Despite heavy rainfall in early 2023, California is facing the possibility of a fourth consecutive year of drought. In the past, residents have relied on pumping groundwater to supplement the limited water supply. However, as CBS Los Angeles meteorologist Evelyn Taft found during a visit to the San Joaquin Valley,...
More Rain, Snow, Thunderstorms Take Aim on Valley. Is Drought Nearly Over?
Thunderstorms in the Valley, winter storm watch in the Sierra, flood watches and warnings — yep, just another typical winter day here in California. "Just stand by, and eventually something new is going to show up," Jim Bagnall, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Hanford, said Friday morning. But after...
Recent Storms ‘Just a Drop in the Bucket’ for California Drought
California has experienced a devastating, multi-year drought that’s depleted reservoirs, forced officials to plead with residents to conserve water and constrained supplies to vital farmland. Suddenly, the state has been hit by a severe series of storms, with more expected in the coming days. The rain is soaking a state...
Timing of State Reservoir Activity Needs Scrutiny: Reader Reaction
Re “California Drought sharpens perpetual water conflict”; Commentary, Dan Walters, June 16, 2021 Thank you for the excellent article setting the table for what’s coming politically, legally, and in reality. I think one paragraph deserves more elaboration. You state that “the export limit’s effect on Southern Californian water users would...
Tulare County’s Relentless Drought Brings Dry Wells and Plenty of Misery
Severe drought is gripping most of California, but its misery isn’t spread equally. While most of the state compares today’s extreme conditions to previous droughts, people in Tulare County speak of drought — in the singular, as in a continuous state of being. “The drought has never stopped in north...
Drought-Stricken Nevada Outlaws ‘Non-Functional’ Grass
CARSON CITY, Nev. — In Sin City, one thing that will soon become unforgivable is useless grass. A new Nevada law outlaws about 31% of the grass in the Las Vegas area in an effort to conserve water amid a drought that's drying up the region's primary water source: the...
Drought Halts San Joaquin River Salmon Flows
Flows into the San Joaquin River under a program to bring back native salmon will be stopped now through early September to try and protect upstream fish. The flow reduction being instituted by the San Joaquin Restoration Program is in reaction to the rapidly dwindling run-off coming out of the...
Westlands Wants to Buy 120,000 Acre-Feet of Water
If you were looking for bargain-priced water this year, you’re out of luck. "We got out of the market when we started seeing prices north of $900 an acre-foot," said Jason Gianquinto, general manager of Semitropic Water Storage District in western Kern County. "That’s just too much for us. We...
Dry Conditions Could Cut Friant Water to Zero in Replay of Last Drought
Farms and towns in the south San Joaquin Valley that rely on water from Millerton Lake north of Fresno are anxiously waiting to hear if they will be cut to zero again this year. That happened in 2014 and again in 2015 when that prolonged drought was so bad the...
Newsom Unveils $5.1B Water Infrastructure & Drought Package
While visiting San Luis Reservoir on Monday afternoon, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed a $5.1 billion package for immediate drought response and long-term investments in water. The governor's goal is to build regional capacity to endure drought and safeguard water supplies for communities, the economy, and the environment. Newsom's proposal came as part...