Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Bush shares water bed with NGOs
A striking feature of yesterday’s speech by George Bush at the White House Summit for International Development was how much he agrees with NGOs such as Actionaid or Oxfam. The supposed conservative demagogue and the supposed radical activists are sleeping in the same bed. The following passage on water provision clearly illusrates this shared approach. None of them are campaigning for modern water utilities for the world’s poorer countries. Note the cute PlayPumps suggestion - children working treadle pumps:
“The United States works with partner nations to deal with the lack of clean water. Last year we dedicated nearly a billion dollars to improve sanitation and water supplies in developing nations. We're also wise enough to enlist the private sector to help, as well.
“I want to share with you an interesting program -- for two reasons, one, it's interesting, and two, my wife thought of it -- (laughter) -- or has actually been involved with it; she didn't think of it. But she thought of it for this speech. She has been involved with a public-private partnership called the PlayPumps Alliance. It brings together international foundations and corporations and the U.S. government. Now, catch this: PlayPumps are children's merry-go-rounds attached to a water pump and a storage tank. When the wheel turns, clean drinking water is produced. And as my good wife says, PlayPumps are fueled by a limitless energy source -- (laughter) -- children at play.
“The United States is working with our partners to install 4,000 pumps in schools and communities across sub-Sahara Africa, which will provide clean drinking water to as many as 10 million people. It's not that hard to help people get clean drinking water. It takes focus, imagination, and effort. And I call upon all nations around the world to join us. (Applause.)”
It is also worth noting that Bob Geldof was another speaker at the event.
“The United States works with partner nations to deal with the lack of clean water. Last year we dedicated nearly a billion dollars to improve sanitation and water supplies in developing nations. We're also wise enough to enlist the private sector to help, as well.
“I want to share with you an interesting program -- for two reasons, one, it's interesting, and two, my wife thought of it -- (laughter) -- or has actually been involved with it; she didn't think of it. But she thought of it for this speech. She has been involved with a public-private partnership called the PlayPumps Alliance. It brings together international foundations and corporations and the U.S. government. Now, catch this: PlayPumps are children's merry-go-rounds attached to a water pump and a storage tank. When the wheel turns, clean drinking water is produced. And as my good wife says, PlayPumps are fueled by a limitless energy source -- (laughter) -- children at play.
“The United States is working with our partners to install 4,000 pumps in schools and communities across sub-Sahara Africa, which will provide clean drinking water to as many as 10 million people. It's not that hard to help people get clean drinking water. It takes focus, imagination, and effort. And I call upon all nations around the world to join us. (Applause.)”
It is also worth noting that Bob Geldof was another speaker at the event.
Labels: America, celebrities, development, water
Sunday, October 19, 2008
A revisionist history of American plenty
Have just caught up with the first episode of Simon Schama’s BBC television documentary series on “The American Future: A History”. It might more accurately be called “reinterpreting American history to fit today’s culture of low expectations”.
The episode on “American plenty” focused on how America has, sensibly in Schama’s view, come to accept the need for limits. It starts symbolically with the Colorado river and expresses the view that “the land of plenty is running dry”. The building of the Hoover Dam and Lake Mead was basically presented as an act of hubris. Although it enabled the irrigation of several states and the creation of cities such as Las Vegas it was running dry as a result of over-use and climate change. The message was clear: America has to learn to live with fewer resources.
Schama presented the debate between expansion and restraint as a constant theme of American history. Expansion might have brought some short term gains in living standards but it was also responsible for such acts as the “ethnic cleansing” of native Americans. He also presented the 1980 American presidential election as a contest between the calls for restraint of Jimmy Carter and the drive for expansion by Ronald Reagan. He ended with the correct point that both main candidates this time around accept the need for restraint.
Schama’s history is a classic piece of growth scepticism. It downplays the huge benefits of economic growth and exaggerates the scale of problems that need to be overcome.
The episode on “American plenty” focused on how America has, sensibly in Schama’s view, come to accept the need for limits. It starts symbolically with the Colorado river and expresses the view that “the land of plenty is running dry”. The building of the Hoover Dam and Lake Mead was basically presented as an act of hubris. Although it enabled the irrigation of several states and the creation of cities such as Las Vegas it was running dry as a result of over-use and climate change. The message was clear: America has to learn to live with fewer resources.
Schama presented the debate between expansion and restraint as a constant theme of American history. Expansion might have brought some short term gains in living standards but it was also responsible for such acts as the “ethnic cleansing” of native Americans. He also presented the 1980 American presidential election as a contest between the calls for restraint of Jimmy Carter and the drive for expansion by Ronald Reagan. He ended with the correct point that both main candidates this time around accept the need for restraint.
Schama’s history is a classic piece of growth scepticism. It downplays the huge benefits of economic growth and exaggerates the scale of problems that need to be overcome.
Labels: America, economics, environment, growth, television, water
Friday, August 22, 2008
Water, water, every where
Yet more articles on the wet stuff to coincide with World Water Week:
* New Scientist (23 August) has a cover story on water by Jonathan Chenoweth of the University of Surrey. It makes some useful points including the argument that “virtual water” (a term evidently coined by Tony Allan of King’s College, London) can be an efficient way of distributing water resources around the globe. For example, fruit can be grown in a wet country and exported to a particularly dry one. It is probably easier in most cases to ship fruit around than move large quantities of water. Therefore trade allows for the more effiicient allocation of water resources at a global level.
Chenoweth also makes the point that desalination is falling in price. It can now cost as little as 50 cents per 1000 litres. “All but the world’s least developed countries can afford to supplement their water supplies as long as they have a coastline,” he says.
* The August issue of the New Internationalist has several articles on the debate about toilets in the developing countries. Some are in favour of flushing toilets others (perversely) see them as wasteful of scarce resources in developing countries and therefore undesirable there. One article makes the point that celebrity campaigns for clean water by the likes of Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Matt Damon and Chris Martin fail to mention sanitation.
* Brendan O’Neill, the irrepressible editor of spiked, makes the point that demand for humans to be “water wise” is underpinned by shame at our existence.
* New Scientist (23 August) has a cover story on water by Jonathan Chenoweth of the University of Surrey. It makes some useful points including the argument that “virtual water” (a term evidently coined by Tony Allan of King’s College, London) can be an efficient way of distributing water resources around the globe. For example, fruit can be grown in a wet country and exported to a particularly dry one. It is probably easier in most cases to ship fruit around than move large quantities of water. Therefore trade allows for the more effiicient allocation of water resources at a global level.
Chenoweth also makes the point that desalination is falling in price. It can now cost as little as 50 cents per 1000 litres. “All but the world’s least developed countries can afford to supplement their water supplies as long as they have a coastline,” he says.
* The August issue of the New Internationalist has several articles on the debate about toilets in the developing countries. Some are in favour of flushing toilets others (perversely) see them as wasteful of scarce resources in developing countries and therefore undesirable there. One article makes the point that celebrity campaigns for clean water by the likes of Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Matt Damon and Chris Martin fail to mention sanitation.
* Brendan O’Neill, the irrepressible editor of spiked, makes the point that demand for humans to be “water wise” is underpinned by shame at our existence.
Labels: celebrities, environment, spiked, technology, water
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Now water gets a footprint too
The annual World Water Week in Stockholm seems to be an occasion for an outpouring of panic about global water shortages. BBC Two’s flagship Newsnight programme has already fallen for it (see Monday’s post) and now, not surprisingly given its environmentalist leanings, the Guardian has too. The lead news story in today’s paper gave credence to the World Wildife Fund’s notion of a water footprint and a related leader called for individuals to reduce their water use.
Such demands get reality upside down. As I have argued before it is the shortage of investment in water infrastructure that is the problem. There is no absolute shortage of water. The underlying problem is poverty rather than a particular chemical compound.
It is strange that the stuff of life itself - carbon and water - is being demonised by environmentalists.
Such demands get reality upside down. As I have argued before it is the shortage of investment in water infrastructure that is the problem. There is no absolute shortage of water. The underlying problem is poverty rather than a particular chemical compound.
It is strange that the stuff of life itself - carbon and water - is being demonised by environmentalists.
Labels: consumption, environment, footprint, water
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Fetishising water
The BBC2 Newsnight programme this evening completely succumbed to the panic about water shortages. Its underlying assumption was simple: population growth and industrialisation are leading to greater use of this scarce commodity. This in turn is leading to the prospect of conflict and even water wars worldwide.
Sadly none of the studio guests challenged the fetishisation of water. It is wrong to see water as causing conflict – water is just “stuff” – the problem is the lack of investment in infrastructure to ensure everyone has enough water. Nor is it true that water is a finite resource (see, for example, posts of 22 August 2006, 19 October 2006 and 12 March 2008).
Worldwrite is also producing a documentary on this topic called Flush It!. Hopefully it will provide an antidote to such scare-mongering. Its premiere is at the Battle of Ideas festival on 2 November.
Sadly none of the studio guests challenged the fetishisation of water. It is wrong to see water as causing conflict – water is just “stuff” – the problem is the lack of investment in infrastructure to ensure everyone has enough water. Nor is it true that water is a finite resource (see, for example, posts of 22 August 2006, 19 October 2006 and 12 March 2008).
Worldwrite is also producing a documentary on this topic called Flush It!. Hopefully it will provide an antidote to such scare-mongering. Its premiere is at the Battle of Ideas festival on 2 November.
Labels: consumption, environment, film, television, water, Worldwrite
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
Another depressed cheerleader
I am struggling to find a term to describe the angst-ridden mindset of even the most pro-capitalist economists nowadays (see 1 August post). Cheerless cheerleaders? Demand depressives? Moody mentalists? None of these quite captures it. Any ideas please email me.
In the meantime here is a contribution from Willem Buiter, a professor at the London School of Economics and former member of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee, from today’s Financial Times:
“Once the cyclical correction in emerging markets has run its course, I expect growth in those countries to resume at rates that are high but no longer stratospheric. The reason is the environmental constraints on growth in these markets. I am not referring to the (massive) contribution of China and others to global warming, but to the local and regional environmental fall-out from unsustainable industrial and agricultural development: increasing scarcity and rising costs of clean fresh water, clean air and soil that is fit for humans. When the last athlete hobbles out of the polluted Olympic Games of Beijing, black-lunged and gasping for oxygen, there is likely to be a reassessment of what is sustainable growth in China. Even totalitarian regimes require, if not the consent, at least the acquiescence of the populace. Double-digit rates of growth are a thing of the past.”
His article concludes:
“So how bad will things get? After the slowdown/recession has corrected the excesses of the past decade, prospects for the overdeveloped part of the world are quite reasonable, as long as material aspirations moderate in line with modest prospects for sustained growth in standards of living. For emerging and developing countries at the right end of the commodity boom, the potential for prosperity is there, as long as the resource curse is avoided. For poorer countries at the wrong end of the commodity boom, the combination of the terms-of-trade shock and acute environmental challenge will make life very difficult.”
I was particularly struck by the reference to the "overdeveloped" parts of the world.
Pass the prozac!
In the meantime here is a contribution from Willem Buiter, a professor at the London School of Economics and former member of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee, from today’s Financial Times:
“Once the cyclical correction in emerging markets has run its course, I expect growth in those countries to resume at rates that are high but no longer stratospheric. The reason is the environmental constraints on growth in these markets. I am not referring to the (massive) contribution of China and others to global warming, but to the local and regional environmental fall-out from unsustainable industrial and agricultural development: increasing scarcity and rising costs of clean fresh water, clean air and soil that is fit for humans. When the last athlete hobbles out of the polluted Olympic Games of Beijing, black-lunged and gasping for oxygen, there is likely to be a reassessment of what is sustainable growth in China. Even totalitarian regimes require, if not the consent, at least the acquiescence of the populace. Double-digit rates of growth are a thing of the past.”
His article concludes:
“So how bad will things get? After the slowdown/recession has corrected the excesses of the past decade, prospects for the overdeveloped part of the world are quite reasonable, as long as material aspirations moderate in line with modest prospects for sustained growth in standards of living. For emerging and developing countries at the right end of the commodity boom, the potential for prosperity is there, as long as the resource curse is avoided. For poorer countries at the wrong end of the commodity boom, the combination of the terms-of-trade shock and acute environmental challenge will make life very difficult.”
I was particularly struck by the reference to the "overdeveloped" parts of the world.
Pass the prozac!
Labels: consumption, economics, environment, growth, water
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Water not finite
AA Gill, the restaurant critic of the Sunday Times (London), has written an excellent review making what should be an obvious point - but sadly is not - that water is the ultimate recylable commodity (9 March):
“All the water that ever was, every ice-age glacier, every princess’s tear, every rill, gill, brook, beck and burn, each and every drop of monsoon, all scattered showers, every old man’s prostate dribble and teenager’s salivay snog is still here. The world is as soggy as the Garden of Eden.
“Water is not a finite resource; it isn’t a vanishing commodity; if you leave the tap running, it doesn’t vanish for ever. Don’t let anybody tell you that you’re wasting it: you can’t. You may be wasting the energy that brought it to you, but you’re not clever enough or powerful enough to vanish. Water is constantly on the move. It flies in the night in the howling storm, burrows through the minutest crease in the impregnable rock, rests behind the skirting board, meditates brightly on dawn spiders’ webs. The cupidity and caprice of water is one of the central themes of mankind’s saga. We have to go with the flow.”
“All the water that ever was, every ice-age glacier, every princess’s tear, every rill, gill, brook, beck and burn, each and every drop of monsoon, all scattered showers, every old man’s prostate dribble and teenager’s salivay snog is still here. The world is as soggy as the Garden of Eden.
“Water is not a finite resource; it isn’t a vanishing commodity; if you leave the tap running, it doesn’t vanish for ever. Don’t let anybody tell you that you’re wasting it: you can’t. You may be wasting the energy that brought it to you, but you’re not clever enough or powerful enough to vanish. Water is constantly on the move. It flies in the night in the howling storm, burrows through the minutest crease in the impregnable rock, rests behind the skirting board, meditates brightly on dawn spiders’ webs. The cupidity and caprice of water is one of the central themes of mankind’s saga. We have to go with the flow.”
Labels: consumption, environment, water
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Foot pumps as “appropriate technology”
spiked has published a letter by me on the desirability of encouraging Indian villagers to use foot pumps to provide themselves with water. It is in response to an exchange between Brendan O’Neill, who argued that carbon offsets were being used to encourage such primitive technology, and Michael Buick of Climate Care who advocated such technology.
Whether you side with Brendan O’Neill or Michael Buick on the use of foot-powered water pumps in Indian villages depends on what you consider appropriate. Those who believe that Indians should enjoy Western living standards and the best modern technology should side with Brendan. Those who favour a life mired in rural poverty should support Michael.
Michael’s claim that Indian farmers choose pedal pumps of their own free will is ridiculous. It is like asking a person who is starving to death whether they are prepared to eat bread infested with maggots. They would probably eat the bread but only because better options are not available to them.
The real question is whether it is right for Indians to aspire to develop a modern industrialised and urbanised economy. As long as 70% of the population remains in the countryside, typically eking out a meagre living from tiny plots of land, the vast majority of Indians will remain poor. The solution to the lack of development is to change the character of the Indian economy rather than selling foot pumps.
Of course if Michael wants to use a foot pump to provide water for his own home that should be his free choice.
Whether you side with Brendan O’Neill or Michael Buick on the use of foot-powered water pumps in Indian villages depends on what you consider appropriate. Those who believe that Indians should enjoy Western living standards and the best modern technology should side with Brendan. Those who favour a life mired in rural poverty should support Michael.
Michael’s claim that Indian farmers choose pedal pumps of their own free will is ridiculous. It is like asking a person who is starving to death whether they are prepared to eat bread infested with maggots. They would probably eat the bread but only because better options are not available to them.
The real question is whether it is right for Indians to aspire to develop a modern industrialised and urbanised economy. As long as 70% of the population remains in the countryside, typically eking out a meagre living from tiny plots of land, the vast majority of Indians will remain poor. The solution to the lack of development is to change the character of the Indian economy rather than selling foot pumps.
Of course if Michael wants to use a foot pump to provide water for his own home that should be his free choice.
Labels: development, india, spiked, technology, water
Monday, October 23, 2006
Sin Tracker: singing in the shower
Monitoring the alleged sins of modern life
Evidently showering is good - it uses less energy than baths - but singing or thinking in the shower are bad. Time spent not actually cleaning yourself means using more energy which in turn means more global warming. According to a helpful press release (PDF) from Energy Australia, which has been monitoring such things:
"Brushing teeth, playing with toys and just day dreaming are some of the reasons why young children are showering longer, while for parents relaxing, exfoliating or shaving were the reasons given for keeping the hot water running."
So showering is OK as long as you don't enjoy yourself or do anything else at the same time.
Evidently showering is good - it uses less energy than baths - but singing or thinking in the shower are bad. Time spent not actually cleaning yourself means using more energy which in turn means more global warming. According to a helpful press release (PDF) from Energy Australia, which has been monitoring such things:
"Brushing teeth, playing with toys and just day dreaming are some of the reasons why young children are showering longer, while for parents relaxing, exfoliating or shaving were the reasons given for keeping the hot water running."
So showering is OK as long as you don't enjoy yourself or do anything else at the same time.
Labels: sin tracker, technology, water
Thursday, October 19, 2006
The myth of a global water shortage
One of the oddest arguments around at present is that we are facing a global water shortage. Michael Specter recently expressed this view in the 23 October issue of the venerable New Yorker. Although the article is not available on the website an online interview with him can be found there.
Given there is so much water in the world it is hard to see how there can be a shortage. Desalination makes it possible to draw on the world’s vast reserves of sea water to convert into fresh water. In any case, water is a highly recyclable resource. Water that is used in some way, perhaps in agriculture or industry, finds its way back into the environment.
Given there is so much water in the world it is hard to see how there can be a shortage. Desalination makes it possible to draw on the world’s vast reserves of sea water to convert into fresh water. In any case, water is a highly recyclable resource. Water that is used in some way, perhaps in agriculture or industry, finds its way back into the environment.
Labels: environment, water
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Labour’s “One Planet Living”
Few commentators seem to have noticed just how far the Labour Party went last week in its advocacy of environmental austerity (see also 25 September dispatch). For example, David Miliband, the environment minister, used his platform speech to promote what he called “one planet living”: “I propose we adopt a new goal as a country: to aim to live as a nation within the limits that the environment can tolerate, One Planet Living.” The phrase evidently comes from the oft-repeated assumption that we are currently using the resources of three planets:
“At the moment, we are living, Britons in the 21st century, as if there were three planets to support us when in fact we have only got one. We are consuming the natural resources of three planets; burning the fossil fuel of three planets; pumping out enough carbon dioxide for three planets; yet we only have one planet to live on.”
Alongside Miliband on the platform was Ken Livingstone, London’s mayor, who favoured water metering, road price charging and “green taxes” on air travel, according to an article in the Guardian. He repeated his call for people not to flush the toilet every time they use it: "You really don't need to flush the toilet when you have just had a pee."
“At the moment, we are living, Britons in the 21st century, as if there were three planets to support us when in fact we have only got one. We are consuming the natural resources of three planets; burning the fossil fuel of three planets; pumping out enough carbon dioxide for three planets; yet we only have one planet to live on.”
Alongside Miliband on the platform was Ken Livingstone, London’s mayor, who favoured water metering, road price charging and “green taxes” on air travel, according to an article in the Guardian. He repeated his call for people not to flush the toilet every time they use it: "You really don't need to flush the toilet when you have just had a pee."
Labels: economics, environment, footprint, sustainability, water
Friday, September 29, 2006
Lacking even safe water
Some 1 billion people do not have access to safe water and 2.6 billion lack access to basic sanitation, according to a report by Unicef. This lack of access to clean water and sanitation contributes to the deaths of 1.5 million children under the age of five from diarrhoea every year. Young women and girls can also spend several hours a day carrying water to their communities. In sub-Saharan Africa less than half the rural population has access to safe water.
Labels: development, health, water
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Sin Tracker: tap water
Monitoring the alleged sins of modern life
Tap water is sinful according to CityAM, a free daily newspaper for those who work in the City of London, especially if it is hot. An article in today’s issue warns:
Nothing about the concentration of such carcinogens or how frequently they can be present in tap water. Just a warning to keep showers short or preferably buy a special shower filter from www.healthproductsforlife.com.
Tap water is sinful according to CityAM, a free daily newspaper for those who work in the City of London, especially if it is hot. An article in today’s issue warns:
“It appears that some carcinogenic industrial solvents such as benzene and methylene chloride can be present in tap water and can pass through the skin. The worst part is that, as water warms up, these carcinogens become gasses and are then easily inhaled.”
Nothing about the concentration of such carcinogens or how frequently they can be present in tap water. Just a warning to keep showers short or preferably buy a special shower filter from www.healthproductsforlife.com.
Labels: sin tracker, technology, water
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
World Water Week
The idea of a global water shortage seems particularly odd. There is so much of it in the world and it is the ultimate recyclable commodity - once it is used it can often easily be reused. Yet much of the reporting of the World Water Week in Stockholm suggests there is a global water shortage.
The idea of a water shortage is certainly being pushed by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). A press release from the organisation quotes Jamie Pittock, director of WWF’s Global Freshwater Programme, arguing that: “Economic riches don’t translate to plentiful water.” But surely they do. It is hard to imagine the inhabitants of Arizona or Texas having to do without water.
There also other hints at how resources could help develop water supplies. A press release from the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (PDF) quotes Frank Rijsberman, director general of the International Water Management Institute, saying: “one billion people live in river basins where water is economically scarce - water is available in rivers and aquifers, but the infrastructure is lacking to make this water available to people.” In such cases surely the solution is to build the necessary infrastructure? Rijsberman does make substantial concessions to environmentalist thinking but these cannot be examined here. Something to examine for the future.
The idea of a water shortage is certainly being pushed by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF). A press release from the organisation quotes Jamie Pittock, director of WWF’s Global Freshwater Programme, arguing that: “Economic riches don’t translate to plentiful water.” But surely they do. It is hard to imagine the inhabitants of Arizona or Texas having to do without water.
There also other hints at how resources could help develop water supplies. A press release from the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (PDF) quotes Frank Rijsberman, director general of the International Water Management Institute, saying: “one billion people live in river basins where water is economically scarce - water is available in rivers and aquifers, but the infrastructure is lacking to make this water available to people.” In such cases surely the solution is to build the necessary infrastructure? Rijsberman does make substantial concessions to environmentalist thinking but these cannot be examined here. Something to examine for the future.
Labels: economics, environment, technology, water
