FLOW

MOVIE REVIEW
Review: 'Flow'
Irena Salina's documentary looks at all things water and the effects a dwindling supply has on health, prosperity and security.

Blue Covenant
The Global Water Crisis and the Coming Battle for the Right to Water
Maude Barlow

Interestingly, Ms. Barlow says during the local NPR interview that the United States, Canada and Australia are the biggest "virtual water" exporters. She speaks of agriculture taking the level of the Oglalla aquifer down and it NOT recharging. And of corporate power overtaking the commons.

She's speaks of 12 years worth of water, and I missed what area she was referring to.

She speaks of the water rationing in Australia. She speaks of the ridiculous wastage of water in Southern California, which can be changed.

Hey Oprah, ya hear that? This ain't Chicago !!!

Ms. Barlow also fielded a call from a local discussing the planned desalination plant, the problems it could solve, and create. Desalination is not only very expensive, it causes other problems in the ocean. She mentioned that she had seen black ocean in Saudi Arabia. Then she fielded a call from one of the Lost boys of Sudan (we have a few of them here) who said that the water wars have already begun in his homeland.

She also mentioned exponential population growth, and how it stresses our water supplies. The number she floated was 3 billion in the next 40 years, even though people are having smaller families. That sounds like a low estimate to me considering that the world population doubled (increased by more than 3 billion) in my lifetime.

On a more personal note, I find it amazing that I could have been born and raised in San Diego, spent 6 years in year-round competive swimming (the majority of the pools here are outdoors, helloooo evaporation?) and not known until a couple of years ago that 90% of the water in this city is imported.