Across the water sector, two operating models sit side by side: highly automated treatment trains running on SCADA and predictive control, and labour-intensive plants where outcomes still depend on who walks the catwalk at 2 a.m. The gap between them is not just generational — it changes risk, cost, compliance, and the kind of operator the work demands. Here's an honest look at what each model actually delivers, where each one earns its keep, and the migration path most utilities follow in practice.

UBS analysts say drought conditions across the US agricultural belt are the worst for March since records began in 1895 — and among the three driest months of any kind on record, behind only the 1934 Dust Bowl. With winter wheat crops already stressed and Mississippi River levels sharply down, a second supply shock may be forming in US agriculture. Here's what irrigation operators and water managers should be watching.

Kazakhstan is no longer framing its water shortage as an environmental issue — it is framing it as a ceiling on GDP. With a projected 50% shortfall by 2040, conveyance losses of up to 60%, and nearly half of river inflow originating upstream in other countries, the case offers sharp lessons for any irrigation district grappling with ageing infrastructure, climate stress, and transboundary dependency.

Experts agree: Calgary’s multiple watermain woes were inevitable. Siegfried Kiefer led an independent panel who examined the causes of the 2024 Bearspaw South Feeder Main failure and gathered their conclusions […] The post Better oversight of Calgary’s watermain system needed to avoid future failures appeared first on Water Canada.

Image: vicktor/stock.adobe.com Across Australia, most water and wastewater treatment plants are already well designed. They have robust treatment trains, capable operators, and decades of operational knowledge embedded in their teams. Yet many […] The post Why water utilities need to stop buying filtration media and start buying performance appeared first on Utility Magazine.

Droughts and heatwaves are particularly severe when they occur simultaneously. A new study shows that the frequency of such extreme weather events will increase fivefold by the end of this century. The negative consequences will be felt especially by residents of poor countries in the tropical zone.