14 October 2010

Watch out for rising water

| johnboy
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The ESA is warning of the risk of flooding tonight [although we note they’re in an alternate universe where it’s Thursday 13 October 2010]:

The ACT State Emergency Service (ACT SES) has called on the community to be
prepared for the possibility of flash flooding in the ACT and surrounding region in the next
24 hours.

“The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting heavy rain across the ACT tonight and have
issued a Flood Watch for the ACT and south east NSW,” ACT SES Chief Officer Tony
Graham said.

“The ‘Flood Watch’ advice is that local flooding is expected in south east NSW and the
ACT tonight and tomorrow,” he said.

“The forecast of heavy rainfall could mean we receive something in the order of 50
millimetres of rain overnight with winds of 55-60kph expected to be associated with this
event.”

If you need SES help call 132 500, and if you take cool photos send them to images@the-riotact.com .

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We already drink poo water.

Wot Pork Hunt said about growing rice in FNQ. Growing rice in the next thing to a desert is just ridiculous. Even if Asian long grain rice is cheaper, I think these days you’d find more people willing to pay a slight premium for locally-grown. Export market, well, eh – NZ would probably buy some.

And what Jim Jones said about how a bit of rain now does not mean no more droughts evah. I think I read somewhere it’d take 3-4 years of “average” rain (as in pre-00s) to make up the deficit of the last decade.

Captain RAAF said :

tamd said :

Well, where are all the people who used to write to the Canberra Times saying it would never rain again so we had better drink recycled shit?

TAMD, a lot of them can actually be found here on RA.

Five will get you fifty that they’ll be replying here soon with the usual dribble about this rain just being an anomoly and that we must think ahead and save water now. Trust me, there will still be people out there right now that would happily drink recycled poo water tomorrow if they were told it will save water for the future…for our children, remember, always think of the children!

Yep, it’s raining now so we’ll never have to worry about droughts ever again!

I don’t see what the problem is with recycled poo water. Everyone from here to Adelaide drinks it already.

Captain RAAF7:53 am 15 Oct 10

tamd said :

Well, where are all the people who used to write to the Canberra Times saying it would never rain again so we had better drink recycled shit?

TAMD, a lot of them can actually be found here on RA.

Five will get you fifty that they’ll be replying here soon with the usual dribble about this rain just being an anomoly and that we must think ahead and save water now. Trust me, there will still be people out there right now that would happily drink recycled poo water tomorrow if they were told it will save water for the future…for our children, remember, always think of the children!

Captain RAAF7:37 am 15 Oct 10

Since Monday, 61mm of anomalous rain Southside as at 7am. I’m tipping we’ll break the 3 inch mark before the weekend is out….and this is just the start peoples!

Pommy bastard7:31 am 15 Oct 10

Has anyone seen the new helpful information on the BOM, just for the innumerate?

Chance of any rainfall: 90% Chance of no rainfall: 10%

Chance of any rainfall: 40% Chance of no rainfall: 60%

Chance of any rainfall: 5% Chance of no rainfall: 95%

Repeat daily
🙂 🙂 🙂

Jethro said :

Hence the Cotter Dam expansion, which will increase the amount of water that can be held in the Cotter dam by something like 600% (not sure of the exact amount but it’s massive)

Yes the cotter dam is being expanded by a massive amount compared to the old dam, however that dam was tiny. So to compare you need to compare to the whole storage system, in which case it is about 20-25%. The reason for it is clear to anyone looking at how full the 3 cotter system dams are compared to googong.

Interestingly I note that the combined capacity is now over 80%. Thought that was the trigger to go away from level 2 onto the new permanent conservation system.

The reason we grow rice in Australia is actually because of our variable climate. Rice is planted every year so if it doesn’t rain you don’t have a plant or an animal waiting for a drink. There has hardly been any rice planted in Australia over the past two years becauee of the drought.

Permanent plantings and dairy may appear to use less water but they need water every year.

We used to grow rice in NQ but the rice up there is long grain and competed against cheaper versions in SE Asia. Whereas the more mediterranean climate around canberra let’s places like Griffith grow medium grain rice which attracts a premium on asian markets.

Awesome. Looking forward to the ceiling at work (and perhaps in the one in my bedroom) collapsing any time soon.

johnboy said :

because we’re willing to pay more for the water to do it than a cotton farmer?

Exactly. What value a litre of water? Surely I should be able to water my tomatoes in Canberra, then eat them here, rather then go without, so that the water can be used to grow oranges a thousand km’s away….

How come they don’t grow rice in FNQ where it rains 5 metres a year. The Asians seem to be able to grow it in their monsoon addled countries.
Why does the Aussie rice grower plant his crop in a region (inland NSW) which would be a dust bowl if left to its own devices..?

Captain RAAF8:36 pm 14 Oct 10

Flooding? Surely not……maybe Captain RAAF was right a few weeks ago when he predicted all this?

tamd said :

Well, where are all the people who used to write to the Canberra Times saying it would never rain again so we had better drink recycled shit?

It’s been raining bucketloads and confirms what we need is enough storage to catch it and spread it out over a 7-10 year drought period. Even Maxine Cooper admitted that average rainfall was not the problem, it was the variability and need to have more storage to tide us through drought periods.

See also Future Water Options Review, Water Security Program July 2007 (ACTEW has, it seems, removed these earlier reports from its website … why, one asks? because they show how stupid all this water shortage hysteria is and how the problem is man-made?)

We do NOT need water restrictions – we need dams which are adequate and not being emptied all the time to make Australian rivers (which do, and should, run dry) permanent safe havens for Europoean carp.

Hence the Cotter Dam expansion, which will increase the amount of water that can be held in the Cotter dam by something like 600% (not sure of the exact amount but it’s massive)

That being said, Australia is the driest inhabitated continent on Earth. Our government has just released a proposal for the Murray Darling basin which will see water allocations to farmers cut by a massive amount.

Why should we city-folks get to have half hour showers simply because we want to?

because we’re willing to pay more for the water to do it than a cotton farmer?

Well, where are all the people who used to write to the Canberra Times saying it would never rain again so we had better drink recycled shit?

It’s been raining bucketloads and confirms what we need is enough storage to catch it and spread it out over a 7-10 year drought period. Even Maxine Cooper admitted that average rainfall was not the problem, it was the variability and need to have more storage to tide us through drought periods.

See also Future Water Options Review, Water Security Program July 2007 (ACTEW has, it seems, removed these earlier reports from its website … why, one asks? because they show how stupid all this water shortage hysteria is and how the problem is man-made?)

We do NOT need water restrictions – we need dams which are adequate and not being emptied all the time to make Australian rivers (which do, and should, run dry) permanent safe havens for Europoean carp.

The BoM forecast for Canberra (5.50pm Thursday 14th) at;
http://reg.bom.gov.au/act/forecasts/canberra.shtml
ACT Forecast

Issued at 4:24 pm EDT on Thursday 14 October 2010
for the period until midnight EDT Thursday 21 October 2010.
Warning Summary at issue time

Severe weather warning for damaging winds and flash flooding for the Australian Capital Territory forecast district.

Details of warnings are available on the Bureau’s website http://www.bom.gov.au, by telephone 1300-659-218 or through some TV and radio broadcasts.
Forecast for the rest of Thursday

Partly cloudy. Winds north to northwesterly averaging 10 to 20 km/h.
City Centre
Partly cloudy.
Chance of any rainfall:
5%
Chance of no rainfall:
95%
Forecast for Friday

Cloudy. Heavy rain developing around dawn, easing to scattered showers by early evening. Scattered snow showers about the ranges late in the evening. The chance of thunderstorms until late afternoon. Winds northerly averaging up to 55 km/h, increasing to 60 km/h ahead of a west to northwesterly change 35 to 50 km/h during the afternoon.
City Centre
Rain. Windy.
Min
11
Max
17
Chance of any rainfall:
90%
Chance of no rainfall:
10%
Rainfall:
45 to 80 mm

Sounds like rain in early morning.
A check of rain radar shows a big band of rain from Alice to Adelaide heading east – as they do.
We must remember – we are still in a drought – any rain is simply anomalous.

I noticed that the river was pretty high at Coppin’s Crossing on the way to work this morning. Is it really gonna rain more tonight? Looks nice out the window now.

Ode to Joy………………….and they never, ever get it wrong, do they?

Still, I have some spare wood in the backyard so I’ll drag out my dusty old plans for an Arc ………………just in case!!

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