Amid an arid landscape, an aqueduct carries water to Los Angeles. Photo: iofoto, via Shutterstock)OPINION: The California storms that kicked off 2023, bringing flooding and record high snowpack, might seem enough to end a prolonged dry spell. But if history is our guide, we know that wet winters doesn’t always end a mega-drought.
A pumpjack in California's San Joaquin Valley. (Photo: Mark Geistweite, via Shutterstock)The Trump administration is to opening up 1.2 million acres for oil and gas drilling across California from the Central Valley to the coast, targeting eight counties — Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, San Luis Obisbo, Santa Barbara, Tulare, and Ventura.T he plan follows an earlier move by the federal Bureau of Land Management to issue leases for oil and gas drilling on roughly 800,000 acres in 11 counties.