Recently there has been some major controversy over the major cuts concerning the water usage in the state of California. Last week Governor Jerry Brown addressed the residents of California stating there would have to be cut backs due to the historical drought. Residents, businesses, and farms will have to adhere to a twenty five percent cut back. That is equivalent to 1.5 acre feet of water or 325,000 gallons. The cut is to take place over the next nine months. Brown was quoted saying,”This historic drought demands unprecedented action.”(CNN).“It’s the right time. It’s a proper directive,” said Rob Hunter, general manager of the Municipal Water District of Orange County. (LATimes). The policy will not apply to California’s agricultural economy. This is the main point at where there is some public outcry. Agriculture uses eighty percent of California’s water supply. There have been overall decreases in the water allocations for all farms. There are many supporters in regards to this clause. Climate writer Eric Holthaus wrote that “wasteful agriculture is literally sucking California dry.”(CNN)
This cause for action came about primarily due to what the recent report revealed about the Sierra Nevada snowpack. The snowpack is the main source of water for Californians over the summer. This year the level of snow has hit a record breaking low.(NatGeo)The mountains usually have about five feet of snow. Right now there are several patches on the mountain range where grass is clearly visible.(CNN)
One way many businesses and colleges have been managing the reduced water supply over the past few years has been to use recycled water for irrigation. David Stivers, an executive at Pebble Beach Golf Course reported, “It will not affect our golf course irrigation because we use recycled waste water (for golf course irrigation) from a plant we built in 1994.” Pebble Beach is not the only site to use recycled water. Universities like Pepperdine University also use recycled water, however, they are still struggling to deal with the new water cuts. They have turned off all the fountains at their school. There has also been a great push to get students to cut down on their personal water usage.(CNN)
This is a serious issue, and the state is taking drastic measures to combat this horrific drought. According to NASA, groundwater is at its lowest level in 65 years and many reservoirs are at record lows.(NatGeo) California would need eleven trillion gallons of water to fully recover from their current state. To put that into perspective that is the amount of water that is necessary to fill the Dallas Cowboy’s Stadium fourteen thousand times. It is also the amount of water that flows down from Niagara Falls in 170 days. The entire state of California is under some condition of a drought with some areas being under the worst category of dryness, called an exceptional drought. In fact Brown said that this is the worst drought that has been recorded in the last 100 years, since records actually started. This has not been a sudden drought however, this is a disaster that has been growing since 2012. Brown has released a list of directives he believes will be essential in reaching the goal of the twenty five percent cut. (CNN)
Brown’s executive order will:
• Impose significant cuts in water use on campuses, golf courses, cemeteries and other large landscapes.
• Replace 50 million square feet of lawns throughout the state with “drought-tolerant landscaping.”
• Create a temporary, statewide consumer rebate program to replace old appliances with water efficient models.
• Prohibit new homes and developments from irrigating with potable water unless water-efficient drip irrigation systems are used.
• Ban watering of ornamental grass on public street medians.
• Require agricultural water users to report more water use information to state regulators, increasing the state’s ability to enforce against illegal diversions and waste. (CNN)
Brown had already signed legislation September 16, that outlined a “framework for sustainable, local groundwater management for the first time in California history,” the governor’s office said. Brown also presented a one billion dollar emergency plan that would help tackle the drought. This money will go to helping those who are severely affected by the drought. As of now the money is going toward safe drinking efforts, maintenance of water recycling facilities and flood protection. There is obviously a great focus on eliminating water waster and inefficiency. (CNN)
California is definitely headed in the right direction with its new policies. We hope that the new plan is able to make the lives of our fellow countrymen better and lead the state of water in california to a brighter future.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-mandatory-water-cuts-put-pressure-on-california-communities-20150401-story.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/04/150401-california-mandatory-water-cuts-drought-conservation/
http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/01/us/california-water-restrictions-drought/