Tag Archive for: Climate Change

Here Are Some Things to Know About the Extreme Drought in the Western U.S.

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Celina Tebor

Almost half of the U.S. has been in a drought since the start of 2021.

Compounding factors, including low rainfall and snowpack, climate change and persisting droughts from previous years, have escalated into extreme dryness.

The prolonged dryness means low water levels are endangering fish species in Oregon and Colorado, 30% of California’s population is in a drought emergency, and the nation’s two biggest reservoirs on the Colorado River — Lake Powell and Lake Mead — are two-thirds empty.

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If Lake Powell’s Water Levels Keep Falling, A Multi-State Reservoir Release May Be Needed

/in , , /by /Colorado Public Radioby Michael Elizabeth Sakas

Lake Powell’s water level is the lowest it’s been in decades, and the latest 24-month projections from the Arizona and Utah reservoir show that it’s likely to drop even further — below a critical threshold of 3,525 feet by next year.

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Biden Picks Career Water Policy Adviser to Lead Water Agency

/in , , /by /AP News

Camille Touton, a veteran congressional water policy adviser, has been nominated to lead the agency that oversees water and power in the U.S. West.

President Joe Biden on Friday nominated Touton to be the next commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. If confirmed, the Nevada native will be a central figure in negotiations among several states over the future of the Colorado River.

Drought, climate change and demand have diminished the river that supplies 40 million people, and the agency is expected to mandate water cuts for the first time in 2022.

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Drought: Marin District Details Water Pipeline, Desalination Plans

/in , , /by /The Mercury Newsby Will Houston

The Marin Municipal Water District has taken the first steps toward building an emergency water pipeline across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge for the first time in nearly 50 years to avoid potentially running out of water next summer.

The district said Friday that it has hired a consulting firm, Woodard & Curran, to find potential water rights holders in the Central Valley willing to sell their allotments. This water could be pumped across the bridge via the pipeline and into Marin’s water system should the drought stretch into winter.

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Las Vegas Weighs Tying Growth to Conservation Amid Drought

/in , , /by /AP Newsby Sam Metz

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.

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Heat Wave Grips US West Amid Fear of a New, Hotter Normal

/in , , /by /AP News by Anita Snow

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.

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Climate Change Batters the West Before Summer Even Begins

/in , , /by /The New York Timesby Brad Plumer, Jack Healy, Winston Choi-Schagrin and Henry Fountain

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.

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Water Deliveries to Dry Delta Along U.S.-Mexico Border to Support Wildlife, Vegetation

/in , , /by /Spectrum News 1by Sarah Pilla

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.

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Double Whammy: Heat, Toxic Algae Bedevil Water Sector

/in , /by /E&E Newsby Hannah Northey

One of the two rivers flowing into the heart of Iowa that provide 500,000 residents with drinking water is slowly being infiltrated by toxic algae as temperatures climb.

The other river is drying up and dipping to dangerously low levels as a historic drought grips the United States.

The Hawkeye State’s plight underscores why climate change is seen as a threat multiplier for the drinking water sector — from cratering water levels and drought to floods and extreme weather. And then there are toxic algal blooms that can kill fish, foul water, and threaten human and ecosystem health.

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Intensifying California Drought Promises ‘Very Concerning’ Fire Season

/in , , /by /The Washington Postby Diana Leonard

California is entering its summer fire season with a high level of flammability. The hottest and most fire-prone months of the year are ahead. Conditions in the state are a striking example of escalating fire potential in the drought-stricken West.

How the season unfolds will depend on a number of factors, including where ignitions occur and the duration of summer heat waves.

But the outlook is poor at this time, given deepening drought, abundant dry fuels and hot early-season temperatures.

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