Water | Common News Update

May182023 by adminNo Comments

Sewage spills: Water bills set to rise to pay for £10bn upgrade

Science

FayBy Esme StallardClimate and Science Reporter, BBC NewsBills could rise after water suppliers in England said they were ready to spend £10bn on tackling sewage spills. The privately owned companies have apologised for the amount of contaminated water being discharged into rivers and seas, amid mounting public anger over the practice.Some campaigners have cautiously welcomed the move, but others say firms are shifting the cost on to billpayers.The industry paid out £1.4bn to shareholders in 2022.Musician and environmental campaigner Feargal Sharkey called it a "half apology" that was another attempt to extract more money from customers."What I am actually hearing is no apology for the fact we have paid them for a service we haven't got, they are now suggesting we pay them a second time fo...

Apr32023 by adminNo Comments

Sewage-dumping water companies face unlimited fines

Science

Getty ImagesBy Leila Nathoo & James FitzGeraldBBC NewsWater companies could face unlimited fines for dumping sewage under government plans due to be unveiled in the coming days.Ministers want to lift a cap of £250,000 for penalties for firms that release sewage into rivers and the sea.Releases of untreated waste are legal in some cases, but they also pose risks to human health and to ecosystems. Official figures show an average of 825 sewage spills per day into England's waterways in the last year. Latest figures from the Environment Agency (EA) showed a total of 301,081 sewage spills in 2022. This represented a 19% decrease from 2021 - but the EA put the drop largely down to drier weather, rather than the actions of water companies.In the coming days, ministers are set to announce pla...

Dec182022 by adminNo Comments

SpaceX launches NASA’s water topography satellite into orbit

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Dec. 16 (UPI) -- The Surface Water and Ocean Topography satellite launched Friday morning from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The SpaceX 9 rocket lifted off at 6:47 a.m., launching the mission that will provide NASA's first global survey of water on Earth's surface, measuring the elevation of water in major lakes, rivers and wetlands while observing ocean features in higher definition than ever before. The data will help researchers better understand the availability of Earth's freshwater resources, track regional sea level changes and monitor coastal processes. "Once in orbit, SWOT will measure the height of water in freshwater bodies and the ocean on more than 90% of Earth's surface," NASA officials said in a statement. "This information will provide insights into how th...

Mar232021 by adminNo Comments

Erin Brockovich: California water battle ‘woke me up’

Science

Courtesy Erin BrockovichErin Brockovich talks about her new case on "forever chemicals" in our water, and their potential wide-spread health impact. This story contains strong language.The name Erin Brockovich has become synonymous with those who investigate and hold corporations to account for polluting people's water.Actor Julia Robert's sassy film portrayal of the single mum's key role in winning the largest settlement ever awarded at the time for a direct-action lawsuit against Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), made her a household name. She did this without legal, medical, or scientific training. The case alleged contamination of the water with the carcinogen hexavalent chromium, in the southern California town of Hinkley. "Hinkley woke me up", says Brockovich. "Everyone sai...

Mar72021 by adminNo Comments

Humans evolved to use water much more efficiently than apes

Science

March 5 (UPI) -- The story of humans' descent from the trees -- the journey from ape to early human -- often focuses on the development of big brains, dextrous hands and bipedal gait, but new research suggests another difference may have been equally important: water efficiency. In a first-of-its-kind study, published Friday in the journal Current Biology, researchers were able to show that humans process water much more efficiently than our closest relatives. Advertisement The trait may have allowed early humans to venture farther and farther from water sources, exploring and adapting to new environs. Until now, scientists didn't have the necessary data to compare the water conservation capabilities of chimpanzees and gorillas with those of modern humans. "Getting real data on this requ...