Beautiful Fall on Raritan River (near my office)

Severe Drought Hit Southwest China

Impacts: The dry spell has ravaged southwest China for months, affecting 61.3 million residents and 5 million hectares (12 million acres) of crops in Guizhou, Yunnan, Sichuan, Chongqing, and Guangxi. The drought has left 18 million residents and 11.7 million heads of livestock in the region with drinking water shortages and caused direct economic losses of 23.7 billion yuan (3.5 billion U.S. dollars).

Emergency responses: 30-thousand soldiers and 200-thousand reservists are busy with the relief work. They delivered 44-thousand tons (12 million U.S. gallons) of fresh water and dug nearly 1-thousand wells in the drought-plagued region; An effort is also being made to induce artificial rain; etc.

Causes: Less than a half of normal rainfall and continuous high temperature, resulting from the El Nino weather pattern in the tropical Pacific Ocean since last Summer; Karst topography in some areas where the surface water is leaked to the almost intractable subterranean drainage system; Contamination of some source waters by human activities; Lack of drought-defense engineering measures; People farming and living sparsely in remote mountainous villages making them difficult to reach during the emergency response; etc. Identifying the causes would hopefully lead to proper long-term solutions.

Photo: Rice paddy fields in the mountainous area, from news.163.com

ANNOUNCEMENT: Henry Hudson New Generation Water Competition

Henry Hudson 400 Foundation invites undergraduates, including 2009 graduates, in marine and environmental studies, engineering, oceanography, urban design and planning, policy planning, public health, and any other related major to submit proposals on the topic Sustainability for Coastal Cities. See below for details.

• Topic: Sustainability for Coastal Cities
• Instructions: Submit a one-page description of an innovative solution to the challenges of Sustainability for Coastal Cities.
• For more information and application: http://www.henryhudson400.com/hh400_project.php?id=32
• Deadline May 29, 2009

Winners receive
• Cash prizes
• Internships at major companies
• All expenses paid invitation to international H209 Forum on September 9-10 at Liberty Science Center.
• Awards presented by Prince of Orange of The Netherlands, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., members of Obama’s environmental team, and top NY/NJ officials.

New Generation Competition is the centerpiece of the H209 Forum for business leaders, policy and decision makers, and environmental and planning experts. H209 Forum celebrates the 400th anniversary of Henry Hudson’s pioneering voyage that led to the settlement of what is now New York City. For more information, visit www.henryhudson400.com

I was asked by the organizer to help publicize the competition.

Photo: New York Harbor near Jersey City, New Jersey, from Wikimedia Commons.

Sustainable Path (Soft Path) to Water Future

I attended a seminar given by Dr. Peter Gleick of the Pacific Institute earlier today at Rutgers University. Dr. Gleick offered six soft paths to the water future. I took quick notes of the six paths as follow:

1) Invest in decentralized infrastructure
2) Match water quality requirements with water designated uses
3) Do not take the demand for granted (i.e., Do more with less water)
4) Expand definition of water supply
5) Price water properly
6) Expand concepts of regulation and institutions

I was a part of the team that organized the seminar.

Water Main Bursts in Franklin Township, New Jersey

In the late morning of November 18, 2008, a 60-inch water main broke in Franklin Township, Somerset County, New Jersey. The burst had a ripple effect on 100,000 customers in Somerset, Middlesex and Union counties, prompting officials to close schools and residents to boil water. (Both my home and office were affected.)

Complaints ranged from low water pressure to no water at all in 18 towns, said Richard Barnes, a spokesman for New Jersey American Water. As a precaution, the utility issued a boil water advisory.

The rushing water eroded the earth underneath the road, washing away part of Weston canal Road. Water gushed into the Delaware and Raritan Canal. (See the picture.)

The main is a major pipeline for transmission of water, and was first installed in 1958.

Although the cause of the break is still under investigation, this incident again highlights the urgent need for condition monitoring and rehabilitation of the nation's water infrastructure.

(Info Source: The Star-Ledger. Photo Credit: Ed Pagliarini, MyCentralJersey.Com)