In SE United States, Drought Building To Crisis - Some Cities Months From Running Out Of Water - NYT

[hatrack]

ATLANTA, Oct. 15 — For the first time in more than 100 years, much of the Southeast has reached the most severe category of drought, climatologists said Monday, creating an emergency so serious that some cities are just months away from running out of water.

In North Carolina, Gov. Michael F. Easley asked residents Monday to stop using water for any purpose “not essential to public health and safety.” He warned that he would soon have to declare a state of emergency if voluntary efforts fell short. “Now I don’t want to have to use these powers,” Mr. Easley told a meeting of mayors and other city officials. “As leaders of your communities, you know what works best at the local level. I am asking for your help.”

Officials in the central North Carolina town of Siler City estimate that without rain, they are 80 days from draining the Lower Rocky River Reservoir, which supplies water for the town’s 8,200 people.

In the Atlanta metropolitan area, which has more than four million people, worst-case analyses show that the city’s main source of water, Lake Lanier, could be drained dry in 90 to 121 days. The hard numbers have shocked the Southeast into action, even as many people wonder why things seem to have gotten so bad so quickly. Last week, Mayor Charles L. Turner of Siler City declared a water shortage emergency and ordered each “household, business and industry” to reduce water use by 50 percent. Penalties for not complying range from stiff fines to the termination of water service.

EDIT

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/16/us/16drought.html

[phantom power]

1. Uh oh.

[drm604]

2. K&R

What the hell can be done about this? :scared:

[lapfog_1]

3. We could start building really large transcontinental pipelines

to pump water from regions that have extra to drought regions. The cost would be enormous. Or, if it is determined (and I haven't seen the computer models on this) that the climate of the Southeast is now going to be persistent drought due to Global Warming, we could start thinking about massive evacuations. As for the crops grown in the region... cotton, soybeans, peanuts, etc, I'm thinking that they need to start thinking about crops that use much less water (desert conditions)... if they can grow anything at all.

Of course, many red state, bush loving, fundies will insist that this isn't Global Warming... and they are welcome to stay put and wait for the rapture.

[drm604]

4. Is there anyplace that really has that much water to spare?

:shrug:

[phantom power]

5. Not really. We are rapidly approaching checkmate.

[GliderGuider]

6. Canada?

Boy, between the water and the oil sands, I'm starting to feel uneasy...

[phantom power]

7. Bwahaha! We're gonna invade your ass! And drink all your good beer!

Sorry, something came over me. Did I say something?

[GliderGuider]

9. Mmmm ... beeer...

Hey, where did all those tanks come from?

[Celebration]

11. this particular year, south Texas n/t

[knitter4democracy]

10. Don't look at the Great Lakes.

Someone always comes up with some scam to pipe away our water, but the lake levels are low this year already as it is. We're in a drought up here, too, though not as bad as Atlanta's.

Best thing to do is stop watering what doesn't need watering and get the farmers to agree to water conservation. Farming uses up a lot of water.

[rudy23]

8. Get ready for the neccons' plan to solve this through privatization

Hopefully it'll go a little better than the other 100 anti-government plans that've gone so swimmingly over the last 7 years.

[tom_paine]

12. Oh but the Water wars should be at least as fun as the Oil Wars

With any luck, we can get 'em both going at the same time.

Sometimes all you can do is laugh at our crazy monkey-species that will likely be finished within 5000 years and perhaps much sooner.

When we drill the last of the oil and natural gas from beneath the Arctic, we seal our fate (if it isn't sealed already.

But you know, maybe we should tap the entertainment value of the death of our species. After all, the REAL SHOW is apparently just beginning...

[kitkatrose]

13. The water wars will be more fun--much closer to home. n/t