Thursday, December 3, 2009

Are Large Dams Altering Extreme Weather Patterns?

Hoover Dam

From Live Science:

Large dams may cause shifting regional weather extremes.

This finding is causing scientists to wonder if aging dams around the world can withstand the extreme weather events they may inadvertently generate.

It was nearly 75 years ago that scientists first speculated that large dams could vastly transform local climate. Weather results from the interaction of warm and cool air, and dams can hold vast reservoirs of water that can influence the heat and moisture of the air above them. Dams also can radically alter irrigation patterns in the surrounding land, impacting their climate patterns as well.

Read more ....

No comments: