Andy McKenzie, a groundwater scientist at the British Geological Survey, told Sky News that even if the rain stopped today, so much water is soaking through the soil that levels are likely to keep rising for another two months. The risk of flooding could remain high until May, he said.
According to the data from the British Geological Survey nine of the 14 boreholes in southern England are now showing “exceptionally high levels”. At Chilgrove House in Sussex the groundwater level at the end of January beat records going back 179 years.
And at a borehole at The Well House Inn in Surrey the extraordinary rainfall has pushed up the water table by 20 metres in the last two weeks. The British Geological Survey estimates 1.6 million properties in England and Wales are at risk of groundwater flooding.
And groundwater flooding was projected by scientists. ClimateCentral reported in 2012.
In a report released Sunday in Nature Climate Change, Kolja Rotzoll and Charles Fletcher predict that in some areas, freshwater bubbling up from underground could more than double the flooding caused by intruding seas alone.
UK boreholes used to measure the height of the water table are overflowing in many areas, with the highest levels ever recorded.
David Cameron: climate change a ‘serious threat’ http://t.co/vBaZMaTmAy
— ClimateState (@climatestate) February 11, 2014
Related
UK Flooding and the Science of Climate Change
Flooding in the UK
‘Most Exceptional Period Of Rainfall In 248 Years’ In The U.K. Is ‘Consistent’ With Climate Change
Volunteer army set up to examine archaeological sites uncovered by floods
Giant Waves Consuming Ancient UK Coastal Landmarks
Some of Wales’ coastal towns ‘face being abandoned’
Climate change means we will have to get used to flooding
ELDERLY people living in those submerge houses will GO MENTAL — as crazy
as the INDIANS in BRITAIN
People in California would love to receive this excess water at the moment,
since in contrast they are deeper and deeper in drought.
I think the polar vortex in North America could have pushed the low
pressure systems out into the Atlantic causing unusually high amounts of
precipitation and winds in Europe. The world governments will defend global
warming since all their newest agendas are geared towards so called global
warming. Carbon tax being one of them. I could be wrong but it’s just my
opinion.
The fossil fuel industry is killing the earth. Stop Them!
(original article:
http://news.sky.com/story/1209623/uk-floods-could-last-months-scientist-warns)
Global warming is increasing the amount of precipitation at northern
latitudes, suck as the UK, Canada, northern Russia, and Scandinavia. Zhange
et al. (2013) write:
“Observations and climate change projections forced by greenhouse gas
emissions have indicated a wetting trend in northern high latitudes,
evidenced by increasing Eurasian Arctic river discharges. The increase in
river discharge has accelerated in the latest decade and an unprecedented,
record high discharge occurred in 2007 along with an extreme loss of Arctic
summer sea-ice cover.”
http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/v3/n1/pdf/nclimate1631.pdf Or, for
the free Zhange et al. (2007) paper in
full: ftp://ftp.cira.colostate.edu/ftp/Raschke/Book/Kidder/BOOK-CSU/Chapter%209%20-%20Precipitation/Zhang-Nat07-Precip.pdf
Interestingly, similar hydraulics as shown here are at work in the thick
polar ice sheets; because water is heavier than ice, it will, if it can,
hydraulically fracture its way from the melting surface through the ice
sheet all the way to the base where it accumulates, freezes, and/or flows
in directions depending on pressure gradients from the overhead ice.
Near the edges of the thick ice sheets, when enough water accumulates
underneath the ice, especially if the water is in a sheet formation as
opposed to discrete channels, water at the base (basal water) hydraulically
jacks up the ice overhead, and the ice surges towards the ocean. In the
surging process, high water pressure beneath the ice sheet gets relieved as
some water escapes from the edges of the ice sheet and some gets relocated
elsewhere beneath the ice, thus lowering the surging overhead ice back onto
the high points of the bedrock and mud, and thus stopping the surge for the
time being.
(original article:
http://news.sky.com/story/1209623/uk-floods-could-last-months-scientist-warns)
Global warming is increasing the amount of precipitation at northern
latitudes, suck as the UK, Canada, northern Russia, and Scandinavia. Zhange
et al. (2013) write:
“Observations and climate change projections forced by greenhouse gas
emissions have indicated a wetting trend in northern high latitudes,
evidenced by increasing Eurasian Arctic river discharges. The increase in
river discharge has accelerated in the latest decade and an unprecedented,
record high discharge occurred in 2007 along with an extreme loss of Arctic
summer sea-ice cover.”
http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/v3/n1/pdf/nclimate1631.pdf Or, for
the free Zhange et al. (2007) paper in
full: ftp://ftp.cira.colostate.edu/ftp/Raschke/Book/Kidder/BOOK-CSU/Chapter%209%20-%20Precipitation/Zhang-Nat07-Precip.pdf
Interestingly, similar hydraulics as shown here are at work in the thick
polar ice sheets; because water is heavier than ice, it will, if it can,
hydraulically fracture its way from the melting surface through the ice
sheet all the way to the base where it accumulates, freezes, and/or flows
in directions depending on pressure gradients from the overhead ice.
Near the edges of the thick ice sheets, when enough water accumulates
underneath the ice, especially if the water is in a sheet formation as
opposed to discrete channels, water at the base (basal water) hydraulically
jacks up the ice overhead, and the ice surges towards the ocean. In the
surging process, high water pressure beneath the ice sheet gets relieved as
some water escapes from the edges of the ice sheet and some gets relocated
elsewhere beneath the ice, thus lowering the surging overhead ice back onto
the high points of the bedrock and mud, and thus stopping the surge for the
time being.
(original article:
http://news.sky.com/story/1209623/uk-floods-could-last-months-scientist-warns)
Global warming is increasing the amount of precipitation at northern
latitudes, suck as the UK, Canada, northern Russia, and Scandinavia. Zhange
et al. (2013) write:
“Observations and climate change projections forced by greenhouse gas
emissions have indicated a wetting trend in northern high latitudes,
evidenced by increasing Eurasian Arctic river discharges. The increase in
river discharge has accelerated in the latest decade and an unprecedented,
record high discharge occurred in 2007 along with an extreme loss of Arctic
summer sea-ice cover.”
http://www.nature.com/nclimate/journal/v3/n1/pdf/nclimate1631.pdf Or, for
the free Zhange et al. (2007) paper in full:
ftp://ftp.cira.colostate.edu/ftp/Raschke/Book/Kidder/BOOK-CSU/Chapter%209%20-%20Precipitation/Zhang-Nat07-Precip.pdf
Interestingly, similar hydraulics as shown here are at work in the thick
polar ice sheets; because water is heavier than ice, it will, if it can,
hydraulically fracture its way from the melting surface through the ice
sheet all the way to the base where it accumulates, freezes, and/or flows
in directions depending on pressure gradients from the overhead ice.
Near the edges of the thick ice sheets, when enough water accumulates
underneath the ice, especially if the water is in a sheet formation as
opposed to discrete channels, water at the base (basal water) hydraulically
jacks up the ice overhead, and the ice surges towards the ocean. In the
surging process, high water pressure beneath the ice sheet gets relieved as
some water escapes from the edges of the ice sheet and some gets relocated
elsewhere beneath the ice, thus lowering the surging overhead ice back onto
the high points of the bedrock and mud, and thus stopping the surge for the
time being.
Another great video about this issue. Thanks for helping spread the info.