Water News for September 2026
Researchers are just discovering this troubling consequence of climate change, but they still don’t know why it happens. (Grist)
Ethiopia Limits Electricity to Crypto Mines
Amid ongoing drought, Ethiopia has cut the electricity supply to its cryptocurrency mines by 75 percent. (Circle of Blue)
Chloronitramide
A new article from the New York Times (NYT) highlighted the recent identification of chloronitramide, a water contaminant that has eluded classification for nearly 40 years. Researchers finally identified the chemical structure and the extent of its toxicity.
Chloronitramide is a disinfection by-product (DBP) that is created when chlorine-based disinfectants react with microbes or other substances in water to form a new compound. Researchers have been able to detect its presence, but only recently have they been able to identify its chemical structure. (WC&P)
Americans Have No Constitutional Right to Clean Water
A US appellate court has decided that the federal constitution does not guarantee a right to clean water.
That legal opinion came in the form of a decision on Friday from the fifth circuit court of appeals to uphold a lower court’s dismissal of a 2022 lawsuit from several Jackson, Mississippi, residents claiming that tainted drinking water violated their constitutional rights. Those residents of Mississippi’s capital city contended that their local drinking water was unsafe to drink because of high lead levels and other contaminants. (Guardian)
UN Passes Resolution on Sea Level Rise
President Donald Trump’s second term has been a nightmare for global cooperation on climate change. Trump has yanked the United States from the Paris climate agreement, attacked a global agreement on a carbon tax for cargo ships, and threatened countries with tariffs if they get too vocal about climate.
Bauxite Mining Threatens Drinking Water in Ghana
Illegal bauxite mining in a protected forest in Ghana threatens the drinking water of an estimated 5 million people. (Circle of Blue)
Surprising US Stance on Rising Sea Level
World leaders at the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday approved a unanimous resolution on how to handle sea level rise, and the United States did not block it from moving forward. The passage of the accord represents a rare win for multilateralism, made all the more notable by the fact that the agreement includes references to climate change and climate aid for developing countries. (Grist)
States Defend the Mississippi Against AI
Leaders from 10 Mississippi River states are preparing to introduce legislation that protects the waterway from AI infrastructure development. (Circle of Blue)
Crocodile in Singapore Reservoir
A man in Singapore faces a long prison sentence after being arrested for posting a fake AI picture of a crocodile in a local reservoir. (BBC)
Elephant Butte Reservoir Is Almost Dry
New Mexico’s largest reservoir, Elephant Butte, has dwindled from being nearly full to 1.4%, its lowest level since 1971. (SciTechDaily)
New Desalination Method Discovered
Scientists have developed a solar-powered desalination system that turns seawater into fresh water while removing nearly all of the leftover salt as a solid instead of producing harmful brine. The self-cleaning technology could also recover valuable minerals such as lithium, potentially turning desalination waste into a useful resource. (Science Daily)
