California’s worsening drought and mandatory new state water
rules are prompting Bay Area water agencies to beef up their
conservation staffs — the employees sometimes called “water
cops.”
In the midst of one of its worst droughts in decades,
Californians are being told to cut back on water use or pay a
price. Many Coachella Valley residents say they are doing
their best to comply.
From Pacific Institute President Peter Gleick’s National
Geographic Science Blog:
In the past few weeks, I have had been asked the same question by
reporters, friends, strangers, and even a colleague who posts
regularly on this very ScienceBlogs site (the prolific and
thoughtful Greg Laden): why, if the California drought is so bad,
has the response been so tepid?
This time of year, May Vu’s farm in Sanger should be carpeted
with blooming flowers and a bounty of vegetables. But a failing
irrigation pump and a nearly empty well have dried up Vu’s farm
and with it, her source of income.
From the Los Angeles Times, in the Capitol Journal column by
George Skelton:
So let me get this straight: The state government is telling us
we can’t hose down the driveway and should feel guilty about
watering the lawn. But it’s OK for somebody to pump all the
groundwater he wants?
Talk about mixed messages: While Gov. Jerry Brown is warning that
California faces its worst drought since record-keeping began and
regulators have approved fines of up to $500 for wasting water,
some Southern California cities are continuing to issue warnings
and citations to residents who let their lawns go brown.
The coastal region was cited along with the northeast corner of
the state in a study released Tuesday as areas that saw
significant increases in water use, even as Gov. Jerry Brown
called for Californians to cut use by 20 percent.
California’s
north-south water rivalry revved up Wednesday, a day after a
state survey showed that while most of the drought-ravaged state
modestly reduced its water consumption, coastal Southern
California is headed in the wrong direction.
California farmers are taking a huge economic hit as the
drought’s impact deepens, with crop and livestock losses
estimated at $1 billion this year alone, and an additional
out-of-pocket cost of some $454 million to pump groundwater to
partially replace surface supplies, according to a new study.
Researchers at Climate Central have put together a handy tool
which lets you see just how bad summers will get by 2100, if
global warming predictions are accurate and nothing is done to
stop the upward trend.
Back in February, pop superstar Lady Gaga got permission to fill
the pool at Hearst Castle for a music video shoot. Among the
conditions of the deal was her participation in a public service
announcement promoting water conservation, which earned her a
letter of thanks from Gov. Jerry Brown.
From the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s “It’s Our
Environment” blog, in a post by André Villaseñor:
Recently, I thought about water quite a bit while my daughters
and I were camping in Joshua Tree National Park. To survive three
days in the desert, we brought 15 gallons of water. We were able
to thrive on less than 12 gallons, including drinking, cooking,
and brushing.
California’s dogged drought will cost the state’s economy $2.2
billion and an estimated 17,100 jobs, but consumers will
largely be spared higher prices, according to a major study
released Tuesday. …
The U.C. Davis analysts presented their findings amid continued
Capitol Hill talks over a California water bill.
California’s agricultural industry is facing $1 billion in lost
revenue this year from the state’s worst drought in decades and
could pay about $500 million for additional groundwater pumping,
a new study said.
University of California researchers now expect California’s
drought to cost the state’s agricultural industry $2.2 billion in
crop losses and higher costs and wipe out 17,000 seasonal and
part-time farm-related jobs.
The California economy could lose $2.2 billion this year because
of the drought. That’s according to a UC Davis study that shows
the agriculture industry alone could lose $1.5 billion.
