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When the Rivers Run Dry: Water--The Defining Crisis of the Twenty-first Century
by
In this groundbreaking book, veteran science correspondent Fred Pearce travels to more than thirty countries to examine the current state of crucial water sources. Deftly weaving together the complicated scientific, economic, and historic dimensions of the world water crisis, he provides our most complete portrait yet of this growing danger and its ramifications for us all
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Paperback, 336 pages
Published
March 15th 2007
by Beacon Press
(first published March 1st 2006)
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Showing 1-30
Mar 19, 2015
David
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
rice farmers, dam-builders, sunbathers at the Salton Sea
This is another one of those depressing books that catalogs in grim detail just how badly humans are screwing up the environment, on a cataclysmic scale, how greed, desperation, and short-sightedness have destroyed entire ecosystems, devastated nations, and displaced millions, and how even though we have the scientific and technological know-how to do better, we're not going to, because short-term thinking always wins.
Oh, the author ends with an optimistic chapter, as all these books do, detaili ...more
this is my University's common reading program book for this year. So, now that I've finished it, I have to come up with a way to make it enticing and relevent to a bunch of freshmen (last year's group didn't like Mountains Beyond Mountains, which I loved). The premise of this book is great and it certainly stimulated all of my co-workers also reading the book to think about the issue of water use on both a personal and global level. However, it is extremely repetitive and could easily be signif
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The book begins with amazing facts, such as: It takes between 250 and 650 gallons of water to make one bag of rice. While one person may drink only 250 gallons (or one ton) of water annually, the water used to cloth and provide food for them annually would fill half an Olympic-size swimming pool (or between 1,500 and 2,000 tons). I've just begun, but am hooked. What if the nutrition labels on food bags listed all the hidden amounts of energy and water it took to create the end food product? (And
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This book is EXCELLENT. If you only read one book about our water crisis, this is the one! And if you love it like I did, I'd recommend following it up with Water Follies, which is also about rivers, but focuses on a few in the US only...but in more detail. This book is more of an overview of the globe. It's VERY easy to read...if I remember correctly, it's written by a journalist who has chronicled river news for decades, given his inherent interest. The last parts of the book really touch on a
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This book gives some dire warnings about mismanagement of our world's rivers - the damming of rivers and pumping of aquifers causes more destruction by floods and drought (which is not what the dam-builders of the world would tell you). Not an uplifting book, but a very good book for those who agree that water is a major resource to be fought over in the 21st century.
Very readable and packed with fascinating information. But DEPRESSING. The world's fresh water situation is beyond hopeless. And, it going to get worse. Something to look forward to.
The only problem with this book is the complete lack of citations, which is puzzling.
The only problem with this book is the complete lack of citations, which is puzzling.
Overview
In When the Rivers Run Dry, Fred Pearce takes us on a journey across the world exploring the great sources of water and how humans have interacted with them down through history. Pearce uses stories of his travels to provide an effective structure for the book and push the reader through what would be boring statistics by themselves. Three-fourths of the book focuses on the problems while the remaining fourth describes and suggests a few possible solutions.
Strengths
* Pearce's passion ab ...more
In When the Rivers Run Dry, Fred Pearce takes us on a journey across the world exploring the great sources of water and how humans have interacted with them down through history. Pearce uses stories of his travels to provide an effective structure for the book and push the reader through what would be boring statistics by themselves. Three-fourths of the book focuses on the problems while the remaining fourth describes and suggests a few possible solutions.
Strengths
* Pearce's passion ab ...more
What I enjoyed about this book was that it was written as a series of case studies around the world that each tackled a different set of water-related issues. Also, it was written by a journalist which made it highly readable and entertaining, while still maintaining a fairly academic feel. Also, he personally travelled & interviewed most of the people he discusses, which makes his stories more personal & compelling. His thoughts on the Aral Sea & the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict wer
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A frightening look at just HOW MUCH we've screwed up this planet of ours. Each chapter looks at a certain type of water crisis, in several areas. To be honest, after a couple chapters, it becomes a monotonous stream of, "John Lockson at the So-and-So Bureau reported that the [Insert Great River Name] once had a flow of 100 million acre-feet, it is now reduced to a fifth of that." After the initial shock about the water situation, I didn't find it really interesting until the last third of the bo
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The next wars won't be about oil. They'll be about water. Doubt that? Read this book.
When the Rivers Run Dry is a litany of abuses to our planet's fresh water systems. If Fred Pearce ticks them off in stultifying succession, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee-style, it's not his fault: he's listing only some of the worst examples in making his point.
Add this to the tectonic shifts that humanity should make—away from a carbon-based, growth economy, for instance—but won't, until nature shifts us, the ...more
When the Rivers Run Dry is a litany of abuses to our planet's fresh water systems. If Fred Pearce ticks them off in stultifying succession, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee-style, it's not his fault: he's listing only some of the worst examples in making his point.
Add this to the tectonic shifts that humanity should make—away from a carbon-based, growth economy, for instance—but won't, until nature shifts us, the ...more
A lukewarm 'ok/like' because the subject matter is so incredibly important and it hearkens back to my geology days. It's a subject I like to read about.
But, given that the subject matter is so numbers-driven, why no graphs and charts to help better visualize the issues. Also, no photos. Why? Also, no introduction to basic hydrology and aquifers (with diagrams). The last section was pretty good (but no images or resources links to get more information). A decent book that could have been present ...more
But, given that the subject matter is so numbers-driven, why no graphs and charts to help better visualize the issues. Also, no photos. Why? Also, no introduction to basic hydrology and aquifers (with diagrams). The last section was pretty good (but no images or resources links to get more information). A decent book that could have been present ...more
May 22, 2008
Maureen
rated it
it was amazing
Recommends it for:
Everyone
Recommended to Maureen by:
UMW
This is a stunning book: very well researched, very readable, and very comprehensive.
Unless we find new ways of dealing with this situation, there could be many more floods and
periods of drought in our future. The Southeast US is one of the threatened areas: this is not only a global issue, but also a local one. I give this book my highest recommendation.
Unless we find new ways of dealing with this situation, there could be many more floods and
periods of drought in our future. The Southeast US is one of the threatened areas: this is not only a global issue, but also a local one. I give this book my highest recommendation.
Science journalism at its very best; devastating in its implications.
There are absolutely no sources cited!! How can this be credible in the least? It's full of statistics that aren't referenced.
sobering, yet reassuring look at the world's water situation... worth a read if you care about nature, ecology, or the continuation of the human species...
An exceedingly scary book, much more than what King or Lovecraft or Trump can imagine/do! And the reason why I call it scary is that its happening all around us and the bleak future we have ahead of us. Freshwater, one of the most precious resources we have, had been once treasured dearly and wisely used. But as the pace of industrialisation quickened and the population density rose, short-term gains overtook the long-term ones.
And with them came - DAMS!
Dams were once called the temples of the ...more
And with them came - DAMS!
Dams were once called the temples of the ...more
This was my first introduction to Water - inspired by my NYE visit to a wetland near Shangrila, Yunnan and the realization that I knew nothing of wetlands or environmental issues in general. I cried and laughed and rolled over a few times reading this -- it was pure joy/sorrow following the story of water across major rivers, aquifers, wetlands, manmade canals, dams, boreholes of this world... (which also gave much insight into rise and fall of civilizations and the extent of importance of agric
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Like many other reviewers I was hit pretty hard by the social issues highlighted in this book. We've seen time-lapse images where rivers and lakes are evaporating away, or where the sea level shifts, and we all know that humans are causing these changes, but in a weird way I always assumed it was simply our effect on the atmosphere (cars, industrialisation, etc). I was left feeling uneasy when every chapter of this book gave some horrible example of greed or ignorance when it comes to water. The
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This book is the best. If you only read one book on the water crisis, this should be the one. This is a comprehensive look at how water shortages impact people all over the world and how they have dealt with it in the twenty-first century. Pearce did an amazing job researching and performing case studies in order to be able to put this book together. I love the way that it is organized and broken down into sections. His writing style is both captivating and interesting. Love it.
A major crisis is not building, but well on its way. It will define the 21st century, as water is of the utmost importance for us all.
The book provides the details of many spots on Earth, about the problems and the solutions found to water scarcity and abundance. It should be part of every country's education curriculum.
Though, buy the newest 2018 edition if you can, not the 2006 edition I'm reading, as new developments inevitably shed a new light.
The book provides the details of many spots on Earth, about the problems and the solutions found to water scarcity and abundance. It should be part of every country's education curriculum.
Though, buy the newest 2018 edition if you can, not the 2006 edition I'm reading, as new developments inevitably shed a new light.
One thing struck when reading this book: the Water Framework Directive requires European countries to bring their rivers to good quality status. However, European citizens see nothing wrong about demanding increased quantities of cheap cotton and food from countries like China, India and Uzbekistan where the production of this cotton and food is destroying local water supplies.
An interesting read about the ongoing crisis with respect to meeting human needs for water and the many projects such as dams that have only exasperated that crisis. You may not agree with the author’s arguments on the issue or some of his examples, but nevertheless the book is well worth reading.
An interesting science read that takes you around the world on a tour of the world's rivers. He weaves together the scientific, economic, and historic dimensions of the water crisis.
Written in 2006, Fred Pearces's book "When the Rivers Run Dry", seems somewhat prophetic to those of us living in the Southwest United States. The Colorado River, the lifeblood of the Southwest, is severely overused, and upstream demands means it no longer flows to the sea. With reduced river flows and diminished snow pack in the Rockies and Sierra Nevada mountains, water supplies in the Southwestern states are severely stretched. As 2015 news accounts describe, California has been in a drought
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3 stars leaning towards 2.
Feels more like a collection of journalistic pieces than a coherent book. I like the clear-cut structure (very essay-argument), but that falls a little flat as it feels less like a thesis defence than a rambling exploration. Not enough analysis and big picture as it jumps from location to location sketching the bare basics of each case. And was honestly so annoyed with the big deal that the author makes about him carrying water with the Indian women, trying to be all B ...more
Feels more like a collection of journalistic pieces than a coherent book. I like the clear-cut structure (very essay-argument), but that falls a little flat as it feels less like a thesis defence than a rambling exploration. Not enough analysis and big picture as it jumps from location to location sketching the bare basics of each case. And was honestly so annoyed with the big deal that the author makes about him carrying water with the Indian women, trying to be all B ...more
Great book!
We can live without oil, but we can’t live without water.
Fred Pearce, author of Rivers Run Dry, has traveled and studied water in 30 countries and has been writing about water issues for over 20 years. His analysis of how we are committing what is termed hydraulic suicide with our water footprint is terrifying and calls all of us to action. It is a compelling book documenting the destruction of this resource as well as highlighting efforts being done to reclaim fresh water.
The outlook ...more
We can live without oil, but we can’t live without water.
Fred Pearce, author of Rivers Run Dry, has traveled and studied water in 30 countries and has been writing about water issues for over 20 years. His analysis of how we are committing what is termed hydraulic suicide with our water footprint is terrifying and calls all of us to action. It is a compelling book documenting the destruction of this resource as well as highlighting efforts being done to reclaim fresh water.
The outlook ...more
The author, Fred Pearce, is a journalist who has been traveling around the world and writing about water issues for over twenty years. It definitely shows in the style of this book. In 300+ pages, he takes you on a whirlwind tour around the globe to illustrate the dire situation that the global water supply is in. The case studies that Pearce describes show very vividly how fragile our supply to water is and how devastating our failure to protect it can be. THe chapters are short and centered ar
...more
An instructor of "Literature and the Environment" at George Mason University, Fairfax, Va., had included one of Fred Pearce's writings about "virtual water." That was intriguing at the time (2006), but I've only recently read When the Rivers Run Dry and find it to be still relevant, if not moreso. Pearce has done a lot of research and writes engagingly. I walk away from the book having a sense of hope -- so long as we humans have the will to change, to put aside our short-term interests in favor
...more
Jan 10, 2011
Cambridge Programme for Sustainability Leadership
rated it
it was amazing
Shelves:
the-top-50-sustainability-books
One of Cambridge Sustainability's Top 50 Books for Sustainability, as voted for by our alumni network of over 3,000 senior leaders from around the world. To find out more, click here.
When the Rivers Run Dry sets out a case for water being as large and urgent an environmental challenge as climate change. Today, the world grows twice as much food as it did a generation ago, but it uses three times as much water. As a result, many of the waterways, lakes and rivers that we used to take for granted ...more
When the Rivers Run Dry sets out a case for water being as large and urgent an environmental challenge as climate change. Today, the world grows twice as much food as it did a generation ago, but it uses three times as much water. As a result, many of the waterways, lakes and rivers that we used to take for granted ...more
Wow. Great book full of case studies. Eye opening. Informs a more enlightened perspective toward the value of water, its capture and smart use, politics and societal pressures, rivers, dams and water systems around the world.
My big takeaway is the hubris of humanity. It makes sense how we've gotten to this point of trying to master water over a series of logical small steps. But with all these examples of big ideas that turned out to be wrong, have huge unintended consequences and hurt many peop ...more
My big takeaway is the hubris of humanity. It makes sense how we've gotten to this point of trying to master water over a series of logical small steps. But with all these examples of big ideas that turned out to be wrong, have huge unintended consequences and hurt many peop ...more
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Fred Pearce is an English author and journalist based in London. He has been described as one of Britain's finest science writers and has reported on environment, popular science and development issues from 64 countries over the past 20 years. He specialises in global environmental issues, including water and climate change, and frequently takes heretic and counter-intuitive views - "a sceptic in
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