Water Crisis | Blue Living Ideas

Plants Conserve 44% More Water With Active Enzyme

Posted on Jan 05, 2010 by Scott James.

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A team of biologists identified plant enzymes last month that help plants utilize raised levels of carbon dioxide to more efficiently use water. The team, led by biology professor Julian Schroeder at UC- San Diego, discovered protein censors that control the response of pores on the leaves of plants. By adding an active enzyme to plants with an inactive one, researchers were able to measure more efficient use of water by the plants and this discovery could potentially make increased food production possible without increasing the water supply.
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Will Smart Water Grids Become a $16.3 Billion Industry by 2020?

Posted on Nov 19, 2009 by Scott James.

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If you read this site you know that water is a major issue and how we relate to and manage our water could be the defining issue of the 21st century. Water innovation is just now starting to build buzz and attract investors, with venture capital still not flush and technologies very much in their infancy. Any discussion of macro-water issues brings up the smart water grid as a necessary but complicated step- but will smart water grids, currently a $530 million market, become a $16.3 Billion industry in the next ten years? A new report from Lux Research thinks it will.
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Will Yemen’s Capital Run Out of Water Growing a Drug?

Posted on Nov 03, 2009 by Scott James.

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Where once there were 180 wells, now there are 80…What if an entire CITY ran out of drinking water? Sanaa, Yemen, the country’s capital, is dealing with a massive water shortage. The World Bank’s Sanaa Water Basin Management Project says the city could run out of drinking water in just 15 years. Some say a major culprit is qat, a plant deeply embedded in Yemen’s culture and chewed for its stimulant effect by up to 70% of the male population.
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Melting Alpine Glaciers Expose Our Toxic Past

Posted on Oct 26, 2009 by Scott James.

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Scientists have discovered high levels of toxic pollutants trapped in the Swiss Alps are being released from melting glaciers in the Swiss Alps region. A recent study of deposits in several lakes in the Alps showed high levels in legacy organic pollutants during the 1960’s and 70’s, a drop thereafter, and a rise again in the last 10-15 years. The preliminary conclusion is that what was trapped in the glaciers is now being released.
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Waterwall Fatboy 650G Rainwater Tanks

Posted on Oct 12, 2009 by Scott James.

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Waterwall is a rainwater storage tank designed to double as both a water storage tank and a garden privacy or protection wall. As they tell the story, one of the two Australian founders, Mitch, had two pressing needs: Fence off his garden from wallabees and capture rainwater that he could store close to his garden. Solution? Make one contraption for both- and the waterwall was born.
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