You are now in California and the U.S. category.

Even from 38,000 feet in a jet, Hoover Dam is a remarkable achievement. The giant plug in the Colorado River about 30 miles outside Las Vegas, the cause of the swathes of blue in the tan desert landscape, stands as a testament to 20^th century American ingenuity, stubbornness, and political will. From the crest of the dam, the achievement looks more flawed. Lake Mead has dropped 130 feet since 2000, when it was full. It’s now at 37 percent of capacity and declining rapidly enough to capture the full attention of water managers from Los Angeles to Denver.

One by one, wet weather systems will march into the Bay Area through the week, giving the region a much-needed soaking, but complicating things for the multitudes who are traveling for the Thanksgiving holiday. It was boots-and-umbrella weather as rain showers washed through the Bay Area over the weekend, giving drought watchers a reason to be optimistic as yearly rainfall totals near or surpass normal levels. After a brief drying period Monday, things will get wet again as Californians take to the skies and roadways during one of the busiest travel weeks of the year.

 

The total number of dead trees in California’s forests has climbed to 102 million.  Approximately 36 million of those deaths have come since the US Forestry Service last surveyed the forests in May. And the number of dead trees in the Golden State doubled over the past year. The tree deaths are changing the California landscape, particularly at lower elevations. They’re also raising questions about the best ways to protect people from falling trees or wildfires while preserving forests.

More than a year ago, Fresno County farmer Wayne Western Jr. penned a letter to Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, pleading for help. Western said the federal government was mismanaging California’s water supply with unjustified environmental restrictions, and that San Joaquin Valley farms such as his might dry up and go out of business without assistance from Washington. Trump replied with a handwritten note of his own, a pledge: “Got it – crazy. If I win, it will be corrected quickly.”

 

 

President-elect Donald Trump might have trouble living up to one of his more sweeping campaign promises in California.On the stump in Fresno last May, he made headlines for declaring, “There is no drought” here.It’s a bit unclear from his remarks whether he was voicing an opinion or simply reporting what some farmers told him at a pre-rally gathering. Either way, he was badly mistaken.