Road trip!
Nathan Eidem took a little tour of the North Platte River last spring and produced this little video for a lecture on floods.
If you go to the YouTube site you'll find some more North Platte videos.
I took a little tour of the same region in April 2010 and, while impressed, did not see the flows that Eidem displays here. I was probably too early.
This is always a good time of year from me - sending out IRS letters (in the mail today)
and giving thanks for and to the ACJF's donors.
Last year was a good year and 2012 is shaping up to be even better. It's all in my one-page Winter 2012 newsletter:
Download 2012_ACJF_Newsletter_Winter
Enjoy!
"Beyond mountains there are mountains." - Haitian proverb
“What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.” - Albert Pike
That day of the week again -Friday, time for last week's water news via my Twitter feeds.
It's not the Florida Edition because of the Republican presidential primary, but because after all the rain in the PNW I'm ready for some Florida sunshine.
Yeah, that's a picture of me in Key West addressing the Florida Section of the AWRA at its meeting last July. Many of the attendees were wearing shorts, so since I had my cargo pants on I decided to split the difference.
That's what Key West does to you.
Now enjoy some well-deserved water displacement behavior. You're worth it!
Blogs
Check out 'Building Bridges', Okanagan Basin (BC) Water Board's blog by Anna Warwick Sears. http://is.gd/egornN
Rappin', Bloggin', and More from the Great White North: Okanagan Basin Water Board Bloghttp://bit.ly/A2CBP9
@jfleck's new favorite #waterblogger "I chipped a tooth, lost 10 pounds and nearly had my ear bitten by a monkey." bit.ly/AF9iPU
Climate, Climate Change, and Meteorology
MT @PeterGleick 2011 worst year ever for billion $$ #climate and #weather disasters,even after inflation. See:http://pic.twitter.com/UEDQ4fzt
MT @PeterGleick 130 y of rising global temps. No warming you say? Only if you ignore actual facts & measurements. See?http://pic.twitter.com/vmA4qrsB
RT @earthinstitute Agriculture + climate change need to be addressed with greater urgency to avert multiple criseshttp://goo.gl/WFjjf
RT @PeterGleick Inexorably rising CO2. Classic Mauna Loa #climategraph here updated to 2012.http://pic.twitter.com/JXx4mhiU
For Whom the Pipe Toles: The Energy-Climate Conundrumhttp://bit.ly/xwYplL
Via @therightblue Huge pool of Arctic freshwater could cool Europe. http://is.gd/jdluFM
RT @ClimateTreaty Liberal group compiles hit list of TV meteorologist climate change skeptics http://bit.ly/wS4XjU
Scientists use core samples from WY to understand what caused runaway global warming 56M years ago. http://is.gd/lZ4WVE
Growers feel the heat: USDA changes growing zone maps.http://is.gd/Tvdjy3
Video: Nevada's Native American Tribes and Climate Change.http://is.gd/4Olf4G
RT @tveitdal Climate Change in the Arctic Brings Potential Conflict Between the U.S. and Russia http://bit.ly/xZKGDE
RT @ClimateTreaty Climate change skeptics speaking in Portland http://bit.ly/z9iUa7
RT @OOSKAnews Glacier Melting Accelerating in Kyrgyzstan (subs req'd) http://bit.ly/zVz3B1
Conflict and Cooperation
MT @edwardrcarr @geoffdabelko climate/conflict/stability interrelationships. http://ow.ly/8IKmD
MT @Waterandfood #Nile basin-Participatory video: A novel mechanism to share community perceptions w/ decisionmakershttp://bit.ly/xlhEDf
Education
Best practices and tips for Twitter in the higher-ed classroomhttp://bit.ly/wzOQ7I via@deepseadawn @IceAgeEcologist
MT @deepseadawn Educators, students: New iTunes U app for iPad, iPhone & iPod touch (my GIS courses @ OSU included)http://bit.ly/xCaHjr
E-learning course: “Water Footprint: Concept and Application” 13-24 Feb. Apply by 31 Jan. http://is.gd/ViUd26
Via @WAofKC Water is a great subject for children. Check out this book:http://www.walterwick.com/water_snowflake2.htm
100? A stretch,IMHO. NGWA: 100 leading #hydrogeology degree programs in N. Americahttp://owl.li/8Hvj6 (Via@waterscienceUWM)
Ethics
RT @PeterGleick Fantastic analysis and essay on climate ethics here:http://rockblogs.psu.edu/climate/
Water Ethics January 2012 Newsletter. http://is.gd/E9K54Q @H2OEthics
Events
A Beginner's Guide to the Sixth World Water Forumhttp://bit.ly/zlZvEj
MT @ngwatweets Groundwater Awareness Week — March 11-17. Read more on how you can get involved. http://is.gd/2kajui
On my @WorldWaterForum post - be sure to read comment from 'Mr. X'. http://bit.ly/zlZvEj
Oh, boy! An(other) international water conference! Abu Dhabi Intl. Water Summit, 15-17 Jan 2013.http://is.gd/pnh1k0 @theADIWAS
IAH 39th Congress, 16-21 Sept 2012, Niagara Falls, Canada. Abstracts due 15 March.http://www.iah2012.org/
NGWA's 'Emerging Issues in GW' Conference, 27-28 Feb, San Antonio. http://is.gd/SBkkSrNGWA getting closer to 'GW' as one word
RT @AWWAACE Resource realism in #Davos. The #water-food-energy nexus http://bit.ly/zrPfmH
RT @UCRiverkeeper Tom Crawford's The Georgia Report puts it succinctly: "The makeover of the DNR board is completed"http://fb.me/Wwmlc9Cb
Floods and Droughts
@GaythiaWeis Hi, Gaythia. I don't know for sure;I have been in DC the past 4 days.I do know they have asked for volunteers to fill sandbags.
RT @SuperWaterMan Water Scarcity Posters http://bit.ly/9zW6C0 #water #eco #green
Groundwater
Via @chanceofraincom@PeterGleick on mining groundwater for profit.http://is.gd/ANxNdx
Via @chanceofraincomCommenting upon the unspeakable (Cadiz, what else?).http://bit.ly/xB4MGU
Call For Action On Global Groundwater Crisis. http://is.gd/tY7U2m
Hydrofracking and Energy
Via @jfleck @ShaleGasExpert Man who broke open the Bakken,Harold Hamm says CA's San Joaquin Valley is the next giant.http://is.gd/IGVo0U
If CA's SJ Valley is the next big oil giant, will likely have implications for land/water use. Interesting.http://is.gd/IGVo0U
RT @jfleck James Hamilton on the case for Keystone:http://bit.ly/xWppwO
RT @MarcellusGas Great@nydailynews op-ed: How #fracking lies triumphedhttp://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/fracking-lies-triumphed-article-1.1009485 #shalegas #Marcellus
Ten Republican senators want EPA's to subject its WY hydrofacking report to stringent scientific review.http://is.gd/IwG143
What EPA report really said: hydrofracking contaminated WY groundwater, not drinking water. Big difference. http://is.gd/g4JTWe
Commerce City (CO) continues hydrofracking ban.http://is.gd/pah4JH
EPA Seeks Peer Reviewers for Wyoming Hydrofracking Contamination Study. http://is.gd/WwmhcC
@csmonitor editorial: Make sure shale-gas boom doesn't go bust.
Fracking gets a new friend in Obama. http://is.gd/dbEsiZ
Hydrophilanthropy and Philanthropy
MT @Philanthropedia Top Int'l Emergency Response NGOshttp://ow.ly/8HOeR
MT @Philanthropedia Expert-Identified Top Nonprofit for International WaSH:@wateraidamerica.http://bit.ly/yaXfoM
Law, Economics, and Water Rights
RT @columbiawater Alternet: 3 Ways Laws Are Stacked to Favor Fracking Companieshttp://bit.ly/yJXUFJ
Want to buy some water rights on Tenmile Creek in MT? Try $9.6M for 1,212 AF. http://is.gd/g2fxCe
RT @aguanomics Externalizing the internality http://goo.gl/fb/NQQnb
UT approves water rights for nuclear power plant in Green River.http://is.gd/amoYeb
Miscellaneous
RT @rivrchik NYT: How Plate Tectonics Became Accepted Science: http://nyti.ms/eCKOIhvia @ruisaldanha
RT @jfleck @keithkloor: Scientists: Read this. RT @BoraZ Don't Shoot the Media - or the Scientisthttp://bit.ly/zOBy5N #scio12
RT @deepseadawn How Should We Talk About Science During Oil Spills? http://bit.ly/wYvslL via@JLVernonPhD
RT @deepseadawn Why researchers could be great leaders, but aren’t http://bit.ly/y3o0r5 via@curtrice @JKamens
Oh, Canada! Writers want Ottawa to let scientists ‘speak for themselves’ http://is.gd/aa0KAs(Via @globeandmail)
Is use of the term 'sustainable' unsustainable? A comic by xkcd.http://www.xkcd.com/1007/ (via@DemianEbert)
RT @CindyFrancine@HuffingtonPost: Absolutely stunning, must-see HD image of Earth (PHOTO)http://huff.to/xRu8kg
MT @KHayhoe Frustrated with the lack of political choices? Check out the Canada party! Slogan: "America, but better"http://kck.st/AwWD8A
What's In a Word: Is the Word 'Sustainable' Unsustainable?http://bit.ly/zaaReP
NYT: Revamped Search Urged for a Nuclear Waste Site.http://is.gd/DSwkYM
RT @jfleck In honor of FOIA Friday: "A democracy requires accountability, and accountability requires transparency."http://1.usa.gov/we25rU
Opportunities
From @ajain81 via @jfleck A hydrologist as a career option for a meteorologist?http://is.gd/BAP4b2
Volunteer Opportunity: Via@johnsauer Bolivia - Four social scientists, Spanish fluency.http://bit.ly/yT2D7u
Final Call for Nominations - 2012 Stockholm Industry Water Awardhttp://is.gd/fM7XNa
WERF Offers $1M for Research On Water Infrastructure for 21st Century. http://is.gd/UuIEYj
Survey Says! Seven Minutes of Your Time for Data http://bit.ly/zkf7rV
From @KavehMadani for@WorldWaterForum session - Brief 7-minute survey on water data needs,sources, etc.http://is.gd/EAly5S
Grant Opportunity: Outdoor Nation offers new funding opportunity. http://ow.ly/1gTZoXVia @americanrivers
People and Personal Stuff
RT @H20Efficiency Jim Chaffee to be AWWA’s next President-Elect: http://bit.ly/xG0u1Q
Why I like Enterprise: IAD reduced bill by 35% ($50) b/c no ice scraper included, tire pressure warning light would not go out.
Albuquerque-Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority’s Katherine Yuhas Named “Woman of Influence” http://is.gd/ISXLEf
RT @Aquafornia Alex Hildebrand, champion of Delta estuary dies at age 98 #cawater #sacdeltahttp://shar.es/f0bDF
RT @conoverbeth Patty Limerick at CO #Water Congress: Whiskey/Water quote misattributed to Mark Twain- no evidence he ever said it.
MT @KHayhoe My interview w/@greenman3610 on #climate intimidation,from #climatetownhall hosted by@hoffmanandy @ucsusa http://bit.ly/xcKbEf
Policy, Planning, and Management
RT @climateprogress Toles Cartoon Nails Keystone-Climate Contradiction http://bit.ly/ywhING
MT @Aquafornia Gov Brown: 'My father built the water plan. I want to complete it.' Brown's plans in SacBee #cawaterhttp://is.gd/RwzavE
NRC Committee report on Bay-Delta scheduled to go out for review this coming week. Whew! #cawater
RT @climateprogress What Obama’s Proposal to Move NOAA Means for Our Oceanshttp://bit.ly/xgcTxG
Survey Says! Seven Minutes of Your Time for Data http://bit.ly/zkf7rV
Support grows for Kansas water policy reforms http://is.gd/5pKN3j and http://is.gd/NHal2Z
Fireworks: North State (CA) water management plan unveiled.http://is.gd/eJdIlR #cawater
Positions Open
Position Open (#2303):@Yorkshirewater has vacancy for IT C#.net Developer. Based in Bradford,salary £30-40k +benefits. http://bit.ly/apaFCx
Position Open: Progammes Manager, IWA (http://www.iwahq.org), The Hague. Apps due 10 Feb.http://is.gd/T5F35N
Position Open: EPA paid postgrad internship : CC & impact on DW & wastewaterhttp://1.usa.gov/xRFPIb MT@EPAresearch @MiriamGoldste
Position Open: InfoDev/World Bank (DC) - Agriculture Innovation Specialist. http://is.gd/eUE6BK
Positions Open: CUAHSI (Boston area) Communications/Outreachhttp://is.gd/AslLVf User Supporthttp://is.gd/ELbJ6W
Position Open: NM Finance Authority, Sr. Pgm. Administrator - DW Program. http://is.gd/h5DSkl
Position Open: USGS (Tucson, AZ) Biologist or Physical Scientist - Climate Impacts.http://is.gd/48SBH8
Position Open: Irrigation Specialist, Dept. of Veterans' Affairs http://is.gd/slokw9
Position Open: Emissions Engineer @ Aprovecho (http://www.aprovecho.org - the stove people!) http://is.gd/euv1ai
Positions Open: USGS Hydrologists: Pennsylvania:http://is.gd/y99Ff6 and Denver:http://is.gd/YcyoC3
Positions Open: Lots of Postdoc/Professional positions at this WWW site - water, biology, geology, etc. http://is.gd/PPlNQR
Positions Open: MD Sea Grant current openings: science writer, educ/research coord.,more.http://bit.ly/fRqw7F via@DESeaGrant
Position Open: Staff Environmental Scientist - Burns & McDonnell - Wallingford, CT. http://is.gd/B3WvNn (via@SoilScience)
Streams, Dams, and Ecosystems
MT @AJEnglish #Brazil pushes ahead with controversial Belo Monte dam projecthttp://aje.me/xLIBJg
RT @peakwater Chinese Dam Project in Cambodia Raises Environmental Concerns «:http://bit.ly/yB6XGJ via@AddThis
Watch @highlyanne talk about channel initiation at AGU 2011:http://bit.ly/xpPGyH
Via @unifymissriver NG News article gets right to point re: Mississippi River issues.http://is.gd/fE8wd4 See also:http://tinyurl.com/7bxwlfu
Twitter, E-Newspapers, and Newsletters
TGIF! Weekly Water News Summary, 14-20 January 2012 (AWRA Day!)http://bit.ly/wOAXFy
TGIF! Weekly Water News Summary, 7-13 January 2012 (Triskaidekaphobia Day!)http://bit.ly/z8j8s2
TGIF! Weekly Water News Summary, 31 December 2011 - 6 January 2012 http://bit.ly/xvMj3P
TGIF - Tweets Galore! It's Friday, 30 December 2011 - Special New Year's Edition! http://bit.ly/vFcxpz
TGIF - Tweets Galore! It's Friday, 23 December 2011 - Special "Season's Greetings" Edition! http://bit.ly/vCDOOE
TGIF - Tweets Galore! It's Friday, 16 December 2011 - Special 'The Scream' Edition!http://bit.ly/tWsJEz
TGIF - Tweets Galore! It's Friday, 9 December 2011 - Special 'World Soil Day' Edition!http://bit.ly/sMfafa
TGIF - Tweets Galore! It's Friday, 2 December 2011 - Special School's Out Edition http://bit.ly/u18vyr
TGIF - Tweets Galore! It's Friday, 25 November 2011 - Special Black Friday Edition http://bit.ly/s2sNZt
RT @agleader The #cawater Daily is out! http://bit.ly/cAyvY1 ▸ Top stories today via @ucdavis @pacificcouncil @wateredfoundtn
The @EnergyLawyer is out!http://bit.ly/bB3cVk ▸ Top stories today via @waterwired@jashcraft34 @investontario
RT @MtnHellfire Geo-Earth is out!http://bit.ly/xSVrwm ▸ Top stories today via @usgsted @kwinkunks@shakeout
The @WaterStJournal Daily is out!http://bit.ly/haf8gw ▸ Top stories today via @wateringwoman@waterguru2 @tod_johnston
RT @worldresources The climate-energy Daily is out!http://bit.ly/9xYfCB ▸ Top stories today via @risingtidena
The @EnergyLawyer is out!http://bit.ly/bB3cVk ▸ Top stories today via @cmegroup@watercrunch @shalegasexpert@energycollectiv
The DEV @Development_UEADaily is out! http://bit.ly/kQSbG8
The @WaterFootprints Daily is out!http://bit.ly/eDEDnD ▸ Top stories today via @lpawater@cleanh2oaction @mlgw@oucreliableone
The @WaterUtilities Daily is out!http://bit.ly/gPIkJ2 ▸ Top stories today via @indiawater @dcwater@scottishwaterpr @jsafonso@lsice1
Free issue of The Water Reporthttp://is.gd/l5d1Rs
The @CorkEnvForum Daily is out!http://bit.ly/hPfcHN ▸ Top stories today via @mlamonica @ftenergy@antaisce @think_or_swim
RT @medindoagua The *Água & Water * Daily is out!http://bit.ly/hRCisK ▸ Top stories today via @cwadarrell@gayleleonard @leakdetection
The @WaterUtilities Daily is out!http://bit.ly/gPIkJ2 ▸ Top stories today via @pvowell @epoxypaint@halmawater @waterwired@tmj_ks_util
WaSH
Not for faint-hearted @GOODGreat 3 minute Guinea Worm documentary http://is.gd/MpwPoJ
Guinea Worm Video: 'Foul Water, Fiery Serpent' - View If You Darehttp://bit.ly/xykosf
RT @cawst Biosand Filter for Technicians Official Releasehttp://dlvr.it/17V0sF
Water Quality
New App to Measure Poop in NYC Harbors in Real Time.http://is.gd/pcQPMZ
Reader's Digest: How Safe Is Our Water Really? http://is.gd/cXT5oz
EPA Releases Clean Water Act Pollutant Loading Tool.http://is.gd/m4nij0
Water Supply, Water Use, and Water Reuse
Via @PureWaterSD Cool interactive graphic of the urban water use and reuse cycle.http://is.gd/sl7zhN
Upstream in CA, folks worry that more water for #sacdelta means less for them:http://bit.ly/AqgBAD #cawater via@jfleck @aquafornia
MT @John_Sandford Scarce resources, espec water,identified by WEF report as among world's biggest problemshttp://bbc.in/zqGt1X
Duh...Probably neglecting GW! Via@theADIWAS MENA region home to 6.3% of the world’s population but have only 1.4% of world’s fresh #water
UT pipeline problems: water pipeline may need a new route in Utah County. http://is.gd/nZwPcO
Via @PlacesJournal Water & energy infrastructure in 'Thirsty Cities' #LA, #Phoenix.From@yalepress book by Austin Troy.http://bit.ly/ArOtLR
RT @columbiawater Can we finally fix what we do with #wastewater? via NYTimes http://nyti.ms/ywgnjP
WTF?
MT @gayleleonard Have an unhealthy obsession with #water? Hmm, telltale signs herehttp://bit.ly/ykbL9U & herehttp://bit.ly/zMpT9t
RT @bill_easterly For Best Insulting Picture, at the Exploiting Africa Academy Awards, the winner is ... http://bit.ly/yid3sc
All in! MT @MarGoH2O Water obsession support group forming now! http://bit.ly/A3utbc@gayleleonard crazier than I am! #YouMightBeAWaterGeek
Sens. Inhofe (R-OK) and Vitter (R-LA) block DoI nominee b/c of fracking, Gulf drilling leases.http://is.gd/Up2CJK (via@GaythiaWeis)
RT @mireyamayor "Thank god someone can finally explain what is effing wrong with women in science." -- Zuska
"Be careful when you fight the monsters, lest you become one." ~Friedrich Nietzsche
I received an email from Anna Warwick Sears, Executive Director of the Okanagan Basin Water Board,
to let me know about the OBWB's blog, Building Bridges, where she tries "...to explain to the educated public all the strange nuances and complexities of water policy and management." Amen, Anna!
An unrepentant WaterWonk, too!
Here is some information on the basin, including a map. Interesting that it's semi-arid.
From the blog's 'About' section:
Water is everywhere in the news. Globally, there are stories about aquifer depletion in China, Africa, and the Middle East. Water pollution in the Mississippi Basin is creating a dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico. Avocado trees are being pulled up in Southern California to reduce water use, while cities are looking seriously at “toilet to tap” water sources.
British Columbia, a land of lakes and rivers, is not immune, and there is intense interest in collaborative approaches to water quality and supply problems. This blog is about my unfolding experience running a watershed organization in the Okanagan, a sunny, arid valley in the southern interior of BC.
The title, “Building Bridges,” encapsulates the central theme of collaborative watershed governance and management. Everyone is a stakeholder. Everyone’s needs must be addressed, including the needs of the environment. Our work is to build bridges between
communities and user groups, between the present and the future.
Sears was also nice enough to ask if she could put a link to WaterWired on her blog. Of course!
There is good stuff on the blog, so give it a read. Here is a post that caught my eye, as it deals mainly with groundwater regulation - or the lack thereof - in British Columbia. Shades of California!
She's fond of aphorisms, like yours truly, but starts her posts off with one instead of placing it at the end. I'm using one of hers today.
The OBWB is big on video and has its own YouTube channel. Here's a cute rap video about water stewardship:
“Any useful statement about the future should at first seem ridiculous.” – Jim Dator
From xkcd via Demian Ebert.
One of my favorite quotes about the word 'sustainable' is from a former colleague of mine at the University of New Mexico, economist David Brookshire. Each time someone would use the word 'sustainable' (or 'sustainability'), he would sarcastically utter:
"Which of the 32 definitions of 'sustainable' are you using today?"
Amen!
"But now sustainability is such a political category that it's getting more and more difficult to think about it in a serious way. Sustainability has become an ornament." - Rem Koolhaas
Recent Comments