In article ,
Michael Percy wrote:
Phred wrote:

I might add that right at the moment a lot of the "wet" country is
actually drought stricken with dairy production down 30% and falling
and the usual "lush green pastures" would be a fire hazard if there
was any fuel left to burn! It's the driest year in over 80 years, or
even since local records began in many places around here.

It is a remarkable drought indeed you are having, Phred. With a record large
area hit by it, and at the same time with a record overall severity
http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/climate/rainmaps.cgi

Somewhat ironically, the obligate irrigation farmers here aren't
feeling the pinch as yet (the local dam still has a 12-month supply)
but many of the "opportunists" in the wetter parts who have been
relying on streams and aquifers for their supplementary irrigation
have been banned from pumping until things improve.

Your 'local dam' would seem to be the ross river dam or burdekin.
http://www.nqwater.com.au/assets_ross.htm

Close, but not far enough north! :-)

Actually, "ours" is quite a small one (Tinaroo) but as its catchment
is largely in what we thought of as the "wet tropics", it's pretty
reliable. It was designed to see out three tobacco seasons in the
absence of any significant inflow. But Govt policy has killed off
tobacco and farmers have switched to sugarcane and various
horticultural tree crops in recent times, so it remains to be seen
just how reliable it will be under these substantially altered needs.

I see from a link at that BOM rainmaps site you mentioned that our
local area is one of 'Severe Deficiency' for the period Dec01-Oct02
(rainfalls in the lowest 5% of historical totals).
http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/drought/drought.shtml
(We've "only" been in 'Serious Deficiency' for the past 7 months.

Download the map at
ftp://ftp.bom.gov.au/anon/home/ncc/w...ur/latest2.gif
for a larger view of Oz drought status for the period 1Dec01-31Oct02.

Can't find an equivalent "official" link to yours for Tinaroo, but
this one has most of the general info about it anyway:
http://www.tinarooeec.qld.edu.au/Kids/tindam.html#top

I rather like this bit:
quoting
Flood Mitigation
Although not designed as a flood mitigation scheme, the flood storage
available in the dam at the start of the wet season can be a
significant factor in reducing flooding in the Barron Delta. This was
demonstrated during the cyclone of March 1967, when in one day 432
millimetres of flood rain fell in the dam catchment. The storage level
was low and no water was passed downstream for four days, considerably
reducing the flooding in the Delta during that critical period.
/quoting

Following the 1965/66 drought and a poor 1966/67 wet season, people
were becoming a bit concerned about supply. Then came the "March '67"
rain event which filled the thing virtually overnight and passed into
folklore hereabouts.


Cheers, Phred.

--
LID

"Michael Percy" wrote in message
...
Phred wrote:

In article ,
Michael Percy wrote:
Your 'local dam' would seem to be the ross river dam or burdekin.
http://www.nqwater.com.au/assets_ross.htm

Close, but not far enough north! :-)

It was your remark that the real tropical rain was north of you, I missed
the significance of tropical, read it as the 'real' rain (like about
Cairns) was north of you.

..
Download the map at
ftp://ftp.bom.gov.au/anon/home/ncc/w...ur/latest2.gif
for a larger view of Oz drought status for the period 1Dec01-31Oct02.

Thank you! I was wondering how the f. the 'avg.' severity could be as low
as about the 10th decile over such a large area. That map sure explains
that, you have such large areas even more droughtridden. Funny, how
thoughts arrange themselves, from the map I got to thinking of a bunch
of possums who tamed me one night in a coastal forest south of
Wollongong ....I find myself being happy to see -their- area is not
among the worst hit ...ah, it's silly isn't it.

Can't find an equivalent "official" link to yours for Tinaroo, but
this one has most of the general info about it anyway:
http://www.tinarooeec.qld.edu.au/Kids/tindam.html#top

I rather like this bit:
quoting
Flood Mitigation
Although not designed as a flood mitigation scheme, the flood storage
available in the dam at the start of the wet season can be a
significant factor in reducing flooding in the Barron Delta.

Nah, flooding is hardly the concern right now. I hear over in
Switzerland, they have just had a rainfall event comparable to that
flood you had Tinaroo buffering you through, some 20", only the Swiss
had not a dam

I wonder how much water is evaporating from the Tinaroo dam now every
day, I imagine one can almost see the water level falling.

There is a lake north of Altus Okalahoma Lugrut Lake built in the 30's as a
irrigation project on the North Fork of Red River. Acutely it is the main
stream of the river but it was incontinent to the federal government so they
declared the Prairie Dog Town Fork of Red River to be the main stream adding
three counties to Oklahoma and taking them away from the Republic of Texas.
The lake has been full 7 time since it was built and in the summer it drops
3 feet a day when they are irrigating out of it. It makes for a very
productive fishery. Before they introduce walleye and stripped bass it was
one of the best black bass lake in the state. Now it a great walleye lake.
They are better eating but not as much fun catching.

Gordon.

"Michael Percy" wrote in message
...
Gordon Couger wrote:

There is a lake north of Altus Okalahoma Lugrut Lake built in the 30's
as a irrigation project on the North Fork of Red River. Acutely it is
the main stream of the river but it was incontinent to the federal
government so they declared the Prairie Dog Town Fork of Red River to
be the main stream adding three counties to Oklahoma and taking them
away from the Republic of Texas.

How it can be still in dispute after hundreds of years which is the main
stream is beyond me.

There is not dispute it is settled by law. It is just settled on the wrong
fork. The one continent for the government at the time.

The dispute is the wording of the Lousing purchase. "The land to the south
cut bank of Red river". In all other leangle stuff in the US the center of
the steam is the dividing line. Does that mean the south side of the water
or the high bank? There is a strip of Bureau of land Management land south
of the center of the river and north of the high bank. The Texas game warden
won't set foot off the high bank and the Oklahoma one won't cross the river.
Other law enforcement will follow in pursuit.

We are talking about a strip of land about a half mile wide and not often of
much question except if some on finds oil on it or in the case of commercial
minnow seining the game warden has been made look stupid too many times.
Oklahoma deeds read to the center of the river and Texas deeds are based on
the Lousina Purchase.
Texas form a republic in 1830 or 40 something and Became a state shortly
there after Oklahoma became a state in 1907. The inconsistency never came up
until oil was found on some of the land of unclear ownership.

Gordon