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Climate change is causing human conflict already – the problem is now in Syria.
We rarely hear progressive opinion from the USA. That is not to say that it does not exist there. William R Polk served on the State Department’s Policy Planning staff during the Kennedy years. In a thought provoking piece about the Syrian chemical attack issue Polk explains why Syria has entered a crisis – and it is to do with water. Climate change produced drought, hunger and displacement – and civil war. “Syria has been convulsed by civil war since climate change came to Syria with a vengeance. Drought devastated the country from 2006 to 2011. Rainfall in most of the country fell below eight inches (20 cm) a year, the…
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Tourism’s impacts on water availability
2013 is the UN’s International Year of Water Cooperation. Today sees the launch of World Water Week, there is a big meeting in Stockholm at the International Water Institute discussing new research and approaches to water conservation. Tourism is heavily dependent on water for drinking, swimming pools, bathing and in its food supply chain. The theme of World Water Week this year is building partnerships and establishing water co-operation. “Ensuring adequate domestic water supply and sanitation, not least in the rapidly growing urban centres, and satisfying the need of other strongly water dependent sectors, such as industry, tourism/recreation and transport, also calls for cross-sectoral collaboration.” read more Tourism is a…
