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earth matters
science and insights for people who care about Earth, its resources and its environment

Fresh Water Resources

Two residential towers
February 10, 2016

Stanford researchers develop financing framework to fund critical freshwater projects

Using lessons from the energy sector, Stanford researchers outline strategies to bring the nation's water infrastructure into the 21st century.

Fresh Water Resources
Dry riverbed
February 8, 2016

History of the 21st century CA drought

A look at the historic 2011-2016 California drought and the work of Stanford Earth faculty and researchers to better understand its causes, implications, and mitigation.
Climate Change, Food and Agriculture, Fresh Water Resources, Human Dimensions and Sustainability
Rosemary Knight sitting on a beach
January 11, 2016

Freshwater Challenge: Imaging Saltwater Intrusion Along Monterey Bay

A team led by Stanford Earth groundwater expert Rosemary Knight and faculty colleague Adam Pidlisecky from the University of Calgary performed an ambitious experiment to determine the extent of ocean saltwater intrusion into freshwater aquifers in the Monterey Bay region with unprecedented resolution.
Fresh Water Resources
January 11, 2016

Freshwater vulnerability threatens developing nations' stability

Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment

An analysis of 119 low-income countries finds common challenges that could inform broad solutions.

 

Fresh Water Resources, Human Dimensions and Sustainability
December 4, 2015

Mystery of arsenic release into groundwater solved

Stanford School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences

Bacteria living in shallow sediment layers of permanently flooded wetlands in Asia drive arsenic release into water by feeding on freshly deposited plant material, a new study finds.

Fresh Water Resources, Human Dimensions and Sustainability
November 13, 2015

Billions face water shortages as snowpack disappears

takeapart

A new study coauthored by Prof. Noah Diffenbaugh and graduate students Justin Mankin and Deepti Singh finds that as greenhouse gas emissions and global temperatures continue to rise, mountain snowmelt will decrease.

Climate Change, Fresh Water Resources
October 30, 2015

Scientists map underground water

San Jose Mercury News

Rosemary Knight, in collaboration with Aqua Geo Frameworks and the Tulare Irrigation District, recently used a new imaging technology to find water hidden hundreds of feet underground in California's drought-ravaged Central Valley.

Food and Agriculture, Fresh Water Resources
September 2, 2015

Arsenic attaches to water that's 'too pure'

Stanford School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences

Stanford Earth scientist Scott Fendorf helped discover how trace amounts of arsenic were moving from sediments into groundwater aquifers in Southern California.

Evolution of Earth and Life, Fresh Water Resources
InSAR image seen through a water drop
June 9, 2015

"Seeing" Water Underground

Stanford School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences

New imaging tools developed by Stanford Earth scientists could soon inform more proactive strategies for groundwater management.

Fresh Water Resources
May 6, 2015

The future of Searsville Dam

Stanford News

A Stanford committee that included Chris Field and Pam Matson recommends that the university develop and evaluate two alternative ways to achieve fish passage at Searsville Dam.

Fresh Water Resources
shasta lake
March 2, 2015

Warming temperatures implicated in recent California droughts

Stanford School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences

In California, dry years coupled with warm conditions are more likely to lead to severe drought than dry, cool years, and the probability of warm and dry conditions coinciding is likely to increase under anthropogenic climate change. 

Climate Change, Fresh Water Resources

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