This three state tipping point was called out in 'Cadillac Desert' decades ago as the start of what will become the most contested water war in US history. And yet those AZ swimming pools remain filled, the golf courses irrigated. 214 AZ golf courses x an average of 90,000,000 gallons a year per = 1,926,000,000 gallons of irrigation water annually to swing a club. The epitome of unsustainable.
Climate change and worsening drought have driven water stores to dangerous lows. Now the federal government is telling states to drastically cut back.
www.politico.com
It started a long time ago and is still happening. The present conflict over gas prices is nothing compared to the lack of water that has, is, and will continue to happen throughout the world!
Water Conflict Throughout History
The Pacific Institute's water conflict chronology publishes a regularly updated list of water-related conflicts since history's earliest recorded events. Here is a partial list of some of the most significant cases throughout world history.
430 BC - Spartans Poison Cistern
The Spartans are accused of causing a plague outbreak in Athens by poisoning their cisterns during the Peloponnesian War.
537 - Goths Cut Rome’s Aqueducts
As barbarian tribes invade the Roman Empire, the Goths cut of most aqueduct access to Rome and successfully besiege the city.
1187 - Saladin Cuts Crusader’s Water Supply
Saladin defeats the Crusaders at the Horns of Hattin by filling their wells with sand and destroying the Maronite villages which the Crusaders relied on for water.
1863 - General Grant Destroys Levees
During the American Civil War, General Ulysses S. Grant cut levees in the battle against the Confederates, leaving them without access to water.
1941 – Sabotage of Soviet Dam
The Dnieper hydropower plant, a strategically-important dam and power plant in the Ukraine is a coveted site by both the Soviets and the Germans in World War II. The Soviets bomb the dam with dynamite when retreating from the Germans in attempt to sabotage it from future use.
1964 – Cuba Cuts Off Water to U.S. Navy
In retribution for the capture of several Cuban boats, the Cuban government cut off the water supply to the US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay.
1985 – Anonymous Threat in New York
New York City officials receive an anonymous letter with a threat to release plutonium into the city’s water supply unless the charges brought against a man for shooting 4 black men in a subway were dropped.
1992 - Serbs Cut Water and Power to Sarajevo
Serbia cuts off power and water to the city of Sarajevo during a siege despite promises to the UN not to do so. 80% of Sarajevo’s water supply was reduced by regulating flow from water wells as an attempt to remove the Bosnians from refuge.
Read Our Related Article: 9 Viable Water Scarcity Solutions We Can All Work Toward
1997 – Troop Deployment on Kyrgyz Border
A highly contended water reserve straddling Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan borders leads to the deployment of 130,000 Uzbekistani soldiers to stand guard on the Toktogul reservoir.
2000 – Kenyans Fight with Monkeys over Water Source
Drought-stricken monkeys attack a Kenyan village for water-tanker access leaving eight monkeys dead and ten Kenyans wounded.
2001 – Battle for Water Reservoir
Macedonians fight with Albanians in village of Radusa over control of the reservoir that supplies the nation’s capital.
2002 – Violence over Indian River
The dispute over the contested Kaveri River in India, between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, has caused riots, property destruction, injuries, and arrests for a period of almost 2 months.
2004 – 23 Dead in Somalian Clan Dispute
Two Somalians subclans, the Murusade and the Duduble, fight for control of a single water well resulting in 23 deaths.
2004-2006 - 250 Dead in Ethiopian Water Conflict
A 3-year drought in Ethiopia led to what has been called the “War of the Well”, in which 250 people were killed during an extensive period of violence over water wells and land ownership.
2008 – Dispute Between Villagers and Border Guards Over Dam Access
A dam located in a region where the border between the countries of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have not been agreed upon has caused a series of conflicts over water resources. Tajikistan villagers cross into contested Kyrgyzstan territory in order to access the dam and allow an irrigation canal to reach their village, often conflicting with Kyrgyz border guards.
2010 – Over 100 Dead in Pakistani Tribal Dispute
Tribal conflict erupts in Pakistan as the Shalozan Tangi tribe cut off irrigation to the Shalozan tribe, resulting in over 100 dead in a two-week long battle.
2012 – Protests Turn Violent Across Egypt
Several public protests over water shortages across Egypt turn violent: one person killed in Beni Sueif in irrigation conflict, villagers and officials in Minya clash over water shortages, and water shortage protests in Fayyoum involving hundreds result in fires and blocked highways.
2014 - Over 1000 Killed in Nigeria over Water Resources
According to Human Rights Watch, over 1000 people in Nigeria were killed in disputes between farmers and herders regarding water shortages in 2014 alone.
2016 – Water Crisis in Yemen
20 million people in Yemen and deprived of access to clean water due to internal conflict and destruction of water and power infrastructure.
2016 – Clash Between Indian Army and Protestors
Political disputes between the Indian Army and protestors in New Delhi result in 18 deaths and 200 injuries over the reopening of the Munak canal, a source that supplies New Delhi with three-fifths of its clean water supply
2017 – 70 Dead in Darfur over clean water source
Clashes between farmers and herders in Southern Darfur over freshwater sources have resulted in over 70 deaths
2018 – Water Protests in Iran
Continuing protests about water shortages in Iran are escalating and gaining media attention.
Current Regions of Concern
Arabian Aquifer System
The Arabian Aquifer System, which supplies water to 60 million people in Saudi Arabia and Yemen, is in a critical state. Before the invention of modern farming, the Arabian Aquifer held around 120 cubic miles of water underneath the Saudi desert, which is enough water to fill Lake Erie. But due to extensive pumping and inability to be replaced by rainfall in such a dry area, there is an estimated one-fifth of the original quantity left in reserve
(National Geographic, 2017).
Indus Basin
Considered the world’s second most stressed underground water reserve and shared by North-Western India and Pakistan, this basin of 16.2 million hectares was in a state of hydrological equilibrium until the development of a canal irrigation system. With no natural source of replenishment, this basin was classified as “extremely stressed” according to the Water Resources Research and will continue to deplete at this rate. In India, 60% of irrigated agriculture and 85% of drinking water depend on this basin which, in 20 years will be in critical condition
(Laskar, 2015).
Ataturk Dam
With a number of dams controlling the flow of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in Turkey’s territory, the Turkish government has been accused of withholding water to regions which the Euphrates and Tigris rivers provide water to, regions such as Syria and Iraq where millions of people depend on it for survival. With water shortages already a concern in Iraq, and with tensions in place due to geopolitical and religious disputes, conflict over the control of the Tigris and Euphrates might only increase instability in the region
(Nasrawi, 2018).
Helmand River Basin
Both Afghan and Iranian farmers are dependent on the Helmand River Basin for agricultural purposes. With political disputes between both countries and recent NATO involvement, mutual agreement regarding the proper management of the water system is still yet to be reached
(Factbook, 2018).
Other Speculative Concerns
According to
Innovative Energy and Research, the following water sources are stressed enough to raise concern about possible conflicts in the future.
- The River Columbia (conflict between Canada and the US).
- The Colorado River (conflict between Mexico and the US).
- The River Senepas (conflict between Ecuador and Peru).
- The River Senegal (conflict between Mauritania and Senegal).
- The River Zambezi (conflict between Zambia, Zimbabwe and Botswana).
- The sources in the Sahara Desert (Reaction Egypt, Chad, Niger and Sudan).
- The River Nile (conflict between Egypt and Ethiopia).
- The River Tagus (conflict between Tagus and Duero).
- The River Syr Darya (conflict between Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, Kazakhstan)
- The River Ganges (conflict between India and Bangladesh).
- The Jordan River (the conflict between Israel and Jordan).
- The Mekong River (conflict between Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam)
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