Kou Her’s family has run the 12-acre Herr Family Farms in Sanger, just east of Fresno, for the last 20 years, raising a variety of vegetables for Bay Area produce and farmer’s markets. In those 20 years, Kou and his parents haven’t seen anything like the heat wave gripping the Central Valley this week.
Record-breaking heat and historic drought in the U.S. West are doing little to discourage cities from planning to welcome millions of new residents in the decades ahead.
From Phoenix to Boise, officials are preparing for a future both with more people and less water, seeking to balance growth and conservation. Development is constrained by the fact that 46% of the 11-state Western region is federal land, managed by agencies like the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management that are tasked with maintaining it for future generations.
The state water board has unanimously approved emergency regulations behind a move to halt Russian River diversions for up to 2,400 water right holders, part of a wider effort to conserve dwindling supplies in Lake Sonoma and Lake Mendocino.
The 5-0 vote of the State Water Resources Control Board late Tuesday came over the objections raised by agricultural interests and allies who argued the new rule was too blunt a tool to use to address the worsening drought.
Does your tap water taste a little off right now? Sacramento city leaders say the drought is probably to blame.
The city says they have been recently getting some calls with people reporting an “earthy” taste to their tap water. Some people have also been reporting an off smell as well.
A hacker accessed the computer system of a Bay Area water treatment plant in January and deleted programs the plant used to treat drinking water, a senior intelligence official confirmed Thursday.
An unusually early and long-lasting heat wave brought more triple-digit temperatures Wednesday to a large swath of the U.S. West, raising concerns that such extreme weather could become the new normal amid a decades-long drought.
Phoenix, which is seeing some of the highest temperatures this week, tied a record for the second day in a row when it reached 115 degrees (46 Celsius) Wednesday and was expected to hit 117 (47 Celsius) each of the next two days, the National Weather Service said.
Scientists who study drought and climate change say that people living in the American West can expect to see more of the same in the coming years.
California’s shaky power grid is on a collision course with an epic drought that’s depleting a major source of supply: hydroelectricity.
The Western heatwave that began Wednesday has the manager of the state’s grid, the California Independent System Operator, warning of potential power shortages through the weekend. Although the organization stopped short of predicting another round of rolling blackouts, it appealed to Californians to conserve energy to get the state through a tough week. The National Weather Service said temperatures are expected to reach 110 degrees Thursday.
A heat dome is baking Arizona and Nevada, where temperatures have soared past 115 degrees this week and doctors are warning that people can get third-degree burns from the sizzling asphalt.
At Lake Mead, which supplies water for 25 million people in three southwestern states and Mexico, water levels have plunged to their lowest point since the reservoir was filled in the 1930s. In California, farmers are abandoning their thirstiest crops to save others, and communities are debating whether to ration tap water.
The state’s decision this week to cut off Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta access to thousands of farmers and water agencies highlights the need for serious and immediate conservation throughout the Bay Area and California.
It’s been obvious for months that the state faces its most serious water shortage since the historic 2012-16 drought. Bay Area water agencies should be imposing mandatory water restrictions on users now.
The mighty Colorado River used to flow freely all the way to the Sea of Cortez in Mexico. But over the years, its delta and various ecosystems have dried up.
Thanks to an agreement between the U.S. and Mexico, the delta will receive water deliveries for environmental purposes from now until October. This will help restore a landscape that once supported a rich diversity of life because, as scientists have discovered, life returns if you add some water.
