Our conventional water supply system that continually captures and delivers water is under great strain because of an increase in population, rapid urbanisation, and drastic changes in climate and rainfall. When the reliance on a continuous supply of water directly to our taps is in jeopardy, we then start to realise that we cannot take the supply of water for granted.

Recycled water is unlikely to have public support until the public fully trusts that it will be clean.

The question that has risen recently is whether Australians are ready to accept drinking recycled water. Before we answer the question, let us look at what is it we are drinking currently. Read more

In recent years, the daily news has been flooded with stories of water woes from coast to coast to coast.

There are melting glaciers and ice sheets in northern and western Canada and lead in drinking water in the older neighbourhoods of many cities in Canada. We see toxic blue green algae threatening pets, livestock and drinking water as well as catastrophic floods, droughts and fires. Read more

Evidence gathered over 60 years about adding fluoride to drinking water has failed to convince some people this major public health initiative is not only safe but helps to prevent tooth decay.

Myths about fluoridated water persist. These include fluoride isn’t natural, adding it to our water supplies doesn’t prevent tooth decay and it causes conditions ranging from cancer to Down syndrome. Read more

Water is a precious resource. There’s a lot of talk about how to reduce its consumption, but the crucial food production sector is often excluded. An Augmented Reality infographic in the article offers deeper insights.

Germans are making every effort to save water: They turn off the shower when soaping, collect rainwater for watering the garden, and install toilet flushes with economy buttons. These actions do little more than serving a clear conscience, though. Despite their efforts, Germans are among the world’s top offenders when it comes to wasting water. Read more

Climate change is likely to intensify the alarming rate of degradation of the world’s rivers and wetlands unless water resources are better managed, according to a special issue of the international scientific journal Marine & Freshwater Research published online today.

Rain – Falling drops of water. The image was made from four big photos and downsized for better quality.

Rainfall runoff and water availability will be increasingly affected in the next four decades, with the tropics probably getting wetter and dry regions becoming drier, say leading water researchers in the issue, which is devoted to problems caused by water resource development and to providing solutions for improved management in an era of climate change.

Climate modelling is also predicting increases in the extremes of floods and droughts. As well, increasing temperatures are causing rivers around the world to change their flow patterns, particularly where they rely on snow melting.

Rivers and wetlands are already degrading more than any other ecosystem – with growing impacts on global biodiversity and on human communities that depend on river flows, says UNSW’s Professor Richard Kingsford, Director of the Australian Wetlands and Rivers Centre, who edited the special issue. “The world is watching how Australia manages the over-allocation of rivers caused by dam-building and increasing effects of climate change,” says Professor Kingsford. Read more