 | | Andrew Wheeler, administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, prepares to speak at an event in Traverse City, Michigan, on September 30, 2020. Photo © J. Carl Ganter / Circle of Blue |
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| Revisions to environmental rules that the administration has pursued during the first term of the Trump presidency will be detrimental to the nation’s waters, according to a number of water advocates and analysts. |
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 | | The Wekiva River, in central Florida. Voters in Orange County will decide whether to grant the river and other waterways in the county legal rights. Photo courtesy of Flickr / Creative Commons user Rain0975 |
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| The main event on November 3 is the presidential contest, Trump v. Biden.
The outcome of that race will influence the direction of national water policy.
Down the ballot there is action of a different sort. A hodgepodge of constitutional amendments and ballot measures seek to move water policy at the state and local level.
Voters in a county in central Florida, for instance, will determine whether the county’s rivers have legal rights. |
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 | | Since March, UNICEF and its partners have provided mobile handwashing stations and water tanks to markets and meeting places. Photo provided by Thewodros Mulugeta at UNICEF Pakistan. |
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| Through the second week of October, Pakistan's government had confirmed more than 320,000 cases of Covid-19, and 6,600 deaths. Although the number of cases dropped from its June peak, hundreds of new infections are recorded each day. The government and humanitarian agencies continue to encourage physical distancing and wearing a face mask.
For water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) officials, combatting Covid-19 means telling people to wash hands and safely dispose of waste. |
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A man who protested against a mining development in Honduras was shot and killed inside his home last week.
Arnold Joaquín Morazán Erazo was one of 32 people from the community of El Guapinol charged with criminal offenses for protesting an open-pit iron oxide mine that the community claims threatens its land and water supply. As of this month, with official court proceedings expected soon, eight men have been held in pre-trial detention for over a year. Five others, whose previously dismissed cases have been re-opened, are also awaiting a court date. |
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What's Up With Water - October 19, 2020
For the news you need to start the week, tune into “What’s Up With Water” fresh on Monday’s on iTunes, Spotify, iHeart Radio, and SoundCloud.
This week's episode features coverage on the mountains of eastern Zimbabwe, where an illegal gold rush is underway.
In research news, scientists at the University of Adelaide highlighted the many ways that drought threatens the world’s wetlands.
And a new report from the International Rescue Committee found that 31 percent of women in 15 African countries reported incidents of harassment and sexual violence while collecting water.
This week Circle of Blue reports on a call for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to use the Public Health Service Act to further respond to the coronovirus pandemic. You can listen to the latest edition of What's Up With Water, as well as all past editions, by downloading the podcasts on iTunes, following Circle of Blue on Spotify, following on iHeart Radio, and subscribing on SoundCloud. |
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| From Circle of Blue's Archives: |
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 | | The role of investor-owned companies and private equity firms in financing, operating, and maintaining U.S. water infrastructure is a source of renewed debate. Photo © J. Carl Ganter / Circle of Blue |
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| Private-public partnerships, a potential funding source, are complicated and controversial. |
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