4 ms·

But the great lakes. Unironically. I mean, sure, conserve, but until those lakes drain, the US should be solid.

justinator 3y ago
As Buckminster Fuller so eloquently illustrated, it's not a problem with resources, it's a problem of distribution. Plus we pollute the Great Lakes like there's no tomorrow. I see no way around this except to continue to build large cities in the desert.
- eppp 3y ago
  If only we could use something to transport large amounts of liquids long distances.
  - justinator 3y ago
    Brilliant, I wonder why no one has thought of this before?
- reaperman 3y ago
  Lake Superior is now potable again. In most parts of the coastline you can walk out about 10 feet to where the turbidity is low and just go ahead and drink the water. The rest of the Great Lakes are unusable for many applications without processing the water first.
Ekaros 3y ago
Key point is that no uniform policy works on global scale. In some places you need to seriously limit use of ground water. In others you don't really need to care. And this can change over time.
- PaulDavisThe1st 3y ago
  There's almost nowhere that you don't need to care about ground water use. Acquifiers are mostly ancient systems that were at equilibrium before humans started pumping from them. Any use of groundwater is potentially destabilizing the equilibrium. What you said is true of surface water, however: there where you need to seriously limit its use and others where you don't need to care. Note, however, that even an island as famously wet as Great Britain in recent years has faced water shortage issues, not because the total precipitation across the whole island is too low, but because it falls in the "wrong places".
ptdn 3y ago
Yes, of course. Existing bodies of freshwater can be put to use. Counterpoint: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aral_Sea https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aral_Sea
14 3y ago
I took a pee on the Canadian side so take that eying up the lakes. How many lakes you guys going to run dry?
lapcat 3y ago
"The National Association of Home Builders, asked about the wisdom of building houses where water is running out, said the industry was responding to the demands of homebuyers who want to live in those areas."
PaulDavisThe1st 3y ago
You might recall that last summer (2022), the Mississippi became unnavigable for long stretches for boats of any significant size. There actually isn't a lot of spare water in the Great Lakes, certainly not enough to irrigate the southwest, let alone the rest of the country.
analog31 3y ago
The Great Lakes are protected by a treaty with Canada, that has strong bipartisan support in the neighboring states. You can't have our water.

As Buckminster Fuller so eloquently illustrated, it's not a problem with resources, it's a problem of distribution. Plus we pollute the Great Lakes like there's no tomorrow. I see no way around this except to continue to build large cities in the desert.

eppp 3y ago
If only we could use something to transport large amounts of liquids long distances.
- justinator 3y ago
  Brilliant, I wonder why no one has thought of this before?
reaperman 3y ago
Lake Superior is now potable again. In most parts of the coastline you can walk out about 10 feet to where the turbidity is low and just go ahead and drink the water. The rest of the Great Lakes are unusable for many applications without processing the water first.

Ekaros 3y ago

Key point is that no uniform policy works on global scale. In some places you need to seriously limit use of ground water. In others you don't really need to care. And this can change over time.

PaulDavisThe1st 3y ago
There's almost nowhere that you don't need to care about ground water use. Acquifiers are mostly ancient systems that were at equilibrium before humans started pumping from them. Any use of groundwater is potentially destabilizing the equilibrium. What you said is true of surface water, however: there where you need to seriously limit its use and others where you don't need to care. Note, however, that even an island as famously wet as Great Britain in recent years has faced water shortage issues, not because the total precipitation across the whole island is too low, but because it falls in the "wrong places".

ptdn 3y ago

Yes, of course. Existing bodies of freshwater can be put to use. Counterpoint: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aral_Sea https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aral_Sea

14 3y ago

I took a pee on the Canadian side so take that eying up the lakes. How many lakes you guys going to run dry?

lapcat 3y ago

"The National Association of Home Builders, asked about the wisdom of building houses where water is running out, said the industry was responding to the demands of homebuyers who want to live in those areas."

PaulDavisThe1st 3y ago

You might recall that last summer (2022), the Mississippi became unnavigable for long stretches for boats of any significant size. There actually isn't a lot of spare water in the Great Lakes, certainly not enough to irrigate the southwest, let alone the rest of the country.

analog31 3y ago

The Great Lakes are protected by a treaty with Canada, that has strong bipartisan support in the neighboring states. You can't have our water.