Turkish Authorities Impose Water Rationing In Ankara As Drought Continues - AFP

[hatrack]

Ankara residents were gearing up Tuesday for tight water rationing after months of exceptionally dry weather depleted the capital city's reservoirs. From midnight Tuesday, under a municipal plan that divides the city of nearly four million into two, each section will alternately face 48-hour-long water cuts.

Ankara Mayor Melih Gokcek said in a television interview that the rationing would last for five months at the most, but could be called off earlier in the event of heavy autumn rainfall.

The rationing came after a municipal ban in May on hosing down cars, gardens and terraces failed to save enough water, with officials blaming the poor result on public apathy.

Gokcek said the city, which has seen temperatures soar to 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit), well above seasonal averages, has only 170 million cubic metres (5.95 billion cubic feet) of water left in its dams and reservoirs -- just 5.0 percent of total capacity.

EDIT

http://www.terradaily.com/2007/070731112135.mmi7ej7z.html

[cliss]

1. This is a sign of things to come,

unfortunately. This situation will probably continue so it's probably a good thing that the Turks are trying to figure this out now.

Water - scarce

It seems that the cloud layers are moving away from the equator toward the poles (both south & north). That's why we are seeing so much rain further north, as in England and Scandinavia. They are being inundated right now, so it's very lopsided.

Global mess, baby.