Water Pressure

Saving a Threatened Resource

Water is essential to life, crucial to commerce, the wellspring of civilization.

Water is a great connective: joining people, uniting regions, defining continents.

And as the 21st century progresses, people around the world are going to be reminded that water is not to be taken for granted; that it is a more dynamic and defining force than we ever imagined; and that its challenges must be recognized and resolved.

To explore the simple yet vast subject of water, WGBH News has partnered with the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In the first of five installments, we explore why New Englanders should care that 4,000 miles away water is running out in California.


WGBH News
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Part 1
A creek that runs into Pacifica state beach in California.

Water's Changing

Our relationship with water is changing, and we can’t ignore that water’s moods are getting a lot more dramatic.

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Part 2

It's Polluted And Acidifying

Many of our waterways are cleaner than they’ve been in decades, but scientists are surprised that they’re not even cleaner.

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Read Dædalus' Water Issue
Part 3

It’s Running Out

Aquifers are running out, rivers and lakes are often too polluted, and re-use of wastewater isn’t popular.

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Part 4

It’s Eroding Land — Everywhere

A slow drama is playing out on every natural coastline in the country. Ocean waves are gripping land and tearing it away.

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Part 5

It’s Spurring Innovation

A lot of people have ideas about how to conserve more water, reuse it safely, manage it better, and clean it more efficiently.

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