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Some of the World's Biggest Lakes Are Drying Up

nationalgeographic.com

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Re: Some of the World's Biggest Lakes Are Drying Up

#21

Post by candiodari »

ojbyrne wrote: post #5
sharpercoder wrote: post #2

I am wondering if mass-scale manufacturing & construction can solve this problem. Imagine large greenhouse-alike setups which spur vaporization, siphoning fresh water off into a lake. The sun would passively vaporize incoming salty water. Reaching m³s/minute of freshwater throughput would without doubt require massive scale. Since freshwater demand is increasing and supply decreasing, the economics of such project be…

This sounds like it has the same problem as salinization does. In most places conservation is cheaper.

... in the sense that the costs can just be imposed on people who can't defend themselves. And at that point, cheaper, more expensive ... ah what's the difference ?

I mean, that's a slightly different wording of the argument you're making.

In other words: this needs an economically viable solution. We need an absurdly cheap way to refill the lakes. Conservation isn't that, but everybody proposing it knows where the costs will go.

Re: Some of the World's Biggest Lakes Are Drying Up

#22

Post by siculars »

Call me naive but I read the article as consequences of acute human expansion. Virtually every example was followed by explanations along the lines of “man made canals, irrigation, mining...”

I really think technology and better civil planning will be the way to fix these problems. Technology will cause the cost of renewable energy to trend towards zero while better civil planning will apply that energy to pump water from oceans to where it is needed by people. Eventually there will be success stories that will be copied around the world. Israel has had considerable success in water conservation and is considering replenishing the Dead Sea via canals.

If we can build oil pipelines from Canada to Texas eventually there will be a model that says we can build water pipelines from the pacific north west to Phoenix and Las Vegas. Governments around the world will either do something along these lines or they will not. Surely some will. Those that do will still be here long into the future, those that don’t will not.

Re: Some of the World's Biggest Lakes Are Drying Up

#23

Post by IntronExon »

candiodari wrote: post #21
ojbyrne wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This sounds like it has the same problem as salinization does. In most places conservation is cheaper.

... in the sense that the costs can just be imposed on people who can't defend themselves. And at that point, cheaper, more expensive ... ah what's the difference ? I mean, that's a slightly different wording of the argument you're making. In other words: this needs an economically viable solution. We need an absurdly cheap way to refill the lakes. Conservation isn't that, but everybody proposing it knows where the c…

I’m curious who do you think is suffering now as a result of drought and diminishing ecological resources? Who is going to suffer through famine and drought? Your point is valid, but only insofar as people who can’t defend themselves always suffer. Every course of action hurts the group you’re concerned about, but the most likely to succeed and least damaging is conservation.

Re: Some of the World's Biggest Lakes Are Drying Up

#24

Post by eloff »

siculars wrote: post #22

Call me naive but I read the article as consequences of acute human expansion. Virtually every example was followed by explanations along the lines of “man made canals, irrigation, mining...” I really think technology and better civil planning will be the way to fix these problems. Technology will cause the cost of renewable energy to trend towards zero while better civil planning will apply that energy to pump water…

China has invested billions in constructing mammoth aqueducts to do just this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South%E2%80%93North_Water_Tran...

https://www.gokunming.com/en/blog/item/4038/china_considerin...

Meanwhile in Western Canada, we steadfastly refuse to sell water into the US, despite all of our fresh water running into the Pacific Ocean anyway...

Re: Some of the World's Biggest Lakes Are Drying Up

#26

Post by lisper »

eloff wrote: post #24
siculars wrote: post #22

Call me naive but I read the article as consequences of acute human expansion. Virtually every example was followed by explanations along the lines of “man made canals, irrigation, mining...” I really think technology and better civil planning will be the way to fix these problems. Technology will cause the cost of renewable energy to trend towards zero while better civil planning will apply that energy to pump water…

China has invested billions in constructing mammoth aqueducts to do just this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South%E2%80%93North_Water_Tran... https://www.gokunming.com/en/blog/item/4038/china_considerin... Meanwhile in Western Canada, we steadfastly refuse to sell water into the US, despite all of our fresh water running into the Pacific Ocean anyway...

> China has invested billions in constructing mammoth aqueducts to do just this

This is also the reason they invaded Tibet.

Re: Some of the World's Biggest Lakes Are Drying Up

#28

Post by bilbo0s »

lisper wrote: post #26
eloff wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

China has invested billions in constructing mammoth aqueducts to do just this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South%E2%80%93North_Water_Tran... https://www.gokunming.com/en/blog/item/4038/china_considerin... Meanwhile in Western Canada, we steadfastly refuse to sell water into the US, despite all of our fresh water running into the Pacific Ocean anyway...

> China has invested billions in constructing mammoth aqueducts to do just this This is also the reason they invaded Tibet.

Maybe someone gave you water as a newly made up excuse for China taking Tibet?

But make no mistake about it, on October 7, 1950, the Chinese were not thinking about water. I'm fairly certain most historians would agree on that point.

Re: Some of the World's Biggest Lakes Are Drying Up

#29

Post by nielsbot »

bilbo0s wrote: post #28
lisper wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> China has invested billions in constructing mammoth aqueducts to do just this This is also the reason they invaded Tibet.

Maybe someone gave you water as a newly made up excuse for China taking Tibet? But make no mistake about it, on October 7, 1950, the Chinese were not thinking about water. I'm fairly certain most historians would agree on that point.

What were they thinking about?

Re: Some of the World's Biggest Lakes Are Drying Up

#30

Post by singularity2001 »

nielsbot wrote: post #29
bilbo0s wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe someone gave you water as a newly made up excuse for China taking Tibet? But make no mistake about it, on October 7, 1950, the Chinese were not thinking about water. I'm fairly certain most historians would agree on that point.

What were they thinking about?

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