Anyone see this? Schama argues America's big challenge for the future is neither Oil or Terrorism but Water shortage

Simon Schama travels through America to dig deep into the conflicts of its history as a way to understand the country's contemporary political situation.

In American Plenty, Simon explores how American optimism about the infinite possibilities of its land and resources is in danger of coming to a grinding halt. Nowhere is it more evident than in the American West, which has always been a symbol of opportunity and freedom. Oil at 4 dollars a gallon may be dominating the headlines, but here it is the lack of water that is an even bigger threat to the American future. The West is in the grip of a years-long drought.

America's optimism about its natural resources has always been spiced with clashes over conservation going back to the first man to navigate the Colorado river, John Wesley Powell. American ingenuity made farming on an industrial scale possible in the early years of the 20th century but at the cost of making Oklahoma a dust bowl. The Hoover Dam, a modern American miracle which used to provide essential irrigation for farming and for the new city of Las Vegas, is not able to cope with the demand for water anymore.

In 1980, Ronald Reagan's optimism about American plenty defeated Jimmy Carter's campaign for self-restraint. But in the 2008 election, neither candidate can ignore the challenges facing America as it enters an era of limits.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00dygkw/b00dyfjf/The_American_Future_A_History_by_Simon_Schama_Amer ican_Plenty/

We Americans are a very wasteful people when the cost of something goes up we stop using so much, there are a million ways to save water. If any of you were on a ship when the evap or RO went down you know what I mean.

We don't have to use as much of anything as we do and we can cut a lot out of useage out.

There is not going to be a water shortage with RO technology today we will always have plenty of water around.

Topmaul have you seen the programme and the measures being taken in the Vegas and the surrounding district? There is a drought there. Water could be the defining issue for the world with climate change, it is this that may lead to conflict.

Regarding waste, all the Western world are wasteful I estimate we grow twice as much food as we need given our present diet through overeating and throwing food away. If we could eat less meat then the food required to sustain us would be far less still. Human's are wasteful in nearly ever sphere. An oilwell was left deliberately uncapped in the early Texas days to provide the image of plenty!

I didn't see it but do they really say that there is a drought in Las Vagas? The city is in the middle of a desert so there really was never an abundance of water. To use Las Vegas as a typical example the use of water in a typical American city would be a stretch so say the least. That being said, most Americans would probably agree that conservation and intelligent allocation of resources (including water) is vital to the survival of the planet.

Dtop, you can watch it on the link I gave. It is Lake Mead that is shrinking, this not only feeds Las Vegas but a number of states in the US SW including some of the richest areas of California. I actually toured around there in August 2003 and flew over the Hoover dam in a helicopter.

perseus
With all the water in the oceans and the fact that RO technology is getting better all the time we are not going to have a critical water shortage. As far as people living in the desert and complaining they don't have enough water perhaps long term habibility of desert communities for millions of poeple was not sustainable in the first place. Especially if they are wastefull of the resourses they have.

Most of the problems involve man screwing around with nature and not being smart about it.

Ah reverse Osmosis sorry for my ignorance.

Doesn't this need plenty of electricity? better not get me started on that one.

London has had an argument over one of these plants, but a right wing mayor has given it the go ahead.

http://petethehat.wordpress.com/2008...-desalination/

http://www.water-technology.net/projects/perth/

This plant is powered by wind energy! You have to love this! RO is getting better,

On my last ship we used waste heat form the Genorators to make fresh water via a heat exchanger in an evaporator, a fairly simple system we had to disipate the heat anyway why not put it to use making fresh water. There is a lot of heat being produced that is simply wasted. Our system had 4 sections using vacuum and heat to keep the sea water flashing. The operator had to maintain each stage flow, vacuum, and tempature in optimum range to make max acceptible water or the automatic diverter will send it overboard. On that ship we would have a competition between watch standers who could make the most fresh water in a 4 hour watch. We put an RO system in and replaced the evap our new system required no baby sitting and made a lot more water.

There were some growing pains but the RO is super superior to our old evap. Still city planners should look at capturing waste heat

I saw the programme. It has been a long held view that water rather than oil would be the big area of conflict in, for example, the middle east. Long, long before global warming was introduced into the equation.

As Jackson advised, the people should go to water, rather than taking the water to the people. True in Africa now, for instance. As for America, times of trouble trigger American ingenuity, and this will serve them well in the face of the current financial, political and environmental problems.

Britain, of course, has created its own drought and water supply problems by selling its water companies to foreign control. Just as with its power and nuclear industries.

We don't even have to go to extremes in terms of changing the way we eat to accomodate more vegetables and less meat.
Just being smarter about our water is good enough.
And seriously, some drink cans are way too big. Those Arizona tea cans are ridiculous. You can shrink those. Save water.