The short answer – it seems at first blush – is that there will be plenty of it.
PoO makes that observation on the strength of another headline on the Scoop website:
End Of Eternal Ice: Many Glaciers Will Not Survive This Century, Climate Scientists Say
That steered us to a report from the United Nations which advised us:
Together with ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica, glaciers lock up about 70 per cent of the world’s freshwater reserves. They are striking indicators of climate change as they typically remain about the same size in a stable climate.
But, with rising temperatures and global warming triggered by human-induced climate change, they are melting at unprecedented speed, said Sulagna Mishra, a scientific officer at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Large masses of perennial ice are disappearing quickly, with five out of the past six years seeing the most rapid glacier retreat on record, according to WMO.
The period from 2022 to 2024 experienced the largest-ever three-year loss.
The World Glacier Monitoring Service estimates that glaciers, which do not include the Greenland and Antarctica ice sheets, have lost more than 9,000 billion tonnes of mass since 1975.
“This is equivalent to a huge ice block of the size of Germany with a thickness of 25 metres,” said WGMS director Michael Zemp.
The world has lost 273 billion tonnes of ice on average every year since 2000, he added, highlighting the findings of a new international study into glacier mass change.
“To put that into context, 273 billion tonnes of ice lost every year corresponds about to the water intake of the entire [world] population for 30 years,” Mr. Zemp said.
Oh, good.
Plenty of water, then…
But whoa.
Let’s be mindful that many climate models and weather observations indicate increasing variability, intensity, and occurrence of droughts and floods over the next several decades.
Global Trends has warned that rainfall almost certainly will decline in mid-latitude regions, and all areas are expected to have higher evaporation rates because of rising temperatures, increasing demand for water for irrigation.
At the same time, increased energy and water in the atmosphere is increasing the likelihood of extreme storms and other weather phenomenon.
Global Trends is a publication of the US National Intelligence Council.
Climate change sceptics among our readers will note that the report we are referencing was published in 2021, before Donald Trump became President and got rid of all those pesky government science projects connected with climate change.
Moreover, the report carries a disclaimer:
This paper was produced by the National Intelligence Council’s Strategic Futures Group in consultation with outside experts and Intelligence Community analysts to help inform the integrated Global Trends product, which published in March 2021. However, the analysis does not reflect official US Government policy, the breadth of intelligence sources, or the full range of perspectives within the US Intelligence Community.
Taking those caveats into account, readers who dip into this report will learn:
Governments, industry, and civil society will face an increasing risk of water insecurity during the next two decades as demand grows and supply is increasingly strained. Moreover, poor governance and resource management, development practices, agriculture, and environmental degradation are also likely to diminish the quantity and quality of water supplies in many parts of the world.
And:
Population growth, lifestyle changes, development, and agricultural practices will contribute to an increasing demand for water during the next 20 years. Global water use is likely to increase by 20 to 50 percent above current levels by 2050, with industrial and domestic sectors growing at the fastest pace. Agriculture will remain the largest overall consumer of water, but the relative increase to 2050 is likely to be smaller than other sectors.
Fair to say, the headline which kicked off this post – What’s the future of water? – lured us to a much more narrowly focused report.
The Masterton District Council (MDC) was advising that on 21 May, it must decide the future of water services – treated drinking water, wastewater treatment, and stormwater.
These services are currently managed by individual councils and paid for through rates, but under the Government’s Local Water Done Well reforms, change is required.
The public have until 22 April to have their say.
The council’s proposal is to join with Carterton, South Wairarapa, and Tararua District councils to form a jointly-owned council-controlled water organisation to deliver the services.
The alternative option is a Masterton District Council-only approach to service delivery, taking into account new regulatory requirements.
For both approaches, the Masterton council’s consultation document sets out the projected impact each option would have on rates, debt, and levels of service.
Following consultation, the elected members of the Council will decide whether to proceed with the proposal or the alternative option.
That decision will be used to prepare a Water Services Delivery Plan which must be submitted to Government by 3 September 2025.
It’s the biggest decision Masterton District Council will make in decades, the press statement says – and councillors need to know what the community thinks before they make it.
Here we draw attention to the word “services”.
May we suggest the headline should have asked What’s The Future Of Our Water Services?
Bob Edlin is a veteran journalist and editor for the Point of Order blog HERE. - where this article was sourced.
But, with rising temperatures and global warming triggered by human-induced climate change, they are melting at unprecedented speed, said Sulagna Mishra, a scientific officer at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Large masses of perennial ice are disappearing quickly, with five out of the past six years seeing the most rapid glacier retreat on record, according to WMO.
The period from 2022 to 2024 experienced the largest-ever three-year loss.
The World Glacier Monitoring Service estimates that glaciers, which do not include the Greenland and Antarctica ice sheets, have lost more than 9,000 billion tonnes of mass since 1975.
“This is equivalent to a huge ice block of the size of Germany with a thickness of 25 metres,” said WGMS director Michael Zemp.
The world has lost 273 billion tonnes of ice on average every year since 2000, he added, highlighting the findings of a new international study into glacier mass change.
“To put that into context, 273 billion tonnes of ice lost every year corresponds about to the water intake of the entire [world] population for 30 years,” Mr. Zemp said.
Oh, good.
Plenty of water, then…
But whoa.
Let’s be mindful that many climate models and weather observations indicate increasing variability, intensity, and occurrence of droughts and floods over the next several decades.
Global Trends has warned that rainfall almost certainly will decline in mid-latitude regions, and all areas are expected to have higher evaporation rates because of rising temperatures, increasing demand for water for irrigation.
At the same time, increased energy and water in the atmosphere is increasing the likelihood of extreme storms and other weather phenomenon.
Global Trends is a publication of the US National Intelligence Council.
Climate change sceptics among our readers will note that the report we are referencing was published in 2021, before Donald Trump became President and got rid of all those pesky government science projects connected with climate change.
Moreover, the report carries a disclaimer:
This paper was produced by the National Intelligence Council’s Strategic Futures Group in consultation with outside experts and Intelligence Community analysts to help inform the integrated Global Trends product, which published in March 2021. However, the analysis does not reflect official US Government policy, the breadth of intelligence sources, or the full range of perspectives within the US Intelligence Community.
Taking those caveats into account, readers who dip into this report will learn:
Governments, industry, and civil society will face an increasing risk of water insecurity during the next two decades as demand grows and supply is increasingly strained. Moreover, poor governance and resource management, development practices, agriculture, and environmental degradation are also likely to diminish the quantity and quality of water supplies in many parts of the world.
And:
Population growth, lifestyle changes, development, and agricultural practices will contribute to an increasing demand for water during the next 20 years. Global water use is likely to increase by 20 to 50 percent above current levels by 2050, with industrial and domestic sectors growing at the fastest pace. Agriculture will remain the largest overall consumer of water, but the relative increase to 2050 is likely to be smaller than other sectors.
Fair to say, the headline which kicked off this post – What’s the future of water? – lured us to a much more narrowly focused report.
The Masterton District Council (MDC) was advising that on 21 May, it must decide the future of water services – treated drinking water, wastewater treatment, and stormwater.
These services are currently managed by individual councils and paid for through rates, but under the Government’s Local Water Done Well reforms, change is required.
The public have until 22 April to have their say.
The council’s proposal is to join with Carterton, South Wairarapa, and Tararua District councils to form a jointly-owned council-controlled water organisation to deliver the services.
The alternative option is a Masterton District Council-only approach to service delivery, taking into account new regulatory requirements.
For both approaches, the Masterton council’s consultation document sets out the projected impact each option would have on rates, debt, and levels of service.
Following consultation, the elected members of the Council will decide whether to proceed with the proposal or the alternative option.
That decision will be used to prepare a Water Services Delivery Plan which must be submitted to Government by 3 September 2025.
It’s the biggest decision Masterton District Council will make in decades, the press statement says – and councillors need to know what the community thinks before they make it.
Here we draw attention to the word “services”.
May we suggest the headline should have asked What’s The Future Of Our Water Services?
Bob Edlin is a veteran journalist and editor for the Point of Order blog HERE. - where this article was sourced.
3 comments:
Scare mongering as usual.
I bet my last dollars that the rain is going to fall just as it has fir millions of years.
Ask a geologist.
The last time I checked, the drinking water from my tap was not sourced from melting ice sheets or glaciers...
...I don't know who's drinking melting ice sheets?
Glaciations come and go thanks to Milankovitch cycles.
Humans have gone along on that cosmic ride and survived the last Glacial period of the late Cenozoic ice age.
Anyone who doesn't like being a passenger on earth is welcome to jump on the next rocket to mars or wherever the hell else they think they can survive.
Bob, I don't see the problem - Maori were all set to sort out all our water issues under 3 Waters - just give them that opportunity again.
After all, before Colonization they had it all under control with their storage, reticulated, and waste systems.
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