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Climate Change Report Forecasts Hard Times for Kern Ag

/in , , /by /Bakersfield.comby John Cox

A new report warns Kern County agriculture will face tough challenges in the decades ahead as climate change makes irrigation water scarcer and weather conditions more variable and intense.

The study concludes these hurdles “ultimately challenge the ability to maximize production while ensuring profitability.” But it also predicts impacts will vary by crop, with almond production benefiting somewhat while growers of pistachios, grapes, oranges and carrots face overall difficult conditions.

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This Giant Climate Hot Spot is Robbing the West of its Water

/in , , /by /The Washington Postby Juliet Eilperin

On New Year’s Day in 2018, Paul Kehmeier and his father drove up Grand Mesa until they got to the county line, 10,000 feet above sea level. Instead of the three to five feet of snow that should have been on the ground, there wasn’t enough of a dusting to even cover the grass.

The men marveled at the sight, and Kehmeier snapped a photo of his dad, “standing on the bare pavement, next to bare ground.”

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Failing to Plan for Sea Level Rise — Even Amid a Pandemic — Could Be Catastrophic, Experts Warn

/in , /by /CapRadioby Ezra David Romero

If California lawmakers set aside climate concerns like sea level rise, and focus only on the pandemic, the state could be setting itself up for an even worse economic hardship, the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office cautioned in a report Monday.

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New Study says Forecasters are Overestimating Future Demand for Water

/in , , /by /KPBS-FM/TVby Alison St. John

Californians have grown used to the idea that water is a precious commodity, one that we risk running out of without conservation.

A new report by the Pacific Institute suggests Californians have learned to conserve so well that water forecasters need to rethink their approach to estimating future water demand.

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A Warming California Sets the Stage for Future Floods – UCLA Study Finds that Continued Climate Change Will Deliver a Dangerous One-Two Punch for State’s Water Managers

/in , , /by /Sierra Sun Timesby Sonia Aronson

By the 2070s, global warming will increase extreme rainfall and reduce snowfall in the Sierra Nevada, delivering a double whammy that will likely overwhelm California’s reservoirs and heighten the risk of flooding in much of the state, according to a new study by UCLA climate scientists.

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Focus On COVID Might Hamper State’s Push Against Rising Sea

/in , /by /The Orange County Registerby Martin Wisckol

The state will suffer dire long-term consequences if lawmakers set aside concerns about rising seas to focus solely on COVID-19, the non-partisan Legislative Analyst’s Office warned Monday.

Sea level rise will likely put at least $8 billion in property underwater by 2050, and could affect tens of thousands of jobs and billions in gross domestic product, according to studies cited by the office.

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In Colorado’s Climate-Change Hot Spot, the West’s Water is Evaporating

/in , , /by /The Seattle Timesby Juliet Eilperin (The Washington Post

On New Year’s Day in 2018, Paul Kehmeier and his father drove up Grand Mesa until they got to the county line, 10,000 feet above sea level. Instead of the three to five feet of snow that should have been on the ground, there wasn’t enough of a dusting to even cover the grass.

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Decline in Hydropower Hampered by Drought Will Impact Utility Costs

/in , , /by /The Mercury Newsby Jesse Kathan

Hydroelectric power from dams usually provides about 15% of California’s electricity needs. But in 2015, at the zenith of the worst drought in California’s recorded history, it supplied only 6%.

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2020 Water Resilience Portfolio Released by Governor Newsom

/in , , /by /AgNet Westby Brian German

Governor Gavin Newsom recently released the final version of the 2020 Water Resilience Portfolio to help guide California water policy moving forward. The initial draft proposal of the portfolio was announced back in January and now includes 14 new actions after receiving input from more than 200 individuals and organizations during the comment period. The water blueprint outlines 142 policy priorities for state agencies to emphasize.

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Climate Change Could Lead to More Incidents Like the Oroville Dam Spillway Failures, Experts Warn

/in , , /by /CapRadioby Ezra David Romero

Nearly 200,000 people were evacuated when the spillways failed at Oroville Dam in 2017, an infrastructure disaster that cost around a billion dollars to repair.

Three years later scientists say events that partially led to the incident could become more frequent. It comes down to how and when snow and rain fall.

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