The Human Imprint

Mississippi river runs dry

Check out this report in The Independent.

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Mississippi river levels at historic low

Commodities fear as mighty Mississippi runs dry in drought

Grabbing Water From Future Generations

A must read by National Geographic.

Mississippi river levels at historic low

Check out this video about the Mississippi - captures all the challenges in the US at the moment.

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Mississippi river faces shipping freeze as water levels drop

Crisis On The Mississippi

Drought Drops Lake Michigan Water to Near Record Low

Scientific American reports that the water level in Lake Michigan is within two inches of its December record low set 48 years ago. The lake is one of the five lakes that make up the Great Lakes, which cover 94,000 square miles and straddle the United States and Canadian border.

Rivers No Longer Burn but Climate Threats and Runoff Still an Issue

Scientific American reports that when the US Clean Water Act becamelaw in 1972, the nation's waterways and coastlines were in crisis.

"Oily debris in the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio, had notoriously caught fire several times. The southernmost of North America's Great Lakes, Lake Erie, had been pronounced dead or dying. Fish in Californian coastal waters were so laced with the pesticide DDT that it disrupted the reproductive systems of brown pelicans, threatening them with extinction".

Forty years and billions of dollars later, rivers no longer burn, Lake Erie is much healthier and pelicans are off the endangered species list, but much remains to be done. Follow the link to find out more.

Huge waterspout forms off Batemans Bay in Australia

Check out this video on BBC News.

Drought hastened Maya decline

Check out this article in Nature.

Thousands displaced by floods in India's Andhra Pradesh

BBC News reports that flooding has forced almost 100,000 people to leave their homes after torrential rain lashed the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The death toll in rain-related incidents has risen to 25, with more than 1,500 homes damaged.

Cambodia approves Lower Sesan 2 hydroelectric dam

Cambodia's government has approved a controversial hydroelectric dam on a tributary of the Mekong River.

"The joint venture involves Cambodian, Chinese and Vietnamese investment of $781m (£488m) and is due to be completed within five years. The project in northern Stung Treng province is known as Lower Sesan 2. Environmental campaigners say the dam will damage the river's biodiversity and devastate the livelihoods and homes of thousands of people. A government statement said the approval came after eight years of study into the possible environmental and social consequences".

Source: BBC News

Cyclone Nilam buffets Indian coast after Sri Lanka flooding

Check out this report on BBC News