Off Topic Climate Change & Nature thread

[The Penguin]

This could easily go in any of about 5 different threads, but I’ll give it a go here….

Water shortages in Kent

Frustration in Kent over water supply disruption

South East Water blames demand for water during the hot weather for the multiple supply problems.

www.bbc.co.uk

Chalk figure fading due to too much rainfall

Britain's rudest chalk figure gets a glow-up to stop it fading in the rain

National Trust staff and volunteers will apply 17 tonnes of fresh chalk to the outline of the famous figure.

www.bbc.co.uk

Those stories might seem at odds with each other until you realise that the water issues in Kent are nothing to do with lack of rainfall or hot weather, THEY ARE CAUSED BY TOO MANY PEOPLE AND TOO MANY FIELDS BEING CONVERTED INTO CRAP HOUSING ESTATES WITH THOUSANDS OF NEW HOMES, BECAUSE OF POPULATION INCREASE DUE TO NET MIGRATION.
FFS

No need to shout! After last year's long hot dry summer the water levels were very low in the reservoirs, we needed a wet winter and a wet spring spring. Monty Don told us that in the autumn. Especially in the south east where we seem to have our own microclimate. You can ignore this if you like, but I don't, and when I planted my tomatoes out at 6am this morning I could not reach wet soil at all, which is terrible news in May. Now obviously there are other factors, one of which you are hinting at, another is leaks which go unrepaired for months and months, but this is an El Nino year and there will undoubtedly be more records to be broken, and not in a good way. It seems crazy that Thames Water, which is just up the road, doesn't even have a hosepipe ban. BTW I don't deny that immigration is a problem, in case you want to drone on about it any more on this thread.

 

[Ubedizzytoo]

No need to shout! After last year's long hot dry summer the water levels were very low in the reservoirs, we needed a wet winter and a wet spring spring. Monty Don told us that in the autumn. Especially in the south east where we seem to have our own microclimate. You can ignore this if you like, but I don't, and when I planted my tomatoes out at 6am this morning I could not reach wet soil at all, which is terrible news in May. Now obviously there are other factors, one of which you are hinting at, another is leaks which go unrepaired for months and months, but this is an El Nino year and there will undoubtedly be more records to be broken, and not in a good way. It seems crazy that Thames Water, which is just up the road, doesn't even have a hosepipe ban. BTW I don't deny that immigration is a problem, in case you want to drone on about it any more on this thread.

Sorry, I have anger management issues around over-population.

All agreed, but we also did have a wet winter, so reservoir levels in the South East were all very healthy at the end of it.

Even by the end of a dry April these were the levels;

Bewl –97% normal
Darwell –77% notably low
Bough Beech – 97% normal
Powdermill – 84% notably low
Weir Wood – 99% normal

Bewl Water and Bough Beech are by far the biggest, so there wasn’t a water shortage at all at the end of April, which was less than a month ago.

Yes leaks are a problem, as is a hotter than usual May, but the biggest problem is the hundreds of thousands of extra residents in Kent with no extra water storage or distribution facilities to service them.

 

[The Penguin]

Sorry, I have anger management issues around over-population.

All agreed, but we also did have a wet winter, so reservoir levels in the South East were all very healthy at the end of it.

Even by the end of a dry April these were the levels;

Bewl –97% normal
Darwell –77% notably low
Bough Beech – 97% normal
Powdermill – 84% notably low
Weir Wood – 99% normal

Bewl Water and Bough Beech are by far the biggest, so there wasn’t a water shortage at all at the end of April, which was less than a month ago.

Yes leaks are a problem, as is a hotter than usual May, but the biggest problem is the hundreds of thousands of extra residents in Kent with no extra water storage or distribution facilities to service them.

It won't only be Kent as the year goes on either.

 

[Ubedizzytoo]

It won't only be Kent as the year goes on either.

Agreed again, but we do have a particular problem with an increasing population, plus no new reservoirs, plus a drier mini-climate.

 

[Watameire]

I live in Essex and am always out walking my dogs. This spring was the driest under foot than every other year I’ve live here (~20 years). A number of walks I go on that would only typically be accessible from May onwards I was walking in March with the paths dry as a bone

 

[The Penguin]

I live in Essex and am always out walking my dogs. This spring was the driest under foot than every other year I’ve live here (~20 years). A number of walks I go on that would only typically be accessible from May onwards I was walking in March with the paths dry as a bone

That will already be affecting the rivers which flow into the reservoirs. Whatever happens, hosepipe bans etc, I'll be surprised if football pitches aren't lovely and green, with the sprinklers on at halftime.

 

[lardiman]

That will already be affecting the rivers which flow into the reservoirs. Whatever happens, hosepipe bans etc, I'll be surprised if football pitches aren't lovely and green, with the sprinklers on at halftime.

Not to mention cooling water for server farms (data centres).
Five million gallons per day for a large one.
Evaporated to take heat away from the servers.

 

[Ubedizzytoo]

Not to mention cooling water for server farms (data centres).
Five million gallons per day for a large one.
Evaporated to take heat away from the servers.

Yes but think of all the advantages these data centres bring to our lives.

There’s um, what’sitsname, thingamajig and thatotherone to start with.

 

[lardiman]

Yes but think of all the advantages these data centres bring to our lives.

There’s um, what’sitsname, thingamajig and thatotherone to start with.

100 trillion naff mobile phone pics and bad short videos. What a monumental waste of data.

I keep getting pestered to back up my data "to the cloud".
to that.
Got perfectly good memory sticks and an external HD with loads of space. Cheap as chips and doesn't use any water.
Never mind 5 million gallons a day.

 

[Ubedizzytoo]

100 trillion naff mobile phone pics and bad short videos. What a monumental waste of data.

I keep getting pestered to back up my data "to the cloud".
to that.
Got perfectly good memory sticks and an external HD with loads of space. Cheap as chips and doesn't use any water.
Never mind 5 million gallons a day.

Yep. Back it up in hard format. One click from a Ruski and everything you have in the cloud is gone forever.

 

[Smudger603]

"Demand for water during the hot weather"
Who would have guessed.

It’s only been hot for a few days ! I think someone’s telling porkies

 

[Ubedizzytoo]

It’s only been hot for a few days ! I think someone’s telling porkies

Yep. Reservoirs were all healthily full. Hot weather for only about 5 days.

But tens of thousands of new homes connected to the grid and drawing off water.

I wonder where the problem could be ?

 

[The Penguin]

The same water company that supplies Tunbridge Wells, which had its water cut off in January, due to a problem in the treatment plant.

But tens of thousands of new homes connected to the grid and drawing off water.

If this is the sole cause of the present problem it means it can't be fixed short-term, as the other problem was, and the outlook is bleak for Kent.

 

[lardiman]

Water is not a luxury - unless you pop into a swanky Italian hotel.
Water is a basic right.
When it fails, responsibility cannot be shirked by the Government saying "it is privatised, talk to the water company".
Not good enough.

Every household denied clean running water should have all income tax & council tax re-funded for the number of days the water is off.
Any Party putting that in their manifesto would be going a long way to getting my vote.

 

[Smudger603]

Yep. Reservoirs were all healthily full. Hot weather for only about 5 days.

But tens of thousands of new homes connected to the grid and drawing off water.

I wonder where the problem could be ?

I know for a fact that there was work being carried out on two major water mains in the local Whitstable area - I think they fuked up and are blaming a shortage rather than hold their hands up to another almighty cockup ……. Also very convenient that it’s happened during half term preventing school closures

 

[The Penguin]

I know for a fact that there was work being carried out on two major water mains in the local Whitstable area - I think they fuked up and are blaming a shortage rather than hold their hands up to another almighty cockup ……. Also very convenient that it’s happened during half term preventing school closures

If that is the case you'll get your water back. Let's hope so.

 

[Smudger603]

If that is the case you'll get your water back. Let's hope so.

Our water in Tankerton only went off for a few hours - Whitstable and Herne Bay were off for a couple of days - traffic was at a standstill all around the area, caused by the temporary water station at Chestfield Sainsburys

 

[lardiman]

Bottled water stations in supermarket car parks.
I doubt those were in the Privatisation prospectus.
One generation of dividends & bonuses before investment, and now they can't keep the water flowing.

And guess who will have to pay for the work needed over the next 30 years, after the previous 30 were wasted.
You guessed it - customers. Bills will be rising by around 50% in the next few years.

 

[Smudger603]

Bottled water stations in supermarket car parks.
I doubt those were in the Privatisation prospectus.
One generation of dividends & bonuses before investment, and now they can't keep the water flowing.

And guess who will have to pay for the work needed over the next 30 years, after the previous 30 were wasted.
You guessed it - customers. Bills will be rising by around 50% in the next few years.

I only know about the two major water mains being worked on by listening at our local burger van to about a dozen cock jockeys who work for south east water - joking about how easy it is , they also had new sunglasses and gloves given to them as well as their breakfast payed for by their supervisor on an expenses card

 

[The Penguin]

I only know about the two major water mains being worked on by listening at our local burger van to about a dozen cock jockeys who work for south east water - joking about how easy it is , they also had new sunglasses and gloves given to them as well as their breakfast payed for by their supervisor on an expenses card

Easy as working at Shell?