just back from carvoeiro

[pm]

Interesting picture. http://www.timeoffsailing.co.uk/images/PDRM0025.JPG
Why is the foreground green and the background brown Daddy?

Pictures from http://www.timeoffsailing.co.uk/Our_Base_in_Lagos.htm which is not that far from CVO in Lagos.

This is a resevoir near our house. http://www.ourhouseinportugal.co.uk/dry.htm Emptyish innit?

http://www.ourhouseinportugal.co.uk/June2005.htm
The well picture towards the bottom shows how far the water table has dropped. My next door neighbour would be quite justified in getting upset if a golf course was anywhere close. He has a well just like this which is his Sole water supply. Fortunately we are a golf free zone. I don't think the locals could pay the green fees...

[cowboy]

PM, you ought to tale a photo of that lake every year and keep it for a record.

The lake is my first real look at the situation over there (I know what lakes drying out look like, and your lake doesn't look like a happy camper).

From the looks of the lake, the weather forcast, and the state of your well, I'ed say that you, and the region as whole, has a serious problem.

The kicker is that even if it starts raining tomorrow, it's could take years to get back to "normal".
(it's a contest between water use and rainfall)

You are building a beautiful home, but you had better start thinking about your long term water supply.

[pm]

Quite so. Worrying that so many people live on such a superficial level / are fed froth by 'journalists' that they can't see a possible disaster until it falls on their heads.

Unless this winter is very wet we will have to drill a borehole and hope we strike lucky. There isn't any other choice. My neighbour has no choice at all as he can't afford a borehole. He does, however, grow a large amount of fruit and veg to feed his family (and probably swap for other stuff) which is irrigated from his well. I expect there are a lot of people in the same position.

[elle]

Peter..your pics on website paint a thousand words....
depleting lakes and dried-up wells.....
we've talked of the plans for the large 'Solar' power station in Alentejo.....surely (as someone else mentioned a while ago)...time now for de-salination stations?....plenty of sun yeah....but extremely low water tables..
Is nothing being done?Does no one in authoity 'care' abut the likes of your poor neighbour?

[cowboy]

Quite so. Worrying that so many people live on such a superficial level / are fed froth by 'journalists' that they can't see a possible disaster until it falls on their heads.

PM, from what I can see, and that photo of the lake tells me more than all the news reports combined, it is about to, if it hasn't already, and they just don't know it yet.

Unless this winter is very wet we will have to drill a borehole and hope we strike lucky. There isn't any other choice. My neighbour has no choice at all as he can't afford a borehole. He does, however, grow a large amount of fruit and veg to feed his family (and probably swap for other stuff) which is irrigated from his well. I expect there are a lot of people in the same position.

Here, my friend, is the problem....

Unless this winter is very wet we will have to drill a borehole and hope we strike lucky. There isn't any other choice.

Yep, you have no choice, but when you, and hundreds of others (who can afford it), drill down to the water table, and start drawing water from it, the water table is going to start dropping.

My neighbour has no choice at all as he can't afford a borehole. He does, however, grow a large amount of fruit and veg to feed his family (and probably swap for other stuff) which is irrigated from his well. I expect there are a lot of people in the same position.

I agree...at some point the ground water level will drop below the depth of his well, and he is going to be in real trouble.

Even if he could afford to drill deeper, the ground water wouldl only be depleated at a faster rate, and sooner or later, he is going to be faced with same problem.

Unless, of course, it rains.



Here is something else you need think about......

All those fires are stripping the land of it's ground cover (the first step in in filterintg and retaing the water that seeps through the earth and becomes "ground water".

Not only that, the top soil is going to dry up and blow away on the hot summer wind.

And when the rains finaly do come, because there is no ground cover, the water will make mini Grand Canyons of every hill.

Not only will there be flooding and more erosion, the water supply is going to start getting cloudy from the silt of the runoff.

Mother Nature bites hard....good thing we have tinned veggies.

[pm]

Fortunately it is a very sparcely populated area won't affect anyone except the guy next door.
I'm not sure what that lake does normally in the summer. It does shelve very gently so a 10cm drop in level means the edge moves a long way back.

England is not far off the same state, http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,15 ... 02,00.html is where I live. http://www.metlink.org/data/review.php?ID=946

Desalination is not without problems either. It is very expensive because it uses a lot of energy

[minx]

Mother nature bites hard........good thing we have tinned veggies

like it

[digger]

and you also liked "the tip of the iceburg lettuce" didnt ya mini ?

[minx]

yes I did Digger

[cowboy]

Minx, you obviously have good taste.

[minx]

taste buds all in good working order cowboy

[Sue Birch]

Just returned from Carvoeiro last night and we enjoyed every meal we had. The portions were so good, never had room for deserts. We went to AGale twice, extremely large portions, Lanterna and Antonios. We ate in those restaurants twice as meals are so good.