When a lake turns green with algae, or nitrate shows up in drinking water, the most obvious question would be: Why can’t we fix this quickly?

In this episode of the Water Data Podcast, Veena Srinivasan speaks with Professor Nandita Basu from the University of Waterloo about nitrogen and phosphorus legacies – the hidden nutrient stores in soils, groundwater, and sediments that keep polluting waterways for decades.

They unpack how the Haber-Bosch process transformed agriculture, why nitrogen use efficiency stays low, and how drained agricultural landscapes can rapidly transport nitrates from fields to major river systems and even the Gulf of Mexico. They also explore why phosphorus behaves differently - sticking to soils and sediments, fuelling algal blooms, and creating stubborn feedback loops when lakes turn low-oxygen.

Finally, they discuss what can still be done: turning the ‘easy knobs’ like phosphate in detergents, targeting livestock manure hotspots, using small ponds and wetlands as high-impact interventions, and why India urgently needs far more empirical measurement to diagnose problems and track solutions.

The Water Data Podcast is a talk show on the science, systems, and stories of water hosted by Veena Srinivasan.

For all references and further readings related to the episode, visit ________

Subscribe to The Water Data Podcast on your favourite podcast app – and catch video episodes on the WELL Labs YouTube channel @welllabs.

Subscription links: Youtube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Audible, Castbox, and wherever you get your podcasts!

Recording by Vraj Acharya, Nabina Chakraborty. Video editing by Vraj Acharya. Graphics and artwork by Aparna Nambiar. Audio mixing and mastering by Vijay Doiphode. Podcast production and management by Nabina Chakraborty and Pavan Srinath.

How do forests shape our water security? Why do rivers need to flow? And what happens to fish, turtles and gharials when dams shut off water?

In this episode, host Veena Srinivasan speaks with Jagdish Krishnaswamy to explore the science that connects hydrology, ecology, and the people who depend on India’s rivers and landscapes. From the Western Ghats to the Himalayas, from springs to large reservoirs, this episode dives into decades of pioneering field research, where data collection meets cutting-edge science.

Jagdish Krishnaswamy joins host Veena Srinivasan on Season 2, Episode 10 of the Water Data Podcast.

In this episode, they further discuss the complex "sponge" effect of forests in the Western Ghats and how exotic plantations impact water infiltration. They travel to the Eastern Himalayas to understand the drying of springs and the nuances of restoration beyond simple tree planting. The conversation also highlights the concept of "Hungry Water," the critical importance of sediment, and the struggle for survival of the Gharial in the face of flow alterations.

Dr Krishnaswamy is one of India’s most respected ecohydrologists, integrating engineering, statistics, and ecology to understand how water and ecosystems co-evolve. His work has informed restoration, protected species, and reshaped water policy debates in India.

The Water Data Podcast is a talk show on the science, systems, and stories of water hosted by Veena Srinivasan.

For all references and further readings related to the episode, visit https://welllabs.org/wdp-jagdish-krishnaswamy/

Subscribe to The Water Data Podcast on your favourite podcast app – and catch video episodes on the WELL Labs YouTube channel @welllabs.

Subscription links: Youtube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Audible, Castbox, and wherever you get your podcasts!

Recording by Vraj Acharya, Nanditha Gogate and Pavan Srinath. Video editing by Nabina Chakraborty. Graphics and artwork by Aparna Nambiar. Audio mixing and mastering by Vijay Doiphode. Podcast production and management by Nabina Chakraborty and Pavan Srinath.

In this episode, host Veena Srinivasan speaks with Henk Ovink who is often called the world’s first “Water Diplomat” for a deep and wide-ranging conversation on trust, global cooperation, imagined redundancy, and the future of water governance around the world.

Henk Ovink, joins host Veena Srinivasan on Season 2, Episode 9 of the Water Data Podcast.

Henk has had an extraordinary career shaping water diplomacy and resilience - from serving as the Special Envoy for International Water Affairs for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, to leading Rebuild by Design under President Obama after Hurricane Sandy, to co-chairing the Global Commission on the Economics of Water. He is also the Chair of the Board at IWMI.

In this episode, they discuss why trust is the foundation for any collective action and why “everything moves at the speed of trust.” Drawing from his experiences such as Rebuild by Design in the US, Water as Leverage in Asia, and global water negotiations at the UN, Henk illustrates how durable, community-owned solutions emerge.

The conversation highlights how the Global Commission on the Economics of Water reframed the hydrological cycle, equity, and valuation for policymakers worldwide

The Water Data Podcast is a talk show on the science, systems, and stories of water hosted by Veena Srinivasan.

For all references and further readings related to the episode, visit https://welllabs.org/wdp-henk-ovink/

Subscribe to The Water Data Podcast on your favourite podcast app – and catch video episodes on the WELL Labs YouTube channel @welllabs.

Subscription links: Youtube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Audible, Castbox, and wherever you get your podcasts!

Recording by Vraj Acharya, Nanditha Gogate and Pavan Srinath. Video editing by Vraj Acharya. Graphics and artwork by Aparna Nambiar. Audio mixing and mastering by Vijay Doiphode. Podcast production and management by Nabina Chakraborty and Pavan Srinath.