemaugh and for other rivers in Pennsylvania and beyond that were written off as a casualty of the coal industry. A River Reborn tells the story of the rebirth of the Little Conemaugh, and what it says about our ability to fix what might have been lost forever.

Water

Pollution

Documentary

The Great Divide

Twenty minutes outside of Visalia, amidst the seemingly endless rows of citrus trees, Yolanda Cuevas packs enchiladas with shredded chicken for her husband Benjamin, their adult daughters and two teenaged grandchildren in her modest single-story home. Their house is the first one off the main drag, one of 83 lining the two crumbling roads that comprise the tiny town of Tooleville. Yolanda must wash the tomatoes for the salsa first in the sink and then again with a splash of clean water from a 5-gallon jug. The process is arduous, and though she’s resigned to do it, she’s not happy about it. Along with Tooleville’s several hundred other residents, Yolanda’s family has survived on bi-weekly delivery of water to their homes for the past 12 years. It’s an annoyance for the family, and it’s expensive for the State of California, which has been paying for the replacement water since the discovery of Chromium-6 (the same chemical featured in Erin Brokovich) in the water. The simpler solution would be to consolidate the town’s water system with that of its larger, affluent neighbor to the west, Exeter. And for this purpose, Yolanda has become a reluctant activist, attending community meetings in Tooleville and lobbying for consolidation at Exeter’s city council meetings under the expert guidance of Pedro Hernandez, an organizer with the Leadership Counsel. While Exeter has resisted the consolidation since it was first proposed, organizers like Pedro feel that this could be the year Exeter finally succumbs to the growing community pressure and brings Tooleville into the fold. The decision will echo around the Central Valley and across the state, as hundreds of similar community water systems find themselves in a nearly identical predicament.

Water

Activism

Documentary

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Suggested Viewing

Home Waters

Vanishing Springs

THE WATER WILL TAKE US

A River Reborn

The Great Divide

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sign up for our mailing list to stay informed on the latest films and environmental headlines.

Cookies help us run our site more efficiently.

Record Dryness in US Northeast Should Change Water Behavior, Experts Say

Photos You Should See - Sept. 2024

Related News

Asheville restores drinking water 53 days after Hurricane Helene - but not all are ready to sip

Despite back-to-back deals on water from Mexico, relief for South Texas farmers is far from certain

‘Lead and Copper’ Shows How Water Poisoning Runs Downhill

Goodbye Microplastics: New Recyclable Plastic Breaks Down Safely in Seawater

Scientists identify previously unknown compound in drinking water

Suggested Viewing

Home Waters

Vanishing Springs

THE WATER WILL TAKE US

A River Reborn

The Great Divide

Join us to forgea sustainable future

sign up for our mailing list to stay informed on the latest films and environmental headlines.

Join us to forge
a sustainable future