The Official Drought Thread

[PaloAltoCougar]

I listened to a radio discussion with a couple of scientists who said that the current fires torching NorCal have them and others scrambling to update their computer models. Apparently the fires have spread far more quickly and destructively than any current model would have predicted. The primary reason, they believe, is that it's never been drier in the affected areas and it's only getting worse. If El Nino doesn't come through for us this winter, we may be toast, literally.

[Jeff Lebowski]

19 dead in Southern Utah from flooding in recent days. Worst flood (in terms of loss of human life) in Utah history. El Nino is here.

7 of those were in Keyhole Canyon at Zion NP. That is a very short and simple slot canyon and it only takes 90-120 minutes to complete, round trip. However, I can't believe anyone would get near a slot canyon with rain in the area. Tragic.

[Bo Diddley]

Parts of California are sinking...


http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/l...819-story.html

I don't blame the farmers. It is those water sucking UFO's!

So what happens when the ground water is replenished? Will the ground come back up at all?

And what's with the city Los Banos? Doesn't that mean the bathrooms?

[Uncle Ted]

Parts of California are sinking...

Another toll of the drought: Land is sinking fast in San Joaquin Valley, study shows

Farmland near Corcoran in the southern San Joaquin Valley sank 13 inches in just eight months last year. To the north, near El Nido, the land surface dropped about 10 inches.


Along a major canal near Los Banos, the ground has sunk so much that the concrete sides cracked. Nearby, a bridge over another canal had dropped so low it had to be demolished and replaced with a higher structure.


Groundwater over-pumping is causing some parts of the San Joaquin Valley to sink faster than ever, according to a NASA report released Wednesday.
[...]

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/l...819-story.html

I don't blame the farmers. It is those water sucking UFO's!

[Northwestcoug]

L

Yep. But given their extreme rate of water usage, you never know.

I am waiting for imanihonjin to chime in and tell us where this ranks on the scale of things to worry about before I get too worked up.

Right in the thick of the planned parenthood scandal?????
You already know the answer.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Some of the commenters said the dropped leaves are a type of hibernation response to the low water state, and not necessarily a sign of dying trees. I sure hope so.

Yep. But given their extreme rate of water usage, you never know.

I am waiting for imanihonjin to chime in and tell us where this ranks on the scale of things to worry about before I get too worked up.

[Lost Student]

Certainly these trees have to have gone through a drought like this in the last 3000 years, no?

Seems to that we need to cut 'em down to end the drought.

In the height of summer, the millenia-old behemoths, some of which grow upwards of 30 stories tall, can guzzle 500 to 800 gallons of water per day.

[falafel]

Certainly these trees have to have gone through a drought like this in the last 3000 years, no?

[Northwestcoug]

Yikes.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/...§ion=politics

Some of the commenters said the dropped leaves are a type of hibernation response to the low water state, and not necessarily a sign of dying trees. I sure hope so.

[Jeff Lebowski]

Yikes.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/...ction=politics

[Uncle Ted]

Let's Rate the Dumbest Solutions to California's Drought

That takes a lot of balls!

[Jeff Lebowski]

Good news for California!

http://www.wallstreetdaily.com/2015/05/19/el-nino/

Not so great news for South America.

Yikes, this could be a bad one.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...41437492796643

The present El Niño event, on the cusp of attaining “strong” intensity, has a chance to become the most powerful on record.

And it might not bust the drought after all.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...rought-relief/

[Soccermom]

Is it time for CA to focus on making sure levees are working well? http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/n...rnia/29921633/

[clackamascoug]

Water law is fascinating and complicated. Those people in San Joaquin with pre-1914 rights were under the impression they couldn't be touched/curtailed. Interestingly enough, one of the groups that got the curtailment notice supplies water to my city, and is our town's only water source. http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/press_room/p...ilmentsfnl.pdf

I saw that you made national news today, and wondered how it would effect you and your family.

[Soccermom]

Water law is fascinating and complicated. Those people in San Joaquin with pre-1914 rights were under the impression they couldn't be touched/curtailed. Interestingly enough, one of the groups that got the curtailment notice supplies water to my city, and is our town's only water source. http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/press_room/p...ilmentsfnl.pdf