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Impact of Drought - MEDC
UK drought: 1995-96
Background
The UK has a temperate climate and can expect to have rain throughout the year. Usually there is enough to supply the country's requirements. However, in the last part of the 20th century, the UK suffered two major droughts. In the north of England water was so scarce that a fleet of 200 tankers worked 24 hours a day, 7 days a week during the summer, ferrying water to empty reservoirs to meet the demands of people and industry.
During the period of drought farmland dried out and reservoirs were not replenished to levels required. This meant that farmers needed to irrigate their land, however the reservoirs were drying out. At the same time, water had to be obtained from elsewhere. This was both difficult and costly. Emergency measures had to be taken and people had to be encouraged to use less water
Short-term effects:
•· Garden hose pipes were banned and water rationing was introduced in some places, especially in the South of England.
•· Clay soils dried out. As a result, buildings were damaged as their foundations moved (subsidence).
•· Grass stopped growing. This meant that there was a shortage of cattle feed. Also crops dried out in the hot, dry conditions.
•· Heathland and forested areas became tinder-dry. Consequently, large areas were destroyed by fire.
Long-term effects:
•· Legislation was introduced to try to reduce water consumption by both domestic and commercial users.
•· Water authorities planned to increase water storage capacity and link reservoirs to make transfers easier
Possible ways to make water use more sustainable:
•1. Reduce demand
•· Installation of water meters in all new houses is now happening to try to reduce the demand for water and make people more aware of the amount they use.
•· Water efficient products developed, such as dishwashers and washing machines to try to reduce the amount of water used in the home.
•· Education of consumers concerning methods of reducing usage. For instance; placing a brick in old toilet cisterns to reduce the amount of water used when flushing the toilet.
•2. Increase supply
•· UK Water transfers schemes could be developed to move water from the areas of surplus such as Mid Wales, to areas of deficit such as the South-east of England. This can be done using existing water routes such as the River Severn to the River Thames.
•· More reservoirs could be built to cope with the rise in demand.
•· International Water transfer. Could transport water to the UK from France.
•· Desalination plants could be built to convert sea water into fresh water for use in homes.
D.Drake 2008
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