If you were the government officials, what policies would you implement to resolve the water wars in the movie Even the Rain? And what policies would you implement to resolve the water crisis in Flint Michigan? With the abundance of clean water in Seattle, civilians would go into shock if they suddenly lost access to the utility. The fictional events in the film Tambien la Lluvia take place during the Cochabamba Water Wars, in which the city government of Cochabamba dramatically raised the rates of water bills by over 35%, which sparked violent riots among the lower class. This film explores a question that concerns our environment’s limited resources: How and should the world ration and conserve fresh water? The reason for the increase
According to the International Water Management Institute environmental research organisation global water stress is increasing, and a third of all people face some sort of water scarcity. Where demand exceeds supply and no effective management operates, there will be conflicts between the various players involved.
Water is one of life’s most precious resources. Without it, life as we know it would cease to exist. Almost all life is dependent on water for survival. Humanity uses water in almost everything they do in their daily lives, whether that be for consumption or production. However water itself is not enough to sufice, clean water is required for life to thrive. Dirty untreated water can be the cause for death as well, so it is integral that water be kept clean. The government has enacted laws to ensure that our water is maintained and kept clean. These laws cover industries, plumbing, and sanitation among other things. Unfortunately, the city government in Flint Michigan willfully failed to provide safe water for its citizens.
Yet, humans have limited control on natural events, so this only reinforces the importance of managing water wisely. Recently California’s government has begun to focus more on sustaining and restoring the water supply. Dale Kasler (2016) articulates in his article some of the steps they have decided to make to solve this serious issue. The government has made the following investments: “$415 million for watershed restoration and other environmental aid for Lake Tahoe; up to $335 million for two proposed reservoirs in California, including the Sites reservoir north of Sacramento; $880 million for flood-control projects on the American and Sacramento rivers in Sacramento; and $780 million for flood-control projects in West Sacramento” (para. 10). This could be the first step to restoring the water to California. But these
“How can you buy or sell the sky-the warmth of the land? The idea is strange to us. Yet we do not own the freshness of air or the sparkle of the water. How can you buy them from us? We will decide in our time” (Chief Seattle: 1855). In the Documentary “Flow – for the love of water” it visualizes the global crisis we face on Mother’s Earth as it pertains to the diminishing of fresh water. The Documentary portrays along with the help of experts that this global crises is affecting each and every one of us in today’s society including animals. The film shows us that water is constantly being wasted, polluted, and privatized by big co operations. Prime examples of these greedy companies were mentioned in the film such as Nestle, Thames, Suez,
In the book The Big Thirst, Charles Fishman addresses the key issues of how water is abused in areas, like Las Vegas, and the era of “easy” water is over. Fishman explains where the largest amount of water is located and water’s presence in space. His book is mainly composed of case studies showing how water in certain areas, like Las Vegas and India, has been dwindling and the absence of preparation in those places when the water is almost gone. Lastly, he talks about the misconceptions of tap water and the lack of understanding communities and people in power have about the future of water. Fishman wants the reader to be crystal clear on how water has come to this point, the issues of water shortages, and the solutions to water problems.
Owens Lake was a very big lake full of water in the Owens Valley on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada.Before all of this happened Owens Lake used to be a very beautiful lake full with water as shown in the picture above.Now that all the unfortunate water events happened all the water is gone.One of the unfortunate events was the water wars,in the water wars various people were breaking each others ways of getting water while all the water from it just went to waste. The water wars was over William Mullholland taking the water from Owens Lake and also, Mullholland tricking the people of Owens Valley to take their water rights telling them that it was going to benefit them , but it really benefited Los Angeles.
On March 27, 2014, Wade Graham of the San Francisco Chronicle reported “The Water Revolution California needs.” California is having a severe drought. Wade Graham tells his readers that California is in a serious water crisis. The state of California needs to make strict changes to how water is being distributed amongst farmers and residents. Before all of California’s ecological system is destroyed. Wade Graham believes that water should be priced higher; that way people aren’t wasting water. Water is a limited resource that should never be wasted, and is probably California’s most valuable resource. Unfortunately, many people waste water; instead of conserve water especially when we live in the state of California where we are subject to
In the United States, the available water resources is also under assault. Half of water collected and stored by existing infrastructure is usually used in the production of electricity. This forces the population to use and divide what little there is left. This has always been a “good enough” approach until now, when water prices and population is on the rise.(3) There are already calls for charging water resources in order to increase efficiency of use.(3) Water protection is already being carried out and has been for years, but there is still water pollution occurring within the United States. After the Civil war, America strived to provide its population with clean water
The documentary, Blue Gold, World Water Wars, was a dramatic depiction of the prognosis of our ability to sustain life on the earth if we don’t take very seriously the natural resource of water. The movie by Sam Bozzo was released in 2008 and is based on the book Blue Gold: The Fight to Stop the Corporate Theft of the World’s Water by Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke. The movie opens with a dramatic display of what happened to Pablo Valencia who in 1906 walked from Mexico to California in search of gold. He survived without water for 7 days and documented the experience. One of the most compelling statements from his experience was the statement, “who ever goes without water for a week, cries blood.” That statement was riveting and came to mind often during the course of viewing the movie. The filmmaker succeeded in galvanizing my attention with that opening frame. Bozzo highlights how extensively our ecosystem is being impacted by our seemingly lackluster regard for the water we have been given on earth. It seems as though some think water is an infinite resource. Contrarily the movie shows that our abuse of water is deteriorating water flows and threatening the sustainability of our ecosystem. The planet, human beings, plants, animals, fish, etc. all need water to survive.
We all love water, but don’t know much about it. What I mean is that a lot of us don’t even know where our water comes from. That answer varies; for example, the city of Camarillo California gets its’ water in Camrosa Water District. It’s official website, “Camrosa Water District building Water Self- Reliance” provides information like what their purpose is, and as well as water conservation, building self-reliance, and other public information. This website states that Camrosa is currently in a state two water supply shortage. This means that there are restrictions on water use and a call for a voluntary fifteen percent reduction on the amount of water consumption. Also, according to Camrosa “Agricultural Water Management Plan”, water is being
Water Wars encourages us to save water and help out in this water crisis. Also helps us understand the politics of the water wars. This film shows the members of big companies asking permission from the government to privatize the water of certain areas. As an example presented in the documentary; Africa was asked to grow more tea crops. Firstly, Africa doesn't have water for all of their population to stay alive. Now the World Bank is asking them to use up all the water they have to drink and use it to grow the tea crops, just so Africa can return its debt to the World Bank. The content shared in the film reminds me of the book Mockingjay part 1. We are district 13, and the government is the capitol. They don't care about who
Thesis statement (central idea): Access and availability to fresh water are essential to the survival of the human race. Fresh water is a finite source and once it is gone, we have limited options to replenish it, so we must take action to conserve the fresh water we do have especially at home in the United States.
The 2008 documentary “Blue Gold: World Water Wars” introduced the world to one of the most significant environmental concerns of the modern era. Directed by Sam Bozzo, this film brings to life the compelling story told by Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke in their 2002 international bestseller Blue Gold: The Battle against Corporate Theft of the World’s Water. It was first screened at the 2008 Vancouver International Film Festival where it won the audience award for Best Environmental Film. This film’s main message is that water is no longer a fundamental human right, but a privilege awarded only to those with the means to access it. Through its cinematic elements, “Blue Gold: World Water Wars” succeeds in conveying its main argument, which is that if nothing is done about water scarcity now, the wars of the future will be fought not over oil, but water.
As the worlds population grows, it is forced by circumstances that it has created to face the limitations of the worlds resources. Most people in the US have always been fortunate enough to have enough of whatever they wanted. When something they like breaks or wears out, they throw it away or buy a new one, and they often don’t even make an attempt to repair an item. They neglect basic maintenance until they damage their belongings beyond repair, and expect that they’ll always have enough. But some things are beyond their control, beyond there power or financial ability to replace or repair. The world’s drinking water supply is one of these without concern, without attention, without preventative maintenance and reclamation and
In today’s society, the idea of a limited resource is not a foreign concept. Most people understand that eventually humans will use up many of these resources, such as fossil fuels, and they will cease to exist. However, very rarely does a conversation about limited resources get started over the water. While water itself is not a limited resource, clean drinkable water is becoming scarcer as people continue to use excess water. The documentary “Last Call at the Oasis” highlights how precious water is to survival and just how much miss use of water occurs in the United States alone. Even though the United States has gone down the wrong path with its water consumption methods, it may not be too late to recover. With the proper systems and education in place, the chances of delaying a water crisis increase exponentially.