Water for Irrigation: Time Now to Plan

Many times we hear of the competing needs between water for cities and water for agriculture. It is nice to hear a voice that recognizes that water -- irrigation water -- is necessary to feed the world. Where will we get sufficient water for irrigation? It is a question that must be answered quickly when we consider the rapidly growing world population.

Water everywhere, and not a drop to grow

Limited availability of fresh water is often overlooked as a cause of food scarcity and environmental decline, according to Colin Chartres. Governments should be ramping up efforts to make sure we have enough to grow crops as well as enough to drink, he argues.

This year, the world and, in particular, developing countries and the poor have been hit by both food and energy crises.

As a consequence, prices for many staple foods have risen by up to 100%.
When we examine the...(complete article here).