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Saudi Arabia Launches Rainwater Harvesting Project to Rehabilitate 620,000 Hectares of Land

The project will use rainwater harvesting techniques to improve vegetation cover in nine regions across the Kingdom. (SPA)
The project will use rainwater harvesting techniques to improve vegetation cover in nine regions across the Kingdom. (SPA)
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Saudi Arabia Launches Rainwater Harvesting Project to Rehabilitate 620,000 Hectares of Land

The project will use rainwater harvesting techniques to improve vegetation cover in nine regions across the Kingdom. (SPA)
The project will use rainwater harvesting techniques to improve vegetation cover in nine regions across the Kingdom. (SPA)

The National Center for Vegetation Development and Combating Desertification (NCVC) launched a major project to rehabilitate 620,000 hectares of degraded land in Saudi Arabia, reported the Saudi Press Agency on Tuesday.

The project will use rainwater harvesting techniques to improve vegetation cover in nine regions across the Kingdom.

It will involve studying the feasibility of implementing rehabilitation projects in three main climatic regions, continental, coastal, and mountainous, and identifying the target areas, the appropriate rainwater harvesting techniques, and the activities to be carried out in each region.

NCVC will also collect climate and hydrological data, study topographic and survey maps, and analyze satellite imagery. Field visits will be conducted to collect soil and water samples, carry out field measurements and laboratory analyzes, and identify the drainage network of the main basins in the study areas.

The project is expected to yield several outputs, such as uncovering the root causes and severity of land degradation, cataloging existing plant species and their numbers, recommending suitable plant types for restoration and their optimal propagation methods, calculating the seed or seedling needs for designated areas, identifying ideal planting times, establishing the desired ratio of plants not good for grazing to those good for grazing, and determining rainfall patterns, water requirements, and areas targeted for cultivation.

The project will also determine the most effective rainwater harvesting system for each site.

The project is part of NCVC's efforts to combat desertification and improve the environment in Saudi Arabia. It is aligned with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030, which aims to achieve sustainable development and protect the environment.

Rainwater harvesting is a technique used to collect and store rainwater for later use. The project will use a variety of rainwater harvesting techniques, including making use of dams, reservoirs, cisterns, and wells.

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Forecasts Warn of Possible Winter Storms across US during Thanksgiving Week

A drone view shows a damaged area, following the passing of Hurricane Helene, in Asheville, North Carolina, US, September 29, 2024. (Reuters)
A drone view shows a damaged area, following the passing of Hurricane Helene, in Asheville, North Carolina, US, September 29, 2024. (Reuters)
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Forecasts Warn of Possible Winter Storms across US during Thanksgiving Week

A drone view shows a damaged area, following the passing of Hurricane Helene, in Asheville, North Carolina, US, September 29, 2024. (Reuters)
A drone view shows a damaged area, following the passing of Hurricane Helene, in Asheville, North Carolina, US, September 29, 2024. (Reuters)

Forecasters through the US issued warnings that another round of winter weather could complicate travel leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday, while California and Washington state continue to recover from storm damage and power outages.
In California, where a person was found dead in a vehicle submerged in floodwaters on Saturday, authorities braced for more precipitation while grappling with flooding and small landslides from a previous storm. Thousands in the Pacific Northwest remained without power after multiple days in the dark.
The National Weather Service office in Sacramento, California, issued a winter storm warning for the state's Sierra Nevada for Saturday through Tuesday, with heavy snow expected at higher elevations and wind gusts potentially reaching 55 mph (88 kph). Total snowfall of roughly 4 feet (1.2 meters) was forecast, with the heaviest accumulations expected Monday and Tuesday.
The Midwest and Great Lakes regions will see rain and snow Monday and the East Coast will be the most impacted on Thanksgiving and Black Friday, forecasters said.
A low pressure system is forecast to bring rain to the Southeast early Thursday before heading to the Northeast. Areas from Boston to New York could see rain and strong winds, with snowfall possible in parts of northern New Hampshire, northern Maine and the Adirondacks. If the system tracks further inland, there could be less snow and more rain in the mountains, forecasters said.
Deadly 'bomb cyclone’ on West Coast Earlier this week, two people died when the storm arrived in the Pacific Northwest. Hundreds of thousands lost power, mostly in the Seattle area, before strong winds moved through Northern California. A rapidly intensifying “ bomb cyclone ” that hit the West Coast on Tuesday brought fierce winds that resulted in home and vehicle damage.
Rescue crews in Guerneville, California, recovered a body inside a vehicle bobbing in floodwaters around 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Sonoma County Sheriff’s Deputy Rob Dillion said, noting the deceased was presumed to be a victim of the storm but an autopsy had not yet been conducted.
Santa Rosa, California, saw its wettest three-day period on record with about 12.5 inches (32 centimeters) of rain by Friday evening, the National Weather Service in the Bay Area reported. Vineyards in nearby Windsor, California, were flooded on Saturday.
Tens of thousands without power in Seattle area Some 80,000 people in the Seattle area were still without electricity after this season’s strongest atmospheric river, a long plume of moisture that forms over an ocean and flows over land.
The power came back in the afternoon at Katie Skipper’s home in North Bend, about 30 miles (50 kilometers) east of Seattle, after being out since Tuesday. She was tired from taking cold showers, warming herself with a wood stove and using a generator to run the refrigerator, but Skipper said those inconveniences paled in comparison to the damage other people suffered, such as from fallen trees.
“That’s really sad and scary,” she said.
Northeast gets needed precipitation Another storm brought rain to New York and New Jersey, where rare wildfires have raged in recent weeks, and heavy snow to northeastern Pennsylvania. The precipitation was expected to help ease drought conditions after an exceptionally dry fall.
“It’s not going to be a drought buster, but it’s definitely going to help when all this melts,” said Bryan Greenblatt, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Binghamton, New York.
Heavy snow fell in northeastern Pennsylvania, including the Pocono Mountains. Higher elevations reported up to 17 inches (43 centimeters), with lesser accumulations in valley cities including Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. Less than 80,000 customers in 10 counties lost power.
Precipitation in West Virginia helped put a dent in the state’s worst drought in at least two decades and boosted ski resorts preparing to open their slopes in the weeks ahead.