Word: waterer
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...feet, traders whisper their business hopes, and students seek his blessing before final exams. As a child he learned the sacred chants and rites--including the importance of a daily dip in the Ganges, the river that Hindus worship for its purity. Mishra cups his hands to scoop up water and lifts it to his lips. But unlike the ancestors who began the ritual, he skips a step. He does not drink the water...
...have to share Seacrest's bizarre idea of excitement to agree that groundwater is a big deal. It's the source of drinking water for half the U.S. population. Nebraska floats on water, sitting atop a gigantic sponge of sand and gravel that contains several aquifers. Farmers can drill into the rich soil, erect a center-pivot sprinkler system and watch corn grow as high as an elephant...
...without a price. To get big yields, farmers rely on pesticides and nitrogen fertilizers, which can seep below the surface and taint groundwater. That's why Seacrest, 45, launched the Groundwater Foundation, a group that uses everything from publications to educational festivals to teach people about threats to drinking water. Started on a shoestring in 1985 in Lincoln, the foundation has built a national network of activists to protect the fountains of life...
Once groundwater is contaminated, it is hard to clean up. In 1,345 shallow wells sampled by the U.S. Geological Survey, about 15% exceeded drinking-water standards for nitrate (a nitrogen compound), which at high levels can lead to the potentially fatal "blue baby" syndrome in infants. Many suspect aquifers were in California, the Great Plains and the Mid-Atlantic region. Pesticides have shown up in more than half of shallow wells the USGS studied in agricultural and urban areas. "Is it right that people in rural communities should have to buy bottled water?" Seacrest asks. "What kind...
...leaders. A North Carolina town, for example, was cited for fighting groundwater pollution from hog farms. "When I started in my kitchen," Seacrest says, "I had no idea it would lead to all this." Now she won't stop until we all share her excitement about guarding the precious water beneath our feet...