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| Feb 02, 2010 5:28 pm |
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California and the Gravity of Environmental Abuse |
Ken Hilving
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"...wells for drinking water and irrigation pull water out of aquifers faster than they can naturally recharge. Now, using gravity-measuring satellites, NASA and California researchers have documented the extent of water loss in California’s Central Valley, and the results aren’t good.
The measurements show the amount of water lost in the two main Central Valley river basins within the past six years could almost fill the nation’s largest reservoir, Lake Mead in Nevada [AP]. The total is about 30 cubic kilometer; one cubic km contains more than 264 billion gallons of water.
The team used the GRACE satellites to measure tiny fluctuations in the planet’s gravitational field. Researchers have used these satellites to track changes in ice sheets, but turning these orbiters on California allowed them to see how much the pull on the planet had lessened there, and thus how much water had been lost from the ground." http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/12/16/gravity-satellites-show-a-huge-groundwater-loss-in-california (might not be available without subscription)
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On the plus side, a lessoning of border controls might just let enough illegal immigrants in from Mexico to offset the loss of water mass. No word on whether the legalization of medical marijuana use has contributed to the apparent lightening of the state.
Considering the obesity problem in the US, some are surprised to learn the state has been losing rather than gaining mass. However, this may be a relative effect countered by greater obesity levels along the US east coast.
In addition to the loss of groundwater, the loss of gravity may also be an unintended consequence of Californians shifting their preferences to smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles.
An alternative theory is that the rest of the Earth finds California less attractive for any number of reasons.
:-OPrivate Reply to Ken Hilving (new win) |
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