Many states seen facing water shortages (35, yes 35 states)

[donsu]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071026/ap_on_re_us/vanishing_water;_ylt=AtNVZ2YEHkjAN7wCbP25p.Ws0NUE


An epic drought in Georgia threatens the water supply for millions. Florida doesn't have nearly enough water for its expected population boom. The Great Lakes are shrinking. Upstate New York's reservoirs have dropped to record lows. And in the West, the Sierra Nevada snowpack is melting faster each year. Across America, the picture is critically clear — the nation's freshwater supplies can no longer quench its thirst.

The government projects that at least 36 states will face water shortages within five years because of a combination of rising temperatures, drought, population growth, urban sprawl, waste and excess.

-snip-

Water managers will need to take bold steps to keep taps flowing, including conservation, recycling, desalination and stricter controls on development.

-snip-

"Unfortunately, there's just not going to be any more cheap water," said Randy Brown, Pompano Beach's utilities director.
-snip-
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and the crisis will peak way sooner then they are saying. Atlanta will be in trouble in about a month.

[opihimoimoi]

1. Water??? Who needs Stinkin Water??? Think of the Family Values, the Big Game, the Tail Gate Party

We can always drill for more water but them pesky tree huggers demand permits....dammit....forcing us to look at (Gasp) dirty cars and brown greens

[Elspeth]

2. The privatization of the water supply is beginning

Corporations taking over municipal supplies. Like electricity. I wonder who will be the Enron of water?

[donsu]

3. we should learn how to be the owners of our own water, like :

rain retrieval

everyone can learn the many ways to capture rain water (desalination is a whole nother subject)

they can't charge you money for that.

[depakid]

7. There are people who've been doing it

often with impressive results:

http://www.harvestingrainwater.com/

[donsu]

9. thanks for the link

nt

[nannah]

4. have you found a list of the 35 or 36 states?

i looked yesterday and was not able to find which other states are included in the list. It is ironic that while Florida (where I grew up; Delray and Boynton Beach area) suffers a shortage of fresh water, they will also be coping with an abundance of salt water as the oceans rise. essentially the state of Florida will be diminished by rising oceans so perhaps further on in the cycle, with less land mass and hopefully fewer people, the state will again be able to quench the thirst of its residents.

[donsu]

5. fewer people - Illegals drink/use water - will that become an issue

water wars could be worse then religious wars or wars for profit

[donsu]

6. no, I just have this article

nt

[KillCapitalism]

8. We need water de-salinization plants!

Seriously, the ocean is an endless source of water. GA, FL, SC, NC, AL, and CA are close enough to the oceans that plants built on their coasts would seriously put an end to the water shortages.

[Bobbieo]

10. Put the money Bush wants for Iraq into desalinization plants.

They are more important than the war.

[RC]

11. Desalination takes lots of energy and/or lots of space.

[SoCalDem]

12. Perhaps there will be another mass-migration to the north

The jobs that left the Rust Belt, went south for cheap land, no unions & a desperate owrkforce who were happy to see jobs..any jobs..

Now that there's a looming shortage of water, and many of those factories have bailed on them for even cheaper overseas labor, perhaps younger folks down there may be moving up north..

There are hundreds of towns in north midwestern states that could stand an injection of new blood..housing costs less that people would think and they actually have water :)

I'm thinking that a lot of the southern "boom" areas will be going belly-up to some degree anyway as the younger people get forced out of the housing market...they have to live somewhere.

[DemoTex]

13. Meanwhile, the Enrons of the world lie in wait.

Licking their chops.