Single-handed

Not necessarily interested in adding to an argument but more as an enlightened information: I have been involved with watershed issues most of my life and somewhat disagree with prior statements about Lake Washington and water only leaving through the locks. That is certainly not true. Actually only a minimal amount of water is used in locking. As is the case with almost all lakes the majority of water lost per day is from the evaporative area of the lake. Here in Ga. our big Lake, Lanier, can drop 4"-6" on a sunny warm day. At 57 sq miles that adds up to many millions of gallons. Water withdrawals are another major source. Seattle and surrounding towns use the watershed area for municipal water supplies. I would imagine that over the 37 years Marin has been in the area the withdrawal for those purposes have increased dramatically as population has increased. Industrial withdrawals are also a major factor in lake levels. Typically the industrial withdrawals are the first to be hit with restrictions. I do not know if Lake Washington is a power generating facility but that may play a factor in lake levels also. Our lake also controlled by the Army Corps of Engineers has a stakeholders interest percentage developed with recreation being very low on the list. Atlanta's water supply, Oysters in Appalachicola, generation of power all having interests, unfortunately navigation purposes have taken a hit in the past few years and the lower river levels are not maintained for that purpose as the were in the past. So in summary just because its behind a dam doesn't mean its not losing water.
dan

Lakes Washington and Union are not used for generating power. My point is not that the levels of these lakes are not affected by water supply and other factors but that so far, no actions have been taken that would be taken were the water situation actually as serious as the politicians and media have been making it sound.

Home Page

This website has a short video showing the effect of an articulated rudder on maneuverability.

Marin: That may be true. Bear in mind though that any actions other than adjusting lock operations costs $. For example if a water restriction was put in place then car washes, industry, and a lot of yard owners and voters are impacted financially. Agriculture intrests are also strong voices. California waited way too late in enforcing any restrictions for those reasons. It is like those beaches in N.C. with shark attacks not closing the money maker.

dan

They have enacted water restrictions in past years here, so it's not a new concept. No lawn watering, no car washing other than using the automated car washses that use the same water over and over, and so on. So far this year, which while we've had plenty of rainfall in the winter had only 25% of the typical snowfall in the mountains, which is what really counts, no restrictions whatsoever.

There are all kinds of ways water usage in this region can be reduced, and we've done it in the past. Which leads me to believe that, so far, anyway, the politicians and the media are doing the Chicken Little thing.

Doesn't mean we won't get to the point of needing enforced restrictions, but so far it's been crickets.

BTW, Lake Washington is not very big as lakes go. Only 22 miles long and maybe a mile or so wide in a few places if that.

Marin said:

There are all kinds of ways water usage in this region can be reduced, and we've done it in the past. Which leads me to believe that, so far, anyway, the politicians and the media are doing the Chicken Little thing.

Click to expand...

Sometimes you need to look further than what you can see out your window:

Cascade Irrigation District began Monday to make big cuts in the amount of water delivered to its customers with the goal of stretching its remaining water allocation into mid-September.

Ellensburg postponed their July 4 fireworks until New Years.

It's going to be a brutal summer East of the Cascades even if Marin's lawn is green on this side.

We aren't watering our lawn. I just drove up and back to Bellingham to fetch the crabpot off the boat we keep up there. I crossed the Snohomish, Stillaguamish, and Skagit Rivers going up and back. All were at the higher end of normal levels.

I understand about eastern Washington and their need for irrigation water and I suspect it's not going to be pretty over there since they've allowed so much irrigation dependent farming development over there over the decades. You develop for the good years and then pay the price in the bad years. It's not like sort of thing hasn't happened before. You'd think people would learn, but they never do. At least not when there's money involved.......

Things are weird on BC's north coast.

The rivers are fine because of melting snowpack and glaciers but it's been dry for so long, and now it's so hot, that some birch have bright yellow leaves and the alder and cottonwoods are dropping leaves at the ends of their branches.

And things are wierd in Lake Washington. I took my dinghy into Newport Shores a couple days ago - all of their water is flourescent green. And there are hundreds of fingerlings floating in our moorage.

"Cascade Irrigation District began Monday to make big cuts in the amount of water delivered to its customers with the goal of stretching its remaining water allocation into mid-September"


Folks that read tree rings claim there are many 100 year droughts .

A more long term solution is required.

Probably more storage lakes , RO , and a more realistic pricing for water.

As the world debates "climate change" and voices of varying opinions, often with research on either side, I often wonder of the situation a couple of million years ago at the start of the ice age. Did a caveman turn to his friend and say "Hey is that glacier getting closer or is it just me?"