Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Colorado River: First-ever shortage declared amid record US drought
Lake Mead is a reservoir formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, around 40 km east of Las Vegas in the United States. Formed by Hoover Dam on September 30, 1935, it is the largest reservoir in the United States in terms of water capacity, supplying water to nearly 20 million people and large areas of farmland in Arizona, California, Nevada, and New Mexico. As the lake has been below full capacity since 1983, and the water level dropped down to 35% of the capacity last month. Now, for the first time ever, a water shortage on the Colorado River was declared and the supply cuts were ordered due to the historic drought in the region.
Though not all droughts are caused by climate change, excess heat in the atmosphere is drawing more moisture out of the earth and making droughts worse. In fact, as the planet warms, droughts are growing more frequent and intense recently, especially in Southwestern America. Will California soon need to desalinate seawater like the Gulf states?
Read the article and learn about another evidence of climate change.
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