6 replies to this topic

[aspen]

From what I have always thought of as England was a green,rain soaked island. I was surprised last night to see a news report that areas of south and east  England are now on water shortage alerts after two dry winters in a row. A hosepipe ban is in place from watering gardens, washing cars and filling ponds.  A 1,000 pound fine is in place as a deterrent.  A Stage two alert will come into effect if things don't improve.

This link is six weeks old but shows the areas affected.
http://www.guardian....land-wales-2012

[zararina]

Weather/climate really gets weird and alarming as it causes floods, water shortage and droughts in different places all over the world. There should be really ways and effort to save water specially clean drinking water. We need water to live and we should start conserving until there is still some water to conserve specially for the next generation.

[mariaandrea]

What we should probably expect in the coming years and coming decades is to not be able to expect anything. It's not like droughts are unknown in England and other normally rainy or snowy places - even here in rainy Seattle we sometimes have a summer drought because of low snowfall in the mountains in winter - but weather patterns we're not used to and have trouble predicting are and will continue to be the "norm" and since we refuse to address the root of the problem we'll continue putting bandages over the problem (hosepipe bans) until it's too late to reverse the damage we're doing and the face of the globe literally changes as oceans rise, mountaintops are removed, deserts grow and forests are cut down.

[E3 wise]

Earth, water planet, giver of all life we know, oh how we are failing her.  Water and air, trees, plants and sunshine, a closed hydrological cycle that has sustained our planet for hundreds of millions of years.  Humans have viewed it all as an endless cycle, theirs alone, a commodity to be used and discarded as we wish. Yet now we are seeing a change in what we knew.  In a few hundred years we have changed the earth, now everything could be lost.

As for you, I do not know what you will do, but I chose to fight for her, to stand as a voice of reason.  Reduce, reuse, and recycle. Install water cisterns in our buildings and homes and make them part of our overall infrastructure, reduce water use, integrate alternative energy, replant forests and habitats.  Increase efficiency and reduce wasted energy and by god sake stop burning fossil fuels.

You may think that I am crazy or delusional, I don’t care, you may think it’s impossible, I don’t care, you may think people can't make a difference, once again I don’t care.  This country, the United States was founded by people like me, people who were willing to fight and give all to change the world. This is my line in the sand.

Arbor Day and Earth day are both in the next two weeks.  This Earth day is different.  In 2012 millions like me will stand together to sign petitions, walk in marches, lobby governments and challenge the world to make a difference.

Think globally. Live locally.

Will you join me, or will you let the forces of greed and destruction destroy this world. Search your hearts and make a choice.

Will you stand for mother earth?

[still learning]

zararina, on 06 April 2012 - 09:56 PM, said:

some water to conserve specially for the next generation.

What is it you mean by that?
Are you suggesting that water is somehow permanently used up?  Used up in the same sense that petroleum is used up?
It's not.
Water remains water.  In the case of petroleum, it gets burned, gets oxidized, gets chemically changed from hydrocarbons to carbon dioxide and water.  When humans use water, it stays water.  Very little is chemically altered to something else.    The amount of water in he world is effectively constant.  Remains in the "water cycle"  http://en.wikipedia....iki/Water_cycle

There are plenty of places where there isn't enough water.  People in those areas should think about conserving.  May be required to conserve even.  They conserve for themselves though, for next week and next year, not so much for future generations.
There are also plenty of places in the world where there is lots of water, enough so that there is never any local shortfall.  No local need to conserve.  In general, any water conservation in well watered places wouldn't help out the poorly watered places.
In general water can't be moved large distances in large quantities without a lot of money and energy being spent on aqueducts and pumps.  

Locally, here in this part of California, we depend on water stored in reservoirs, water from captured rainfall and snow melt, precipitated during less than half the  year.  Normally there is enough to go around.  Get two years of abnormally low rainfall, reservoir levels get too low and people get worried, people begin to conserve.  Get three dry years in a row and there is rationing.  We can't store water for the next generation though, don't have the capacity.

Aquifers can get used up, and conserving the water in them can be a good idea, but the water withdrawn from an aquifer remains water.

Climate change will be altering rainfall patterns.  Already has some.  Will alter more.  It's expected that the southwestern part of the US, already dry,  will become drier.  The part considered dry will expand in area.  Already has.  Places that used to have enough rainfall don't anymore.
While some places will be getting drier, worldwide there will be essentially the same amount of rainfall.  Slightly more even, as things warm up, tend to get more evaporation which leads to more precipitation..
The Earth's water cycle, while remaining essentially the same as global warming proceeds, will change in important details, details that affect the need for conservation.  We really do need to keep future generations in mind when considering global warming and greenhouse gasses. They will be affected by what we're doing now.

[dconklin]

Wow, we are not that bad but we will be in a drought by summer I am sure.  I remember going through a big drought years ago where you couldn't water anything.

I can usually tell by our river on how bad it will be, and our river is lower then I have seen it in a very long time.  We usually get a nice amount of snow in the winter and pretty much got none this year.  We have also had red flag warnings for the past week.  The weather service's term for a fire warning as it has been so dry with no humidity.

Hopefully all places that need rain will get it soon!! I didn't know that England was that dry right now tho.

[aspen]

I whole heartedly go along with this E3 wise Will you join me, or will you let the forces of greed and destruction destroy this world. Search your hearts and make a choice.Will you stand for mother earth?
Lake Eyre is a region in desert Australia 700km north of Adelaide. It's 50feet below sea level and the 18th largest lake in the world.  A weather pattern called La Nina is said to have contributed to the flooding of the lake as much as 13 foot in depth. Water reaches  this district from  vast river systems that flow into central Australia bringing life to the desert. It's the fourth  consecutive year  this century that it's flooded and this in itself is a most unusual event. So could this be a part of the global warming effect?
Here is a link to this area. It's a slide show of some magnificent photographs. One point, (in one of the very final photos) camels were introduced to Australia by Afghan camel drivers in the 19th century as means of trading. Today there are estimated to be 1,000,000 feral camels in desert regions of Australia.