Groundwater recharge through irrigation losses in New Zealand

A guest blog by Nigel Cowburn. Nigel is a landscape architect based in New Zealand. I recently attended the New Zealand Irrigation Conference. One topic that came up often was aquifer recharge. NZ is undergoing a rapid shift from government funded irrigation to private sector schemes. The government-led approach resulted in over-allocation of many […]

The White Shark Cafe

The White Shark cafe is an extremely unique place. Sounds like a cool hang-out place doesn’t it? Well, it is. Quite literally. This isolated, sub-tropical region in the Pacific Ocean between California and Hawaii is quite literally a cool water, hang out spot for one of the most impressive predators of the open ocean; White […]

FAQs about earthquakes

No matter where you live in the world, you must know of a place in your country that has experienced earthquakes. Some regions are more prone to earthquakes than others, and draw a lot of focus and attention from scientists and policy makers alike. Regions like California, Himalayas, New Zealand, Japan and the European Alps […]

Is groundwater a reliable source of water for communities?

Traditionally, communities all over the world have relied on fresh surface water to meet their water needs. Thus, with the advent of urban centers and rapid development, one of the first thrust areas was to control and store surface water resources so that the population of an area can reliably survive on it. Investment in […]

How does LULC change affect groundwater recharge?

It has been seen all over the world that while the land cover is changing rapidly, the effect it is having on groundwater and it’s recharge is becoming more and more significant. This is especially true in places that rely solely on groundwater to meet their water needs. As groundwater extraction is increasing around the […]

From Europe: Bee harming insecticide now banned!

In a widely popular decision among environmental groups and scientists, the EU voted last week to ban all outdoor use of one of the world’s most popular insecticide-“neonics” or neonicotinoids. These compounds have been suspected to have a very negative impact on the health of the honeybees and wild bees around the world, especially in […]

Politics threatening the Amazon rainforest of Brazil

The Amazon rainforest is one of the first major natural landmarks ever introduced to a child. The sheer vastness of it, the fact that it is considered the “lungs of the world” and produces close to 30% of the total oxygen production of the world is something no child forgets easily. The rainforest, though, is […]

Why is an increase of 2° Celsius such a big deal?

The key factor in all climate change articles and especially the Paris Agreement, is that we should not let the temperature increase beyond 2° Celsius. According to current trends, with all our mitigation efforts, the temperature of our Earth is expected to rise by 3.5° Celsius at the end of this century. And without any effort […]

Great Indian Bustard: The bird that “almost” became our national bird

When India was a newly formed country, just free from the clutches of the British Raj, decisions had to be made about what animals would be the symbol of our country. The Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps) was a strong contender for being claimed as the National Bird of India. But, considering a possible national embarrassment […]

Renewable tipping point: Revolutionizing the global energy market

In a world that has been highly reliant on coal and petroleum for centuries, is it difficult to imagine that soon, we shall reach a point where it is no longer economically advisable to do so? Well, believe it or not, that time is soon coming (or is already here). Scientists and industry experts all […]