Crisis feared as U.S. water supplies dry up

[peejay 327]

U.S. water supplies drying up

Government projects at least 36 states will face shortages within five years

The Associated Press

Updated: 5:15 p.m. CT Oct 27, 2007

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. - An epic drought in Georgia threatens the water supply for millions. Florida doesn’t have nearly enough water for its expected population boom. The Great Lakes are shrinking. Upstate New York’s reservoirs have dropped to record lows. And in the West, the Sierra Nevada snowpack is melting faster each year.

Across America, the picture is critically clear — the nation’s freshwater supplies can no longer quench its thirst.

The government projects that at least 36 states will face water shortages within five years because of a combination of rising temperatures, drought, population growth, urban sprawl, waste and excess.

“Is it a crisis? If we don’t do some decent water planning, it could be,” said Jack Hoffbuhr, executive director of the Denver-based American Water Works Association.

Water managers will need to take bold steps to keep taps flowing, including conservation, recycling, desalination and stricter controls on development.

“We’ve hit a remarkable moment,” said Barry Nelson, a senior policy analyst with the Natural Resources Defense Council. “The last century was the century of water engineering. The next century is going to have to be the century of water efficiency.”

The price tag for ensuring a reliable water supply could be staggering. Experts estimate that just upgrading pipes to handle new supplies could cost the nation $300 billion over 30 years.

“Unfortunately, there’s just not going to be any more cheap water,” said Randy Brown, Pompano Beach’s utilities director.

Global issue

It’s not just America’s problem — it’s global.

Australia is in the midst of a 30-year dry spell, and population growth in urban centers of sub-Saharan Africa is straining resources. Asia has 60 percent of the world’s population but only about 30 percent of its fresh water.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a United Nations network of scientists, said this year that by 2050 up to 2 billion people worldwide could be facing major water shortages.

The U.S. used more than 148 trillion gallons of water in 2000, the latest figures available from the U.S. Geological Survey. That includes residential, commercial, agriculture, manufacturing and every other use — almost 500,000 gallons per person.

Coastal states like Florida and California face a water crisis not only from increased demand, but also from rising temperatures that are causing glaciers to melt and sea levels to rise. Higher temperatures mean more water lost to evaporation. And rising seas could push saltwater into underground sources of freshwater.

Florida represents perhaps the nation’s greatest water irony. A hundred years ago, the state’s biggest problem was it had too much water. But decades of dikes, dams and water diversions have turned swamps into cities.

Wasted water

Little land is left to store water during wet seasons, and so much of the landscape has been paved over that water can no longer penetrate the ground in some places to recharge aquifers. As a result, the state is forced to flush millions of gallons of excess into the ocean to prevent flooding.

Also, the state dumps hundreds of billions of gallons a year of treated wastewater into the Atlantic through pipes — water that could otherwise be used for irrigation.

Florida’s environmental chief, Michael Sole, is seeking legislative action to get municipalities to reuse the wastewater.

“As these communities grow, instead of developing new water with new treatment systems, why not better manage the commodity they already have and produce an environmental benefit at the same time?” Sole said.

Official: Florida not doing enough

Florida leads the nation in water reuse by reclaiming some 240 billion gallons annually, but it is not nearly enough, Sole said.

Floridians use about 2.4 trillion gallons of water a year. The state projects that by 2025, the population will have increased 34 percent from about 18 million to more than 24 million people, pushing annual demand for water to nearly 3.3 trillion gallons.

More than half of the state’s expected population boom is projected in a three-county area that includes Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach, where water use is already about 1.5 trillion gallons a year.

“We just passed a crossroads. The chief water sources are basically gone,” said John Mulliken, director of water supply for the South Florida Water Management District. “We really are at a critical moment in Florida history.”

Technology holds promise

In addition to recycling and conservation, technology holds promise.

There are more than 1,000 desalination plants in the U.S., many in the Sunbelt, where baby boomers are retiring at a dizzying rate.

The Tampa Bay Seawater Desalination Plant is producing about 25 million gallons a day of fresh drinking water, about 10 percent of that area’s demand. The $158 million facility is North America’s largest plant of its kind. Miami-Dade County is working with the city of Hialeah to build a reverse osmosis plant to remove salt from water in deep brackish wells. Smaller such plants are in operation across the state.

Californians use nearly 23 trillion gallons of water a year, much of it coming from Sierra Nevada snowmelt. But climate change is producing less snowpack and causing it to melt prematurely, jeopardizing future supplies.

Experts also say the Colorado River, which provides fresh water to seven Western states, will probably provide less water in coming years as global warming shrinks its flow.

California, like many other states, is pushing conservation as the cheapest alternative, looking to increase its supply of treated wastewater for irrigation and studying desalination, which the state hopes could eventually provide 20 percent of its freshwater.

“The need to reduce water waste and inefficiency is greater now than ever before,” said Benjamin Grumbles, assistant administrator for water at the Environmental Protection Agency. “Water efficiency is the wave of the future.”

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21494919/

[almaty 19]

wow, i knew there ere issues when i lived in new mexico,... maybe, water be pipelined one day like oil...

[natty bumppo 297]

maybe the expulsion of the illegals ... all ~20 million will delay the inevitable for a few more months.

put $$$ back into the coffers to support those that pay in ...

[buckeye6976 0]

Didn't T. Boone Pickens and GE start investing big in water about a year ago? I seem to recall an interview when he stated that he expected to make a billion from his water rights. Perhaps a clue.

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

Yet people keep their lawns nice and green. When I was in Cali this summer I noticed they still water some of the medians on the freeways. I noticed this back in 1988 too, when I was stationed there in the military.

[peejay 327]

wow, i knew there ere issues when i lived in new mexico,... maybe, water be pipelined one day like oil...

I see projections of the Texas population being 46+ million (nearly double) by the mid century reported in the Houston Chronicle with a straight face and wonder what these people are smoking. Along with national immigration policies that will push the US population to 450+ million by mid century.

At some point America has to wake up to reality instead of the B.S. rhetoric that some of the clueless fools in our government and Big Business shove out at the masses. For a long time I have felt that our government is run by sound bite and that the future is the time frame between election cycles and when the politicians can outrun their incompetence and corruption. What legacy are we leaving our children?

The plan is...that there is no plan.

Ever traveled out West to the wide open spaces? It's just like the ocean I have been working on roughly 1/2 of my life. Lots of wide open space.

[Dakine 26]

Simple!

It only rains so much and the population keeps increasing.

Next thing will be salt water conversion.

Having water will be more important than having oil!

Plants don't grow that well using oil.

We can live without oil but not without water!

[Scott & Lai 12]

Simple!

It only rains so much and the population keeps increasing.

Next thing will be salt water conversion.

Having water will be more important than having oil!

Plants don't grow that well using oil.

We can live without oil but not without water!

We can live a lot longer without oil than without water, but unless we come up with a fuel and a synthetic manufacturing material to replace oil, we will not be able to maintain our civilization in any recognizable form for long.

[peejay 327]

Simple!

It only rains so much and the population keeps increasing.

Next thing will be salt water conversion.

Having water will be more important than having oil!

Plants don't grow that well using oil.

We can live without oil but not without water!

We can live a lot longer without oil than without water, but unless we come up with a fuel and a synthetic manufacturing material to replace oil, we will not be able to maintain our civilization in any recognizable form for long.

I'm not much of one for conspiracy theories or outlandish predictions of gloom and doom. We have no way of predicting Man's capacity to harness technology to avoid disaster and remain master of our own destiny.

I read a well researched book by James Howard Kunstler titled "The Long Emergency: Surviving the Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-first Century" and I was smitten by its ramifications. It is worth reading and heeding. While I don't buy into it 100% or agree with all of his opinions and conclusions, to ignore the points brought up as wild sci-fi is ignoring the obvious.

Look around at modern America after reading the book and scoff at your own peril. It may not come to pass in 5 or 10 years, but.....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_Emergency

[Scott & Lai 12]

Simple!

It only rains so much and the population keeps increasing.

Next thing will be salt water conversion.

Having water will be more important than having oil!

Plants don't grow that well using oil.

We can live without oil but not without water!

We can live a lot longer without oil than without water, but unless we come up with a fuel and a synthetic manufacturing material to replace oil, we will not be able to maintain our civilization in any recognizable form for long.

I'm not much of one for conspiracy theories or outlandish predictions of gloom and doom. We have no way of predicting Man's capacity to harness technology to avoid disaster and remain master of our own destiny.

I read a well researched book by James Howard Kunstler titled "The Long Emergency: Surviving the Converging Catastrophes of the Twenty-first Century" and I was smitten by its ramifications. It is worth reading and heeding. While I don't buy into it 100% or agree with all of his opinions and conclusions, to ignore the points brought up as wild sci-fi is ignoring the obvious.

Look around at modern America after reading the book and scoff at your own peril. It may not come to pass in 5 or 10 years, but.....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Long_Emergency

I was mainly responding to the claim that we could live without oil, not when that might happen. Oil is an integral part of modern civilization. We can't do without it unless we find a way to replace all the essential products we get from it.

[sparkofcreation 0]

wow, i knew there ere issues when i lived in new mexico,... maybe, water be pipelined one day like oil...

It's insane actually ... here in Albuquerque water restrictions are so strict that although the population has doubled in the last 10 years, the water usage has actually *dropped* so our water supply is doing just fine although we are always working on new solutions, including a water pipeline from farther north and recycling water from the Rio Grande. New houses can only have 15% of their property covered with grass, the city gives you rebates for converting to xeriscaping or installing rain barrels, all toilets and showerheads are low-flow, we got our water bill basically free for 3 months because our new washer is low-water-use. Modern low-flow toilets and shower heads are aerated so the water pressure is just as good as the higher use ones.

I was completely shocked to see how much water was being used by toilets and showers on a recent vacation back East. And how much grass there is and how green it is, despite the drought. I hardly even know anyone who has grass in their yard here. Our front yard is filled with different colors of stones and native plants although we do have some grass in the backyard.

[Jamie76 0]

wow, i knew there ere issues when i lived in new mexico,... maybe, water be pipelined one day like oil...

Yes, they have talked about piping it from the Great Lakes. I say forget it. Places like Las Vegas or Phoenix that continue to grow and grow should not even be there...at least not the size they are now. It's a desert for crying out loud.

[natty bumppo 297]

wow, i knew there ere issues when i lived in new mexico,... maybe, water be pipelined one day like oil...

Yes, they have talked about piping it from the Great Lakes. I say forget it. Places like Las Vegas or Phoenix that continue to grow and grow should not even be there...at least not the size they are now. It's a desert for crying out loud.

people don't understand nature ... they want what they want ...

And deserve what they get

[Reba 2]

Did you miss the part in the article that said even the Great Lakes are receding? Lake Superior was down this year what, about 3 feet? For an in-land sea such as Superior, 3 feet is a lot of freakin water! I doubt a pipeline from the Great Lakes to Arizona would ever be approved.

Here in North Carolina the governor has even suggested that restaurants Not offer water to patrons unless it is specifically asked for. And yet, there is nearly half the counties in the state that have not enacted restrictions of any kind yet! There's Maybe 3 months worth of water in storage across the state, and half the state has no restrictions! How bloody stupid is that?

We just had (light) rain for about 5 days here, and we're still not nearly out of danger of running out of water. The river bed is still dry in some spots. Its very sad. And some people just don't give a damn.

Its not some intangible "what are we leaving to our grand-children's grand-children?" anymore. It's more like "are we going to have enough water to get us through winter" now.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Yet people keep their lawns nice and green. When I was in Cali this summer I noticed they still water some of the medians on the freeways. I noticed this back in 1988 too, when I was stationed there in the military.

Phoenix is terrible too. Everytime I blink, a developer is planning to build a community with man-made lakes on the property or a new 18 hole golf course. Grass lawns and pools are standard in the metropolitan area. The book, the Cadillac Desert explains the history of water and Southern California.

It's time we fess up to the concept of conservation of natural resources in this country. We've got to wean ourselves from the consumer mentality that everything is available for the taking.

Edited October 28, 2007 by Mister Fancypants