All articles tagged with #water reservoirs
California has experienced a rare period of no abnormal dryness for the first time in 25 years, thanks to recent heavy rains and atmospheric rivers, reducing wildfire risk and water supply concerns, though climate change is expected to cause more extreme weather swings in the future.
Recent radar surveys reveal that Martian glaciers are over 80% pure ice, indicating extensive past glaciation and providing accessible water sources for future exploration, with implications for understanding Mars' climate history and supporting human missions.
Europe's Cryosat satellite has provided the best satellite assessment yet of the status of the world's glaciers, tracking the 200,000 or so glaciers on Earth and finding they have lost 2,720bn tonnes of ice in 10 years due to climate change. Monitoring how quickly glaciers are changing is important because millions of people rely on them for water and farming. More than 20% of the world's population is thought to be dependent in some way on summer melt waters that flow from glaciers - for drinking, for agriculture and to drive hydropower stations.
Green campaigners clashed with French police on Saturday when protesting against the construction of water reservoirs for farmers in western France. The reservoirs are designed to help farmers faced with more frequent droughts brought on by climate change. Activists say water is a common good and farmers are "stealing" the resource, adding that they should be taking steps to transition toward less water-intensive and more sustainable agricultural practices. Tensions between the two groups have been mounting in the last five years and led to violent confrontations last October.