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Opinion: A Wake-Up Call for Water Resilience in the West

/in , , /by /The Hillby Maurice Hall

As someone working on water issues in the West for more decades than I care to admit, I have found myself repeating the same mantra over and over again: When you’re in a drought, it’s too late to prepare.

Well, we’re in drought, again, and I can’t help feeling a sense of personal failure for how ill prepared we are. This time is worse, however — worse because surely, we should have learned by now to prepare better and worse because record-breaking heat and early wildfires indicate the climate change ratchet has clearly clicked several notches tighter.

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Against Expectations, Southwestern Summers Are Getting Even Drier

/in , , /by /The New York Timesby Henry Fountain

The Southwest, already the driest region in the United States, has become even drier since the mid-20th century, particularly on the hottest days, according to new research. Humidity has declined in summers over the past seven decades, the research showed, and the declines have accelerated since 2000, a period of persistent drought in the region. Extreme heat coupled with lower humidity increases wildfire risk, said Karen McKinnon, a climate scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles, and lead author of a paper in Nature Climate Change describing the research and findings.

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Extraordinary Heat, Rare Summer Snow Brought Unprecedented West Coast Firestorms

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Times by Rong-Gong Lin II and Joseph Serna

The West Coast had just experienced a record-shattering heat wave when news came last week of a rare late-summer snowstorm in Colorado. To those still sweltering in California, Oregon and Washington, it sounded like a dream come true. In fact, it was an omen of a greater disaster to come.

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Extreme Heat Expected in San Diego County Deserts Through Friday

/in , , /by /KPBS-FM/TV - City News Serviceby City News Service

Extreme heat is expected in the San Diego County deserts Monday and the triple-digits temperatures won’t let up until this weekend, according to the National Weather Service.

High pressure will weaken Monday and cause a slight dip in temperatures, but conditions will strengthen on Tuesday and bring temperatures back up through Friday, forecasters said.

The NWS issued an excessive heat warning that will last until 9 p.m. Thursday in the county deserts.

High temperatures Monday could reach 81 degrees near the coast and inland, 84 in the western valleys, 82 in the mountains and 101 in the deserts.

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