How Recent Droughts Will Affect the Future of US Waterfalls
In recent years, much of America has experienced extreme temperatures and widespread drought. These weather patterns not only affect how people live their daily lives, but, on a larger scale, they also affect the way the world around us works. With such a small amount of rainfall, many amazing natural wonders of the US are likely to not be around for too much longer. One type of water feature that has seen a massive negative impact by the lack of water is waterfalls.
How Waterfalls Are Impacted
The effects of climate change and global warming have put the waterfalls of the world in crisis. According to World-of-Waterfalls.com, many of the world’s water drainages have been dried up or destroyed as a result of such little rainfall and rising temperatures. This can cause changing rainfall patterns and unnatural changes in watercourses, making many of the world’s most beloved waterfalls become a thing of the past.
Yosemite Waterfalls
A cherished haven from the concrete and metal of modern California, Yosemite National Park is a wonder of the natural world in a silicon environment. However, earlier this year, Lydia O’Connor of the Huffington Post wrote an article about how the waterfalls in Yosemite National Park were finally starting to run again after the falls dried up completely in June and stayed dry until December, about a month after they would have normally began moving again after previous droughts.
At the highest point in this California drought, O’Connor reports that 55 percent of the state was classified as being in an “exceptional drought”, the most extreme level of dryness recorded by the US Drought Monitor. The effects of this drought not only hurt the tourism industry of Yosemite, but it also disappointed visitors who came in hopes of seeing the falls.
Photo/Ahzaryamed via Wikimedia Commons
Niagara Falls
Since the first ferry service opened in 1820, citizen the world over have loved visiting Niagara Falls and taking a ride around the harbor. But with the droughts that have been plaguing the globe, this wonder of the world may not be around for too much longer. Although Niagara Falls has not experienced the drought conditions that are now common for waterfalls in California, the Niagara County Weather Wire reported on May 12th that they are experiencing abnormally dry conditions.
How You Can Help
With little relief coming from Mother Nature to help with drought conditions, it’s up to us to do all we can to make this problem easier on our planet and our waterfalls. Conserve as much water as you can by turning off your sprinklers, fixing leaky pipes, and using less water in your home. By taking these steps to conserve water, we can help our waterfalls and other natural water features stay around longer for us to enjoy and experience.
Guest Author: Lolita Di
