COLORADO HYDROLOGIC CONDITIONS
As of 2/1, the 30-year of average snow water equivalent by basin is: Gunnison, 152%; Upper Colorado, 105%; South Platte, 90%; Laramie/North Platte, 89%; Yampa/White, 90%; Arkansas, 129%; Upper Rio Grande, 159%; SAN MIGUEL/DOLORES/ANIMAS/SAN JUAN, 159%.
DENVER’S WATER USE DROPS TO 1969 LEVELS
Colorado’s Front Range cities have reduced their water consumption to levels not seen in decades, despite record-breaking growth, but water-wise practices are drying up revenues for water companies. Denver Post; Jan. 25 <http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~53~2672153,00.html>
WESTERN WATERSHED GROUPS TEAM UP TO CAPTURE FUNDING
Colorado watershed groups are teaming up with similar coalitions in Utah and Montana to improve their presence in the fight for $20 million in federal funds to be divided among the states’ 101 different watersheds. Grand Junction Sentinel; Jan. 25 <http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2005/01/24/1_24_1a_Watershed_Funding.html;COXnetJSessionID=B3GJbFc2Cpl8frpSv62UubatdZg1WpoWvxEQ1wXFwBB9b1ILNRXj!-1289693887?urac=n&urvf=11067081054680.34663802488332307>
LAWMAKER PITCHES PLAN TO SMOOTH COLORADO WATER DISPUTES
Rep. Josh Penry, R-Grand Junction, said his bill would create water roundtables to work out conflicts over state water resources, but some say such a process may be premature. Denver Rocky Mountain News; Jan. 21 <http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/legislature/article/0,1299,DRMN_37_3487479,00.html>
COLORADO READIES FOR SECOND ROUND OF LONG-RANGE WATER STUDY
Phase II of a statewide study to gauge Colorado’s water supplies and demands by 2030, when the state’s population will have added another 2.2 million people, will begin in March. Denver Rocky Mountain News; Jan. 27 <http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/state/article/0,1299,DRMN_21_3500757,00.html>
WATER ISN’T JUST A SNOWPACK ISSUE IN COLORADO
Predictions on Colorado’s snowpack are often off-target, and the Legislature is taking the right approach on water conservation issues, but the state must also address how growth affects water supplies. Boulder Daily Camera; Feb. 2 <http://www1.dailycamera.com/bdc/editorials/article/0,1713,BDC_2489_3515200,00.html>
RECOVERY PROGRAM
The Programmatic Biological Opinion on the Management Plan for Endangered Fishes in the Yampa River Basin was signed on Monday, January 10, 2005 and is available on the web at <http://www.r6.fws.gov/crrip/yampaPBO.htm>
RECENT SNOWS EASE WESTERN DROUGHT A BIT
Climatologists warn that the benefit of heavy snows in Nevada, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico could dry up quickly, and Montana, Idaho and Wyoming have had little relief from severe drought. Deseret News (AP); Jan. 14 <http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,600104749,00.html>
FEDERAL OFFICIAL SAYS WESTERN STATES MUST ADDRESS WATER DEFICITS
A Bureau of Reclamation official said recent storms in the West will buy time for the seven member states of the Colorado River Compact, but the states need to come up with a management plan to curb water shortages. Fort Collins Coloradoan; Jan. 14 <http://www.coloradoannews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050114/NEWS01/501140315/1002>
NEW MEXICO RAINS ARE A RESPITE, NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR PLANNING
New Mexico’s wet holiday season brought welcome relief to drought-plagued portions of the state, but it’s no reason to back off conservation plans. Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 5 <http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/8812.html>
NEW MEXICO CITIES’ FUTURE WATER MIGHT BE CAUGHT IN COLORADO RIVER CUTS
Santa Fe and Albuquerque increasingly rely on imported Colorado River Basin water to supply new growth, but officials are warning the ongoing drought may mean cutbacks. Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 6 <http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/8898.html#>
IT’S NOT THE WATER, IT’S THE PEOPLE MOVING TO NEW MEXICO
The water situation in the West is caused by the collision of drought and explosive growth, and New Mexico must peg its growth ambitions to the reality of the area’s lack of water. Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 9 <http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/9042.html>
SANTA FE PLAN TO IMPORT WATER DRIES UP AT THE SOURCE
Estancia City officials voted to cancel a proposal to sell groundwater to the city of Santa Fe, a plan that had drawn angry responses from local residents. Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 27 <http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/9781.html>
SOME NAVAJO ALLOTTEES OPPOSE SAN JUAN WATER DEAL
Some Navajo water rights holders on checkerboard reservation lands in New Mexico said they’d file an injunction to block the proposed settlement of tribal water claims in the San Juan River basin. Farmington Daily Times; 01/06 <http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/8898.html#>
INTERIOR NOW SAYS IT WON’T SUPPORT NEW MEXICO TRIBAL WATER DEAL
Interior Department officials said they’re now willing to pay only $11 million of the $280 million cost of a water pipeline, thwarting a proposed agreement to settle Indian water claims north of Santa Fe. Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 13 <http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/9175.html>
NAVAJO WATER SETTLEMENT ONE STEP CLOSER TO FINAL
New Mexico’s Interstate Stream Commission approved a settlement of Navajo water rights in the San Juan Basin, the governor and attorney general are expected to sign off next, and the state’s delegation will introduce it to Congress with a $750 million appropriations request. Farmington Daily Times; Jan. 13 <http://www.daily-times.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi?archive=625&num=16371>
NEW MEXICO REPRESENTATIVES PLEDGE WATER FIGHT
Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., said he will continue to fight for federal funding of a resolution to a decades-long New Mexico water rights suit, after federal officials said they would contribute only $11 million of the promised $200 million. Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 14 <http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/9210.html>
SANTA FE OFFICIALS PONDER WHO WILL PAY FOR $127 MILLION WATER DELIVERY
Santa Fe City Council members have yet to decide how to pay for a $127 million proposal to pump groundwater from Torrance County, 65 miles away. Santa Fe New Mexican; 01/12 <http://207.114.199.161/news/9139.html>
SANTA FE OFFICIALS HEAR PLEAS AGAINST PIPING IN WATER
Residents of Santa Fe and of the valley to the south that could furnish a new supply of water for the city’s growth opposed the deal in a City Council hearing. Santa Fe New Mexican; Jan. 13 <http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/9173.html>
NEW MEXICO MUST KNOW SIZE, HEALTH OF AQUIFERS
One New Mexico legislator would spend $620,000 to help map the state’s aquifers, a long-overdue and crucial step toward balancing water supplies and growth. Santa Fe New Mexico; Jan. 28 <http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/9826.html>
SOME UTAH CITIES IGNORE RULES FOR WATER PLANS
Six years after a legislative mandate, eight Utah cities and companies have failed to file a water conservation plan and 15 more missed the Dec. 31 deadline for updates. Salt Lake Tribune; 1/5 <http://www.sltrib.com/utah/ci_2509537>
ARIZONA STREAMS COME TO LIFE WITH RECENT RAINS
A series of winter storms has dumped enough rain on Arizona to make the rivers actually run; in some areas, it was the first significant rain in 10 years. Casper Star-Tribune (AP); Jan. 6 <http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2005/01/06/news/regional/5bf8e7e1e6e9f30b87256f800080f79c.txt>
PARCHED SECTIONS OF UTAH GET BURIED IN SNOW
Enough snow is piling up in some Utah drainages to make officials worry about flooding next spring, instead of the ongoing drought. Deseret News; Jan. 6 <http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,600102805,00.html>
WATER AGREEMENT INVIGORATES FARMING FOR ARIZONA TRIBES
The Arizona Water Settlement Act, one of the biggest water deals in U.S. history, will allow the Gila River Indian Community to again farm its river banks, reconnect to the land and create jobs. Arizona Republic; Jan. 19 <http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/0119gilafarm19.html> <http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096410167>
NEVADA WATER JUDGE OPENS THE TAP FOR VEGAS PIPELINE
Nevada’s state engineer OK’d a plan for Southern Nevada Water Authority to tap 8,905 acre-feet of rural Nevada’s groundwater, half of what the authority had requested. Las Vegas Review-Journal; Jan. 5 <http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2005/Jan-05-Wed-2005/news/25599125.html>
SOUTHERN NEVADA WATER COMPANY ROLLS OUT WATER-USE PLAN
The Southern Nevada Water Authority and the Southern Nevada Home Builders Association propose to cut water usage by 30 percent, but some say water conservation will spur more growth. Nevada Appeal; 1/18 <http://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/20050118/NEVADA/101180032>
NEVADA REVELING IN NEAR-RECORD PRECIPITATION
Nevada just finished its fourth-wettest January on record, and that followed the wettest fall in 70 years. Las Vegas Review-Journal; Feb. 1 <http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2005/Feb-01-Tue-2005/news/25777278.html>
HEAD FORESTER SAYS CLEARCUTS WOULD MEAN MORE WATER
The head of the U.S. Forest Service in the northern Rockies told a Wyoming legislative panel that clearcutting about 25 percent of forest land would increase water yields, but it would be difficult to get the public to accept the notion. Casper Star-Tribune; Jan. 28 <http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2005/01/28/news/wyoming/8498b5db06c88b3f87256f970003d033.txt>
STUDY SAYS WEST’S IRRIGATORS WILL HAVE TO CUT WATER USE
A recent Cornell University study said Western U.S. agriculture will have to change its wasteful ways as water becomes more precious and populations continue to grow. Casper Star-Tribune (AP); Jan. 11 <http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2005/01/11/news/regional/c595dc83e3cecf0c87256f850070b527.txt>
SOUTHWEST’S WATER USE DROPS AS POPULATION CLIMBS
While the Southwest’s population has soared in recent decades, its water use has dropped, a testament to the overriding demands of agriculture. Arizona Daily Times; Jan. 27 <http://www.dailystar.com/dailystar/news/58770.php>
ONE WET WINTER SHOULDN’T LULL CONCERNS ABOUT DROUGHT
Colorado’s recent wet spell is some cause for celebration, but a more prudent and long-term vision would plan for more drought coming. Paul Larmer, Writers on the Range; Jan. 20 <http://www.headwatersnews.org/writersLarmer012005.html>
TREE RINGS FORETELL HOT, DRY FUTURE FOR THE WEST
The study of tree rings was born and raised in the Interior West of the United States, and climatologists using tree-ring data fear the West is only half through the current drought cycle. High Country News; Jan. 24 <http://www.headwatersnews.org/hcn.trees012505.html>
COLORADO RIVER WATER CRISIS LOOMS
Despite having no formal criteria as to just what constitutes a water shortage, the Department of Interior has told the seven member states of the Colorado River Water Pact of 1922 to come up with a new plan to allocate the ever-dwindling water reserves. High Country News; Jan. 24 <http://www.headwatersnews.org/hcn.water012505.html>
DROUGHT IS UP, AND CLIMATE CHANGE SEEMS PARTLY TO BLAME, REPORT SAYS
The proportion of the planet’s land area suffering from drought has more than doubled since the 1970s, to about 30 percent, according to a recent study by the National Center for Atmospheric Research. Researchers attribute about half of that change to rising temperatures caused by global warming rather than to a lack of precipitation. The drying has been widespread in Europe, Asia, Canada, western and southern Africa, and eastern Australia, said Aiguo Dai, the study’s lead author. Climate models predict that rising temperatures will lead to most of earth’s land masses experiencing more warm-season drying in coming decades. “Our analyses suggest that this [greenhouse-related] drying may already have begun,” said Dai. New Scientist, 1/22 <http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=4111>
REGIONAL COOPERATION WOULD INCREASE CLOUT IN ARIZONA WATER WARS
Arizona communities should band together to increase their negotiating power over the state’s most precious resource: water. Tucson Citizen; Feb. 1 <http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/index.php?page=opinion&story_id=013105b4_edits>
MSCP
The Bureau of Reclamation has released for review environmental documents related to the proposed adoption of the Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation Program (MSCP). The proposed program is a 50-year initiative to recover endangered species and protect wildlife habitat, while ensuring the certainty of continued water and power operations. The MSCP would create more than 8,100 acres of riparian, marsh and backwater habitat, and protect: (1) six listed endangered species — the southwestern willow flycatcher, Yuma clapper rail, desert tortoise, bonytail, humpback chub, and razorback sucker; (2) two candidate species — the yellow-billed cuckoo and relict leopard frog; and (3) nineteen other rare plant and animal species. Fifty percent of the program’s estimated $620M cost over 50 years would be provided by the federal government, with the remaining 50% provided by entities within Arizona, California and Nevada, including the Southern Nevada Water Authority and Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. The environmental documents are available online at <>www. lcrmscp.org
CALIFORNIA TRIBE SAYS DAMS TO BLAME FOR POOR HEALTH
A California tribe that once relied on salmon cited members’ poor diet and litany of health woes in its attempt to breach three Klamath River dams. Washington Post; Jan. 30 <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A47525-2005Jan29.html?sub=AR>
COMPLEX WATER DEAL BETWEEN STATE AND THE NEZ PERCE TRIBE PASSES CONGRESS
On the surface, a $193 million water deal seems to offer something for everyone and endangered salmon too, including saving groundwater in the Snake River aquifer. Idaho Statesman; Jan. 9 <http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050109/NEWS06/501090315/1056>
SOUTHERN IDAHO IRRIGATORS COULD DRY UP PARTS OF EASTERN IDAHO
Twin Falls-area irrigation districts this year will exercise their senior rights to Eastern Snake River Plain water, a move that could dry up farmland and shut off wells in eastern Idaho. Idaho Statesman; 1/12 <http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050112/NEWS0105/501120339>
IDAHO WATER FIGHT BEST SETTLED BY NEGOTIATION
Southern Idaho irrigators’ call for water added an unnecessary urgency to negotiations over competing claims for a dwindling supply of water in the Snake Plain aquifer. Idaho Statesman; 1/13 <http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050113/NEWS0501/501130348/1052/NEWS05>
WATER DECISIONS TRICKLE DOWN THROUGH IDAHO ECONOMY
Idaho legislators will make two major water-related decisions this session, and the effects on life and the economy in Idaho will be far-reaching. A detailed look at water issues in Idaho. Idaho Statesman; Jan. 16 <http://www.idahostatesman.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050116/NEWS0105/501160311/1019>
IDAHO GOVERNOR CALLS FOR SETTLEMENT IN SNAKE PLAIN AQUIFER BATTLE
Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne warned both sides in an escalating southern Idaho water war that a negotiated settlement would save each millions in legal fees and the potential loss of their water. Idaho Falls Post Register; Jan. 27 <http://www.headwatersnews.org/pr.snakewater.html>
IDAHO RIVER FOCUSES WEST’S DEMANDS
Local government and a federal agency will study water quality in southern Idaho’s Wood River basin, which irrigates miles of desert, supports superlative trout fishing and exemplifies the contradictory demands on western rivers. Idaho Mountain Express; Jan. 21 <http://www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?issue_date=01-21-2005&ID=2005101024>
CASCADES’ SNOW FADING AWAY IN MID-WINTER
Washington’s Cascade Range has only about one-fourth its average snowpack, the lowest figures in nearly three decades, and the effects could be felt next summer by orchards, salmon and more than a million water users. Seattle Times; Jan. 27 <http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002162116_snowpack27m.html>
MONTANA’S WINTER SNOW ALREADY MELTING AWAY
Warm temperatures and premature melting have dropped Montana’s snowpack to near-record lows. Bozeman Daily Chronicle; Jan. 28 <http://bozemandailychronicle.com/articles/2005/01/28/news/01snowpack.txt>
MISSOURI RIVER LOOMS AS MAJOR PROBLEM
Drought conditions in the Northern Plains and some Rocky Mountain regions pose serious problems for recreation and navigation from the upper to the lower Missouri River Basin. Six years of drought conditions brought reservoirs to near their lowest levels in decades causing agricultural irrigation and personal water use problems. The states of North and South Dakota have jumped into the fray with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to change the management of the water flow in order to protect the reservoir levels. Charles Murphy, chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe located in both North and South Dakota, suggested that lawsuits might be in order to prevent anyone from being denied water. <http://www.indiancountry.com/content.cfm?id=1096410234>
ARMY CORPS AGREES NY WETLAND DESERVES FEDERAL PROTECTION
A floating pingpong ball and the threat of a lawsuit convinced the Army Corps of Engineers that a small wetland qualifies for federal protection. <http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=6977>
SALINITY
Addressing the 2004 National Salinity Management and Desalination Summit in Las Vegas on December 13, Senator Pete Domenici, Chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee as well as the related Appropriations Subcommittee, called for the creation of a National Water Supply Council to coordinate federal and state, public and private, efforts and “reinvigorate” the investment in water augmentation technology to “…greatly increase the supply of usable water by reducing the cost and overcoming other obstacles for advanced water treatment.” He announced he would “seek a broad, bi-partisan coalition in Congress,” and $200M, to create a successful program building “on the strength of the Department of Energy and its immense technology capability in national laboratories.” He declared that 80%-100% of the renewable water supplies in the Southwest are being used, while at the same time the West’s population is increasing by 20% each decade. “That’s 12 million new people…, needing 2 million more acre-feet of water over the next ten years — and each ten years thereafter. Clearly, we are reaching the critical limits of our supplies. We have relied on conservation for the last 10 years to extend the supply. Conservation, storage and transfers are all finite…. Only [advanced] water treatment provides hope for the long term.” WSWC
PHOENIX OFFICIALS URGE RESIDENTS TO BOIL WATER BECAUSE OF TREATMENT PLANT PROBLEMS
The 1.5 million residents of Phoenix were warned to boil their drinking water or use bottled water as a precaution because of problems at treatment plants, and to take conservation measures. <http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=7001>
SALT’S IMPACT ON MOUNTAIN LAKES STUDIED
Scientists are researching the long-term environmental effects of winter road maintenance, using the Cascade Lakes near Lake Placid as a laboratory. <http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=6895>
CONTAMINENTS OF SPECIAL CONCERN
The most comprehensive study ever of Colorado water quality turned up supposedly safe levels but a worrisome prevalence of chemicals. The U.S. Geological Survey’s study found a long list of contaminants, a disturbing array of drugs, detergents and household chemicals, only 10 to 15 percent of which are regulated, and those at levels below what officials consider threats to human health. But the presence of so many chemicals in the surface water of a headwaters state startled researchers; they said the study will lead to a better understanding of the sources and dispersion of chemicals into water supplies. <http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/state/article/0,1299,DRMN_21_3483858,00.html>
ARIZONA TRIBES OBJECT TO WASTEWATER SNOW ON SACRED MOUNTAIN
Navajo, Hopi and Havasupai tribal and spiritual leaders protested a city of Phoenix plan to use 180 million gallons of treated wastewater to make snow at a ski resort on a sacred mountain. Indian Country Today; Jan. 26
FEDERAL RULING MAY CHANGE COALBED-METHANE WATER PRACTICES
Coalbed methane operators had been given general permits to build in-channel dams to control water produced during mining operations in Wyoming, but a new ruling now requires them to obtain permits on a site-by-site basis. Casper Star-Tribune; Jan. 9 <http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2005/01/09/news/wyoming/300a1ca7b0646ee987256f830009348a.txt>
WYOMING INSPECTORS FIND RAMPANT COALBED METHANE VIOLATIONS
Wyoming officials found dozens of illegal reservoirs for coalbed-methane developments and asked companies to stop storing water until they get permits. Casper Star-Tribune; Jan. 11 <http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2005/01/11/news/wyoming/da95acc7755bccc987256f8600088dea.txt>
PANEL SAYS SAFE LEVEL FOR TOXIC PERCHLORATE SHOULD BE 20 TIMES HIGHER
A panel of scientists recommended the safe level of perchlorate, a component of rocket fuel that has contaminated groundwater in many states, including Utah, be 20 times higher than the level being considered by the EPA. The Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group, denounced the panel’s report and claimed the White House, Pentagon and defense industry strong-armed scientists to downplay the chemical’s hazards. Salt Lake Tribune; Jan. 11 <http://www.sltrib.com/nationworld/ci_2521747>
STUDY URGES WATER CONSERVATION ON FARMS
A growing population coupled with diminishing fresh water supplies should force major changes in the way the world’s farmers water their crops in the coming decades, a recent study recommends. <http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=6894>
IRRIGATION PRACTICES FACE FURTHER CHANGE
Controversy surrounds the subject of Nebraska irrigation like mud daubers hovering around a dying puddle at Lake McConaughy. <http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=3989>
ACCORDING TO REPORT, RIVER EROSION LOWERING WATER LEVELS ON LAKE MICHIGAN, LAKE HURON
Lake Huron and Lake Michigan are losing vast amounts of water because of erosion from a decades-old dredging project, according to a new study. The lakes, connected geologically, saw levels drop when a commercial navigation channel was dug at the bottom of the St. Clair River in 1962, boosting the flow south toward Lake Erie. But, according to a report issued Monday, previously undetected erosion has made the channel more than 60 feet deep in some places — twice as deep as needed for shipping. <http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=6992>
AT LEAST 14 KILLED AS KENYAN TRIBES CLASH OVER SCARCE WATER SUPPLIES
Kikuyu and Maasai tribal fighters armed with machetes and spears clashed over scarce water supplies in central Kenya, killing at least 14 people in two days of fighting, police said. <http://www.enn.com/today.html?id=6991>
WEYERHAEUSER TO COVER CLEANUP COSTS
The Weyerhaeuser Company , the lumber company, agreed to pay $6.2 million for the cleanup of a Michigan river contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls, two federal agencies said. Weyerhaeuser will also clean up a mill and a landfill near the Kalamazoo River that contain hundreds of thousands of pounds of the chemicals, the Justice Department and the Environmental Protection Agency said. NY Times, 1/4
A SLOW RECOVERY FOR PUGET SOUND
Many of Puget Sound’s declining herring populations have rebounded, the acres covered by the invasive grass spartina are half what they were a few years ago and sites once contaminated with heavy metals are slowly being cleaned up, according to a biennial report by the state on Puget Sound’s health. But toxic chemicals still can be found in the fat and livers of some fish and marine mammals; runoff continues to flush pollution from parking lots and streets into the Sound; and populations of seabirds, such as grebes and scoters, are still down dramatically from the 1970s. The report suggests that even as progress is being made in restoring the region’s signature waterway, growth and decades of abuse continue to take a toll. <http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2002154282_pugetsound19m.html>
DISCHARGE LIMITS FOR CHESAPEAKE ANNOUNCED
In an effort to improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has brokered an agreement among several mid-Atlantic states to limit the content of wastewater discharged from the region’s treatment facilities. The agreement, announced after several years in planning, establishes a consistent standard for nitrogen and phosphorus released from point-source discharge systems throughout the Chesapeake watershed. <http://www.dailylocal.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=13682439&BRD=1671&PAG=461&dept_id=17782&rfi=6>
DEGASSED WATER MAY REDUCE NEED FOR DETERGENTS
Researchers at the Australian National University in Canberra have found an effective alternative to caustic, strong-smelling detergents: water. Good ol’ water. Degassed water, to be specific. According to their findings, published in the Journal of Physical Chemistry, if dissolved air present in everyday water is removed, H2O becomes at least as effective a degreaser as regular detergent, getting clothes clean, sans chemicals. This could be good news for the environment, since water can be degassed cheaply and efficiently simply by passing it through a porous membrane, a method much easier on the earth than manufacturing conventional detergents that have been linked to some nasty things, including massive algal blooms. So goodbye, detergent. And hello, water, soap of the future. Nature, Philip Ball, 1/24 <http://grist.org/cgi-bin/forward.pl?forward_id=4124>
