Kim Bellard
We live in a body of water (although its name is “Earth”). Like all life on Earth, we are aquatic creatures, basically just a bag of water. We drink it in various forms (bland, spark, carbonation, sweetness, flavoring, even converted from mammals to milk). We use it to grow our crops, flush toilets, water, water, water, to name a few. However, 97% of Earth's water is salt water, and we can't drink salt water without expensive desalination work, while most of the 3% of fresh water is locked in – in icebergs, glaciers, ground and atmosphere.
Unfortunately, even that slide decreases rapidly. This is even more serious than you might realize.
A new study published in Science Advances, use satellite images (NASA Grace/grace-fo) to map what is happening in “ground water storage” or in the TWS we use in a messy way. Their key finding is: “Since 2002, the mainland has experienced unprecedented TWS losses.”
Indeed: “The number of regions experiencing dryness has tripled every year, creating “large-dry” areas in the Northern Hemisphere…75% of the population lives in 101 countries that have lost freshwater water.” The dry parts of the world are getting wetter than wet.
“What's shocking is how much non-renewable water we are losing,” said Hrishikesh A. Chandanpurkar, the study's lead author and research scientist at Arizona State University. “Glaciers and deep groundwater are ancient trusts. We not only use them when needed, such as long periods of drought, but take them for granted. And, we are not replenishing groundwater systems in wet years, thus towards the looming freshwater bankruptcy.”
Although we are concerned about glacier shrinking, the study found that 68% of the losses in TWS come from groundwater, a part you may not realize – this loss contributes more to sea level rise than melting of glaciers and ice sheets.
This is not a fragment. This is not fluorine. This is a long-term accelerated trend. The paper concluded: “Merge them, [the findings] Perhaps send messages about the impacts of climate change to date. The mainland is drying, freshwater supply is shrinking, and sea level rise is accelerating. ”
Yes.
“These findings convey perhaps the most alarming message about the impact of climate change on our water resources,” said Jay Famiglietti, the principal investigator of the study and a professor at the ASU School of Sustainability.
We have known for a long time that we have exhausted the aquifer and either overlooked the problem or wasted it. Researchers have grim news about the news: “In many places where groundwater is exhausted, it will not be replenished on human timelines.” Once they go, we won't see them replenished in our lives, in our children's lives, or in our grandchildren's lives.
Professor Famiglietti frankly said: “The consequences of ongoing groundwater overuse could undermine food and water security for billions of people around the world. It's a “all-out” moment – we need immediate action on global water security.”
If all of this is still abstract to you, I would point out that Iran faces a severe water shortage most of the time and may be forced to relocate its capital. Kabul is in a similar strait. A year ago, Mexico City was almost out of water and was still in crisis. Water shortage is a third of the EU's problem, such as Spain and Greece. And, ongoing droughts in the Southwest United States won’t happen anytime soon.
ProPublica There is a great story in the research and its meaning, as well as some killer illustrations. It noted that the study showed that the Earth's middle bands became increasingly inhabited, “…these findings all indicate the possibility of widespread famine, migration of large numbers of people seeking a more stable environment, and the carry-on effects of geopolitical diseases.”
Aaron Salzberg, a former researcher at the Woodrow Wilson Center ProPublica: “Water is used as a strategic and political tool. We should expect that as the water supply crisis intensifies, people should see it more often.”
That. yes. go. arrive. yes. Answer: Question!
We can’t see the loss of groundwater, but we’re seeing its impact more and more. A study published in May used satellite data to show all – all – Among the 28 largest cities in the United States, sinking due to land settlement is mainly due to groundwater extraction. They sink 2 to 10 mm per year, and: “In each city studied, at least 20% of the urban areas are sinking – in 28 cities, at least 65% of the 25 cities.”
Leonard Ohenhen, the lead author of the study, noted: “Even a slight decline in land can greatly damage the structural integrity of buildings, roads, bridges and railways, over time, with the passage of time.” Principal Investigator Associate Professor Manoochehr Shirzaei added: “The potential nature of this risk means that infrastructure can be quietly compromised over time, and damage becomes apparent only in severe or potentially catastrophic circumstances. This risk is often exacerbated in rapidly expanding urban centers.”
If “2 to 10mm per year” doesn't scare you, then you just need to check out the Central Valley (CA) that has sunk about an inch per year for the past 20 years About 30 feet Less than a hundred years ago. You will notice.
Professor Famiglietti and his co-authors retained some hope:
Although slow climate change efforts may be spitting (72,,,,, 73), there is no reason to slow down the mainland's drying speed, the same should be done. Key management decisions and new policies, especially for regional and national groundwater sustainability, and international efforts to global groundwater sustainability, can help preserve this valuable resource. At the same time, this action will slow the rate of sea level rise.
As evidence of the possible impact of smart water management programs, despite a 500,000 increase in residents, Los Angeles is now using less water than in 1990.
This question is not something we can wave, called “fake news.” This is not a “theory” that tries to claim climate change like critics do. We can measure the loss of groundwater; we can measure land settlement. Professor Famiglietti warned: “We can't negotiate with physics. Water is life. When it disappears, everything else will disperse.”
Kim is the former emarketing Exec of the main blues program, late editor and regret tinture.ionow regular THCB contributor
