A young girl plays in the rain. (Photo: Falon Koontz)Despite the fierce rains and deadly mudslides that have struck California, water officials are concerned about the possibility of a renewed drought. But they caution that is too early to tell.
Karla Nemeth, newly named director of the state Department of Water Resources. (Photo: Video screen capture)Karla Nemeth, a veteran water official and a ranking member of the Brown administration, was named the new director of the state Department of Water Resources, part of a major shakeup at the agency, officials said Tuesday.
A woman fills nher bottle with spring water flowing over rocks. (Photo: Wollertz, via Shutterstock)For the past 5 years, parched Californians suffered through the state’s worst drought. Wildfires, reduced crop production, environmental damage, cities running dry – all were part of the misery. But with the drought now broken by an unprecedented wet season and snowpack, it’s possible to look back and see the positives, especially when it comes to the state budget.
Localized flooding on the American River near Folsom Dam. (Photo: David GreitzerMost Californians are – finally – out of the drought, but the record-setting rains have not washed away emergency conditions for all residents. Gov. Jerry Brown’s April 7 executive order lifted the drought state of emergency for 54 of California’s 58 counties.
A man shielded against the rain looks across L.A. from the Hollywood Hills. (Photo: Shutterstock)Despite the torrential rains of the last few weeks, experts say it’s too early to tell whether California’s interminable drought is really over. It will be necessary to monitor rainfall through at least March to make an assessment.
An aerial view of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. (Photo: Jeffrey T. Kreulen)Gov. Jerry Brown’s massive Delta tunnels project is moving forward through a series of state and federal environmental reviews. But it still faces an array of major hurdles including public opposition, financing and approvals by state water contractors. The $15 billion project, known as California Water Fix, is on track to finish the environmental reviews by the end of the year.
Oroville Lake. (Photo by Pauk, via Wikipedia)California’s combination of climate, native ecosystems, and human uses makes water management inherently hard, unsatisfactory, and evolving. California is doomed to have difficult and controversial water problems. No matter how successful we are.
Lake Oroville ravaged by drought. (Photo: State Department of Water Resources, 2014)Analysis: California ecosystems are losing their resilience and their ability to sustain native plants and animals. In the past, even in droughts, there were natural refuges to sustain native species. Today, most of these ecosystems are changing rapidly from human impacts and many have deteriorated to critical condition. Refuges are scarce.
A California Department of Water Resources geologist measures and records a pumping water level in a production well. (Photo: John Chacon,/DWR, 2013, via California Water Blog)Analysis: California’s single most urgent water policy priority is preserving our groundwater supply. In normal years, groundwater provides one-third of our state’s urban and agricultural water. In dry years, it provides up to nearly two-thirds.
Storm clouds over Mt. Baldy, east of Los Angeles. (Photo: Joel Shawn)Even if this El Niño brings California an unusually wet winter, continuing to invest in science-based drought-related policy is essential to California’s continued success as a global innovation economy, a leader in environmental and public health, and being a darn nice place to live.