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Massachusetts just keeps getting drier

By adamg on Thu, 09/15/2016 - 1:44pm
Latest Massachusetts drought map

The weekly state drought map now shows that more than half the state is experiencing an "extreme drought."

Things have gotten so bad in Worcester the city is now spending $1.7 million a month to buy water from the MWRA, which still has plenty of water in the Quabbin Reservoir.

Neighborhoods: 
West of 495
Topics: 
Weather
Free tagging: 
Drought


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Comments

By Lunchbox on Thu, 09/15/2016 - 9:34pm.

By SwirlyGrrl on Thu, 09/15/2016 - 10:03pm.

Much of the spread of the Great Red Splotch of Aridness has to do with a number of the component indices tipping over the three and six month marks.

Still sucks though - the way the leaves rattle reminds me of living in very arid places. Some areas are verging on water wars between different types of users, and there is no clear legal playbook to sort these things out because this has never happened before!

By anon on Thu, 09/15/2016 - 11:17pm.

Haven't heard anything about this.

Can you be more specific?

Thanks for the info!

By merlinmurph on Fri, 09/16/2016 - 10:23am.

Like CA, where some farmers have a legal right to a public water supply over other users. It's fugly.

By anon on Fri, 09/16/2016 - 11:58am.

Haven't heard about anything close to wars occurring here. Unless you call neighbors reporting others watering their lawns a war.

By SwirlyGrrl on Fri, 09/16/2016 - 12:35pm.

Farmers have been irrigating rather than filling their retention ponds as usual. It is time to flood their bogs and they are pumping their neighbors dry.

Since we are civilized, people are just suing for now ...

Some communities pump from groundwater for their municipal supply and are going to court to prevent golf courses and other vanity users in the same well fields from wasting all the water. Legal actions are planned.

MA really has 18th century water management when it comes to groundwater.

By anon on Fri, 09/16/2016 - 8:20pm.

Just a few lawsuits?

Thanks for the clarification.

By SwirlyGrrl on Fri, 09/16/2016 - 9:54pm.

The end of the growing season may help, but not if we don't start getting rain soon.