"It's April 21st
and everybody knows today is Earth Day,
Merry Christmas,
Happy Birthday to whoever's being born.
And now I'm trying hard
to think of something meaningful and worthy,
kind of earthy,
to make everybody ask themselves just
What are we doing here?  
And what are we doing to Her?
I don't know...
What are we gonna do?"

So it's apparent that nature on planet earth is getting trashed by our own way of life and associated creature comforts. But since waterfalls are an aspect of nature, what does this mean for waterfall lovers like myself as well as the future of waterfalls?

This article attempts to look at how the very things that contribute to Global Warming and Climate Change are affecting waterfalls and the quality of waterfall travel. To the dismay of waterfall lovers, the future looks bleak because most of the world's drainages are drying up or have been destroyed. Major contributors to this disturbing trend are the changing rainfall patterns, soil erosion and deforestation, and the unnatural alteration of watercourses.

Evidence of the changing rainfall patterns worldwide are numerous. In Australia, prolonged drought (as long as a decade in some regions) throughout the majority of the country has resulted in increased occurrences of bushfires, the endangerment of the Murray-Darling River basin, strict water restrictions (recently, a level 5 water restriction was placed in regions of Queensland such as the metropolitan city of Brisbane), and of course the drying of waterfalls (especially in much of Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales, and Tasmania). In Eastern Africa, the climate change has already resulted in famine and regional conflicts over the dwindling resources necessary for survival. Mt Kilamanjaro's ice fields and snow caps are in danger of disappearing within the next decade, which will put pressure on the volume of major river systems like the Nile. The majority of locals could remember when rivers and streams were flowing when they were kids which are no longer flowing today. From a tourism and waterfalling standpoint, Victoria Falls could fall victim to the desertification of its sourcing drainage areas.

There are also localized effects such as soil erosion and deforestation that adversely affect waterfalls. Driven by economic gains (for example by development and agriculture), regions that were once covered in forests which in turn supported their own ecosystems and microclimates have disappeared. As a result, watercourses have become temporary and unable to support fresh water habitats and and surrounding ecosystems because water-retentive vegetation could no longer keep the streams flowing while maintaining the balance of the microclimate (which would've resulted in more reliable rainfall in the region). This in turn diminishes the bio-diversity of such regions. Therefore, the organisms who have relied on the functionality of these ecosystems have played roles in keeping the balance during the course of their survival would also disappear. Consequently, they could no longer contribute to the functioning of the ecosystem. In Hawai'i, overdevelopment (e.g. new resorts and homes), agriculture (e.g. cattle grazing and sugar harvesting), and the introduction of pests (e.g. wild boar, mongoose, rats, mountain goats, bamboo, etc.) have radically diminished the native forests and consequently compromised the fresh water systems in the drainages that have relied on the islands' windward rains. The majority of its waterfalls have now become ephemeral or nonexistent - such as Hi'ilawe Falls, Kaluahine Falls, many of windward Maui's waterfalls along the Hana Highway, and nearly all the waterfalls in O'ahu. In addition, the deforestation of South American jungles (especially the Amazon), which are due to developing and industrializing to meet the demands of the global economy are resulting in less rainfall which in turn threatens major waterfalls such as Angel Falls and Iguassu Falls (let alone the organisms that have relied on the jungle and fresh water habitats).

Furthermore, damming and water diversion have obvious negative impacts to waterfalls. Much of what drives this activity is due to the need for energy (in this case hydroelectric) and water. With the unabated increase human population, the demands for energy and water must rise to sustain the survival of the increased number of people (as well as to sustain profit). Thus, you can expect to see more dams, diversion pipes, hydroelectric plants, and ditches. In Norway, the majority of its power is generated from hydroelectricity. This has resulted in the sacrificing of many of what were once the world's tallest waterfalls such as Mongefossen, Tyssestrengene, and Ringedalsfossen to name a few. There are also waterfalls under threat of regulation such as Langfoss and Sanddalsfossen among others. There are however waterfalls that have resulted from time-sharing compromises between tourism and energy harvesting such as Mardalsfossen and Vøringsfossen. In Iceland, the Kárahnjúkar Dam project has moved forward and is in the process of submerging at least four major waterfalls. Icelanders are divided about whether hydroelectricity saves struggling rural economies or destroys the last wilderness left in Europe. Even in Hawai'i, in addition to their deforestation issues, water diversion is also rampant in order to feed thirsty sugar cane crops as well as to quench the thirst of its ever-growing population. This is best exemplified by East Maui Irrigation's ditches which has affected almost all watercourses on the windward side of Haleakala which in turn has made all but a few of the streams feeding its waterfalls unreliable.

Have Comments, Suggestions, Or Recommendations?