How do you cope with Drought Conditions?

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   Stacie Lposted 12 years ago

   The mid west especially S.Kentucky is experiencing a drought and excessive heat this summer. My grass is burnt and plants are distressed. I walk around with containers of water for the ones that the sprinklers don't reach. It has been on going for at least 2 weeks with no relief in sight. Anyone have similar stories and ways to cope?

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      Sally's Troveposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      My response doesn't really address your question which is framed in the here and now of today and two weeks. Drought patterns are changing all over the world, and these patterns are not confined to short time periods.
      
      What is so important about your post is that drought conditions will touch us all, later or sooner, as humans continue to deplete water tables and channel surface water via dams and aqueducts. Already, areas of Asia and Africa are nearing water wars.
      
      Lucky for you and for the rest of us in the US, our governing bodies will provide relief...maybe forests will burn, grasses will parch, but no one is going to go without fresh water here. The same is not true in many parts of the world. We Americans just haven't caught up yet to the true severity of changes in water availability.

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         IzzyMposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Is there a worldwide water shortage? I'm asking because I haven't heard of one. As you say patterns may be shifting, but does that mean we (as a world) are facing a shortage?
         
         The only way this could happen is if the sun got hotter, and I don't believe global warming exists. But if the world's water supply was depleted, then global warming becomes a reality.
         
         It has rained here (in Scotland) non-stop for 5 days, and I am happy to share with anyone feeling  deprived of rain-water, if that helps.
         
         Quite often, in the south of Spain, there is no rain between May and September, yet there is still water in the taps, although you can see that the reservoirs are severely depleted.
         
         I know they have a coastal de-salination plant, which is no mean feat considering that the Mediterranean Sea is especially salt-laden, more so than the oceans.
         
         No-one should have to fight over water. There is enough to go round, if we can use sea water.

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            Sally's Troveposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            This is just the tip of the iceberg, so to speak: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/ … 01,00.html
            
            Then look at this:
            http://thewaterproject.org/water_scarci … 4AodnVKUhg
            
            We in the Western world, in developed countries, have little understanding of what others in the world are facing. We are blind.
            
            In the US, we've depleted ground water supplies to water lawns in Arizona. These ground water reserves can not be replenished in our lifetime.
            
            I suppose I should write a hub. *sigh*

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               IzzyMposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               Aaargh!
               
               It's political, the problem of the water supply between Pakistan and India. A shared resource is the perfect weapon when there is unrest (despite what politicians say).
               
               The second link talks about a global water shortage, but doesn't include scientific proof to back it up.
               
               All water on Earth comes from the seas.
               
               It is lifted up by weather patterns into rain cloud and deposited on land. Even what we drink, we piss out again and it returns to the sea.
               
               Plants drink it up, then respire it again.
               
               The amount of water available should remain stable.
               
               How we distribute it is another matter.
               
               Arid areas will remain arid, until man finds a way of making sure they have water too.
               
               De-salination plants go a long way towards making drinking water available in arid areas, but some countries are too far from the sea, and are dependent on their neighbouring countries to keep them supplied.
               
               That is where the problem lies, don't you agree?

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                  Sally's Troveposted 12 years agoin reply to this

                  Do I agree? Yes and no, IzzyM.
                  
                  It seems to be true that the amount of water on the planet is a constant. I agree with that.
                  
                  However, how we use (or abuse) it is another story that goes far beyond the yet-to-be-practical solution of de-salination plants. We humans are putting stresses on this planet that we are as yet not able to counteract.
                  
                  The OP asked, "How do you cope with Drought Conditions?" Maybe the intent was a local one (like limiting personal water consumption) and maybe the intent was a global one. I chose the latter idea when I commented.
                  
                  We arrogant humans think we can continue to procreate with no consequences. Water wars (politically driven) and water shortages (climatically driven) are, I think, just the early signs of a death knell.

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   mts1098posted 12 years ago

   Find a nice shady place like a garage and create the woman cave with a bar...palm tree and sand )

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      Stacie Lposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Well I see you prefer to ignore the yard and concentrate on your comfort instead!

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         christin53posted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Have a hosepipe ban that will make it rain that's what we did in England.We are now having the wettest summer on record and the hosepipe ban has just been lifted.

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         mts1098posted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Actually, not necessarily my confort but making the best of the situation

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   WriteAngledposted 12 years ago

   I'm afraid I cannot help.
   
   Drought is not a condition that is experienced in Wales. Hosepipe bans are totally unknown.
   
   Unfortunately, our water bills do not reflect our wealth of water, and much of our water goes to supply the English, who pay lower water bills than we do.
   
   I hope that one day Wales will be free and independent, and will be able to make the English pay a fair price for the water they take from Wales.

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      christin53posted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I'm sorry if we are taking the welsh water you can have it back if you want we have more than enough at the moment.

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4. 83

   WriteAngledposted 12 years ago

   That's great.
   
   Unfortunately, it will not restore the small Welsh-speaking community that was destroyed when their village was drowned so that Liverpool could steal the water.
   
   Cofiwch Dryweryn (remember Tryweryn), drowned to supply Liverpool with water, because Stan Steffan (Westminster Parliament) was able to override all opposition
   
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHPSvEGsIdA

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      IzzyMposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I just watched that video. I knew nothing of this, but am not surprised. The break-up of the Union can't come soon enough for me, and as a fellow Celt I hope one day Wales will also be free.

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         WriteAngledposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Thank you, Izzy
         
         A dweud y gwir (to tell the truth), I am not a Celt by genes. However, I feel I have been adopted by Wales and thus have become Welsh by choice.

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            IzzyMposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            The sad thing to me about that video/bit of history is that the Liverpool people (in my experience) do not consider themselves to be English. Liverpudlians are down-to-earth GOOD people, who probably have a Celtic ancestry, somewhere in the the dim and distant past.
            
            But that video, although written by someone who needs to brush up on their English language, told how Liverpool then sold the water on at a profit, and no-one ever compensated or paid the Welsh people.
            
            An apology in 2005 just doesn't cut it.
            
            Give the Welsh the money they are due, it was their water!

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   Kangaroo_Jaseposted 12 years ago

   Hey Stacie,
   
   One aspect that might help is some of the agricultural websites in Australia. Australia has come out of a protracted 12-13 year drought across the whole agri sector in the sector. Almost every farmer in Australia will have suggestions on who to speak with or where to get assistance.
   
   In this country during the winter now, it is one of the wettest on record. This is what happens in Australia with the El Nino/La Nina cycles of wet and dry decades here.
   
   Otherwise I don't know if there are any Hubbers here whom are also Aussie farmers. Im a city dweller so I cant help!!!

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      Stacie Lposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I can't imagine living through a 13 year drought!
      The rain will eventually return but everything is dying..

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