Word: flood-control
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...troops just busy themselves with field exercises in the local farms and orchards. But every so often, things heat up. This summer, China pressured the board of the Asian Development Bank to block a $2.9 billion loan to India, arguing that part of the money would go to a flood-control project in Arunachal Pradesh. The governor of the state, a retired army general named J.J. Singh, then announced that India would deploy 50,000 more troops up there, though he tells TIME the additional troops were planned well before any hint of tension - and they haven't arrived...
...cities waking up to a climate nightmare after years of unplanned growth. The threat of sea-level rise and flooding makes Bangkok a "climate hazard hotspot," says a May report by the Economy and Environment Program for Southeast Asia (EEPSEA) in Singapore. I prefer an older description: "the Venice of the East." Most early Bangkok residents moved by boat between floating houses; it was not until 1863 that the city's first paved road was built. Today, despite flood-control measures that include a 48-mile (77 km) levee along the Chao Phraya river, Bangkok feels like it's returning...
...people of Dhaka, where another big flood-control project is planned. UN-HABITAT calls the Bangladeshi capital "the world's fastest-growing megacity." Located at the heart of one of the world's largest river systems, it is also one of the most flood-prone. One solution is the Dhaka Integrated Flood Control Embankment. Its two main aims are laudable: protect eastern Dhaka from the overflowing Balu river and, with a road running along its top, ease the city's mind-bending traffic jams. But the $350 million project is so ill-conceived it will actually worsen flooding, claims landscape...
...waters have been rising precipitously, of course, since the middle of the 20th century. Global warming may be a culprit, but simply cutting carbon emissions isn't going to keep the city from drowning. An immense and intricate flood-control system is in the works. Evocatively called MOSES, an acronym for its Italian name, the $5.3 billion project is about half done, but it's not scheduled for completion till 2014. Financing has slowed construction: at one time, Venice had to sell off some of its venerated palazzi to raise money. But, says Rafael Bras, dean of the engineering school...
...projects are funded. McCain has even argued that water pork contributed to the catastrophe of Hurricane Katrina, another argument I have made. But that fealty to principle has required him to vote against funding for the Everglades and new levees for New Orleans, as well as a ridiculous Mississippi flood-control project he's been trying to kill for years. He was right to do so, but Barack Obama's campaign pounded him for his Everglades votes when he visited the River of Grass this spring. And not too many voters noticed his admirable stand against the Mississippi project outside...