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The <keyword id="20417468" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="department-of-drinking-water-and-sanitation" source="keywords">Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation</keyword> has received a budgetary allocation of Rs 77,390.68 crores for the fiscal year 2024-2025. This figure reflects a minimal increase of only 0.5 per cent from the revised estimate of Rs 77,032.65 crore announced in budget 2023-2024. A substantial portion of this financial year's allotment for the <keyword id="22519676" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="drinking-water-and-sanitation" source="keywords">Drinking Water and Sanitation</keyword> department is directed towards the <keyword id="19971121" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="jal-jeevan-mission" source="keywords">Jal Jeevan Mission</keyword> (JJM), which received Rs 69,926.65 crore, a marginal rise from the revised estimate of Rs 69,846.31 crore in 2023-2024. This flagship programme aims to provide functional household tap connections to every rural household by 2024, focusing on ensuring regular and adequate <keyword id="19939560" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="water-supply" source="keywords">water supply</keyword>. Additionally, the Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee National Institute of Water and Sanitation (SPM-NIWAS) has been allocated Rs 95 crore, a huge rise from the Rs 3 crore it got in the last revised estimate. The <keyword id="20200832" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="swachh-bharat-mission" source="keywords">Swachh Bharat Mission</keyword> (Gramin), which focuses on maintaining Open Defecation Free (ODF) status and enhancing waste management in rural areas, has been allocated Rs 7,192 crore. This allocation remains consistent with the budget for the previous fiscal year and continues to support <keyword id="22519675" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sanitation-efforts" source="keywords">sanitation efforts</keyword> nationwide. The budget also includes significant funding for water supply and sanitation at Rs 64,302.85 crore, an increase from the previous year's Rs 64,138.41 crore. For economic services, the budget includes Rs 35.78 crore for the Secretariat and capital outlay on general economic services. This is an increase from Rs 32.65 crore in the revised budget, indicating a focus on enhancing administrative and infrastructural capacities. Additional allocations include Rs 7,632.19 crore for Northeast India, aimed at improving water and sanitation facilities in these regions. Grants-in-aid to state governments have been set at Rs 5,169.86 crore, while grants to Union Territories are allocated at Rs 250 crore.

Budget 2024-25: Drinking water and sanitation dept gets a mere 0.5% boost

The southern region, encompassing states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, has significantly reduced <keyword id="15300" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="water" source="Orion">water</keyword> storage compared to historical averages at just 17 per cent of reservoir capacity, according to the recent bulletin of the <keyword id="19912241" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Central-Water-Commission" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Central Water Commission" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Central Water Commission">Central Water Commission</keyword>. In the bulletin released by the CWC late Thursday concerning reservoir storage levels across various regions of India, it was reported that 42 reservoirs under CWC monitoring in the southern region have a total live storage capacity of 53.334 BCM (billion cubic meters). As per the latest report, the total live storage available in these reservoirs stands at 8.865 BCM, representing only 17 per cent of their total capacity. This figure is considerably lower compared to the storage levels during the same period last year (29 per cent) and the ten-year average for the corresponding period (23 per cent). The reduced storage levels in the southern region are indicative of worsening water scarcity and potential challenges for irrigation, <keyword id="20333839" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="drinking-water-supply" source="keywords">drinking water supply</keyword> and hydroelectric power generation in these states. In contrast, the eastern region, comprising states like Assam, Odisha and West Bengal, has shown a positive improvement in water storage levels compared to last year and the ten-year average. The bulletin highlighted that in this region, 23 monitored reservoirs with a total live storage capacity of 20.430 BCM currently hold 7.889 BCM of water, representing 39 per cent of their total capacity. This marks an improvement over the storage levels from the same period last year (34 per cent) and the ten-year average (34 per cent). The situation is less optimistic in other regions. The western region, consisting of Gujarat and Maharashtra, reports storage levels of 11.771 BCM, which is 31.7 per cent of the total capacity of 49 monitored reservoirs. This is notably lower compared to the storage levels of the previous year (38 per cent) and the ten-year average (32.1 per cent). Similarly, the northern and central regions also show declines in water storage levels compared to historical averages. The broader analysis provided in the bulletin categorizes reservoir storage across various river basins as "better than normal," "close to normal," "deficient," or "highly deficient". Notably, river basins like Brahmaputra, Narmada and Tapi are marked as having better-than-normal storage levels, whereas basins like Cauvery and east flowing rivers between Mahanadi and Pennar are classified as highly deficient. SEE ALSO:<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/ultraviolette-f77-mach-2-electric-sports-bike-launched-in-india-starting-at-2-99-lakh/slidelist/109615934.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/auto/webstories/ultraviolette-f77-mach-2-electric-sports-bike-launched-in-india-starting-at-2-99-lakh/slidelist/109615934.cms" target="_blank">Ultraviolette F77 Mach 2 electric sports bike launched in India starting at ₹2.99 lakh</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/realme-c65-5g-with-5000mah-battery-120hz-display-launched-starting-at-10499/articleshow/109619597.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/realme-c65-5g-with-5000mah-battery-120hz-display-launched-starting-at-10499/articleshow/109619597.cms" target="_blank">Realme C65 5G with 5,000mAh battery, 120Hz display launched starting at ₹10,499</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/jiocinema-introduces-new-ad-free-premium-plans-starting-at-29/articleshow/109581033.cms" target="_blank"></a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/jiocinema-introduces-new-ad-free-premium-plans-starting-at-29/articleshow/109581033.cms" target="_blank">An Ambani disruption in OTT: At just ₹1 per day, you can now enjoy ad-free content on JioCinema</a>

Southern India faces water crisis as reservoir levels plunge to just 17% capacity: CWC

<ul class="summary-list"><li>California has spent decades battling droughts and water insecurity.</li><li>Startups like Epic Cleantec are innovating with on-site water reuse.</li></ul>Despite enduring droughts for <a target="_blank" href="https://ca.water.usgs.gov/california-drought/california-drought-runoff.html">much of the past 15 years</a>, California continues to lead the nation in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/water-qa-which-states-use-most-water">water consumption</a>.During these <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/california-drought-could-impact-agriculture-tourism-wildlife-2021-6">dry periods</a>, some of the state's local governments began to look for ways to <a target="_blank" href="https://andthewest.stanford.edu/2023/in-times-of-scarcity-californias-best-new-source-of-water-reuse/">diversify their water supplies</a> away from lengthy pipelines and expensive, out-of-state sources.In 2012, San Francisco's Public Utilities Commission began developing the Onsite Water Reuse Program to investigate whether water reuse, also known as water recycling, in buildings could be a solution to California's water problem."There weren't any state or national regulations," Paula Kehoe, the director of water resources at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, told Business Insider. Kehoe and her team created a permitting program to streamline the adoption of on-site water-reuse systems developed by private businesses.As the US faces a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2023/09/25/more-federal-funding-needed-to-improve-drinking-water-epa-study-finds#:~:text=Water%20utilities%20throughout%20the%20United,Environmental%20Protection%20Agency%20(EPA).">$625 billion cost to address the nation's need to repair drinking- and clean-water infrastructure</a>, on-site water reuse is quickly becoming a strong alternative to the historically slow and expensive process of building large water-recycling plants.With droughts predicted to <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://apnews.com/article/california-droughts-gavin-newsom-recycling-c22de8f25b9d6a2bf69277a7185abc0f">reduce California's water supply by 10%</a> over the next 20 years, the success of these systems could lay the foundation for how the state sources its water over several decades.<h2 id="8b14ae19-3316-4bcf-9798-263a2b1e1e25">Silicon Valley is investing in on-site water recycling</h2>In 2015, during the height of California's drought and after three years of development, San Francisco unveiled the Onsite Water Reuse Program requiring all new buildings of 250,000 square feet or more to install an on-site water-treatment system for nonpotable uses, a cap that was lowered to 100,000 square feet in 2021.The city's tech background and proximity to Silicon Valley gave some <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gradiant-water-startup-helps-businesses-recycle-water-2023-7">startups an opportunity</a> to enter the market. In 2019, Epic Cleantec, a maker of on-site water-reuse systems, emerged to meet the necessary demand for new large buildings.Aaron Tartakovsky, Epic Cleantec's cofounder and CEO, developed the company to address the water-reuse needs of large city buildings.He told BI he took inspiration from the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/solar-careers-in-demand-workforce-shortage-2024-7">solar industry</a>, which he said had turned to local installation projects after prioritizing large-scale solar-panel farms. "Can we do the same thing for water and wastewater?" Tartakovsky said. "Can this be water's solar moment?"<div type="image" title="Aaron Tartovsky, founder of epic cleantec" height="2268" width="3024" msid="111870886" hostid="261" sizebytes="137524"></div>Epic Cleantec's on-site systems can recycle building gray water for nonpotable uses, including toilet flushing and irrigation, through their filtration and disinfection process. The company's systems also incorporate an energy-saving mechanism to limit the amount of wasted heat."We have big tanks in these buildings that are collecting all this heated wastewater," Tartakovsky said. "Rather than just sending all that heat away, we are using heat exchangers to take all of that energy from the water and then to reuse that energy within the building."Epic Cleantec has six active projects in California, including a recent system in San Francisco's Salesforce Tower that the company says is the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://epiccleantec.com/projects/salesforce">largest on-site water-reuse system in a US commercial high-rise</a>.The company has also entered the hotel sector with a recycling system in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Beverly Hills. Recycled water is being used for on-site irrigation.In a drought-conscious state, Tartakovsky said the on-site recycling systems had become more appealing to tenants looking for ways to contribute to the state's water-conservation mindset.The adoption of on-site water reuse can also be a sensible decision for developers. "They're not working with us just because it's a nice thing to do and it's good for the planet," he said. "They're doing it because it makes business sense — it saves them a lot of money to incorporate technologies like ours into these projects."<h2 id="075e558b-3852-4981-bc08-a5e2095ce6fb">Water reuse to overcome hurdles</h2>While large plants and on-site water systems in major buildings have been California's <a target="_blank" href="https://andthewest.stanford.edu/2023/in-times-of-scarcity-californias-best-new-source-of-water-reuse/">more established methods</a> of water reuse, the state's biggest hurdle is retrofitting systems for existing buildings.As part of San Francisco's water-recycling initiative, the city published a list of 30 vendors that provide on-site systems that can be installed in existing buildings and new constructions to collect different types of water, including rainwater, gray water, and black water.While most of the vendors offer reuse systems and water management for new constructions, some companies, such as <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bioclere.co.uk/bioclere.php">Bioclere</a>, Phoenix's <a target="_blank" href="https://dewater.com/markets/aquacell-water-recycling/">Aquacell</a>, and <a target="_blank" href="https://innovatreat.com/">Innovatreat</a>, make systems designed to be retrofitted into existing buildings and community infrastructure.<div type="image" title="Epic Cleantec One Water system installed" height="2626" width="1751" msid="111870887" hostid="261" sizebytes="125772"></div>Erik Porse, the director and associate cooperative extension specialist at the California Institute for Water Resources, told BI these retrofits are more difficult to install because of the limitations of size and existing water pipes. "If you have a larger facility, like more area, then you can think about on-site treatment of some sort," he said. "But if you're kind of working in an existing building, like a small building, it can be kind of tough to integrate in lots of treatments."California's <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/california-central-valley-farms-groundwater-dought-2023-7">agriculture sector</a> also relies on water-reuse systems for nonpotable water — a key part of crop irrigation. Since the state has the highest agricultural output in the country, recycled water is important for maintaining crops, especially in times of drought. California is the leader in <a target="_blank" href="https://watereuse.org/educate/water-reuse-101/agricultural-reuse/">using reused water for agriculture</a> across the US.However, the extent to which recycled water is used in agriculture depends on a state's guidelines, many of which are underdeveloped. For example, Iowa is one of the highest producers of crops but does not have any regulations for the use of reused water in agriculture. Instead, the state is experimenting with <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cals.iastate.edu/inrc/news/2024/new-report-shares-latest-research-potential-ag-drainage-water-recycling">drainage-water recycling</a>, or collecting water from farming, and local infrastructure that captures used drainage and rainfall for reuse in on-site irrigation.Nonpotable water can also help in one of the country's newest sources of water loss: data centers. States like <a target="_blank" href="https://www.newsweek.com/why-ai-so-thirsty-data-centers-use-massive-amounts-water-1882374">Iowa</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://grist.org/technology/surging-demand-data-guzzling-water-ai/">Virginia</a> have seen massive strains on their <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ai-data-energy-centers-water-energy-land-2023-10">water supplies</a> due to the increased construction of these facilities. "Those data centers use huge amounts of water to cool themselves," Tartakovsky said.Tartakovsky hopes Epic Cleantec's recent expansions to states such as Texas, Florida, and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/hawaii-water-crisis-climate-change/">Hawaii</a> can help in ways beyond water scarcity. "A lot of people think you only need it in the Western states, but in places like the East Coast, a lot of times what they have is wastewater-infrastructure issues," he said. "We have pipes and sewers that were put in place anywhere from 30 to 100 years ago."<h2 id="8d5654cd-d3b7-4f2e-89c8-d5d9a678cdde">Rethinking our relationship with water</h2>To help promote the safety of its recycled water, Epic Cleantec partnered with a brewery near San Francisco, Devil's Canyon Brewing Co., to make a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/half-moon-bay-brewery-california-recycled-wastewater-nasa-astronauts-2023-7">safe-to-drink beer</a> out of its nonpotable water. The beer could not be sold commercially since the state has not cleared nonpotable water for drinking, but Tartakovsky credits the campaign with highlighting the company's purification process.Other states could learn from the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.gov.ca.gov/2022/04/14/state-expands-save-our-water-public-awareness-campaign-as-drought-intensifies/">public-awareness campaigns</a> California has promoted for several decades to help residents embrace water reuse. During times of drought, the state has encouraged water conservation and water recycling, such as the use of <a target="_blank" href="https://www.latimes.com/lifestyle/story/2022-06-21/gardening-with-recycled-water">recycled water for plants</a>. "We've seen a pretty big evolution in California cities, especially in Southern California, that folks understand that water reuse is a treatment technology that we use in the state, and it's important, and it provides supply resilience," Porse said.In Texas, a fellow drought-prone state, the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://takecareoftexas.org/water">Take Care of Texas </a>campaign similarly encourages community support for water conservation so the state can survive in times of water scarcity.Porse told BI that in California as public support grows, so will government regulations. In 2023, California made progress toward establishing recycled water for <a target="_blank" href="https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/press_room/press_releases/2023/pr20231219-dpr-regulations-adoption.pdf">direct potable reuse</a> and allowing recycled water to be used in the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/california-drinking-toilet-water-sewage-waste-drought-climate-crisis-solution-2023-12">state's drinking-water supply</a>.For Kehoe, the key to creating stronger water infrastructure is a partnership between communities that endures beyond times of scarcity."We always talk about water conservation as a way of life," Kehoe said. "It's not just during the drought."

Droughts are threatening California's water supply. The state is racing to save what's left. 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Russian troops in Ukraine are likely facing water shortages, the UK's Ministry of Defence has said.</li><li>It likely comes as the result of Russian strikes on utility infrastructure, the MoD said.</li></ul>Russian troops fighting in Ukraine are likely facing water shortages, with some turning to "stagnant puddles" to get water, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://x.com/DefenceHQ/status/1823273344818376738">the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) said in an update on the conflict</a>."Damage inflicted during ongoing Russian strikes against utilities infrastructure is now almost certainly curtailing water supply," the MoD said in an update on the conflict, adding that any issues had been "exacerbated by a period of above average temperature in the region."In response, Russian forces have resorted to makeshift water filtration techniques, using "stagnant puddles for daily water requirements," per the MoD, which adds that this has "highly likely led to an increase of waterborne diseases amongst Russian soldiers.""This shortage of water leading to dehydration and increased risk of infection, will almost certainly impact morale and operational effectiveness," it adds.The MoD also referenced the account of a pro-Russian military blogger who said that Russian pilots had been limited to one liter of water a day.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/mining%5C/UserFiles/works/pdfs/2017-126.pdf">recommends</a> people working in high temperatures drink one cup of water every 15 to 20 minutes — around three-quarters to one quart (almost one liter) per hour.Ukraine has experienced record-breaking temperatures this summer.On July 16, Kyiv hit 36 degrees Celsius (96.8 degrees Fahrenheit), the highest temperature on record for that date, according to the Borys Sreznevsky Central Geophysical Observatory.The high temperatures have led to electricity cuts and negatively impacted grain and oilseed crops, per <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraine-set-rain-after-record-breaking-heatwave-forecaster-says-2024-07-17/">Reuters</a>.

Russian troops likely facing water shortages in Ukraine, with some now drinking from 'stagnant puddles': UK intel     

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Andrew Halter delivers water 1,200 miles by rail to the Navajo Nation from Mississippi.</li><li>Navajo Nation residents struggle with water scarcity, with 30% lacking reliable drinking water.</li></ul>Andrew Halter had been in the railroad business for 25 years, mostly in middle management roles. It was his dream job and all he ever wanted to do.But when the world shut down in 2020, and he got laid off, he needed to figure something else out."It came to me one day like a clap of thunder," Halter, who is based in Pennsylvania, told Business Insider.Halter and his brother had long talked about the possibility of using rail to help alleviate the water crisis in the Navajo Nation. His brother, Chris Halter, runs the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.stbonaventuremission.org">St. Bonaventure Indian Mission and School</a>, located on the southeastern edge of the reservation, which spans more than 27,000 square miles across parts of Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah.Nearly a third of <a target="_blank" href="https://nndwr.navajo-nsn.gov/">Navajo Nation</a> residents do not have access to reliable, clean drinking water, according to the tribe. The estimated population was over 165,000 in 2020, according to <a target="_blank" href="https://data.census.gov/profile/Navajo_Nation_Reservation_and_Off-Reservation_Trust_Land,_AZ--NM--UT?g=2500000US2430">census data</a>.The mission was already delivering water via trucks to 250 families, a small portion of the Navajo who are water-scarce. The families receive about 40 gallons of water a day, far less than the 300 gallons the average American family uses. The mission has relied on a local well to get the water, but if something happened to it, all those families would be without any water virtually overnight."To be honest, it was always the thing that would wake me up in the middle of the night," Chris Halter told BI. "If that well shuts down for some reason, what would I do next?"Now, Halter's company, <a target="_blank" href="https://jacobswell8.godaddysites.com">Jacob's Well</a>, in partnership with the mission, delivers thousands of gallons of water each month from Mississippi to the Navajo Nation via the BNSF Railway. The water-by-rail served as a lifeline in 2022 when the well had to undergo repairs that lasted months.The operation has grown quickly, and Halter is focused on expanding, both to provide more water to the Navajo Nation but also potentially to other places in the West, where dried up rivers and reservoirs are leaving communities increasingly desperate for solutions.<div type="image" title="Tank car" height="2049" width="3209" msid="110505100" hostid="261"></div><h2 id="a684fd17-93b4-488f-a009-a0f311e3306b">Some thought the water-by-rail idea was crazy</h2>When Halter first started calling railroads about transporting drinkable water, some thought the idea was crazy.He finally got in touch with Eunice Sun at BNSF, who currently serves as the business development manager of emerging markets."We haven't moved potable water prior to this opportunity, really, because the economics don't necessarily pencil out in order to pay for that water and pay for the transport," Sun told BI. But when Halter came to her, she said he did a great job communicating his vision and business plan.Halter said right now they can transport water, depending on fuel prices and other fluctuating costs, for around 38 cents a gallon. Currently, those costs are covered almost entirely by private donations to the mission. However, as the operation scales up and he transports more tank cars of water, those costs could come down.Getting a public utility to sell him hundreds of thousands of gallons of water per month was another story. "A lot of times, they think you're crazy," Halter said. Still, they were able to work out a deal with the water department of Helena, Mississippi, where Jacob's Well collects its water before it travels 1,200 miles by rail to the southwest.Once it arrives, the Navajo families can pick up water from the mission or have it delivered to their homes, just as the well water is.Originally, Halter said he couldn't even find information about how the water would travel, and it took a lot of testing before and after transport to ensure the supply stayed safe to drink."We've kind of had to wing it and make up our own rules as we go along and figure some things out the hard way, which we did," he said.It took around eight months from when Halter first contacted BNSF for the first shipment to go out, and the operation has only grown since. Halter said they currently average around two tank cars a month, which each hold 21,000 gallons of water, but the operation is capable of delivering 200,000 gallons a month if needed.They sent half a million gallons of water total in 2023. He's hoping to reach 2 million this year.<div type="image" title="Water truck" height="400" width="600" msid="110505104" hostid="261"></div><h2 id="b3ba473f-e5dc-4635-868b-ff5aed905355">Emergency water supply and the water crisis</h2>It's unclear at this point how scalable or economically feasible water-by-rail will be in other places, but those involved are hopeful.Chris Halter said he's currently conducting a study that he hopes will show the project has had a sound return on investment so that he can show tribal, local, and state governments that this is a feasible option.Sun said expanding Jacob's Well wouldn't come without growing pains, but that BNSF is happy to help support the project's growth. "It tugs at your heartstrings," she said, adding that it's not often she gets to work on a project that has such a direct positive impact on a local community.Halter sees water-by-rail as something that could fill a serious need in all sorts of situations, from communities whose wells run dry to natural disasters. He's already been in touch with the state of New Mexico and FEMA. He's hopeful that rail will be among the solutions that help alleviate the broader water crisis.After getting a severe case of COVID-19, Halter lost the use of his right hand and was not able to go back to work on the railroad, so he now runs Jacob's Well full time."It's become a driving mission to give these people water," he said. "I want to be able to provide people with water at the lowest cost possible, and I want it to make enough money to support itself, but I don't need to get wealthy on it."For now the operation is run on donations, but they're hoping they can get grant money or other public funds to help support it in the future."Water is a human right," Halter said. "And they should be able to have it."Have a news tip or a story to share? Contact this reporter at <a target="_blank" href="mailto:kvlamis@businessinsider.com">kvlamis@businessinsider.com</a>.

A railroad worker figured out how to send thousands of gallons of drinking water by rail from Mississippi to the Navajo Nation to alleviate the water crisis

<ul class="summary-list"><li>RFK Jr. says under President Trump, he'll advise US water systems to remove fluoride.</li><li>The federal government is not in charge of the US water supply. It's a local thing.</li></ul><a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/rfk-jr">Robert F. Kennedy Jr.</a>, the man widely expected to become a health leader in President-elect Donald Trump's White House, has promised to lobby to remove fluoride from the American water supply.Nearly 63% of the US population has fluoridated water flowing through their taps, according to the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cdc.gov/fluoridation/php/statistics/2022-water-fluoridation-statistics.html">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a> (CDC).US health experts describe fluoridated water — a voluntary practice for local water districts — as one of modern medicine's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm4850bx.htm">greatest public health achievements</a>, up there with the recognition that smoking is bad for you.Meanwhile, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/robert-f-kennedy-jr-views-vaccines-autism-testing-debunked-2023-7">Kennedy</a>, a former environmental lawyer who was instrumental in the fight to clean up the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.riverkeeper.org/blogs/honoring-our-foundation-in-science/">Hudson River in New York</a>, says there's no need to fluoridate drinking water anymore since most toothpaste contains fluoride. He's not alone. An important debate over fluoride is gaining fresh steam among scientists and legal experts. Some recent studies suggest more research is still needed on safe fluoride levels for kids. Plus, a federal ruling in California this year questioned the US government's recommended dose.While many medical professionals — chiefly dentists — support some level of fluoridation, there is growing agreement that we still aren't sure how much fluoride is too much.<h2 id="73e9cfea-f185-4392-8a29-deb966cdc1f8">120 years ago, fluoride was the mystery culprit behind brown teeth in Colorado</h2><div type="image" title="woman with brown teeth" height="2752" width="1912" msid="115231235" hostid="261" sizebytes="398436"></div>The reason most Americans have fluoride in their drinking water stretches back more than a century to a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nidcr.nih.gov/health-info/fluoride/the-story-of-fluoridation">mysterious outbreak</a> scattered across the Midwest and western US.In the early 1900s, dentists started noticing that children in specific towns, including Colorado Springs, Colorado; Oakley, Idaho; and Bauxite, Arkansas, were developing hard, chocolate-colored teeth.It took more than 20 years, but eventually, researchers discovered that these unusual brown stains were caused by high amounts of naturally occurring fluoride in the drinking water in certain areas of the country.They also found that the fluoride — a mineral compound found in rocks and dirt — was strengthening teeth. It was hardening tooth enamel and helping to repair some early-stage tooth decay.By 1945, scientists had learned enough about fluoride to harness the technique to prevent cavities for the masses. They proposed microdosing the mineral into the public water supply to give kids just enough fluoride to protect their teeth and help heal dental decay without giving them so much that their teeth would go brown.The experiment worked.In 1945, Grand Rapids, Michigan, was the first city to purposefully fluoridate its water. In the first 10 years of the program, the rate of cavities in kids decreased by more than <a target="_blank" href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1551218/?page=1">60%</a>. Thus, the idea of fluoridated water as a boon for public health was born.<h2 id="ffc42276-b971-4331-bd76-9f4c2877d29f">US water districts decide their own fluoride levels</h2><div type="image" title="tap water" height="4000" width="6000" msid="115231232" hostid="261" sizebytes="655952"></div>Kennedy has <a target="_blank" href="https://x.com/RobertKennedyJr/status/1852812012478398923">said</a> he'd aim to convince local authorities nationwide to remove any added fluoride from taps."I think fluoride is on its way out," Kennedy <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nbcnews.com/video/rfk-jr-talks-health-care-agenda-following-trump-win-223717957893">told NBC</a> News the day after the election, adding: "I'm not going to compel anybody to take it out, but I'm going to advise the water districts. I'm going to give them good information about the science, and I think fluoride will disappear."The federal government does not control water supplies in the US. That task is up to states and local water systems.The US Environmental Protection Agency does mandate a limit for fluoride in tap water: four milligrams per liter. That limit is meant to prevent crippling health issues caused by excess fluoride intake, like a bone-weakening disease called skeletal fluorosis.<h2 id="e730cbbb-f6d0-4962-9881-0475436e9095">The US lowered fluoride levels in drinking water in 2015</h2><div type="image" title="crest toothpaste vintage ad w nina simone and daughter" height="4416" width="3531" msid="115231221" hostid="261" sizebytes="896112"></div>The amount of fluoride added to a water supply varies not only by city and county but also by the individual water system supplying a given neighborhood.For many years, the federal recommendation fluctuated based on location. In warmer climates — where it was assumed that kids consumed more water to stay cool — officials recommended 0.7 milligrams of fluoride per liter. Colder areas were advised to add 1.2 milligrams per liter.After reviewing evidence in 2015, the US Public Health Service decided that the discrepancy wasn't needed. The recommendation for fluoridation is now set at 0.7 milligrams per liter nationwide.Most major cities in the US hover around the 0.7 figure. Some places naturally have elevated levels of fluoride in their water due to geological factors. In Lordsburg, New Mexico, for example, water samples collected earlier this year had concentrations of fluoride between <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://cityoflordsburg.com/fluoride-mcl-notice-2024/">5.2 and 6.4 milligrams</a> per liter. Authorities there advise that children under 9 years old shouldn't drink tap water.<h2 id="c03fabfb-6a1d-488a-8229-718ca0e2727d">Places with fluoride-free water generally have worse dental health</h2><div type="image" title="toothbrush with paste" height="3209" width="4813" msid="115231228" hostid="261" sizebytes="238252"></div>Proponents of ditching fluoride often point to the many European countries that do not fluoridate their water. Those countries are not 100% fluoride-free, though: unlike people in the US, many Europeans consume fluoridated salt.Hawaii is the only US state without any fluoride in municipal taps; fluoridated water is only available there on military bases. A <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://health.hawaii.gov/about/files/2013/06/Hawaii-Smiles-Report.pdf">2015 report</a> from Hawaii's health department said the state also has the highest prevalence of tooth decay among 3rd graders in the US."It's obvious; you can see it in the quality of their enamel," Anthony Kim, dental director at the Waimanalo Health Clinic, told the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.civilbeat.org/2020/02/why-hawaii-continues-to-keep-fluoride-out-of-its-drinking-water/">Honolulu Civil Beat in 2020</a>. "Sadly, especially among the kids."Researchers in Canada see the same phenomenon. The rate of cavities detected in Alberta spiked after the city went fluoride-free in 2011, according to a <a target="_blank" href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.17269/s41997-024-00858-w">February 2024 study</a>. Calgary did the same and saw <a target="_blank" href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9542152/">similar tooth issues</a> in kids. The city now plans to re-fluoridate its water supply, but cost issues and global supply chain problems post-pandemic have <a target="_blank" href="https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/calgary-s-plan-to-reintroduce-fluoride-into-drinking-water-pushed-back-to-2025-1.6845098">created delays</a>.The military supports fluoridation. In 2016, the <a target="_blank" href="https://ilikemyteeth.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/DoD-Fluoridation-Memo-March-2013.pdf">US Department of Defense</a> said dental decay was a "significant" reason military personnel were classified as non-deployable. As such, fluoridated water is now mandated on any military base with more than 3,300 people.Rumors have circulated that drinking fluoridated water can lead to bone cancer (osteosarcoma), but long-term studies from both <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://academic.oup.com/ije/article/43/1/224/736028">the UK</a> and <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1877782111001822">US</a> haven't found any credible evidence of higher rates in areas where people drink fluoridated water.<h2 id="726f1d49-c5ff-447d-b2cc-6cf2412f9906">Is there any truth to claims of IQ issues?</h2><div type="image" title="anti fluoride protesters" height="2574" width="3594" msid="115231239" hostid="261" sizebytes="497810"></div>On November 2, Kennedy said on X that fluoride is an "industrial waste" that is linked to "IQ loss."He linked to a ruling from a federal judge in California in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cand.uscourts.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/17-cv-2162-Food-_-Water-Watch-Inc.-et-al.-v.-EPA-et-al-Opinion.pdf">October.</a> The judge, appointed by former President Obama, said that while he could not "conclude with certainty" that fluoridated water could reduce the IQ of children, there is evidence that it can be "hazardous at dosages that are far too close to fluoride levels in the drinking water of the United States."His ruling came weeks after a headline-grabbing paper in which a group of independent scientists reviewed existing evidence on fluoridation for the <a target="_blank" href="https://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/sites/default/files/2024-08/fluoride_final_508.pdf">US National Toxicology Program</a>. Their review concluded that some studies of fluoride consumption have found links between higher fluoride water levels and lower IQs in kids.There are a couple of big caveats to keep in mind. First, those studies were conducted in other countries, including Canada, China, India, Iran, Pakistan, and Mexico, not the US.Second, the association with lower IQs was only apparent when children were drinking water loaded with fluoride, at more than 1.5 milligrams per liter. That's double what's recommended in the US and 50% more fluoride than what was first used in Grand Rapids in 1945."More studies are needed to fully understand the potential for lower fluoride exposure to affect children's IQ," the experts said.Those new studies are starting to trickle out. Fluoride and aluminum researcher Ashley Malin, an assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of Florida, recently found <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38767917/">a potential link</a> between a woman's fluoride levels during pregnancy and neurobehavioral problems in her toddler three years later."At this point, I would advise that pregnant women reduce their fluoride intake," Malin told Business Insider.Malin brushes her teeth without fluoride, drinks filtered water (using a reverse osmosis water purifier or buying bottled water), and says that the most fluoride she consumes is probably from the black chai tea she occasionally drinks.<h2 id="5b5f129c-cdf6-4dba-a89c-6887474b296d">Settling on the right dose</h2><div type="image" title="retro photo of kid brushing teeth" height="3000" width="2487" msid="115231240" hostid="261" sizebytes="496682"></div>It's hard to tease out <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cochrane.org/CD010856/ORAL_does-adding-fluoride-water-supplies-prevent-tooth-decay">exactly how beneficial fluoridated water is</a> for preventing cavities, in part because fluoridating water isn't the only way that tooth care has improved dramatically since the 1940s. (The level of fluoride in many toothpastes is much higher than what's in the water.)The California ruling last month didn't get prescriptive about what the EPA should do about all this uncertainty. It only recommended some kind of "regulatory action" on fluoride."It should be noted that this finding does not conclude with certainty that fluoridated water is injurious to public health," the verdict read.A federal judge wants the EPA to better answer now whether 0.7 milligrams per liter of fluoride is safe enough.The EPA has said in the past that reviewing their fluoride numbers is a "low priority" item for the agency. Public health experts and dentists generally agree that <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nidcr.nih.gov/news-events/nidcr-news/2024/big-hopes-little-teeth">fluoridated tap water</a> is a safe, effortless, and equitable way to ensure people get enough fluoride to prevent most childhood cavities.However, scientists haven't quite settled on the optimal fluoride level in tap water to maintain healthy teeth yet.

A brief history of America's love affair with fluoridated water — and why it's now up for debate

<ul class="summary-list"><li>PepsiCo says it's two-thirds of the way done with an overhaul of its supply chain.</li><li>It has invested in AI and automation to make its production and distribution more profitable.</li></ul>Gregg Roden, PepsiCo's chief operating officer, has spent his entire 34-year professional career working at the snacking giant. He said that in the past three years alone he'd witnessed more change than in the 31 years before that.Over the past couple of decades, as consumers bought more goods online, grocery sales remained reliably stuck in the store. But the pandemic shifted grocery-shopping patterns, and now people are increasingly likely to buy food and beverages online too."When I started 34 years ago, everything was bought from a store, and we had a pretty narrow portfolio of options for the consumer," Roden told Business Insider. "Now, literally anyone can buy anything, anywhere." PepsiCo has also expanded its product line, offering new flavors and sizes of its snacks and drinks.These changes mean demand for more brands is coming from more directions. PepsiCo says it is investing in digitization and automation — including robotics and predictive artificial intelligence — so it can better plan for demand and more quickly and precisely produce and deliver its products. And it says its supply-chain transformation is two-thirds complete.<h2 id="edb5b524-83f3-4f66-928d-fc4bdede46a4">Supporting agriculture with AI predictive insights and satellite imagery</h2>PepsiCo generated more than $91 billion in 2023 from the sales of more than 500 brands worldwide, including its namesake soda, Lay's, Doritos, Gatorade, and Mountain Dew. The company's earnings for the first two quarters of 2024 <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/11/pepsico-pep-earnings-q2-2024-earnings.html">exceeded Wall Street's expectations</a>, but volume in North America for the Frito-Lay and beverages businesses has been declining as consumers have pushed back against years of price hikes.Athina Kanioura, PepsiCo's chief strategy and transformation officer, described investments in PepsiCo's seed-to-shelf supply chain as the "glue" in the company's future ability to deliver higher profits and revenue growth. And it all begins with the work done in the field.The farmers PepsiCo works with own more than 4 million acres in North America alone, providing ingredients such as potatoes and corn for its chips and other snacks.The thinking is that by using less water and fertilizer to produce those ingredients, the company can boost its profits in an industry that operates on thin margins. It says that it works with farmers to ensure they have the technology to harvest those ingredients efficiently and that it subsidizes some of the cost of that technology for smaller farms.It also says it has partnered with companies including CropTrak, AgroScout, and Microsoft to monitor production, analyze crop health, track where crops go, and better understand where to plant crops so they can thrive.<h2 id="32588e1b-3851-4dba-89dd-e96f1f24974a">Distribution workers do fewer manual tasks</h2>PepsiCo is also rethinking how it fulfills orders and distributes its products, which is changing the work of the company's many employees in manufacturing and distribution. With more automation, workers are doing fewer physical tasks, like driving a forklift, and far more oversight of the machines taking over those tasks.Workers at manufacturing facilities and distribution centers and the unions that represent them often bristle at automation, which can lead to layoffs. Large food manufacturers that have announced closings and layoffs this year include PepsiCo, Tyson Foods, and Campbell Soup. Often those announcing layoffs don't directly attribute them to automation but to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/tyson-foods-close-iowa-pork-plant-with-1200-workers-2024-03-11/">soft sales</a>, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.fooddive.com/news/campbell-soup-closing-inefficient-sites-415-job-losses/717224/">older facilities that can't keep up with demand</a>, or <a target="_blank" href="https://www.fooddive.com/news/pepsicos-quaker-plant-illinois-closing-layoffs/712954/">even product recalls</a>. PepsiCo declined to comment on the reason for its layoffs.Food producers are also confronting a generational shift. Research from McKinsey suggests that while many Gen Zers express interest in working in manufacturing, not enough of them are taking jobs at factories to fill vacancies, and that they're <a target="_blank" href="https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/operations/our-insights/from-hire-to-inspire-getting-and-keeping-gen-z-in-manufacturing">more likely than older workers to leave those jobs</a>.PepsiCo argues that it can't continue to have employees perform most tasks manually while cost-effectively churning out enough food and drinks to meet demand. So it trains workers to monitor autonomous machines and ensure they're working safely and efficiently. "You are taking an analog worker, and you are making them a digital worker," Kanioura said.Its modernization efforts include how it puts together variety packs, such as those containing several small bags of Ruffles, Doritos, Cheetos, and Fritos: While workers used to assemble the packs, machines are increasingly taking over.Even as it has invested in automation, PepsiCo's total workforce has swelled: It grew by 20%, to 318,000, over the five years that ended in 2023.<h2 id="49fb841a-5ce1-4f54-8631-44d495ffdaa5">Creating more intelligent warehouses</h2>PepsiCo says it considers most of the company's warehouses "intelligent" facilities with tech that allows employees to track and control the movement of goods.It uses sensors and AI to help with predictive maintenance checks and quality-control measures — for example, using patterns to identify a machine or vehicle that's likely to malfunction and cause problems later on. Rather than suffering a shutdown when a motor breaks on the tortilla-chip line, PepsiCo can preemptively replace the motor the next time the line is scheduled for downtime."Being able to turn that data into action is important," Roden said.

PepsiCo is using robotics and AI-powered crop planning to transform its supply chain

Amid heavy rain fall and <keyword id="20310051" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="flood" source="keywords">flood</keyword> situation in <keyword id="19896313" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Andhra-Pradesh" source="keywords">Andhra Pradesh</keyword>, the <keyword id="19905239" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="National-Disaster-Response-Force" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="National Disaster Response Force" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="National Disaster Response Force">National Disaster Response Force</keyword> (<keyword id="19988414" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="NDRF" source="keywords">NDRF</keyword>) team along with <keyword id="20279329" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Central-forces" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Central forces" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Central forces">Central forces</keyword> and district officials, provided food, drinking water, and other essential items to the flood-affected areas in <keyword id="19927072" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vijayawada" source="keywords">Vijayawada</keyword> through helicopters. This comes due to the heavy rainfall caused by the cyclonic storm in the Bay of Bengal, which has led to flooding in several areas of <keyword id="19927072" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vijayawada" source="keywords">Vijayawada</keyword>. The water level at Prakasam barrage in Vijayawada has also increased due to incessant rainfall in the region. Meanwhile Andhra Minister Nara Lokesh said that the state government Garu, has for the first time ever deployed drones to deliver relief materials and food flood-affected people. This has made <keyword id="22080122" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="relief-operations" source="keywords">relief operations</keyword> more efficient and quick. Earlier, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, on Monday conducted a review over heavy rain fall and <keyword id="20310051" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="flood" source="keywords">flood</keyword> situation at the <keyword id="19896313" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Andhra-Pradesh" source="keywords">Andhra Pradesh</keyword> Disaster Management Authority office and said that protecting the lives and property of people is his first priority. Andhra Pradesh has witnessed major devastation with heavy rainfall for the past three days recorded at 29 cm to 34 cm on a single resembling like cloud burst hitting normal life. Traffic flow on national highways came to a halt with overflowing of flood water and large number of train services were cancelled. As a result of Budameru floods several areas including Singhnagar, Nandamuri Nagar and other low lying areas were submerged within hours forcing nearly two lakh people to take shelter on the terraces of their buildings. The Chief Minister directed the officials to supply food and water to flood victims at first. With the personal intervention of the Chief Minister, officials swung into action and made arrangements to distribute food packets till late last night by venturing into flood affected regions through boats. Chief Minister Naidu also contacted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah and apprised them of the present flood crisis and requested them to treat this flood devastation as natural calamity. As per the request of the CM, the central government responded immediately and started deploying 10 <keyword id="19988414" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="NDRF" source="keywords">NDRF</keyword> teams, 40 power boats and six helicopters to rescue people from flood affected regions. In a post on social media platform X the CM said "I visited the flood affected areas in Vijayawada on the second day. I have personally supervised the assistance provided to the affected people. I assured them. The power boats sent by the Center and the arrangements made by the state government have increased the speed of <keyword id="22080122" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="relief-operations" source="keywords">relief operations</keyword>. Public safety is our responsibility. All efforts are being made to bring people out of this unexpected calamity as soon as possible. I wish the affected people to be brave". He repeatedly appealed to people that the state government will come to their rescue. Pained by the plight of people, Chandrababu Naidu appealed to officials to coordinate with people by adopting humanitarian approach to increase confidence levels of people at the hour of crisis.

Vijayawada floods: NDRF and Central forces provides food, water to affected areas using helicopters

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The US Navy said it recently found E. coli bacteria in the drinking water of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.</li><li>It said this week that there have been no confirmed cases of illness related to the contamination.</li></ul>The US Navy acknowledged that it recently found E. coli bacteria in the drinking water aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln. Sailors first noticed an "odor and cloudy appearance" in the ship's water on September 21, the Navy said in a <a href="https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/Press-Releases/display-pressreleases/Article/3187904/update-on-uss-abraham-lincoln-potable-water/">statement</a> released Thursday, weeks after the initial discovery. The next day, testing aboard the ship indicated that E. coli bacteria was present in several of the ship's potable water tanks.The Navy did not go into detail on the severity of the water contamination by E.coli, of which some strains and concentrations can be life-threatening. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, E. coli <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/ecoli-symptoms.html">infections</a> can be very mild, but others can be severe. Symptoms of an infection can include severe stomach cramps, diarrhea, vomiting, and fever. The sea service did say though that it isolated the tanks, made bottled water available to the crew, and has had no confirmation of related illnesses."The odor and cloudiness in the water abated by Sept. 22.," the Navy explained in its statement. "However, since the presence of E. coli was not related to the reports of odor and cloudiness in the water, on Sept. 24, additional water samples were sent to Orange Coast Analytical, Inc., a laboratory certified by the state of California's Department of Health, for further testing."The Navy said the results came back on September 26 and that the water was within the required drinking standards. "All potable water tanks currently in service to the crew have been tested and are clear of E. coli," the service said, further explaining that "the affected water tanks remain isolated and will be deep-cleaned and inspected during the ship's ongoing maintenance period."The Navy said that although there have been no confirmed cases of illness related to the contamination of the ship's water, the crew is being monitored. The carrier returned earlier this month to Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, where the flattop is connected to the city's water supply. A Naval Air Forces spokesperson did not immediately respond to Insider's request seeking more information, including why the Navy waited multiple weeks to publically acknowledge that E. coli had been detected in the water supply and whether or not the ship is encouraging people to seek precautionary medical attention.Contaminated water on Navy ships is not unique to the Abraham Lincoln, which discovered its contaminated water shortly after another aircraft carrier did the same. Last month, just a few days before problems with the water were found on the Abraham Lincoln, the Navy said it <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-finding-jet-fuel-traces-uss-nimitz-aircraft-carrier-water-2022-9">found</a> what it described as "traces" of jet fuel in the drinking and bathing water on the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz. A sailor and their parents later told Insider that the issue was <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-jet-fuel-traces-uss-nimitz-sailor-says-worse-problem-2022-9">way worse</a> than what the service originally said publically and argued that the issue was downplayed."We were exposed to an unhealthy amount of JP-5," the Nimitz sailor said, referring to a type of kerosene-based jet fuel that is used in military aircraft and is a go-to for the Navy's carrier air wings.Multiple Navy and Marine Corps <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/jet-fuel-contaminated-water-us-navy-flattops-decades-veteran-sailors-2022-10">veterans</a> told Insider that jet fuel contaminating water on Navy flattops is actually a decades-long issue and one which has spanned many ships."When you go to take a shower, it smells a lot like jet fuel. It tastes like jet fuel. It was terrible," recalled one veteran sailor who served on the Forrestal-class carrier USS Ranger in the 1980s.

The US Navy found E. coli in aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln's drinking water after another carrier discovered jet fuel in its water supply

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The Mississippi River is incredibly low for the second year in a row.</li><li>This threatens both the country's international supply chain and national drinking water access.</li></ul>A long stretch of drought in the Midwest has caused the Mississippi River to drop to abnormally low levels. It's the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mississippi-river-drought-may-be-over-us-army-corps-dredging-2023-1">second year in a row</a> the river has dipped so low.The low river threatens cargo ships that carry <a href="https://www.world-grain.com/articles/19075-falling-levels-on-mississippi-river-affecting-grain-shipments">60%</a> of all grains produced in the US. It also jeopardizes access to drinking water for many Louisiana residents. In other words, it's a serious problem. "It is the most important working river on Earth," Colin Wellenkamp, the executive director of the Mississippi River Cities and Towns Initiative, said in a town meeting per the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/mississippi-river-drought-southwest-colorado-river-water-5654d6ae488aa46dfbaf941af2338886" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Associated Press</a>. <div type="image" title="Barge seen from the Gateway Arch looking down on the Mississippi River, St. Louis, Missouri." height="2487" width="4975" msid="104068921" hostid="261" sizebytes="731790"></div><h2>Problem 1: supplies of corn, wheat, and soy are in peril</h2>The Mississippi River is a crucial route for farmers trying to move their corn, wheat, and soy across the country, which is especially important right now because it's harvest season.Shipping crops on the Mississippi River is ideal because it's low-cost, efficient, and can handle huge amounts of cargo at a time. Just 15 barges lashed together can carry as much cargo as about 1,000 trucks, the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/mississippi-river-drought-farmers-barges-e923b5f5e844ae278f42957b91d83f27" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AP reported</a>. But the river's low levels are causing delays. It's forcing barges to lighten their loads so they carry less cargo. It's also narrowing the river, causing barge backups, per the AP.<h2><div type="image" title="Dredge ship with four levels and giant steel tripod on the deck for suction pipes" height="1700" width="2266" msid="104068922" hostid="261" sizebytes="416714"></div></h2>These delays have sent costs of cargo transport skyrocketing up 77% from the past three-year average, per the AP."Economically it's tough because you don't want to rule out one of the modes of transportation for exports," Lou Dell'Orco, chief of operations and readiness at the US Army Corps of Engineers St. Louis District, told Insider.<h2>Keeping ships running</h2>The absolute minimum that barges need to drift down the river is 9 feet deep and 300 feet wide. The first line of defense in keeping water levels up is vacuuming. USACE workers operate boats, called dredges, that slurp up debris from the river bed and sift through the material, sending the water back into the river and the flotsam to a disposal site. Dell'Orco said that right now the St.Louis district of USACE has two dredges running 24/7 in the St. Louis region, which is a crucial <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/mississippi-river-drought-may-be-over-us-army-corps-dredging-2023-1">chokepoint for the river</a>. The region brought in two more dredges from other districts to help out. Though it's normal to have some dredges operating 24/7 during this season, last year they had to mobilize far more dredges than normal to keep the river deep enough. This year looks like it will be more of the same, Dell'Orco said.Right now, Dell'Orco said they're staying on top of the issue, and keeping the river running. But what they're all hoping for is rain."With this current hit it looks like we're OK beyond almost the middle of October. The goal is to keep looking until we can get the harvest out," he said.<h2><div type="image" title="ouisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards testifies before the Senate Budget Committee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on July 26, 2023 in Washington, DC. The Committee held the hearing to examine the fiscal consequences of climate change on infrastructure. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)" height="3828" width="5103" msid="104068923" hostid="261" sizebytes="311956"></div></h2><h2>Problem two: Louisiana's drinking water is at stake</h2>An estimated <a href="https://www.nps.gov/miss/riverfacts.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">18 million people</a> get their drinking water from the Mississippi. When the Mississippi river is low, its flow decreases. When its flow decreases, saltwater from the Gulf of Mexico begins to creep up into the river, which contaminates drinking water. Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards <a href="https://gov.louisiana.gov/assets/BidenLetterSaltwater.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">addressed a letter </a>to President Joe Biden, asking for federal intervention to stymie the effects of the encroaching saltwater, which Biden approved on Wednesday.The saltwater invasion has already affected farms, schools, and homes. For example, it's contaminated the drinking water of roughly 23,515 residents in Plaquemines Parish where residents are advised to only drink bottled water. Officials are supposed to bring in 15 million gallons of fresh water to treatment facilities in impacted areas, <a href="https://apnews.com/article/louisiana-mississippi-river-water-salt-drinking-0a59cea3ed99bd6646e5441843f3a048" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the AP reported</a>. Edwards emphasized that in the coming months, this problem could continue to head up the river, threatening more populous areas, like New Orleans.<h2><div type="image" title="A diagram describing the 2023 effort to build up sills to block salt water from entering the Mississippi." height="974" width="1732" msid="104068924" hostid="261" sizebytes="86064"></div>Slowing the saltwater's invasion</h2>Matthew Roe, with the New Orleans district of USACE, told Insider that it's been working 24/7 since the 24th of September, trying to get ahead of the saltwater flow.First, they're using dredging, with the same technique as the St. Louis location, just with fewer boats. They're using what they collect from the river bottom to help construct their second effort, sills. Sills are long bars that sit along the river bed and can block out water flow from one direction to raise the water levels. The engineers are focusing on building on top of a sill that they placed in July. Adding another 15-feet to the top of that structure will hopefully delay the northwards flow of saltwater by 10-15 days without impeding the flow of traffic, Roe said. These aren't permanent solutions, but they buy local communities precious time to prepare to find alternate drinking water sources, Roe added. "The sill is used to delay progression as it moves upriver to allow the state and local communities more time to coordinate their efforts for the residents in the area," he told Insider via email.Though efforts are Herculean, every engineer was aware that the force they were up against was formidable. "At some point, like last year, if Mother Nature decides she's gonna win, she's got a perfect record," Dell'Orco said.

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