Cape Town, South Africa is poised to shut off water taps for homes and businesses in the next few months. Without better water risk measurement, management and resilience, the next "Day Zero" could be coming to other cities around the world.
Toxic air pollution. Plastic-filled oceans. Sucking carbon from the skies. These are just a few of the stories that will shape 2018's legacy.
Fourteen of India’s 20 largest thermal utilities experienced at least one shutdown due to water shortages between 2013-2016, at a cost of $1.4 billion. It's a taste of what's to come in a warmer, more crowded world.
Power plants use a lot of water for cooling, but most don't disclose how much. A new WRI methodology calculates their thirst by using Google Earth images.
Water stress is causing unrest, undermining economies and ultimately driving people to leave their homes. To explore this vast topic in greater depth, Aqueduct Director Charles Iceland pens a WRI Commentary—a new content type that is longer than our typical blogs—on conflict and water.
Rome's famous fountains went dry this summer as mounting water stress took its toll. To avoid a repeat, the city must patch leaky infrastructure, incentivize efficiency and reuse wastewater.
The global water crisis can be summed up in these "seven deadly sins," from climate change to leaky infrastructure, that water researchers and officials will try to tackle during the 2017 World Water Week.
Thermal power plants rely on water for cooling, which means droughts can push generation offline. In India, reports describe this vulnerability—itself just another reason to speed the transition to renewables.
Nearly all of the world's electrical generation relies in one way or another on water. Climate change will stress water resources, potentially undermining the power sector.
This Infrastructure Week, it's time to look beyond building new pipes and pumps. Growing, restoring and preserving America's "natural infrastructure" like forests can help secure clean water supplies.