H2O and Beyond

In this episode of H2O and Beyond, we explore the story of Tulare Lake — once the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi — and one of the most overlooked water systems in the United States.

Joined by experts from the Tulare Basin Watershed Partnership, we dive into the history, science, and complexity of a lake that doesn’t behave like most others. Unlike permanent lakes, Tulare Lake has always been dynamic — rising and falling with storms, droughts, and human intervention. But over the past century, it’s been almost completely engineered, drained, and reshaped to support agriculture in California’s Central Valley.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro – The lake that disappeared… and came back

04:20 How the basin works (why water gets trapped)

09:00 Why the lake constantly rises and falls

13:20 Human engineering – levees, farming, and control

19:05 Ecosystem overview – why this place was unique

27:30 Wildlife + biodiversity of the lake

34:10 Native communities and how they lived with the lake

40:50 Modern challenges – agriculture, water demand, sustainability

42:40 Hope for the future + closing thoughts

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Resources: https://www.tularebasinwatershedpartnership.org/

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In this episode of H2O and Beyond, I’m joined by historian Dr. Sarah Cameron to unpack the story of the Aral Sea — one of the greatest environmental catastrophes of the 20th century.

How did a massive inland sea in Central Asia nearly disappear?

What role did Soviet cotton production play?

And what happens to communities when an entire ecosystem collapses?

We dive into the Cold War politics behind the diversion of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers, the rise of cotton as a “strategic crop,” and how irrigation infrastructure slowly strangled the sea.

We also explore the human side of the crisis — from fishing communities forced to abandon their livelihoods to toxic dust storms that reshaped public health in the region.

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

3:59 What is the Aral Sea?

10:46 How did the sea affect the climate?

12:07 Why did the Soviets drain the sea?

24:13 How were locals affected?

28:41 Dust Storms

31:54 What does the Aral Sea look like now?

38:04 Revival Efforts

45:41 Closing

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Resources:

https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501730436/the-hungry-steppe/#bookTabs=5

https://decentarch.hypotheses.org/866

https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/life-and-death-aral-sea-conversation-wilson-fellow-sarah-cameron

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In this episode of H2O and Beyond, I’m joined by Morgan Shimabuku from the Pacific Institute to break down how water becomes a trigger, casualty, and weapon in conflict. We explore what actually qualifies as a water conflict, why the term “water wars” can be misleading, and what global data reveals about where and how these conflicts are increasing.

We discuss real-world examples from around the globe, including the Middle East, sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, Ukraine, and Gaza—examining how water infrastructure is destroyed, shut off, or weaponized, and what that means for civilian populations.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro

7:39 What are water conflicts?

11:12 Trends in water conflicts

17:30 Are water conflicts an issue in the developed world?

22:04 How are water conflicts resolved?

29:09 Conflicts in Gaza

34:09 Other work at the Pacific Institute

36:28 Closing

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Pacific Institute Resources: https://www.worldwater.org/water-conflict/https://www.worldwater.org/conflict/map/www.pacinst.org

In this Episode of H2O and Beyond, I'm joined by Mr. Regan Kwan, a research analyst from the Stimson Center as we talk about the unregulated rare earth mines of Southeast Asia. Rare earth elements are crucial to modern life. They’re in our phones, computers, electric vehicles, and renewable energy technologies. But the environmental cost of extracting them is often paid far from where these technologies are used.

We examine how a technique known as in-situ leaching is devastating river systems, groundwater, ecosystems, and human health. While these mines may appear less destructive on the surface, the water impacts are severe: acidic wastewater pumped directly back into rivers, abandoned waste pools that overflow during monsoon seasons, and pollutants that infiltrate soil, crops, and drinking water. In Myanmar, there are over 800 unregulated rare earth mines!

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

7:07 What are rare earth minerals?

12:57 Why the sudden spike in interest?

18:57 How are rare earth minerals mined?

23:45 Myanmar's 800 unregulated mines

33:07 Ecological impacts

38:22 Should outsiders care about this issue?

43:50 Just how big is the rare earth industry?

45:39 How are these mines detected?

47:14 New trends in the industry

51:59 Role of the Stimson Center

58:42 Closing🎧 Listen to more episodes & follow us here: https://linktr.ee/h2oandbeyondFeedback Form: https://forms.gle/RNjdFLY2wSrk7PW2AStimson Center Links:

https://www.stimson.org/2025/unregulated-mining-along-rivers-in-mainland-southeast-asia/https://www.stimson.org/2025/mining-in-mainland-southeast-asia-river-basins-dashboard/https://www.stimson.org/event/testing-the-waters-unregulated-mining-in-the-mekong-region/

Some major media hits from the data release:

Reuters: https://youtu.be/AezIFldj5uA?si=W3FNcClmCpdeFEaJ

Mongabay: https://news.mongabay.com/2025/11/toxic-runoff-from-politically-linked-gold-mine-poisons-cambodian-rivers-communities/

CNN: https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/25/asia/rare-earth-river-pollution-myanmar-china-intl-hnkT

PBS: https://youtu.be/lV7NkSebOMU?si=hyDB0lTYMJgWyGhj

CNA (with Regan): https://youtu.be/XPX9hqZOlXc?si=cDPK8i68kQ7ZecNn

Korean OBS: https://youtube.com/shorts/2-XVqWNq0SA?si=ybmyTtT3hNMP9aB1If you liked this episode, please Like and Subscribe!

For thousands of years, Pacific Island communities survived rising seas, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, and storms—without satellites, sensors, or climate models.

In this episode of H2O and Beyond, I speak with Patrick Nunn, a geologist who has spent more than three decades working with Pacific Island communities, learning how traditional knowledge preserved real environmental history—and how colonization disrupted it.

We explore how myths and legends are actually encoded memories of past disasters, why many Pacific Islanders historically avoided coastlines, and how modern climate adaptation efforts often fail when they ignore local knowledge. We also discuss why money alone won’t solve climate change, and why the future depends on combining Indigenous knowledge with Western science. This episode challenges the idea that vulnerable communities are helpless—and asks what we’ve lost by failing to listen.

00:00 Intro

06:10 Who are the Pacific Islanders?

10:28 What is traditional knowledge?

16:39 Current sea level rise in the Pacific Islands

21:24 The problem with money-first climate aid

24:12 When scientists ignore traditional knowledge

29:00 Why money won’t solve climate change

30:38 How have communities lost their traditional knowledge?

33:00 Place-based knowledge vs global science

35:51 Why has traditional knowledge been ignored in the past?

43:04 How should aid communities go about helping?

46:17 What role does religion play in educating pacific islanders?

49:07 Closing

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https://linktr.ee/h2oandbeyond

Learn more about Dr. Nunn's work! https://patricknunn.org/

What happens when the people responsible for protecting public health become the ones doing the harm?

In this episode of H2O and Beyond, I’m joined by Dr. Marc Edwards, a Virginia Tech professor who was named to TIME’s 2016 TIME 100 for his role in helping expose the Flint water crisis. But this conversation goes far beyond Flint.

Dr. Edwards breaks down how the Washington D.C. lead crisis unfolded, why he believes government agencies knowingly covered up dangerous lead exposure for years, and what happens to scientists who refuse to stay quiet. We talk about the real consequences of whistleblowing, the collapse of trust in institutions, and why fixing water infrastructure becomes almost impossible once the public believes the system is lying.

We also dive into Flint—what was true, what got distorted, and why Dr. Edwards says the narrative around the crisis has sometimes caused harm of its own. Finally, he shares blunt advice for young scientists: how to stay honest in a system that rewards quantity over truth.

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

5:19 The start of it all: Washington D.C

9:37 Experiences testifying in Congress

10:35 Bad scientists?

12:06 How can the EPA get away with lying to the public?

14:50 Why do most Americans not know about D.C?

15:54 Why did the EPA cut Dr. Edwards funding?

17:06 What kept Dr. Edwards pushing for the truth?

18:29 Punishments for whistleblowing

20:33 How bad was Flint, from a scientist’s perspective?

25:20 Are the kids in Flint really that much behind developmentally?

31:25 Why do scientists lie?

33:32 How do you deal with defamation as a scientist?

34:40 Problems with funding

37:17 Why do we reward quantity over quality in science?

41:09 Advice for young scientists

42:26 How do we solve this broken system of science right now?

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Dr. Edward's website:

https://www.webapps.cee.vt.edu/index.php?category=people&pagetype=bio&do=getprofile&user=edwards.html

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10103158/

In this episode of H2O and Beyond, I’m joined by Ian Giancarlo, Oceans Advocate at Environment Oregon, to break down what’s really happening to salmon in the Pacific Northwest—and why dams on rivers like the Columbia and Snake are at the center of the crisis.

For thousands of years, salmon have made one of the most demanding migrations on Earth. From the Pacific Ocean, they swim hundreds—sometimes thousands—of miles upstream to the exact rivers where they were born. But today, that journey is being cut short. Some salmon runs have declined by over 90%!

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 Intro

4:00 The great salmon migration

12:49 Dam effects on salmon runs

20:14 Salmon farms

21:48 Resident orcas and starvation

28:17 What would happen if we removed all dams?

33:54 Run for salmon runs

37:52 Arguments against dam removal

40:06 Closing

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Learn more about Mr. Giancarlo's work!

https://environmentamerica.org/oregon/center/updates/the-run-for-salmon-runs-crosses-the-finish-line/

In this episode of H2O and Beyond, I’m joined by Dr. Kevin Perry from the University of Utah to uncover the science behind one of the most urgent environmental issues in the American West: the shrinking Great Salt Lake and the dust it’s leaving behind.

Dr. Perry spent years studying the exposed lakebed — even biking more than 2,300 miles around it — to map where dust originates and what’s actually in it. His research reveals surprising truths about arsenic levels, dust “hotspots,” and how only a small fraction of the lakebed is responsible for most dust emissions.

We’ll also dig into his thoughts on the role of scientists in today’s society, and how important it is to maintain credibility as a researcher.

0:00 Intro

6:15 Introduction to the Great Salt Lake

8:25 Why is the lake shrinking?

12:23 What happens when the lake shrinks?

14:03 Research techniques utilized

18:23 Elements of concern in the dust

24:19 Dust events in Utah

28:41 Current efforts to save the lake

34:49 Future of the lake

38:10 Role of scientists in society

42:58 Advice for listeners

46:32 Closing

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Learn more about Dr. Perry’s work!

https://gardner.utah.edu/great-salt-lake-strike-team/ (Great Salt Lake Strike Team)

https://webapps.usgs.gov/gsl/ (USGS Hydromapper - GSL Data

)https://greatsaltlake.utah.gov/wp-content/uploads/Great-Salt-Lake-Strategic-Plan-1.pdf (GSL Strategic Plan)

https://water.utah.gov/gsl-basin-integrated-plan/ (GSL Basin Integrated Plan)

https://d1bbnjcim4wtri.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/10101816/GSL_Dust_Plumes_Final_Report_Complete_Document.pdf (GSL Dust Composition Report)

In this episode of H2O and Beyond, I’m joined by Dr. Michael McKibben from UC Riverside to explore and learn more about lithium, its environmental impacts, and the future of the lithium market in the US.

Traditional lithium extraction is very harmful to the environment. In the case of the salars in South America, they pump brine from underground into these large ponds where the sun evaporates and concentrates lithium and other metal ions in the water. This depletes groundwater levels and harms surrounding ecosystems.

The Salton Sea is seen as a potential hotspot for a more environmentally friendly method of lithium extraction called DLE (Direct Lithium Extraction) and if tapped into, could help the US become self-dependent in the lithium market.

0:00 Intro

4:04 Introduction to lithium

6:55 Where does lithium currently come from?

9:16 Extraction methods

12:26 Environmental concerns

14:24 Community impacts

15:28 Salton Sea and geothermal brine lithium extraction

23:02 Importance of domestic lithium production

25:32 Challenges of Salton Sea lithium extraction

30:18 How far are we from seeing USA lithium take off?

31:50 How much lithium is available in the USA?

33:13 Environmental impacts of geothermal brine extraction

36:24 Current research in the field

38:13 Closing

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Learn more about Dr. McKibben’s work!https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-mckibben-1012b69/

In this episode of H2O and Beyond, I’m joined by Dr. Mia Maltz, a professor of microbial biology and soil health from the University of Connecticut to discuss the health effects of the Salton Sea.

The Salton Sea is California's largest lake. But the area surrounding it has some of the highest rates of pediatric asthma in the country. Why is that? The lake is currently shrinking, and the lakebed is currently being exposed. Winds are picking the dust up and residents of Imperial County California are now breathing it in.

Stay tuned to learn more!

0:00 Intro

3:31 Overview of the Salton Sea

4:54 Overview of research

5:26 What is a microbiome?

6:41 Experimental methodology

10:22 Results

11:59 Similarities to the Great Salt Lake

14:22 What's actually causing the reactions to the dust?

17:05 What do you do with this data?

18:45 LPS (Lipopolysaccharides) and immune reactions

22:12 What's being done to protect the public?

22:57 Is it actually safe to visit the Salton Sea?

23:23 How does this affect surrounding communities?

25:16 Future of the Salton Sea

26:16 Restoration projects

28:43 Future research

31:04 Closing

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Learn more about Dr. Maltz's work and the Salton Sea!

https://www.miamaltz.com/

https://psla.uconn.edu/person/mia-maltz/https://www.saltonseasummit.org/