Mendocino water supply depleted by California drought
The Santa Claus of water rolls through this foggy coastal hamlet in a silver and white truck, bringing joy and relief. Wayne Jones refills water tanks for residents and businesses whose wells have gone dry. A bespectacled bald man with a majestic white goatee, he moves quickly and speaks sparingly. Amid Mendocino’s worst drought on record, people are increasingly desperate for the private water hauler’s help. Mendocino has no municipal water system. All businesses and homes rely upon wells — some hand-dug in the 1800s. But rain has been scant. Underwater aquifers are depleting. Wells are running dry.
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