drought

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Fire Tornado Strikes, Vanishes
 Fire Tornado Strikes, Vanishes 
viral video
Aug 25, 2010 3:50 PM CDT

Fire Tornado Strikes, Vanishes

Apocalyptic phenomenon hits Aracatuba, Brazil

(Newser) - It doesn't quite seem possible, but a tornado of fire has ripped through a town in Brazil, Yahoo News reports. Aracatuba has been caught in a ghastly 3-month drought, and brush fires combined with strong wind currents to suspend the fire in a column. The tornado left a trail of...

You'll Be Paying More for Bread Soon

Blame parched Russia, which is stopping wheat exports

(Newser) - Russia today said it would ban wheat exports for the rest of the year amid a brutal drought, sending prices for the grain soaring to their highest level in two years. The upshot is that US shoppers will likely have to pay a bit more for bread, cereal, or pasta...

Discarded Oysters Show Colonists Suffered Drought

Finding bears out old Jamestown histories

(Newser) - Amazing what poking through the trash reveals, even if it's a few hundred years old. Scientists studying oysters discarded by the early settlers of Jamestown, Virginia, have concluded that the colonists suffered through a horrible drought, reports BBC . The oysters were high in salt, meaning the James River where they...

Kenya Feeds Zebras to Hungry Lions

Carnivores in Amboseli National Park have been attacking local livestock

(Newser) - In a sort of zoological sacrifice, the Kenyan government is rounding up thousands of zebras and wildebeest to feed to starving lions and hyenas in the country's drought-ridden south. Some 80% of herbivores in Amboseli National Park were felled by the dry conditions, leading the hungry carnivores to attack neighboring...

Aussies Will Kill 6K Thirsty Camels Besieging Town

Officials to shoot 6K thirsty, marauding camels

(Newser) - A town in the Australian outback is “under siege by 6,000 marauding, wild camels,” says a local official: Record-breaking drought drove the thirsty creatures to trample fences, smash water tanks, and terrorize locals, the AP reports. To stop the rampage, the government plans next week to herd...

Tear Up Your Lawn
 Tear Up Your Lawn 
OPINION
Sep 30, 2009 6:00 PM CDT

Tear Up Your Lawn

Why do we devote so much water to a superficial end?

(Newser) - Matthew Fleischer has always hated lawns as wasteful and useless. But his hate is at a fevered pitch after reading about how the desire for lush green grass in literally draining states dry. America’s lawns and golf courses require about 200 gallons of water per citizen per day. We...

As Gov't Bickers, Drought Ravages Kenya

Squabbling government fails to prepare for the worst as 4M starve

(Newser) - While countries like Ethiopia and Somalia have been long associated with drought and famine, it's the robust safari destination of Kenya that's wasting away. Nearly 4 million Kenyans, 10% of the population, are desperate for food due to a lack of rainfall—some villages haven't seen rain in years, the...

Let's Start Paying for Water&mdash;Or Lose It
 Let's Start Paying 
 for Water—Or Lose It 
OPINION
Aug 30, 2009 11:54 AM CDT

Let's Start Paying for Water—Or Lose It

Solution to 'crisis' may be controversial, but problem will only worsen

(Newser) - You may receive a water bill every month, but you’re not actually paying for water. You’re paying for the cost of service, and this free-rider problem is contributing to the worsening water crisis that threatens to dehydrate the US, author and law professor Robert Glennon argues in the...

Addictive Leaf May Rob Yemen of Water

Khat consumes water, drains family resources, detractors say

(Newser) - It's no secret that Yemen loves khat—a leaf chewed to produce a mild, amphetamine-like effect. Nearly 90% of men and 25% of women indulge, and most families actually spend more on khat than food. The ramifications have been long chronicled, but Time points out a less obvious one emerging...

Hay Rustlers Roam Wild in Texas

(Newser) - With Texas caught in the midst of a brutal drought, a new crime is on the rise: hay rustling. Hay has been disappearing from farms, depriving cattle of much-needed nourishment, the Wall Street Journal reports. Stolen hay reports remain sporadic—the Journal catches up with one farmer who lost 1,...

Drying Euphrates Cripples Iraq

Turkish, Syrian dams, Iraqi practices blamed

(Newser) - Iraqis are suffering as the Euphrates river dwindles, a result of Turkish and Syrian dams upstream, a 2-year drought, and Iraqi’s own mismanagement of its water supply, the New York Times reports. Farmers and fishermen have been ruined and key grain-growing land desiccated. “The old men say it’...

Drought Turns Off Tap in Mexico City

Citizens counting on water trucks during shutoff

(Newser) - A record drought forced officials to turn off the major water pipeline providing fresh water to Mexico City, reports the BBC. The shutoff was scheduled to last 36 hours and affects 5 million residents. Emergency water trucks were supplying hard-hit citizens, but Easter weekend was chosen when many people leave...

Battered Australia a Preview of Climate Devastation

Country grapples with drought, wildfires, and heat

(Newser) - Pummeled by drought, wildfires, and heat, Australia may be offering the world a preview of what’s to come as the planet warms, experts say. “Australia is the harbinger of change,” says a paleontologist. Many say climate change has already taken a human toll in the 173 killed...

After Record US Drought, Bleak Summer Looms

Texas farmers fear poor crops, Calif. preps for increased wildfires

(Newser) - The first two months of this year have been the driest on record in the US, foreshadowing a summer of poor crops and brutal wildfires. Texas farmers have delayed planting corn and cotton, while cattle ranchers have sold off cows they can no longer feed. “It might take me...

1 in 10 Jobless in California
 1 in 10 Jobless in California 
Feb 28, 2009 10:43 AM CST

1 in 10 Jobless in California

(Newser) - California’s jobless rate soared to 10.1% in January, the highest in more than 26 years, the Los Angeles Times reports. Some 1,863,000 are unemployed in the state after 79,300 lost their jobs last month. On top of the usual culprits such as manufacturing and retail,...

Rains Hit California, but Drought Fears Remain

Weekend brings annual rainfall level closer to normal

(Newser) - California saw steady rain this weekend, but it’s still too early to know if the state’s water woes are over, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The recent rains brought the state’s total rainfall up to 90% of normal levels for the year; 2 weeks ago only 60%...

LA Moves to Ration Water
 LA Moves to Ration Water 
Feb 18, 2009 2:11 AM CST

LA Moves to Ration Water

Statewide water shortage means LA may impose first water limits since 1991

(Newser) - Los Angeles is taking steps toward rationing water for the first time since 1991, reports Reuters. The LA Department of Water and Power has approved a plan to charge a penalty rate for water use over a set monthly limit that will take effect in May unless it is vetoed...

China Battles Worst Drought in 60 Years

Beijing introduces emergency measures as country dries out

(Newser) - The Chinese government has released $44 million in emergency funds to battle a worsening drought that has left parts of the country drier than at any time since 1951. The drought has threatened wheat crops and livestock and portends rising food prices—at a moment when China is already facing...

Calif. Town to Cut H2O to Water Hogs

Customers limited to 150-gallon-a-day ration

(Newser) - A California town is threatening to cut off water to any customer who fails to stick to a mandated 150-gallon-a-day ration, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. "People don't understand how bad this is going to get," said an official from the oceanside town of Bolinas, who fears the...

Calif. Faces Worst Drought Ever
 Calif. Faces Worst Drought Ever 
Jan 30, 2009 3:45 PM CST

Calif. Faces Worst Drought Ever

With snowpack well below normal, state likely to face water rationing, higher food prices

(Newser) - With winter precipitation lagging well below normal, California officials say residents should prepare for the state’s worst drought on record, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. The snowpack in the Sierra Nevada—the state’s main water supply—is at just 61% of normal after an unusually sunny and dry...

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