Nowadays, almost no one’s experience of water insecurity is dependent on the physical availability of water in their local environment.
What determines how much water we have is the kinds of infrastructure we build, the economies that we built to manage the water, the values we put on the water, and so if we want to address problems of water insecurity, we have to start with the human parts of the system and work in concert with the hydrology and the biophysical parts of the system.
jfleck at inkstain
A few thoughts from John Fleck, a writer of journalism and other things, living in New Mexico
Great link! Important work. I would like to see more details.
The big issue is trying to build large cities in a desert while climate change is reducing the available water. I’ve read that Phoenix is gaining population. On the “human” side of the water issue this is stupid. The city should be finding ways to move people away to cooler and wetter areas of the country. And the same with agriculture which is the big water use.
My new theory on the Trump interest in Canada and Greenland is to make it possible for the US population to migrate north out of the heat. A lot of Canadians see this.
Amen to Amber Wutich’s remarks.