water – Pike & Hurricane

Let It Flow: The Netherlands Under Water

Diego Annys — Fri, 12 Apr 2019 13:29:15 +0000

Don’t hold it back anymore

A land of water

The Netherlands and water are an inseparable combination. In a corner of the European continent, water is everywhere, around and within. Besides its long North Sea coast line, the country is basically a large river delta. Belgium’s largest rivers, the Scheldt and the Meuse, do not reach the sea in its own territory. They go on to the Netherlands, and reach the North Sea there. Same for the Rhine, once one of the northern border rivers of the Roman Empire. The Netherlands is the place where the water goes.

A lot of the country used to be a swamp area. Its name, Netherlands, literally means low lands. With 26 percent of its land below sea level and 60 percent of the land vulnerable to flooding , an appropriate name . Its stereotypical windmills are not just a pretty sight. They were used to pump out the water, and create land for farming and living. The Dutch have been fighting the water for a thousand years. Water is what makes the country what it is.

The Dutch are quite effective in managing their water situation. They learned through experience. In 1953, a devastating storm hit. They call it the Water Disaster. Hitting the southwest of the country and the province of Zeeland, literally mean Sea-land, many dikes broke. Over 1,800 people died, in one night. The Dutch decided to lock out the water.

Keeping it out

Because if the disaster was able to happen due to the dikes being weak and old, what would be the first response? Make bigger, higher, stronger dikes. They called it the Delta Works. Instead of heightening over a thousand kilometres of dikes, they dammed the mouths of major rivers. Except not all river mouths can simply be closed shut. Some were left open, so ships could reach the massive harbours of Rotterdam and Antwerp. Nor does the water always come from the sea. It comes from the rivers, or the sky.

While the Dutch learned from 1953, more lessons were still to come. Because of the unwillingness to demolish houses in flood prone areas, new water disasters in the 90s caused large economic damage, and hundreds of farm animals died. If keeping the water out does not always work, how about letting it in?

Letting it in

Living with the water rather than battling it. Being safe from the water by letting it in. A counter-intuitive and at first strange approach to many Dutch who know their history of dikes and water well.

Reminiscent of the children’s book “Niemand Houdt Mij Tegen”, taking place in a future where Amsterdam is flooded and Rotterdam surrounded by huge walls keeping out the water, building larger and larger dikes is not a solution. Unless you want to build 10 meter high walls along the entire coast line and at every river bank, other solutions will have to do. A solution called controlled flooding.

The concept is simple: if places will flood anyway due to storms or sudden rises of the rivers, the Dutch would rather have farm land and parks flood, than city centres and neighbourhoods. The new project, called Room for the River, does not take land from the water. It gives the water space.

Yet in a land as densely populated as the Netherlands, all the land belongs to someone – and when the government decides your land will be re-purposed as an area to be flooded, the predictable outcome are uprooted farmers.

Flood the land

Yet the benefits are clear. In a country where 60 percent of the GDP is produced below sea level, defence against water is a priority. One example is the Overdiepse Polder.

The area, farmland by the Bergse Maas canal, lays lower than the canal and was surrounded by dikes. By lowering the dike just a bit, the area would be flooded when heavy storms occur, and by such lowering the water level of the canal – leaving the upstream city safe from flooding. By sacrificing the farmland, the city is safe. Yet of course the farmers were not cheering.

They were however given no choice. The government decided this was what is going to happen, and that was final. A politically difficult decision, especially if the results are not immediately visible. Yet, the Dutch have a responsibility to make these difficult choices. So they do not once again have to learn their lessons the hard way.

After negotiations with the farmers, through dialogue and honesty, they understood they could not stay – yet they made a compromise. All farms were demolished, half of them left, and half stayed. Their new farm is now on a man-made hill. Their farmland, available for use, and likely to flood once every 25 years.

As time flows, so does water

With half of the population, 8 million people, living below sea level, water is a constant thought for the Netherlands. With too many disasters in the past that could have been prevented if it were for some political courage and foresight, the Dutch do not want to make the same mistakes again. The process of coping with water is everlasting. At least if the Dutch want to continue living in their country, the evolution must never end.

by Diego Annys

Photo Credits

Water – floating houses

Water – a high farm

Water – Flood plan

Water – Netherlands height level

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The Nile: River Wars

Nikhil Gupta — Fri, 12 Apr 2019 13:28:21 +0000

It’s weird to imagine human beings as walking, talking sacs of water. After all, 70% of our body consists of it. Water is just as important to the individual as it is to the whole- it facilitates life on this planet. In 2010, the UN recognized water as a basic human right and called for countries and International Organizations to provide financial resources, help with capacity building and share technologies in order to grow together.

That’s fantastic right? Well, one thing studying political science teaches you is that it’s always complicated. Let’s try to break down the logistics of the idealistic goal of providing safe drinking water for the entire planet.

Water the tensions?

Fires require friction. And in this story, the friction is fundamental. Everyone needs water. However, clean water is scarce. How does one hydrate an exponentially growing population with the added complication of an imminent, irreversible, change of climate? Langford highlights that there are two dominant approaches to answer this question. The economic approach sees water as a commodity. This means that the delivery of water depends on market mechanisms and is regulated by price. Conversely, the social approach advocates for a top-priority universal access to water.

No prizes for guessing–the former is the dominant and widely practised approach.

In fact, several reports indicate that the implications of climate change would be droughts and mass water shortages. Researchers from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre conducted a study wherein they identified areas in the world where the likelihood of a water war is more likely to occur. The most volatile of these areas are transboundary waters i.e water bodies that transcend political borders and are shared by neighbouring countries. The likelihood of water-related friction amongst these countries is expected to increase by 74.9 to 95 percent. The lead author of this study, Fabio Farinosi, said in a statement that the key factor that would equip countries to avoid conflict is cooperation.

And there’s the catch! Countries sharing rivers as part of their main fresh water supply find themselves in a zero sum game situation. Ideally, they need to balance domestic needs with the needs of every party involved. But the reality is far from this, as there exist a multitude of factors influencing a country’s stance on a foreign policy situation.

And the situation surrounding the world’s longest river is turning out to be quite the conundrum.

11 Recipes for War

The Nile river basin encompasses 11 countries, and over 300 million people depend on it. Its resources, however, are distributed unequally and some countries are more vulnerable than others. In order to devise a win-win scenario, one needs to choose between equality and equity. Domestic and international needs must be shared instead of seen as a trade off.

Easier said than done. In particular, the geopolitical situation between Egypt and Ethiopia is quite concerning. The problem stems from the flow of river and the relative geography of the countries. For centuries, Egypt has had the lion’s share of the river, mainly due to historical treaties. It is also the most dependent on it. In 1979, the Egyptian president Anwar Sadat made the bold claim that the only thing that could make Egypt go to war is water. This status quo has been put to the test when Ethiopia decided on the creation of the largest dam in Africa by the blue Nile river.

How exactly is this a problem? Well, dams are like taps–they control the flow of the water. Moreover, Egypt happens to be at the bottom of this pyramid i.e. there are 10 other nations that are further upstream and would receive water from the Nile before Egypt. This concern was noted by Mohamed Abdel Aty–Egypt’s minister of water resources and irrigation. He estimates that if the water that’s coming to Egypt is reduced by 2% , one million people will be without a job.

From an Ethiopian perspective, the project to build the dam was seen as an initiative to fight their own poverty, and transition into a middle income country. Egypt’s claim to Nile’s waters can be traced back to the Nile Waters Agreement that was signed between Egypt and Sudan during the British colonial rule. This agreement assigned no water to Ethiopia and the other 8 countries that are based around the river. Thus, although Egypt might need the water most, the upstream states would not recognize its legal and historical claim.

The Ethiopian government claims that the dam would do no harm to Egypt because it is solely meant for hydroelectric purposes. The country has no plans to divert water for irrigation. This may be true in theory, but if the reservoir behind the dam is being filled, it could hold back water supply to Egypt for an entire year. This is especially worrisome for them because water passing through each upstream country comes with a unique set of complications. For instance, water passing through Ethiopian highlands would provide a year-long flow for Sudanese farmers that would be very pleased with this development. Alex de Waal of the World Peace Foundation states that the Sudanese government is already handing out leases for farmlands that will be irrigated once the dam in Ethiopia is built. While this is a boon for Sudan, it could be disastrous for Egypt.

Zero Sum Game

In addition to all the technicalities, there’s an emotional connection between Egyptians and the Nile. They’ve had an entire ancient civilization built around it. It’s their history- written in books and songs. If some sort of agreement isn’t reached, the chances for armed conflict are less abstract. It seems as though there’s trade offs to be made everywhere. One country’s misfortunes are another’s chance to grow and develop.

In such a stalemate, I’m reminded of the movie Saw–the one where a group of strangers play a sick game against their will that involves cutting off their own legs and other gory things for seven movies. It is later revealed that in every game, the strangers had to make a choice–similar to a zero sum situation wherein they either choose to win everything, or cooperate with each other. The idea was that in every situation, it was possible for every participant to survive through communication and trust.

This is the real world though. And unlike the Saw, the countries involved can get help from outside. If anything, the potential volatility in this region must be acknowledged by the African Union and the United Nations. War can always be prevented.

by Nikhil Gupta

Photo Credits:

On_The_Nile, pixelsniper CC BY 2.0

City of Aswan and the Nile river, Christian Junker CC BY NC NC 2.0

Nile Sudan, Stefan Gara CC BY NC ND

Nile at night, Bora S. Kamel CC BY NC SA

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Beer vs. Water

Nikhil Gupta — Sun, 02 Dec 2018 19:09:33 +0000

Literally dying of thirst? Drink a Corona!

Now I know that’s tempting, but unfortunately science says it’ll dehydrate you further. This peculiar trade off is relevant in places like North Mexico and East Africa where it is common for people to wake up one morning and find that there isn’t fresh water to drink.

Ahogado el niño, tapando el pozo.

That’s a Mexican saying which literally translates into “trying to close the well after the child has already drowned” – trying to prevent something which in reality is “too little too late.” In Mexicali and Zaragoza, even the wells are drying up.

Through the magic of the NAFTA agreement, Constellation brands i.e. the third largest beer manufacturer in the United States (owns Corona, Modelo Especial, and Negra Modelo brands) can set up production plants in Mexico at low costs, and export beer across the border without paying tariffs. In 2015, they decided to expand their plants by spending over $2 billion in Zaragoza, Coahuila. In 2016, they focused on setting up a multi million dollar plant in Mexicali.

The problem is that Constellation Brands is exploiting water from the wells of these cities by drilling up to 500 metres deep into the ground. Needless to say, the dry Mexican climate only adds to the misery. In the case of Mexicali, its prime source of water supply comes from the Colorado river. However, being one of the most exploited rivers in North America, only 7% of the river’s flow reaches Mexico. Scientists estimate that the river’s flow will decrease by 5-20% within the next 40 years due to climate change.

Let’s do some basic math then. It takes a little over 3 litres of water to produce 1 liter of beer. In arid places that walk on fine margins, this is a big deal. According to estimates, Constellation Brands could own up to 75% of Mexicali’s water supply. And it isn’t even a case where a company privatizes water with the objective of providing water. Natural water is being dug up in order to make beer – resulting in higher profits for the company on one hand, and locals without water on the other. This caused a massive uproar among people in Mexicali that has largely been ignored by the government. The Mexicali Resiste started a Boycott Modelo campaign that resulted in confrontations between protesters and the police. The bigger picture remains unchanged.

Frustrations can be seen at a political level as well. In an interview with the Guardian, Mayor Leoncio Martínez Sánchez of the municipality of Zaragoza said that “there’s barely a drop of water when you open the tap”

Echoes

This dynamic is paralleled in other parts of the world. For instance, Nile Breweries , based around the source of the Nile river, is owned by the world’s second largest beer producer SABMiller. Similarly in Kenya, East African Breweries (EABL) is located on the banks of Ruaraka river. Surprise, surprise- EABL is owned by Diageo, the world’s biggest liquor producer.

Thus, we notice a trend. The existence of these breweries negatively impacts the water security of countries with a dry climate and a lack of structure that ensures access to safe drinking water. Lobbying efforts of major corporations have added fuel to the fire. For instance, companies in favour of privatization of water such as Nestlé and AB InBev (the world’s largest beer producer) have been partners of the World Water Week in the past. This conflict of interest is quite demoralizing as the voices of common people that are most affected by these activities are never heard.

What can we do about this? The short answer is spread awareness. Granted, alcohol is a strong enough motivator to look away, but stories of those affected need to be echoed worldwide in order to facilitate change.

What’s the way out?

It’s clear that this world can’t live without beer. Perhaps it could be possible to come up with smarter solutions instead. Perhaps the solution is not only the responsibility of the people, but also that of corporations.

In Sweden, the brewery Nya Carnegiebryggeriet, Carlsberg, and the Swedish Environmental (IVL) just launched a new pilsner called PU:REST that is brewed with recycled wastewater. It may not be the sexiest idea, but it is certainly one of the future. While this concept is still new and available only in Sweden, it serves as a stellar example of corporate social responsibility and other breweries should follow suit.

Let’s not sacrifice the basic needs of others for a cold pint.

by Nikhil Gupta

Photo Credits:

The moment a water balloon bursts with two funny water balloons, Public Domain Photography, CC BY-SA 2.0

Its my birthday! Party Woo, Sam Ilic, CC BC-NC 2-0

Child sit on cracked earth, ittipon

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