Lake Mead Could Dry Up in 13 Years

[Insomniac]

Lake Mead, a key source of water for millions of people in the southwestern United States, could go dry by 2021, a new study finds.

The study concludes that natural forces such as evaporation, changes wrought by global warming and the increasing demand from the booming Southwest population are creating a deficit from this part of the Colorado River system.
http://www.livescience.com/environment/080212-dry-lake-mead.html

The picture is pretty interesting. I haven't seen over what period of time the water level has dropped that much though.

I was thinking about eventually moving to So. Cal. I wonder what other water/power sources they would be able to tap into? Anyone know?

[RichK]

I wonder what other water/power sources they would be able to tap into? Anyone know?

We Northern Californians know! :\

Tommy Lee & Pamela better get back to the lake quick if they want to do a sequel....

[Ankf00]

life's good upriver. :D

while it's important economically, it's hard to find sympathy for socal's plight with all their underhanded water rights thieving from the past 100 years.

[cameraman]

If people stopped flocking to idiotic places like Henderson NV it really would not be a problem. There are simply too many people moving into the desert. Why on earth anyone would want to live in a place where 115°F is not uncommon is beyond me.

Oh and the sob's in Vegas are trying to drill ~100 deep wells in northeastern Nevada so that they can drain the aquifer and dry up every well and kill every deep rooted plant in the western half of the state of Utah.

[Ankf00]

We Northern Californians know! :\

what's the problem? no appreciation for the glorious, wonderous, gorgeous feats of engineering like shasta?

http://blog.oregonlive.com/terryrichard/large_TR.ShastaDam.jpg

PNW'ers beware, they're coming for this next

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Columbia.png

[Methanolandbrats]

It's not a lake to begin with.

[Gnam]

I was thinking about eventually moving to So. Cal. I wonder what other water/power sources they would be able to tap into? Anyone know?
Nuclear powered desalination plants pumping the Pacific dry. :p

[cameraman]

That or paving the place with windmill studded solar arrays.

[Ankf00]

Nuclear powered desalination plants pumping the Pacific dry. :p

why do that when they can build a pipeline to the Gulf? steal some southern waters instead. :gomer:

[Wheel-Nut]

don't say that too loud Gov. Perry might hear you.

http://www.corridorwatch.org/ttc/images/StopTTC500.gif

[Dirk Diggler]

PNW'ers beware, they're coming for this next...

The last time they proposed that, Oregon's governor replied with "Over my dead body.":laugh:

[Turn7]

We are all doooooooommmmmmmmmmed!!!!!

:saywhat:

http://lakemead.water-data.com/


Looks like the crisis has been averted and we can put the tinfoil hats back into the global warming drawer for future false theories. :D

http://www.hprcc.unl.edu/nebraska/LakeMead2007.jpg

[indyfan31]

the solution is simple, when So.Cal. asks for more water, tell 'em NO.
(hopefully by then I'll be out of here).

[Ankf00]

We are all doooooooommmmmmmmmmed!!!!!

while that accurately depicts the 20'ish year drought cycles in the west, demand from phoenix, vegas, and socal has been anything but stagnant. everyday citizens are going to have to deal with the impact long before agribiz does

[Gnam]

Who's askin'? ;)

[Insomniac]

Looks like the crisis has been averted and we can put the tinfoil hats back into the global warming drawer for future false theories. :D

Note that global warming was sited as one contributing factor, not the only one.

[oddlycalm]

Lake Powell is probably a bigger issue than Lake Mead in the short term. It's down 100ft. from the average full level and the trend doesn't look good.

No links to global warming have to be drawn to understand that if you keep taking more out than goes in you eventually run out. Deficit spending may work for the feds, but I don't hold out much hope for deficit water supply...:gomer:

BTW, new houses in the SW market are now being sold with caveats that the water supply can't be guaranteed. The Colorado River water rights between the states have long since been adjudicated and the amount each is entitled to draw is set. The problem is that set level is higher than what currently flows in.

If the states had exercised some semi-rational level of control over use this wouldn't be happening, but when you build large communities in the desert with self-describing names like The Lakes, Desert Harbor, etc. and build fountains that shoot 300ft. into the air for no particular reason you aren't really serious about resource management. There are probably as many lakes on the dozens of golf courses in Scottsdale as there are naturally occurring lakes in the entire rest of the state. :tony: :shakehead

oc

[cameraman]

Utah has never used anywhere near its full share of CO river water. Well the half million fine folks who have clustered in the nasty urban sprawl more commonly known as St George :yuck: are looking to build a big ole honkin pipe down to the river and they want to pump out their share. Screw California:eek:

[eiregosod]

I'll sell my shares in Pheonix golf courses in about January :tony:

[eiregosod]

Utah has never used anywhere near its full share of CO river water. Well the half million fine folks who have clustered in the nasty urban sprawl more commonly known as St George :yuck: are looking to build a big ole honkin pipe down to the river and they want to pump out their share. Screw California:eek:

the various national guards are going to be busy

[Ankf00]

Lake Powell is probably a bigger issue than Lake Mead in the short term. It's down 100ft. from the average full level and the trend doesn't look good. good. flooding Glen Canyon of all places was/is downright criminal.


The Colorado River water rights between the states have long since been adjudicated and the amount each is entitled to draw is set. The problem is that set level is higher than what currently flows in.
I believe the Colorado Compact was re-written a month or two ago and somehow all parties agreed to it :eek: The original Compact was drafted based on flow data taken in an extremely wet year during one of those 20 year wet cycles. Smart guys, they were :tony:

[Gnam]

Well, does the Midwest really need the WHOLE Mississippi River?
Let's just cut it off below Iowa and pump it over the Rockies into the Colorado river. :gomer:

LA keeps drinking.
The utards can water their salt.
New Orleans stays dry.
and we can dump what's left over back into the Sea of Cortez.


Seriously though, aren't some towns turning their sewage treatment plants into "natural" springs?

[coolhand]

I just want less people around. I am tired of seeing nice hillsides ruined by ugly dense housing developments.

Less people less of these problems.

[RichK]

SoCal can buy some boats and start towin'!

http://academic.evergreen.edu/g/grossmaz/ESLINGHM/IMAGES/iceberg01a.jpg

[Gnam]

all your water are belong to Los Angle-ease.

[oddlycalm]

Seriously though, aren't some towns turning their sewage treatment plants into "natural" springs? :eek: Ewwwwww... I'd love to work on the ad copy for that account. :gomer:

Come to think of it I'm kinda surprised we haven't heard about some state owned industrial company in China hasn't bottled class 3 water for Walmart or sumthin. :\

Tucson contracted their class 3 water for golf course irrigation because they didn't have enough water to do anything else prior to completion of the CAP (Central Arizona Project). Phoenix contacted all their class 3 water to run the three nukes west of town. Most municipalities use it, just not for drinking (or so they say).

oc

[chop456]

Seriously though, aren't some towns turning their sewage treatment plants into "natural" springs?

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18409513

[coolhand]

Treated sewage water is clean enough to drink. But the bacteria that makes the **** smell in the water is more difficult to get rid off. That bacteria though is apparently safe to drink.

[Ankf00]

the CAP (Central Arizona Project).
oc

nothing says progress like an uphill open air aqueduct in the middle of the ****ing desert :shakehead

[cameraman]

Treated sewage water is clean enough to drink. But the bacteria that makes the **** smell in the water is more difficult to get rid off. That bacteria though is apparently safe to drink.

It isn't the bacteria themselves, they are relatively big things & treatment gets rid of them. It is the bacterial waste products that are dissolved in the water that are tough to get rid of. Also your body clears many drugs via the kidneys and treatment plants do not clean up those drugs. There is measurable caffeine and estrogen waste water plant outflows. Same for chemicals from many household cleaners.

[Gnam]

nothing says progress like an uphill open air aqueduct in the middle of the ****ing desert :shakehead
F*** YOU Mother Nature! :laugh:

[dando]

:eek: Ewwwwww... I'd love to work on the ad copy for that account. :gomer:

Come to think of it I'm kinda surprised we haven't heard about some state owned industrial company in China hasn't bottled class 3 water for Walmart or sumthin. :\

Tucson contracted their class 3 water for golf course irrigation because they didn't have enough water to do anything else prior to completion of the CAP (Central Arizona Project). Phoenix contacted all their class 3 water to run the three nukes west of town. Most municipalities use it, just not for drinking (or so they say).

oc

They've been using effluent water in the southeast for golf course irrigation for some time now. Don't put your cigar down on the grass on a golf course in South Carolina, yo. :saywhat:

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

-Kevin

[oddlycalm]

nothing says progress like an uphill open air aqueduct in the middle of the ****ing desert :shakehead :rofl: :thumbup:

oc

[jcollins28]

life's good upriver. :D

while it's important economically, it's hard to find sympathy for socal's plight with all their underhanded water rights thieving from the past 100 years.

Piss off whiner and send us some more water. Yeah and I will leave the hose on and let the water run down the street.

[Methanolandbrats]

Piss off whiner and send us some more water. Yeah and I will leave the hose on and let the water run down the street.

And it won't be long before you'll be pissing in a cup and pretending it's lemonade.

[Ankf00]

Piss off whiner and send us some more water. Yeah and I will leave the hose on and let the water run down the street.

you do that. meanwhile in 20 years i'll be drinking unadulterated snowmelt while you're farming the Pacific :gomer:

[jcollins28]

you do that. meanwhile in 20 years i'll be drinking unadulterated snowmelt while you're farming the Pacific :gomer:

No we will steal that water from you as well.:D

[cameraman]

you do that. meanwhile in 20 years i'll be drinking unadulterated snowmelt while you're farming the Pacific :gomer:

Ya might want to slap a Hg filter on that "unadulterated" snowmelt tap...

Did you know that there are Hg content warnings on damn near every trout fishery in Utah. You can thank the heap leaching gold mines in NV:flame:

[Ankf00]

wow. :shakehead is that why even purified water from the Green in Desolation/Gray Canyons is unfit for consumption?

plenty of mining out here, but I think my water's all runoff from Indian Peaks Wilderness 15 mi up the canyon so it should be good considering the regulations regarding natl wilderness areas, still have a filter though.