More frequent drought likely in eastern Africa

ScienceDaily (Jan. 29, 2011) — The increased frequency of drought observed in eastern Africa over the last 20 years is likely to continue as long as global temperatures continue to rise, according to new research published in Climate Dynamics. This poses increased risk to the estimated 17.5 million people in the Greater Horn of Africa […]

Iraq water shortages raising ethnic tensions

By Marwan Ibrahim Marwan IbrahimSat Jan 29, 5:43 am ET KIRKUK, Iraq (AFP) – A worsening water shortage in Iraq is raising tensions in the multi-ethnic Kirkuk province, where Arab farmers accuse the Kurdistan region of ruining them by closing the valves to a dam in winter. “We are harmed by the Kurds, and the […]

Will climate change burst the global ‘food bubble’?

By Damian Carrington Friday 28 January 2011 Lester Brown argues the pressures of rising population, consumption, water stress and global warming will pose the first serious challenge to civilisation through our food The world is in the midst of a “food bubble” that could burst at any time: that’s the conclusion of the eminent environmentalist […]

Iraq’s largest hydropower dam grinds to halt as water level falls to record low

By Anwar Faruqi Anwar FaruqiThu Jan 27, 11:08 am ET BAGHDAD (AFP) – Record low water levels at Iraq’s largest hydroelectric dam have ground turbines there to a halt, amplifying a power shortage that led to riots last summer, a top official said on Thursday. Adel Mahdi, advisor to the electricity minister, said water levels […]

China drought threatens water supplies: state media

By Staff WritersJan 24, 2011 Beijing (AFP) – A months-long dry spell across northern China is threatening drinking water supplies and crops, and more bone-dry conditions are expected, state media said Monday. The capital Beijing has had no significant precipitation in more than three months, the longest such spell in the city in 40 years, […]

Engineer: California Delta problems ‘the worst damn mess I’ve ever seen’

By Mike Taugher, Contra Costa TimesPosted: 01/19/2011 04:05:56 PM PST Bob Bea has investigated such high-profile disasters as the Exxon Valdez spill, the Deepwater Horizon blast, Hurricane Katrina and the space shuttle Columbia, which exploded in 2003. But the UC engineer and associate director of the Center for Catastrophic Risk Management (CCRM) says the problems […]

Australia floods: Why were we so surprised?

Meteorologists warned Australians six months ago to prepare for a soaking. And nobody did a thing … By Germaine Greer, The GuardianSaturday 15 January 2011 What’s going on in Australia is rain. British people might think that they’re rain experts. Truth is that they hardly know what rain is. The kind of cold angel sweat […]

Eco-catastrophe in China: When a Billion Chinese Jump

By Johann HariMonday, Jan. 10, 2011, at 6:51 AM ET When Jonathan Watts was a child, he was warned: “If everyone in China jumps at exactly the same time, it will shake the earth off its axis and kill us all.” Three decades later, he stood in the gray sickly smog of Beijing, wheezing and […]

Flood a boon for Lake Mead

By HENRY BREAN, LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNALJanuary 6, 2011 | 12:00 a.m. A flood that destroyed homes near Mesquite last month also delivered a welcome boost to Lake Mead. High flows on the Virgin River and its tributaries raised the level of the reservoir by about a foot and a half, according to rough projections from […]

Graph of the Day: Percent of Normal Precipitation in Brazil, Summer 2010

By Nick Sundt11/23/2010 The Amazon region is experiencing the third extreme drought in a dozen years — and it may turn out to be the worst on record. The droughts coupled with recent research findings, suggest that rising atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases will rapidly increase the frequency and severity of droughts in the region. […]

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