Testing the limits of possibility: massive dams and waterworks
When it comes to water management, many politicians and technocrats have felt that colossal problems are only solved by colossal projects: dams. But blind faith in concrete can often have devastating effects on communities and the environment. This ...
Waters of discord
Almost half the world gets its drinking water from rivers that cross national boundaries. Analysts predict that more wars will be fought over water than oil. This program surveys a number of active or potential hot spots: Israel and the river Jordan...
Water for the fields
No matter where on Earth, the one human activity that consumes the most water is the one that wastes the most: agriculture. From locations around the world, this program surveys both disasters of agricultural irrigation, such as cotton farming in Uz...
Watery visions: is the future potable?
In a dramatic reversal of policy since apartheid, South Africa has become a model of water fulfillment. Despite being one of the driest regions on Earth, India's Rajasthan is an oasis due to the revival of a system of ancient rain basins. This progr...
Water for the cities
This program takes a hard look at the mounting challenge of providing millions of people in urban areas with potable water and adequate disposal of waste water. To highlight the difficulties, segments focus on the water problems of the megalopolis, ...
Water for profit
The moment demand outpaces supply, water becomes a commodity to be traded in the global market. But who owns the rights to water? And how can a price be set on water? In this program, the pros and cons of privatization are assessed in a number of wa...