Severe drought in Europe

[Jaga]

If you did not believe in global warming, it is coming. Several main rivers in Europe - France, Germany, Spain are drying out.

www.buzzfeednews.com/article/davidmack/europe-drought-hunger-stones

Eerie Photos Show How Underwater Artifacts Are Resurfacing In Europe As Water Levels Drop Because Of Drought
Receding water levels in Europe have revealed hidden and ominous treasures.

some old and sunk objects are getting recovered, see the pictures

[karl]

Jaga and Pieter

As with your respective states, goes also of Germany. For the Rhine is becoming an issue with the River down so low. It was at this level in 2018 with cause of simular issues as at present.

For with shipping and low water levels, brings up several problems, for with one issue of many, is the scowering the river bottom by prop wash which in turn washing up to surface unwished for objects. The worse issue is with vessel propeller wash giving cause of metal erosion of the ships propellors which in turn causes early maintenance problems that are very expensive for repairing. For the grit/sand and dirt washed through the propellers work like sand blasting against the metal surface.

For as one issue then follows the other, is the importance of ship transport of coal for up stream electrical coal fired generators.

www.euronews.com/2022/08/18/shipping-traffic-briefly-halted-on-rhine-as-cargo-vessel-breaks-down

Karl

[pieter]

Jaga/Karl,

Since the Netherlands is for a large part an Import & Export country, a transport country, and a country dependent on the seas, oceans, rivers, Chanals and lakes of the world and Europe, next to Airports, Sea Harbours, Higways and railways, this is a very worrisome situation. Not only for the rivers itself, the fish in it, the people who live at the shores of the rivers and partly live from the rivers, but also for the thousands of Inland navigation boats (inland barge transport, or inland waterway transport (IWT), binnenvaart in Dutch, Binnenschifffahrt in German, Żegluga śródlądowa in Polish and Flodfart in Danish). The containers, raw materials and goods that arrive on large containerships and commercial navy ships in the harbour of Rotterdam deliver their goods to terminals in that harbour, that goods and containers then are loaded on trucks or redistributed over various inland barge transport boats, who then go by the Maas/Rijn/Waal rivers to destinations all over Europe (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Czech republic, Poland, Hungary, Italy and etc.)





This extreme drought is a disaster for our agriculture, food industry, export sector, Horeca, energy and water supplies (less and less sweet water supplies for drinking water), vulnerablke older people and young people with lung diseases and other problems. It is a serious problem in the Netherlands and Europe Jaga and Karl.

Cheers,
Pieter

[pieter]

[pieter]

[karl]

Pieter

It would appear the news media is once again running around in circles wringing their hands with doom and gloom as with some others. There is nothing impossible, just not probable, but in this case, once at least some are putting their thinking caps on in the stead of a dunce cap to sit in the corner crying.

Certainly, we as human beings have not the power to fight mother nature, but to work with her. Yes, of course the very low water levels are an issue for water way transport, but this is not the end of the world, let others worry, but let us get to work with solutions:

trimis.ec.europa.eu/project/innovative-barge-trains-effective-transport-inland-shallow-waters

At least the above is one solution, but should not be the only, for also land is always available and will not disappear with wet or dry times, but is always constant. For as a companion to other solutions.

Let others wet their faces with tears, for if necessary we can always design wiping materials to dry their faces with.

Karl

[karl]

Jaga

My self was to view the url of artifacts brought about by the low river levels that you have very kindly presented. It is interesting of such long forgotten objects and ship wrecks surfaced with this drought situation. It is a wonder those objects had not caused shipping issues in past. With this, is some historic objects long forgotten such as the Hunger Stones, Church in Spain still to some extent, intact.

For as with the bad, the good is exampled by the house boats in Pieters Nederland that will not leak whilst resting on the dry river bottom.

Please do not take lightly my seemingly light heartedness of this extremely river low level situation, for also I do feel badly for others that are affected. It is just with such situations the level of concern should be for solutions over affected issues.

Karl