National Water Replacement System The Ultimate Recycling Program
The idea behind my water replacement system is to bring water to dry areas and to relieve over watered areas of their burden. America should have a national system of pvc pipes(no material anyone could steal and "scrap"). The system would coincide with major highways and small main thouroughfares, We could drain water from flood areas and send water to where it is needed for crops and fires.
We would need catch basins and water screening centers. We would need pumps and A basically self-contained impermiable system that would be able to drain or fill areas in water trouble. I am not talking about drinking water( although that would be ideal!) but taking water from where it is causing problems and redistributing it to places that need rain. Watching these water flooded areas , people losing their homes and roads on the news, it breaks my heart because there are hundreds of places that need water!
This project would bring jobs, temporary and permanent, and it would be a model for other countries. We would be able to slow the natural changes that water shifting causes and keep our country more on an even keel.
Just think if you had 200 20 inch round pipes open when an area is being flooded and circumvent this water to Georgia or texas when needed?
If we had this system in place now the Lake ( Lake George iI believe) that is dry right now could be filled in a day or two! and the people would have their livihood restored for the summer. This dry lake bed will have economic as well as ecologic ramifications for years to come for the residents of this resort town.
We would recycle plastic to make the pipes. We would be more self sufficient.We would create jobs.
Another important aspect of this Water replacement System would be fire torn areas. All you would need to do is open the valves. The ground gets saturated and the firefighters could use less of the dangerous helicopters to transfer water and risk their lives.
This program would alleviate but may not stop altogether
Wildfires
floods
mudslides(dryer earth)
droughts
and Sinkholes!
I have to think if you do not take underground water supplies that there would be less sinkholes. If you think about all the man made changes drawing anything from under the earths surface,such as water, oil ,gas, there is a void left and that void will eventually collapse somewhere leaving a sinkhole. With a national water replacement system, I believe some of this shifting earth would be averted.
Just imagine if we could have drained water out of New orleans during Hurricane Katrina? Or we could have opened the spigots in California during the horrendous wildfires? Or right now supply Atlanta with much needed water during these water challenged times? Maybe shore up the dry crop land every year so our farming is more consistant and we wouldn't have to rely on foreign produce?
This Great Amazing Country should be self-sufficient and should supply our own needs first. Eventually this model can be duplicated all over in the countries that have no water to drink, wash, and grow food.
If you build and plan a community, ground changes would not occur as rapidly.New construction on stable land is a plus for everyone.
This my freinds is The Ultimate Recycling Project! If You know Richard Branson or Maybe even Mr. Obama, Pass this on as this project would be a longtime dream come true for me. I would be able to turn on the T.V. and watch the news and see a natural disaster averted and lives spared!
Norene Mary Tighe June 11th, 2008
Check out my recycled items on Ebay! My Id is capecodrecycle copy and paste
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Comments: 13
Norene
It does speak well of your caring nature that you want to provide what all people need....I just think going about it this way is a tad unrealistic.
If you know any water resources engineers, you might want to ask about methods of conserving water at the level of towns, cities, etc. and explore how you can make your voice heard...
Great idea.
Adding to you ideas here. How about another alternative? Filter, purify, and reseervior the overwatered areas, or just at least reservoir it for transfer to needed area, It may be more cost effiecient than running so much PVC. Reservoirs could be placed in areas common to insufficient water. And in areas common to wildfires, and such.
Some of the western states, common to wateer problems already do similar things. But these are good ideas.
~Thanks for sharing..
PVC itself is not particularly environmentally friendly, but you shouldn't have to work out all the details for an idea to be worthwhile.
There are, in fact, lots of building and architecture solutions that partly address your concerns, on a more local scale. For example, a modern, green design would not use huge slabs of concrete or asphalt for parking lots: these contribute to erosion by collecting rainwater and allowing it to rush off (with force) somewhere else. The modern design would have holes to allow rainwater to saturate the ground under the parking lot, preventing much erosion and some flooding. This water would then make its way to the water table.
The Central Arizona Project was an expensive program to move water via canals across Arizona. I'm not sure who worked this one out, but it didn't work well: you can imagine how much evaporation there is in the desert (and how this ends up concentrating the salt that was in the water to start with, from agricultural runoff, etc.).
Stop by my environmental blogs and websites if you want to discuss these issues with more people:
Chemistry for a sustainable world
Sustainability and the environment group
Keep the ideas coming!