Eventos climáticos extremos nos USA

Extreme weather patterns plaguing US

Editor's note: See link below to comment on this article.

NOAA's prediction for the next several months offers little hope for relief from drought.

A persistent weather pattern that has seared the central and eastern United States has shattered heat records for both daytime and night temperatures and left the largest swath of "exceptional" drought in the 12-year history of the US Drought Monitor. Twenty-six percent of the land mass in the lower 48 states was included in that most severe drought designation at the end of July.

But the country experienced large variations in both heat and precipitation between regions, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Almost 9,000 daily heat records were broken or tied in July, according to NOAA — including 2,755 highest maximum temperatures and 6,171 highest minimum temperatures (i.e., nighttime records). NOAA found that just by plotting the location of each record a nearly complete image of the contiguous US is visible.

The January-July period was record-dry for Texas, New Mexico and the South climate region (Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Texas). The month of July in that South region was the warmest single calendar month on record for any climate region in the US.

Texas and Oklahoma had their warmest months ever on record in July and while recording nearly their driest months on record. Oklahoma's statewide average temperature in July was the warmest monthly statewide average on record for any state during any month. Texas also set a "hottest-ever" record for June. An article in the Aug. 22 edition of Time magazine says the state has received 6.53 in (17 cm) of rain so far this year, while its annual average for 12 months is 37 in (86 cm).

The little bit of water remaining in Lake E.V. Spense lies 120 feet (37 m) away from the base of the spillway (pictured here). The town of Robert Lee, Texas, (pop. 1,020) is allotted only 200,000 gallons (760 m3) a day of the water being pumped out of Spense.AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez

As the ground dried out and water demand surged, water mains popped at record rates. Houston ordered mandatory water conservation measures after experiencing 700 main breaks a day. At least two Texas towns — Kemp and Robert Lee — found they were nearly without drinking water. Kemp's system was under a boil order after main breaks and heavy usage drained its tank. Dallas exceeded 100 degrees F (37.8 C) on 30 of the 31 days in July. The O.C. Fisher reservoir at San Angelo, Texas, dried up completely.

The trough/ridge weather pattern that slashed across the US created the second warmest May-July on record for the South climate region. In fact, 41 of the lower 48 states had above-normal, much-above-normal or a record warmest July, a shift.

Meanwhile, precipitation was much above normal for most states in the northern half of the country. Three states (Kentucky, Ohio and Michigan) had record precipitation during the February-July period. California tied for its fifth wettest July ever. Reservoirs in Southern California were filling up — at 97 percent of capacity in the case of massive Diamond Lake.

The shift in weather patterns caused had unusually cool temperatures for the Northwest and West climate regions between May and July — the coolest on record for the state of Washington. Only seven states — all west of the Rocky Mountains — had July temperatures that were near or below the 20^th century average.

The globe experienced its seventh warmest July since record keeping began in 1880, NOAA reported. Neither El Niño nor La Niña conditions were present during July, according to NOAA. July’s Arctic sea ice extent was the smallest on record for that month since records began in 1979. The January-July worldwide land surface temperature was 1.40F 0.78C) above the 20^th century average.

Additional AWWA Resources

• Drought Preparedness and Response (M60)
• "A drought is coming: Plan for it now!" webcast, Sept. 21, 1-2:30 p.m. ET
• Total Water Management
• Climate Change and Water: International Perspectives on Mitigation and Adaptation
• AWWA Web page with conservation/drought links

Radiação de Fukushima é 30 vezes maior que Hiroshima

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110824f2.html

Fukushima fallout said 30 times Hiroshima's

Expert paints dire picture of decontamination zone, slams government for foot-dragging

By JUN HONGO

Staff writer

The Japan Times

Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2011

Video footage of Tatsuhiko Kodama's impassioned speech before a Diet committee in July went viral online recently, showing the medical expert's shocking revelation that the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant spewed some 30 times more radioactive materials than the fallout from the Hiroshima atomic bombing.

Kodama, a professor of systems biology and medicine at the University of Tokyo, used clear-cut terms to get his message across. His ruthless criticism of the government's slow response has been viewed at least 1 million times.

"It means a significantly large amount of radioactive material was released compared with the atomic bomb," he told the Diet committee.

"What has the Diet been doing as 70,000 people are forced to evacuate and wander outside of their homes?"

Despite a hard-nosed image, the expert on radiology and cancer briefly showed a softer side while speaking to The Japan Times about his two grandchildren and their summer in the Tokyo heat.

"A lot of people ask me this, but Tokyo is safe from radiation now," Kodama, who heads the university's Radioisotope Center and the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, said Aug. 12.

"My two grandchildren swim outside in the pool, and there is no concern with the safety of food at this point."

But his expression became grave when discussing the 20-km no-go zone in Fukushima, explaining that decontamination of such areas will take not years but decades.

There are places he wouldn't let his grandchildren spend time outdoors freely, even in areas outside of the restricted zone.

"Cesium has been detected from urine and breast milk from those residing in Fukushima Prefecture, and the cause for that is still not specified," he warned.

Kodama said he can't give an estimate of how many people will suffer from cancer symptoms due to exposure to radiation, or how long it will take for signs to surface.

There simply isn't enough epidemiological statistics to do that, he said.

But the government and scientists shouldn't be wasting time playing guessing games, he stressed.

"My theory is this — instead of trying to decide what is safe and what isn't at this point, we should focus on properly measuring the level of contamination in each area and on how to cleanse them."

According to Kodama, the Radioisotope Center estimates that radioactive materials released from Fukushima No. 1 amount to about 29.6 times of that released by the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

The group also found out that radiation from Fukushima will only decrease by one-tenth per year, which is about 100 times slower than radiation from the bomb.

The most difficult problem for the scientists trying to cope with the situation is that the Fukushima crisis is unprecedented.

"There are a lot of unknown (factors) regarding how this level of radiation will affect children and pregnant women," Kodama said, pointing out that the 1986 Chernobyl accident suggests the government should be on alert for any signs of bladder and thyroid cancer.

But apart from the aftermath of the Chernobyl incident, not many statistics are available to predict what may transpire, he said.

Still, that doesn't justify the government's slow response to Fukushima, he added.

For starters, the Diet has been extremely inept in updating laws on controlling radiation contamination.

While the Radiation Damage Prevention Law was created for handling small amounts of highly radioactive materials, specifically to handle accidents on site at nuclear plants, the Tohoku region is experiencing radioactive contamination in a radius beyond 200 km.

The situation calls for a completely different approach, yet the Diet has failed to update the prevention law.

That alone has been a major hindrance for scientists trying to diminish the damage in Fukushima, including Kodama, who pays visits to the prefecture every weekend to conduct decontamination efforts with his peers.

Another sign of a lax government can be seen in how local governments appear to be short of equipment to measure radiation contamination in food and other produce.

Considering that contamination will be a major problem for the next couple of decades, the central government shouldn't hesitate to invest in and develop, even mass-produce, equipment that can allow checks for radiation.

Some companies have told Kodama it would only take three months to develop a system for efficient radiation measurement.

Kodama advised the government to take two different approaches in decontaminating Fukushima.

The first step should focus on creating a rough map of the wider area and the level of contamination, possibly using remote-control helicopters and Japan's advanced GPS system.

For emergency decontamination procedures, each community should have a call-in center that conducts quick cleanups once a request is made from residents.

Kodama said the government has spent approximately ¥800 billion to decontaminate land after a mass cadmium poisoning broke out in Toyama Prefecture in 1912.

Contamination from radiation in the current crisis has spread to about 1,000 times that area, and the final cleanup cost is expected to be astronomical.

But both time and money should not be considered an issue, because it is the responsibility of this generation not to pass on the contaminated land to the next, Kodama said.

"I am aware that there are many opinions regarding nuclear power. However, I believe all of us can agree that Fukushima and the surrounding area needs to be decontaminated as soon as possible," he said.

The Japan Times:

(C) All rights reserved

part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dlf4gOvzxYc

part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDlEOmcALwQ

hit the *cc* button for english subtitles.

ar seco e alta temepratura coloca o DF em estado de alerta

15/08/2011 14h56 - Atualizado em 15/08/2011 16h08 - G1 news

Umidade do ar cai para 10% no DF e iguala recordes de 2002 e 2004

Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia iniciou medições no DF em 1961.
Às 14h, temperatura na região era de 26,6 graus centígrados.

Do G1 DF

imprimir

A umidade relativa do ar no Distrito Federal atingiu o índice de 10% às 14h desta segunda-feira (15), igualando os recordes de 2002 e 2004, segundo o Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia (Inmet). As medições do Inmet começaram a ser feitas em 1961. Às 14h, a temperatura no DF era de 26,6 graus.

Memorial JK, em Brasília, na tarde desta segunda-feira (15); cidade registrou 10% de umidade relativa do ar às 14h (Foto: Káthia Mello/G1)

De acordo com a meteorologista Aline Tochio, do Climatempo, essa umidade pode ser comparada à do deserto do Atacama, no Chile, que é considerado um dos mais secos do mundo. “Mas lá [no deserto de Atacama] a umidade chega ainda mais baixo do que isso”, afirmou.

saiba mais

• Contra incêndios, Parque Nacional de Brasília faz queimadas controladas
  
• Fogo destrói área de 35 campos de futebol por dia no DF, diz bombeiro
  

O índice de umidade é considerado crítico quando fica abaixo de 30%, de acordo com a Organização Meteorológica Mundial. Entre 30% e 20%, é considerado estado de atenção. Abaixo de 20% até 12%, é decretado o estado de alerta. Segundo o Inmet, o ideal para o corpo humano é uma umidade acima de 65% e temperatura de 24 graus.

O meteorologista Hamilton Carvalho, do Inmet, atribui a baixa umidade a uma massa de ar seco sobre a região e à elevação da temperatura, que chegou aos 28 graus no início da tarde.

O Distrito Federal já está a 66 dias sem chuva. O período de seca, porém, está longe do recorde de 1963, quando o Distrito Federal ficou 164 dias sem chuva.

Queimadas
O tempo seco favorece a ocorrência de queimadas. Nesta época do ano, o fogo atinge cerca de 35 hectares de matas do Distrito Federal – o equivalente a 35 campos de futebol.

Para detectar as áreas com maior potencial de queimadas, o Grupamento de Proteção Ambiental utiliza dois critérios. Um deles é a reunião das informações e das coordenadas onde ocorreram incêndios florestais. O outro é o índice de inflamabilidade calculado pelo Inmet.

A partir de dados como umidade relativa do ar e temperatura, o Inmet gera um mapa que indica os riscos de incêndio em todo o país. Os índices variam de "nenhum" a "perigoso".

Estudo de Planejamento e Gestão de Incêndios em áreas periurbanas no DF: Gabriel Zacharias, aluno do mestrado da UCB, e do IBAMA/PREVFOGO

O Gabriel Zacharias se propôs a realizar em seu mestrado um Plano de Gestão de Risco
(PGR) para a questão dos incêndios florestais na área periurbana do Distrito
Federal.
Para iniciar a elaboração do PGR o primeiro passo é a elaboração de
uma Análise de Risco Ambiental voltada à temática de incêndios florestais.
Segundo Kirchhoff (2004) a análise de Risco é uma ferramenta que tenta
quantificar riscos associados à determinada ação antrópica, dando base a
tomadas de decisões mais racionais e efetivas no campo ambiental.
Ainda segundo Kirchhoff (2004), a avaliação de risco tem início com a
identificação do perigo, que é definido como uma característica de um sistema
ou processo que representa um potencial de acidente. Neste estudo de caso
será trabalhado como perigo o próprio incêndio florestal.
Os procedimentos para a elaboração do ARA seguirá o modelo
apresentado por Kirchhoff (2004). Após a elaboração do ARA, como ferramenta
para levantamentos dos riscos ambientais, será proposto um Plano de Gestão
de Risco (PGR), para os incêndios florestais em áreas periurbanas do Distrito
Federal.
Segundo Petrobras (2006), o processo de Gerenciamento dos Riscos
Ambientais visa à ação planejada para o combate às eventuais situações de
emergência consideradas como significativas a partir da Análise de Risco. Este
planejamento engloba não só a identificação das medidas e ações, como
incorpora a locação e verificação dos recursos necessários, treinamentos
específicos e auditorias de todo o processo.

Gabriel dará um curso de brigadista para a comunidade da Microbacia do Córrego do Urubu nos dias 6 a 9 de Agosto, como parte da gestão de risco de incêndio nesta região. O Plano de Gestão de Risco de Incêndio nesta região foi realizado pela consultora Gisele Gouveia com o apoio do IBAMA/Prevfogo e da comunidade local.

A época de risco de incêndios começou: mapeamento de áreas vulneráveis e acidentes no DF

Bombeiros alertam para riscos de locais vulneráveis como a Oca da Tribo

Correio Braziliense - Luiz Calcagno

Publicação: 04/08/2011 08:00 Atualização:

A destruição pelo fogo do restaurante Oca da Tribo serve para alertar aos brasilienses que casas e estabelecimentos comerciais também estão vulneráveis às queimadas florestais. Uma das hipóteses do Corpo de Bombeiros é de que o vento tenha carregado brasas de um incêndio nos arredores para o telhado de palha do estabelecimento. Com isso, o espaço tradicional na cidade entra para as estatísticas de edificações, incluindo pontos comerciais, consumidas pelas chamas. De janeiro a outubro do ano passado, de acordo com os bombeiros, foram 1.642 registros dessa natureza (ou cinco por dia), mais que todo o ano de 2009 (1.405 ocorrências).

Ontem, até as 20h, foram registrados 45 focos de incêndio no Distrito Federal. Ao todo, este ano, o Corpo de Bombeiros atendeu 1.300 chamados para apagar o fogo que devora o cerrado nesta época seca. Desde 10 de junho, não cai uma gota de chuva no Distrito Federal. Ontem, o Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia (Inmet) registrou 21% de umidade nas horas mais quentes do dia. Na segunda-feira, o índice ficou em 19%, o segundo mais baixo do ano. “A expectativa é que a próxima chuva ocorra somente na segunda quinzena de setembro. Está dentro do normal. Ainda não dá para esperar uma seca pior ou melhor que a do ano passado”, disse a meteorologista Maria das Dores de Azevedo.

O major Mauro Sérgio de Oliveira, da Comunicação Social do Corpo de Bombeiros, recomenda a quem mora perto do cerrado que mantenha materiais combustíveis, como madeira, palha e panos, longe das matas. O militar alerta ainda que, na hora de construir, é importante delimitar uma distância segura entre a obra e a mata e dar uma atenção especial à parte elétrica do prédio ou da casa. “São cuidados que ajudam a evitar uma tragédia. Mesmo assim, precisamos lembrar que incêndios florestais se propagam, normalmente, pelo vento ou por animais atingidos pelas chamas, que tentam fugir e levam o fogo para outras áreas. Nesses locais, aconselhamos construções de alvenaria, que são mais resistentes às chamas”, explicou.

Perigo
Quanto à estrutura do Oca da Tribo, o major disse que não há problema em construir um estabelecimento de palha e madeira, mas que nesse caso o proprietário precisa de um plano de combate a incêndio específico para ambientes com alto risco desse tipo de ocorrência. No caso do restaurante, o projeto estava em dia, o que não evitou que o local fosse totalmente consumido pelas chamas. “Não é um erro ser de palha, mas o risco nesse caso é muito maior. Se estivéssemos do lado do local, ainda assim, a destruição seria total. É importante pensar na hora de construir. Nesse caso, os riscos são maiores e o proprietário sabe disso”, disse o major Mauro de Oliveira. O tradicional restaurante fica a uma distância de 200 metros da mata que incendiou na tarde de ontem. O fogo no cerrado e no Oca da Tribo pôde ser visto de várias partes do Plano Piloto, incluindo a Esplanada dos Ministérios.

Exigências
Todo e qualquer estabelecimento comercial precisa atender às exigências
de segurança do Corpo de Bombeiros. As determinações variam de acordo com o tamanho e a finalidade do prédio. Rotas de fuga preestabelecidas, extintores de incêndio posicionados, hidrantes e aspersores automáticos (dispositivos que soltam água quando detectada fumaça no local) são alguns dos itens importantes nas edificações.

Dez milhões de pessoas estão sob risco na África ocidental que sofre a pior seca em 60 anos, já prevista em estudos de mudança do clima

Ten Million People at Risk as East Africa Faces Worst Drought in 60 Years

WMO-UNCCD Action Underway

Geneva/Bonn, 1 August 2011. The latest famine in Somalia has put a spotlight on the urgent need to develop national and regional drought policies, according to the World Meteorological Organization and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, which are jointly leading the international action to address the growing impact of droughts.

Drought is expected to continue in hard-hit southern Somalia during August and September, as well as parts of Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya, according to the latest WMO Climate Outlook Forum for the region, which provides regional climate forecasts. The IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre (ICPAC) already called for preparedness for an ongoing long period of drought over parts of the equatorial region in its climate update for the Greater Horn of Africa on 15 January 2011.

Droughts have become more common over the past two decades. This is consistent with reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, stating that the world has become more drought-prone over the last 25 years, and will see an increased frequency of droughts in the future.

"Droughts do not happen overnight," said Luc Gnacadja, Executive Secretary of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), responding to the declaration of famine by the United Nations earlier this month. "The UNCCD joins the calls on the international community to respond urgently to this crisis. At the same time, we stress the need for effective, long-term solutions to the root causes of famine in drought-prone regions, such as implementation of drought management systems and measures to stop desertification, which means land degradation in drylands."

"We are moving forward quickly to provide integrated drought information to help decision-makers deal with drought, such as the one underway right now in East Africa," said Michel Jarraud, Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization. "Drought is a serious and growing problem in many countries. Adaptation to drought, desertification and climate change urgently needs to be mainstreamed in national development policies."

Mr Gnacadja visited Mr Jarraud at WMO earlier this month to discuss cooperation between the two organizations, following the UN declaration of famine for two provinces in southern Somalia on 13 July 2011. The two organizations have a long-standing partnership. Most recently they have championed the use of the Standard Precipitation Index, as a universal meteorological drought index to improve monitoring and climate risk management among countries.

"It's high time for UN joint action on droughts," said Mr Jarraud. "We need more coordinated action for monitoring and early warning systems that deliver timely information to decision-makers; improved impact assessment procedures; pro-active risk management measures and preparedness plans; and stronger emergency response programmes."

WMO is working with its scientific network to offer the best policy advice available on drought management. A WMO international meeting on national drought policies, hosted by George Mason University (USA) on 14-15 July 2011, outlined steps for countries to learn from each other to reduce drought risks. WMO is compiling a "best-practices" compendium to help countries move rapidly to develop their own national drought policies appropriate to their local conditions.

As part of this process, WMO and UNCCD will lead international discussions in November to build integrated drought information systems. To this end, the two organizations, along with Morocco's national meteorological service and the US National Integrated Drought Information System, are organizing an international symposium in Casablanca, Morocco from 9 to 11 November 2011.

World Meteorological Organization is the United Nations System's authoritative voice on Weather, Climate and Water

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification is the sole legally binding international agreement linking environment, development and the promotion of healthy soils. The UNCCD focuses on the drylands, which cover 41% of the Earth and are inhabited by over 2 billion people, and works to alleviate poverty in the drylands, maintain and restore the land's productivity, and mitigate the effects of drought.

For more information, please contact:
At World Meteorological Organization:
Carine Richard-Van Maele,
Chief, Communications and Public Affairs,
Tel: +(41 22) 730 8315;
e mail: cpa@wmo.int

Clare Nullis,
Press Officer, Communications and Public Affairs,
Tel: +(41 22) 730 8478; (41 79) 7091397 (cell)
e mail: cnullis@wmo.int
Web: www.wmo.int

At the UN Convention to Combat Desertification:
Yukie Hori,
Coordinator, Awareness Raising, Communication and Education Unit,
Tel. +(49 228) 815 2829
Web: www.unccd.int

Mudança Climática e a Nova Geografia da Violência

Against the Grain | Tues 6.28.11 | Climate Chaos

Christian Parenti. Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence. Nation Books, 2011

Residents of the Global North may be justly wringing their hands about
flooding, droughts, and freak weather, but the most worrying effects of
climate change are expected to hit the countries of the Global South,
especially those in the broad regions on either side of the equator.
Christian Parenti has reported from that vast area and discusses the shape
that climate-related social dislocation is already taking, as well as the
militarized plans of the rich countries to keep poor climate refugees out.

http://www.againstthegrain.org/files/atg/AtG_2011.06.28_Tropic_of_Chaos.mp3