New USDA soil shows an increase in the number of irrigated acres in the Eastern US. A record-high 58 million acres were irrigated in 2017, representing a 4 percent increase from 2012. Irrigated acreage increased in all Midwestern and most of the southern states, but perhaps most surprising, was that a full 29 percent of irrigated […]
It makes sense that people in drier regions should be water conscious, but why should people in wetter areas care? “There’s a fixed amount of water. As the demand goes up on water, more and more straws go into the drink, there’s more competition over that shared water resource,” according to Kai Olson-Sawyer, senior research […]
As the climate changes and the Earth warms, predicting future water availability will become increasingly challenging. Enter the climate model. It’s hard to predict how the future will look when the data from the past doesn’t look anything like conditions we see in the present, especially when we know what extremes the future holds. Still, […]
For years, Saudi Arabian-owned agriculture company, Almarai, has been buying up California land – along with its precious Colorado River water rights – to grow and ship alfalfa back to the Kingdom as dairy cow feed. Because water scarcity is a significant issue in California, some people are concerned with the trade in water-intensive goods, […]
Each month, the Bureau of Reclamation releases the 24-Month Study that predicts water supplies on the Colorado River for the next 24 months. In April and August, the Bureau of Rec makes recommendations about water levels, how much water will be released from Lake Powell and Lake Mead and whether or not a shortage will […]
Canada’s Changing Climate Report, a new report commissioned by the Canadian government, finds that since 1948, Canada’s annual average, over land temperature has increased at twice the global rate, at an average of 1.7 C. The analysis found higher rates in the North, the Prairies and northern British Columbia, with some areas increasing by 2.3 C, almost three times […]
Sometimes the water cycle can take a LONG time to happen and it can take hundreds or thousands of years for groundwater aquifers to recharge. That’s why it’s important to practice water conservation at all times. This article lays out 5 easy ways to save water. Stop leaks. Wash only full loads. Check into xeriscaping […]
Almost 3 billion people around the world live with with scarcity and many more live under water-stressed conditions. Water footprints can help us better understand where we’re using our water and can help us make better decisions about our purchases. As global economies improve, lifestyles and eating habits require more water consumption per person. As […]
In Texas, most water use goes for agriculture – about 75 percent – and the rest is split between industrial uses and drinking water. Ground water accounts for nearly a fifth of the state’s drinking water supplies yet groundwater is barely regulated. Given that set up, it’s easy to imagine the issues groundwater users are […]
