Schwarzenegger declares Calif. drought emergency

[mdmc]

Source: yahoo!

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency Friday because of three years of below-average rain and snowfall in California, a step that urges urban water agencies to reduce water use by 20 percent.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/california_drought

---

Lets help them out America!

[ReliantJ]

1. What could have caused this lack of rain?

We shall never know

[Hekate]

3. That's pretty enigmatic. What did you mean?

[ReliantJ]

5. Joke towards those that claim...

global warming is false.

[Cleita]

4. Oh, but we do know. It's because of climate changes due to global warming due to

green house emissions that scientists were warning us about thirty years ago. But the bu$iness friendly administrations of Reagan and the two Bushes ignored those warnings altogether. I remember Cheney even saying we just had to get used to warmer climates.

[tabasco]

6. "People like warmer weather"

I actually heard one of those puke talking heads say that on a talk show.

[Cha]

13. Stupidhead didn't think about the melting

Ice Caps.

[Beartracks]

18. OMG, really?

Despite that statement being freakingly simplistic, it's also ignorant: global warming doesn't mean every place just warms up a couple of degrees. A tiny change in average global temperature (up or down) causes weather extremes to swing around wildly, and local climates can become hotter or colder as the planet's closed system tries to adjust.

[XemaSab]

16. ENSO

Hate to say it, but climate change is probably not to blame. :shrug:

[Hekate]

2. It's about time. At least he admitted last year that "fire season" is now year-round.

Admitting the problem is the first step in getting government and citizenry to tackle it. We can't make it rain or snow but we can do much more to conserve.

Hekate

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

7. A drought of competency?

:shrug:

[Mr. Sparkle]

8. I used to envy California, but not anymore. They seem to have disaster after disaster over there.

[XemaSab]

17. It's really horrible here

Don't come. :cry:

[olddad56]

20. California only has one disaster, Arnold. Everyting else are just symptoms.

[movonne]

21. I lived in CA when they had another water shortage...resturants did not

put water on you table unless you asked for it...(we should be doing that everywere)...didn't flush toilets until you use them several times, or when the water was brown..etc..

[madrchsod]

9. well i guess i`ll be planting a garden this year.

[debbierlus]

10. How do we help them?

Do a rain dance?

Seriously, is there much others can do to help drought stricken areas?

[Mz Pip]

11. 31 years ago

we had a terrible drought in CA. I remember recycling laundry rinse water and pouring it back into the washing machine to do the next load.

We got down to 36 gallons a day and we had a baby whose diapers I washed myself. It was quite a challenge.

I guess we may be looking at that kind of effort again.

[Cha]

12. Edit~ To change my

mind..this is serious and I'll be sending good thoughts to Cali. I have a sis in Chula Vista where they were lucky 2 or 3 years ago when they had those devastating fires all over San Diego Counry.

[KakistocracyHater]

14. we should grab a 'calfing' iceburg

& put it in water towers around the state. We should 'mine' the ice at both poles & bring it to California. Also whenever there are floods I wish someone would come along & use a huge vacuum & get it all, super-filter it-better to do this now than let it get worse.

[mahina]

15. Maybe they'll be able to use these awesome under-sink grey water tank deals.

http://www.vivavi.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=31_182&products_id=1110&osCsid=594ed7b39bdd0fd83fcb25c3ddb289e3 AQUS System
by Water Saver Technologies

[moundsview]

19. Seems we had a severe drought and

dust bowl conditions during the last "Great Depression" too. Weren't the 1930's the hottest and driest years on record? Grapes of Wrath kind of stuff happening again.

[Liberty Belle]

22. More info here, + info on rebates and a new water-wise landscaping hotline & San Diego details

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=3760717&mesg_id=3760717

The thread has links to 3 stories I wrote today for East County Magazine.

If you have other good water conservation sources or tips, please post in the comments section.

[Liberty Belle]

23. Gov. Schwarzenegger declares state of emergency over drought (my article)

Source: East County Magazine

February 27, 2009 (San Diego’s East County)—“This drought is having a devastating impact on our people, our communities, our economy and our environment, making today’ action absolutely necessary,” said Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who declared a state of emergency following three years of drought. The Governor’s action aims to have water agencies reduce water usage by 20 percent.

If voluntary conservation measures don’t reduce consumption enough, mandatory water rationing could be imposed, said Otay Water District member Mark Robak, speaking at a Rancho San Diego-Jamul Chamber of Commerce breakfast this morning. Prices for residential customers could rise 30 percent, on top of a 10 percent rate increase already implemented recently.

“A 40 percent increase in one year is pretty dramatic,” said Robak, who warned that if the drought worsens, water rationing may imposed and consumers could be asked to cut water consumption by 40% or more. The Governor’s declaration today raised the drought watch from stage one to a stage two alert. But Robak observed, “If we get to a level four, which is a possibility, the highest users (those using 27 units of water or more per month) could see a 90% increase in their water bills.

San Diego currently gets 81% of its water from non-local sources—the Colorado River and Northern California. But the Colorado River Basin is in its tenth year of drought; Lake Mead’s levels are down 48% and Lake Powell is at 54% below capacity. In Northern California, the Sierra snowpack is at 78% of normal for the season, but state hydrologists indicate the snowpack must reach 120 to 130 percent to make up for two years of dry winters and replenish reservoirs, Associated Press reports.

Read more: http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/?q=node/653

---

Governor declares state of emergency today over drought: http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/?q=node/653

Californians are all going to have to conserve 20% or face huge increases in water bills. One local water rep says some bills could rise another 30% this year, up to 90% if things get worse.

Here’s what you can do about it. Some of these rebates are pretty substantial:

Rebates and conservation tips to help you weather the crisis:
http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/?q=node/655

Water Conservation Garden launches water-wise hotline starting March 3: “The Water-Smart Pipeline:”
http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/?q=node/657

Please DU folks, post come comments in our comments section after any of these stories, or others on our site, which is up to a million hits since we launched!

[elocs]

24. This was Latest Breaking News here at DU 6 hours ago:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3760362

[Liberty Belle]

25. Different story. I wrote this one, and it was just posted minutes ago,

I'm the only one with the local water guy's quotes because I was the only reporter present when he spoke this morning, so my story has the San Diego area angle.

Plus I included links to news about water conservation rebates and a new hotline for water-wise landscaping tips.

I'd love to have some DUers post comments in our comments section, please!

[Mojorabbit]

26. Great article

and a scary situation.

[Liberty Belle]

27. Yes. My daughter's moving back home this summer, so our water use will go up.

They make no distinction based on how many people are in your household, just total water usage, which I think is unfair. An extended family should get a bigger allowance for water use than a single person living alone.

[Left Coast2020]

29. NorCal is getting more rain than SD currently.

L.A. too. Most of our water here is from snowpack in Sierra, plus Sacramento river provides a good supply after snow melt from Redding-Shasta area. And the other news of the week is the farmers i central valley could be limited to water usage for crops. That would not be good for food prices. However, central valley (Fresno area) has received some good precip from recent storms. I read weather forecasts frequently and recent forecast is more rain through next week; which is good. I believe forecast is calling for about four inches for this new weather system. I just read this the other day, so I'm simply sharing a bit of cautious optimism. Additionally, weather forecasters from NOAA are SUGGESTING (so I'm clear here) that with our current weather pattern we could (let me repeat that) could receive near normal water levels if current pattern continues through end of season (this would be around April). I say that based on NOAA forecasts and AFD (area forecast discussions) on current weather patterns developing out of gulf of Alaska and subtropics. Low pressure systems continue to drop out of gulf of Alaska, and jet (upper level winds) continues to shove sub-tropical moisture over state from the south. More southerly flow equals more precipital water. Northerly would equate to colder storm system which still could produce rain, but not as much as last storm. It would be good for snowpack though. The low-pressure systems have sagged south--enough to draw moisture from sub-tropical flow. Sadly, the bulk of the precip (rain) is going north of SoCal. The combination of these systems is why we have received the heavy rain from previous storm system. Didn't mean to be to technical, but that is what is occurring. In brief, we are in position to receive more precip. Lets hope this is true.

And just to keep you updated, here is latest from NWS.

A SERIES OF STORMS WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR HEAVY PRECIPITATION
IS EXPECTED OVER INTERIOR NORTHERN CALIFORNIA LATER THIS WEEKEND
AND INTO NEXT WEEK...

THE FIRST IN A SERIES OF PACIFIC STORMS MAY START TO BRING RAIN
AND HIGH ELEVATION MOUNTAIN SNOW TO PARTS OF INTERIOR NORTHERN
CALIFORNIA SATURDAY EVENING BEFORE SPREADING OVER THE REMAINING AREA
SATURDAY NIGHT. ONCE THE RAIN STARTS IT IS EXPECTED TO PERSIST
INTO MONDAY. IT APPEARS THIS FIRST STORM WILL BE WET...WINDY AND
RELATIVELY MILD AS IT WILL TAP INTO SUBTROPICAL MOISTURE. SNOW
LEVELS WITH THIS FIRST STORM WILL INITIALLY BE RATHER
HIGH...GENERALLY ABOVE 6000 TO 7000 FEET...THEN LOWERING TO 4500
TO 5500 FEET BY MONDAY MORNING.

RAINFALL ESTIMATES RANGE FROM AROUND ONE HALF INCH OVER THE
SAN JOAQUIN AND SOUTHERN SACRAMENTO VALLEYS TO TWO INCHES IN
THE NORTHERN SACRAMENTO VALLEY THROUGH MONDAY. 2 TO 5 INCHES WILL BE
POSSIBLE OVER FOOTHILLS AND MOUNTAINS. LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS MAY
OCCUR ON SOME FAVORED SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST FACING SLOPES. THE
HEAVIEST RAIN AND SNOW IS EXPECTED TO OCCUR SUNDAY NIGHT INTO
MONDAY. ONE TO THREE FEET OF SNOW IS POSSIBLE OVER THE HIGHER
ELEVATIONS OF THE SIERRA NEVADA FROM THIS FIRST STORM.

ANOTHER POTENT STORM IS FORECAST TO BRING ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAIN
AND SNOW TO INTERIOR NORTHERN CALIFORNIA TUESDAY AND TUESDAY
NIGHT. THIS WILL BE A COLDER STORM WITH SNOW LEVELS LOWERING TO
AROUND 3000 TO 4000 FEET OVER THE SIERRA NEVADA...AND TO AROUND
2000 TO 3500 FEET OVER THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS. THE COLDER AIR AND
LOWER SNOW LEVELS WILL LIKELY MEAN AT LEAST ANOTHER FOOT OR TWO OF
ADDITIONAL SNOW FOR THE SIERRA NEVADA.

A THIRD STORM FORECAST TO BRING MORE RAIN AND SNOW TO THE REGION
ON THURSDAY.

Well, I said 4-inches of rain. I was close. 5-inches is better. And lower snow level is good too. This is a good forecast.

[depakid]

32. California's still going to need another miracle March

because the dams are so low from years of drought.

[Skink]

28. Texas is definately in a drought.

[barb162]

30. Does So. CA ever consider desalination plants?

It looks like this could be a years long drought, as in climate change.

[Bette Noir]

31. Good question.

Solar powered desalinization plants would be a heck of a good idea here in SoCal; every coastal town should have one. If there are plans to build any, I haven't heard of them.

There's nothing unusual about several years of drought in SoCal, climate change or no. I've lived here all my life; our usual pattern is to have 6 or 7 dry years in a row, followed by a wet year. Our last wet year was 4 years ago. The last two years were extraordinarily dry: 2 inches one year, 4, the next. We're on track to have a normal year this year, but a normal *dry* year, not a wet one.

I fully expect water rationing to be in my future. I just hope I'll be able to keep my fruit trees alive.

[Cobalt-60]

35. Its the obvious solution

Solar desal is an elegant solution.
It fairly low tech and, aside from the land under it, relatively cheap.
And you don't have to buy Reverse Osmosis filters from war profiteers.

[cyclezealot]

33. Yes,But they are small scale, localized plants.

Tx in drought. And a national mini depression. Looks like the "Okies,' of Depression lore won't be going to California.

[Luminous Animal]

34. Californians are idiots...

We go through periodic drought cycles and we act as if they've never happened before. There would be no "crisis" if we conserved last year, the year before, the year before that, etc., etc., etc. I watch people pushing a single leaf off the sidewalk with gallons of water. 20% conservation is a piece of cake. Even for people who already conserve.

Some conservation tips:

Double shower.

Don't run the water when brushing your teeth.

Save your pasta or potato boiling water in the refrigerator to use for steaming or boiling another day. Whatever you can't use for re-cooking you can use in the garden. If you have hanging plants in the garden, move potted plants underneath when you water.

Turn off the shower while lathering or shaving.

When washing the dishes, put water and soap in a coffee mug and then dip in your sponge to wash dishes, and set the soapy plates, etc. on the counter. Set a dishpan in the sink and then rinse the soapy dishes in one fell swoop letting the rinsing water fill up the dish pan. Then, throughout the next day, fill up the dishpan with dirty dishes in the previous day's rinse water... allowing them to soak.

[enlightenment]

36. A few tips from here in Las Vegas - where we do

(despite what a lot of people seem to believe) practice conservation techniques. Most of these come from the LV Water District's Water Smart program:

Bathe, don't shower. A half-filled bathtub used less water than a 10 minute shower. If you do shower, replace your old shower head with a low-flow model.

Only water your landscaping after dark - and never when the wind is up. Use drip systems for borders and hedges. Use the cycle and soak watering method: water 3 times a day for 4 minutes instead of watering for 12 minutes all at once. Your landscape will absorb more of the water, and you'll prevent runoff - remember that concrete won't grow, no matter how much water you put on it.

Convert at least a portion of your lawn to xeriscaping. Desert landscaping a 20x20 ft area can save almost 22,000 gallons of water a year.

Don't wash your car at home if you can take it to a commercial car wash that recycles the water into the sewage system, where it can be reclaimed. If you do wash at home, use a positive shut-off nozzle on your hose.

Find and fix household leaks, which add up quickly and often worsen over time. A faucet that drips just 7 times per minute can waste more than a gallon of water per day.

Upgrade to a high-efficiency washing machine to save more than 5,000 gallons each year.

Run only full loads in dishwashers and washing machines to save up to 2,000 gallons a year.

Install inline water heaters or recirculating systems to save up to 30 gallons per day.

[Robb]

37. Dear California: No, you can't have our water.

Love, Colorado. :D

p.s. - You can try like Texas did and just all move here if you want, I guess. :P