People blamed for water woes in West

AP on Yahoo ^ | 1/31/08 | Erica Werner - ap

[NormsRevenge]

WASHINGTON - Human activity such as driving and powering air conditioners is responsible for up to 60 percent of changes contributing to dwindling water supplies in the arid and growing West, a new study finds.

Those changes are likely to accelerate, says the study published Thursday in Science magazine, portending "a coming crisis in water supply for the western United States."

The study is likely to add to urgent calls for action already coming from Western states competing for the precious resource to irrigate farms and quench the thirst of growing populations. Devastating wildfires, avalanches and drought have also underscored the need.

Researchers led by climate expert Tim P. Barnett at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego, studied climate changes in the West between 1950-1999. They noted that winter precipitation falls increasingly as rain rather than snow, snow melts faster, river flows decrease in summer months, and overall warming is exacerbating dry summer conditions.

The researchers used statistical modeling to compare climate changes that would have happened with natural fluctuations over time, to climate changes with the addition of human-caused greenhouse gases and other emissions from vehicles, power plants and other sources.

They found that most changes in river flow, temperature and snow pack between 1950 and 1999 can be attributed to human activities, such as driving, that release emissions including carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

The changes they observed differed significantly from trends that could be attributed to natural fluctuations between wet and dry periods over time, they said.

"The climate's changing in the West. We've known that. The question is why, and no one's really addressed that," Barnett said in an interview. According to his study, "The answer is it is us."

"The picture painted is quite grim so it's time to collectively sit down and get our act together," Barnett added, suggesting the need for conservation, more water storage, and a slowdown on development in the desert Southwest.

"The building is just going crazy, so it would be a pretty good idea to put a curb on that unless they can figure out how to get more water," he said.

The study also included researchers from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the University of Washington, Seattle, and the National Institute for Environmental Studies in Japan.

"Our results are not good news for those living in the western United States," they conclude. The research "foretells of water shortages, lack of storage capability to meet seasonally changing river flow, transfers of water from agricultural to urban uses and other critical impacts."

[iopscusa]

Nothing 20-40M more 3rd world illegal aliens can’t cure.

[Myrddin]

"The climate's changing in the West. We've known that. The question is why, and no one's really addressed that," Barnett said in an interview. According to his study, "The answer is it is us."

A claim made with no supporting evidence. More BS.

[abigailsmybaby]

Well global warming has taken a bit of hit so now it’s on to the water wars.

Al Gore will be selling hydrogen and/or oxygen credits beginning 2/1/2008.

[TenthAmendmentChampion]

They are busy today! POGW ping

[Jeff Head]

...and the last nine years of drought had nothing to do with it I suppose? With more normal water years on the rise...two years ago and again this year, I expect we will see a lessening of the difficulties.

But, lots of people are exiting the left coast and moving into the intermountain west and that puts additional strain on existing infrastructure. One key ingredient is better planning and establishing more supply through developing more resource. More lakes for example.

[50sDad]

Solar flare activity is changing the planet. Science will provide the solutions...if politics hasn’t blinded the scientists to the possiblities.

[TenthAmendmentChampion]

Delta smelt decision, 2007

[RetiredArmy]

NOTE TO PRESIDENT MCCAIN: First thing to do upon getting into the White House is to sign executive order to immediately start culling the human population here in the USA, and get other countries to follow suit.

[xcamel]

FReepmail me to get on or off

Click on POGW graphic for full GW rundown

New!!: Dr. John Ray's
GREENIE WATCH

Ping me if you find one I've missed.

---

Oh Cripes..

[Attention Surplus Disorder]

Me, I blame the water itself. Damn stuff just insinuates itself everywhere, splattering our crops, coming down from the skies, nay, even coursing through our bodies in an effort to infiltrate our precious bodily fluids! It runs out of the corners of our eyes when things are bad. Yeah, and when it gets rough for water, what does it do? It bloody well runs away and goes to the beach, just when you’d like it to stick around and take some personal responsibility. Then what, is that enough? No! It has to go all airy on us and takes off and flies around in the sky on a whim, as if life is just a breeze, you know? You can’t trust water. Never could.

[stylin19a]

not sure it’s evidence, but here;’s his documentation

http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/1152538/DC1

[Digital Sniper]

Best way to conserve water would be to eradicate all the grass-growing in Southern California. It's time those folks started having rock gardens instead of dumping millions upon millions of gallons of water into the grass lawns that wouldn't otherwise grow in their desert area.

I'm surprised your the RINO governor of Kollyfornyuh hasn't mandated this already.

[Ruy Dias de Bivar]

****Human activity such as driving and powering air conditioners is responsible for up to 60 percent of changes contributing to dwindling water supplies in the arid and growing West, a new study finds. ****

I remember reading that back in the 1920s the San Juan River in the 4 corners area went dry because of no snow pack. I wonder what kind of driving and air conditioning people had at that time.

[SF Republican]

Best way to conserve water would be to eradicate all the grass-growing - Exactly, I have a small garden in San Francisco and planted 4-5 fruit trees (no jokes please) I was amazed at how much water it took just to keep them alive much less produce fruit. We pulled them out at the end of the summer and I am seeding native wildflowers.

[GSWarrior]

"The climate's changing in the West. We've known that. The question is why, and no one's really addressed that,"

Yeah, you never hear people talk about climate change these days.

[Who dat?]

Best way to conserve water would be to eradicate all the grass-growing in Southern California. It's time those folks started having rock gardens instead of dumping millions upon millions of gallons of water into the grass lawns that wouldn't otherwise grow in their desert area.

That’s what I’ve thought for a while.

Went through Palm Desert a couple of years ago and saw mile after mile of beautiful lush golf courses. Spraying water all over at 2:30pm. I bet half of it evaporated before it hit the ground. OTOH it was so hot and dry the grass would probably die if they didn’t keep it hosed down.

I’ve been interested in some of the new artificial grass that is out now. I understand Irvine has installed some (? somewhere) in the road median. I’ve been intending to check it out and see how good it looks though I may already drive by it.

Then again, that’s another hoop-jumping exercise with the HOA. They require 60% “softscape” minimum which basically means your yard has to have at least 60% shrubs/trees/grass of some sort - at least that's my understanding...

[JZelle]

Pass national health care now! We need to do something about all these damn people!

[3AngelaD]

When I read the headline on this I started laughing. Until it was settled in the 19th century, the American West was also called “the Great American Desert.” It has always been thus. Here’s where this is going: There is a group in Colorado who for more than a decade have been arguing that we, meaning humans, ought to abandon huge swathes of the West and allow it to return to native grass, like it was when the only inhabitants were Natives. They have not said yet, that I know of, where the current inhabitants ought to go.

[NVDave]

You can’t develop any storage lakes/reservoirs any more without running headlong into the environmentalists.

The solution is to build a border on the top of the Sierra Nevada, arm it with miniguns and grenade launchers and contain the problem where it is now.