Global Warming and Climate Change News

West water woes tied to man’s warming
Thursday January 31st 2008, 4:21 pm

LAKE MEAD NRA, NV - JULY 30:  Boaters are seen in front of a white "bathtub ring" on the rocks on the upstream side of the Hoover Dam on July 30, 2007 in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada. The coloration is from mineral deposits left by higher levels of water. A seven year drought and increased water demand spurred by explosive population growth in the Southwest has caused the water level at Lake Mead, which supplies water to Las Vegas, Arizona and Southern California, to drop over 100 feet to its lowest level since the 1960s. The National Park Service has been forced to close or extend boat launch ramps, and move entire marinas to try to keep up with the receding water levels. Because the water at the lake, the largest man-made reservoir in North America, isn't being replenished as fast as it's being used, water managers are now working to come up with plans to combat the effects of continued population growth, drought and a dwindling supply of water from the Colorado River due to climate change.  (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)Human activity such as driving and powering air conditioners is responsible for up to 60 percent of changes contributing to dwindling water supplies in the arid and growing West, a new study finds.


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