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Halfway through the winter, more water is stored in California’s snowpack than is usual for this time of year – signaling that maybe, just maybe, this could be the year the drought eases.

 

With a strong El Niño, it’s not really surprising that winter rain has arrived in California. What’s notable is the location.

 

Normally, El Niño drives storms to California’s Central Coast, with tailing fronts drenching Southern California. So far this winter, storms have for the most part hit farther north, dumping snow and some rain in the northern Sierra mountains that are the linchpin in California’s water system.

Q: Why are we asked to limit showers? Are the water savings significant or is it more to conserve energy in heating the water? Dennis C., Solana Beach

 

A: Changing showering habits can absolutely reduce water and energy consumption. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that showering accounts for 17 percent of total indoor water use at the average home — and that’s a lot of water when multiplied by hundreds of thousands of families countywide. Because the energy used to transport, treat and heat water is also significant, shorter showers conserve that resource as well.

After months of warnings by some officials that El Niño and winter rains were far from certain, the bounty of storms plowing through Northern California has opened hope that there could be a huge improvement in the state’s severe drought by spring.

 

If you want to enjoy your home swimming pool and still save water, Cal Poly researchers said it’s possible you just need to cover up.

Pool owners can help the state enough water for about half a million people to use each year.

 

Misgana Muleta, associate professor at Cal Poly’s Civil and Environmental Engineering department said, “The number we had was up to 55,000 acres of water can be saved. Which is good enough to provide a city of half a million in population with water for the entire year.”

California’s congressional delegation continued to wrangle over how to respond to the Golden State’s water crisis Thursday when Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) released what she called a “discussion draft” of proposed legislation.

 

Feinstein said in a statement that the bill addresses long-term and short-term water concerns.

“In my 23 years in the Senate, this has been the most difficult bill to put together. The maxim that whiskey’s for drinking and water’s for fighting is alive and well in California,” she said.