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Water

water conservation keeps rivers and lakes cleanThe average American uses approximately 126 gallons of water per day, making us the largest water consumers per capita in the world. Canadians are a close second, while many European countries use half as much water we do, and most developing countries use less than 15 gallons each day.

When you are living out of a canoe or kayak, you haul your own water from the rivers and lakes you travel on and quickly realize how little water you really need. Amy and I can easily get by on 3 gallons of water per day for washing, cooking, and drinking.

Now I am not suggesting that you tell the utility company to turn off your water, because you are going to start hauling it from the nearest stream.  But there are plenty of ways to conserve water, which in the end is good for the environment and your wallet.

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Countries Blame China, Not Nature, for Water Shortage

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New York Times: In southern China, the worst drought in at least 50 years has dried up farmers' fields and left tens of millions of people short of water. But the drought has also created a major public relations problem for the Chinese government in neighboring countries, where in recent years China has tried to project an image of benevolence and brotherhood. Farmers and fishermen in countries that share the Mekong River with China, especially Thailand, have lashed out at China over four ...

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Arch Coal sues EPA over veto of W.Va. mine permit

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Associated Press: A subsidiary of mining giant Arch Coal Inc. sued the Environmental Protection Agency on Friday over the planned veto of a water quality permit for West Virginia's largest surface mine. St. Louis-based Arch argues in the federal lawsuit filed in Washington, D.C., that the EPA doesn't have the authority to revoke a Clean Water Act permit once it has been issued. The permit for the Spruce No. 1 mine was issued to Arch's Mingo Logan Coal three years ago. The EPA announced the veto ...

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Arab states urged to be open on water scarcity

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Reuters: People in the Arab world need fuller and freer information about shrinking water supplies but their governments are withholding it for fear of fuelling unrest, a United Nations expert said on Thursday. Arable land makes up just 4.2 percent of the Middle East and North Africa and is expected to shrink due to climate change -- a potential source of political instability, analysts say, in a region where economic privation has sometimes sparked conflict. "Arab countries do not ...

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James Cameron, in real life, fights to save indigenous groups from massive dam construction in Brazil

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Mongabay: After creating a hugely successful science-fiction film about a mega-corporation destroying the indigenous culture of another planet, James Cameron has become a surprisingly noteworthy voice on environmental issues, especially those dealing with the very non-fantastical situation of indigenous cultures fighting exploitation. This week Cameron traveled to Brazil for a three-day visit to the Big Bend (Volta Grande) region of the Xingu River to see the people and rainforests that would ...

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Mobile phone barcode app to help ethical shoppers

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Guardian: An innovative mobile phone app could create a new generation of ethical shoppers by allowing them to check a company's social responsibility rating and environmental credentials. Barcoo, developed by a group of young Germans, allows customers to point their phones at the barcode on products in shops and find out information such as how environmentally friendly a company is and even how it treats its staff. Its makers say the app is intended to motivate the world to shop more ...

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Plan to chop down forests in England

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Telegraph: The new policy to convert forests to 'open habitat' will increase the area of heathland across England by 1,000 hectares (2,470 acres) every year for at least the next five years. This will mean chopping down thousands of hectares of mostly commercial conifers to allow rare animals like sand lizards, adder, woodlark and curlew to return. It is estimated that 80 per cent of lowland heathland has been lost in the past 200 years to plantation forestry, agriculture and housing ...

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Desert spreading like 'cancer,' Egypt conference told

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Agence France-Presse: The desert is making a comeback in the Middle East, with fertile lands turning into barren wastes that could further destabilise the region, experts said at a water conference on Thursday. "Desertification spreads like cancer, it can't be noticed immediately," said Wadid Erian, a soil expert with the Arab League, at a conference on Thursday in the Egyptian coastal town of Alexandria. Its effect can be seen in Syria, where drought has displaced hundreds of thousands of people, ...

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