In November 2024, powerful gusts whipped across parts of the Central Valley. The winds not only knocked out power, but they also kicked up soil particles, producing a massive dust storm. The extreme weather event dropped visibility to near zero, grinding highway traffic to a halt. Scientists expect dust storms in California to occur even more often in the future, due to climate change and human activities like construction and agriculture. … The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act may have also increased the chances for dust storms. The act, passed in 2014, limits the overdraft of groundwater in order protect groundwater basins in the long term. It has caused farmers to take some fields out of production due to decreased water access.