The Darling River in Australia has all but dried up, according to a BBC report. This is due to industrial-scale cotton farming. Fish are dying in vast numbers and other types of wildlife are dying out. The people who depend on the river for their livelihood are struggling to survive. The problem is being made worse by severe drought, while other parts of the country are getting floods. Global climate change is most certainly playing a part.
It is distressing to see the dried-up river bed of the Darling, and the plight of the people who live on its banks. We are heading for a global catastrophe if industries don't reduce the damage they are causing by industrial-scale farming and other kinds of mass production.
It's maybe not as well known as it should be that the Colorado River, which created the Grand Canyon, doesn't reach the sea in the dry season due to the demands on it. Neither do the Rio Grande, the Yellow River, the Nile, the Ganges or the Indus, apparently.
ReplyDeleteHi Gavin, thanks for your comments! Apologies for the late response - I really should check on my blog more often!
ReplyDeleteIt's very sad to see how humans are destroying the planet but at the same time it's really hard to know how to stop it from happening. I fear that doing small things like turning down your heating one degree or cutting down on plastic are simply a case of too little too late. The damage has already been done. All because of a few greedy folk whose only reason for being is to make huge profits at the expense of the planet. Sorry - getting on my high horse now! x