By Keith Farnish and Dmitry Orlov …In Part I of this series, just a couple of months ago, we cheerfully wrote: “The East Antarctic Ice Sheet (that’s the big blob that surrounds the South Pole just off-centre) seems to be quite stable, and should remain that way for the next few centuries.” That would have […]
By Staff WritersParkes, Australia (AFP) Jan 18, 2010 Torrential rains in Australia have failed to quench the country’s “Big Dry”, a decade-long drought that has driven farmers to the wall and shows no signs of abating. While the rains flooded many areas in recent weeks, made parched rivers flow again and even halted the iconic […]
By BEN CUBBYJanuary 19, 2010 Life is blooming in Lake Pamamaroo, western NSW, as the Boxing Day floods wind their way down the Darling River. From the air the pale green, swollen river is a striking contrast to the scarred, orange plains on either side. On the ground the water level is visibly rising by […]
Changes in storage levels in the mid-1990s and the 2000s. Dam levels dropped from almost full in 1996 to a quarter full by 2009 along with a steep decline in the amount of water flowing into Australia’s major reservoirs. Decade in dam levels Technorati Tags: drought,freshwater depletion,Australia,global warming,climate change,agriculture
By GAYATHRI VAIDYANATHAN of ClimateWirePublished: January 15, 2010 Tree death rates could increase globally because of rising temperatures and prolonged droughts linked to climate change, according to multiple studies. The reasons for tree mortality in a warmer, drier world have been narrowed down to three main scenarios — greater prevalence of insects and diseases in […]
The long dry is sapping Melbourne’s dams and raising questions about the viability of the city’s water supply. … Since the network of dams was built several decades ago, Melbourne has never had less drinking water. The record low-water mark was broken in mid-April, when storages reached 28.3 per cent of capacity. With consumption outstripping […]
The much anticipated tree planting launch in Mau forest took place on Friday after days of uncertainty and political bickering. Prime minister Raila Odinga led government officials and other invited dignitaries in launching the campaign aimed at restoring forest cover on 10, 000 acres in the Mau complex. NTVs Brenda Mulinya reports. http://www.ntv.co.ke Mau tree […]
Iron-poor oceans may cause populations of phytoplankton — a critical base of the marine food chain — to decline. By Jessica Marshall | Thu Jan 14, 2010 09:55 AM ET Rising acid levels in the world’s oceans appear to be robbing the tiny animals that form the bedrock of the marine food web of a […]
By GETRUDE GUMEDE, Published: Wednesday January 13, 2010 ZIMBABWE – HARARE – WATER supplies for Harare and surrounding satellite towns could be cut by 15 percent following the imminent temporary shutdown of Prince Edward Water Treatment Plant until the Manyame River starts flowing. Harare City Council might be forced to close Prince Edward Water Treatment […]
By TOM ALLARD, KALIMANTANDecember 14, 2009 A BOAT trip down the wide brown waters of the Kapuas River and the canals that flow off it, crisscrossing the hinterland of Central Kalimantan, makes for a depressing tour. What was once one of the world’s great swamp peat forests is a tangle of weeds and burnt trees. […]
