The Crush - May 2021 - 4

STATE FOCUS

This Drought Feels Different
By Michael Miiller
Gov. Newsom last month declared a state of emergency in
Sonoma and Mendocino Counties due to the effects of the
drought on the Russian River
watershed. In declaring the disaster,
he called attention to the severity
of the drought by standing on the
dry bottom of a much reduced
Lake Mendocino, which is at an
historically low 43% of capacity. He
believes this is an indication of what
could be a devastating drought cycle
for the entire state and the West.

Photo: DWR

While droughts are nothing new,
the current drought may be a bit
more challenging. This is due
to a variety of factors: including
already-reduced water supply,
long-term weather predictions,
condition of the snow pack, drought
effects on salmon, management of
groundwater, and more.

CURRENT SITUATION
The last California drought was 2012-2017. However, that drought
may have never really ended as the dry periods of the last two
years may be representative of the new normal. Research suggests
extreme dry years will become more common, as will extreme wet
years. However, those wet years do not end the drought. This is
because the state's water storage capacity can be overwhelmed
by excessive rainfall, thereby missing the opportunity to capture
that water to refill reservoirs and recharge groundwater basins.
For example, water supply in the State Water Project, which
serves 750,000 acres of farmland, was never fully refilled in 2017
and is currently delivering only 5% of requested supplies.
State water officials report hot, dry conditions have produced
higher rates of evaporation, further diminishing the benefits
of this year's paltry snowpack. This means less runoff to fill
reservoirs. When all the data is analyzed, we may find this could
be the driest winter since 1970. Metropolitan Water District of
Southern California General Manager Jeffrey Kightlinger said,
" This may go down as one of the five worst years on record. "
In the 2012-2017 drought, lawns turned brown, homeowners
moved to drought-resistant landscaping, and Californians
purchased water-efficient dishwashers and washing machines.
Those conservation efforts were important, but in broad terms,
those water efficiencies alone did not solve the problem.

4 MAY 2021

Once again, if the drought persists, urban and suburban
Californians will be called upon to reduce outdoor water use,
while farmers suffer through another year of reduced surface
water deliveries and rely more on groundwater. Investments
in water infrastructure - expanded reservoir capacity and
groundwater recharge systems - is vital to the state's future. All
of California's reservoirs combined can hold about 40 million
acre-feet of surface water. However, the capacity of water
beneath California is much greater at about 400 million acre-feet.
An acre-foot of water equals about 326,000 gallons.
GROUNDWATER
In wet or average years, about two-thirds of California's water
usage comes from surface water with the other one-third from
groundwater. In dry or drought years, usage has historically
been in reverse with one-third from reservoirs and two-thirds
from groundwater basins. In some years and in some areas, this
resulted in subsidence where the ground sank a few inches and
local water supplies dried up.
So, in 2014, Gov. Brown signed the Sustainable Groundwater
Management Act (SGMA) into law with the goal of making
groundwater resources sustainable by 2040. SGMA requires local
agencies to form groundwater sustainability agencies (GSAs).
Those GSAs then manage basins by adopting groundwater
sustainability plans, which can be strictly enforced through
monitoring and potential legal actions.
SGMA is going to create a new challenge in dealing with this
drought.
SURFACE WATER
As increased use of groundwater may not be a viable option in
some areas, there may be an increased demand on water stored
behind dams. The challenge here, beyond the reduced water
supply in those reservoirs, will be how this affects threatened and
endangered fish species.
In some waterways, increasing use of surface water will slow
the flow of water downstream. When flows are slowed, river
temperatures rise, creating a potential negative impact on salmon
and other fish. Consequently, there are unique environmental
challenges to increased use of surface waters.
WHAT NOW?
It is unclear how state water officials will respond to a worsening
drought, but ag groups expect the fight for water to intensify in
the weeks and months ahead. While 2020 taught the world to
pivot, that flexibility will be needed in dealing with the current
drought.

https://www.gov.ca.gov/2021/04/21/governor-newsom-takes-action-to-respond-to-drought-conditions/ https://www.gov.ca.gov/2021/04/21/governor-newsom-takes-action-to-respond-to-drought-conditions/ https://www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/4.21.21-Emergency-Proclamation-1.pdf https://water.ca.gov/Programs/Groundwater-Management/SGMA-Groundwater-Management https://water.ca.gov/Programs/Groundwater-Management/SGMA-Groundwater-Management https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/business/money-report/nearly-half-the-u-s-is-in-drought-and-conditions-are-expected-to-grow-worse-noaa-says/2553529/ https://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/business/money-report/nearly-half-the-u-s-is-in-drought-and-conditions-are-expected-to-grow-worse-noaa-says/2553529/ https://water.ca.gov/Current-Conditions https://wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/anomimage.pl?wrcOctPpct.png

The Crush - May 2021

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