Running on Empty By James Reed

     Bad news with some regions looking to run out of water, not because of climate change, but natural variability, and government mismanagement:
  https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/sep/15/parts-of-regional-nsw-set-to-run-out-of-water-by-november

“Parts of regional New South Wales could run out of water as early as November with data showing the worst-case scenario for the state if there’s no rain or government intervention. The projections from NSW’s river operator and bulk water supplier WaterNSW show without significant rain the first towns to lose water supply will be Dubbo, Cobar, Nyngan and Narromine with the Macquarie River forecast to run dry by November. The Macquarie River experiences an average inflow of 1,448GL annually but in the past two years has seen just 97GL enter the river system, the data shows. It has been described as a “critical” situation by the NSW water minister, Melinda Pavey, who told reporters in Canberra on Sunday the government is doing “everything humanly possible” to make sure the state gets through this devastating drought. The NSW government has committed $130m for extra bores and pipelines to reduce water lost in transmission, she said, citing a pipeline to extend Tamworth’s water supply by 18 months and $30m for bores in Dubbo. Australia’s longest river, the Murray, has been severely affected with 901GL of water entering the system in the past 12 months compared with its annual average of 5000GL. The data shows that Menindee Lakes – which is a source of flows for the Lower Darling and is a vital fish nursery – received just six gigalitres of water in the past year. Its annual inflow average is 1,387GL. The lakes sit within the town of Menindee which experienced mass fish deaths along the Darling River last summer.”

     I am no expert on water issues, and others are better to discuss what needs to be done here, but I bring this to the attention of city folk who take it for granted that they can have long showers, fill swimming pools and water gardens. If the government does not act with urgency, we will see ghost towns very soon. What a pity that the thousands of well-meaning souls who took to the streets in the strike over climate, were not trying to save our Aussie towns, but that is not something that trendy globalists push.