As California’s Drought Worsens, the Biden Administration Cuts Water Supplies and Farmers Struggle to Compensate
The driest year in four decades for the state’s water supply hub is hitting its richest agricultural valley hard.
May 28, 2021
In an aerial view, a tractor kicks up dust as it plows a dry field on May 25, 2021 in Madera, California. As California enters an extreme drought emergency, water is starting to become scarce in California s Central Valley. Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
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The impacts of California’s deepening drought hit home for Central Valley farmers earlier this week, when federal officials announced they didn’t have enough water to supply many of their agricultural customers. Urban users south of San Francisco in Santa Clara County saw their normal water deliveries cut in half.
California drought enters dangerous territory. What s ahead for fish, farms and cities
Sacramento Bee 1 hr ago Dale Kasler and Ryan Sabalow, The Sacramento Bee
May 27 In just a few weeks, California s water conditions have gone from bad to terrible.
Sacramento residents have been asked to cut water usage 10%. Their counterparts on the Russian River are being told to reduce their consumption 20%.
Farmers across the Central Valley are letting fields lie fallow and dismantling their orchards. Government agencies are warning of extensive fish kills on the Sacramento River.
After a warm spring dried up practically the entire Sierra Nevada snowpack and robbed California of enough water to fill most of Folsom Lake state and federal officials have been forced to dramatically ramp up their drought response plans.
The very ground upon which Corcoran, Calif., was built has been slowly but steadily collapsing, a situation caused primarily not by nature but agriculture.
Gov. Gavin Newsom is scheduled Monday to highlight new firefighting equipment and lay out a proposal to spend $2 billion to prevent wildfires this season. The governor will unveil the latest firefighting equipment purchased, including new planes and helicopters.The governor is expected to speak at noon. Watch his news conference live in the player above once it gets underway. The announcement is part of his so-called California Comeback Plan that materialized as the state continues to recover from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and shutdowns. California has already seen a number of fires flare up this year amid dry conditions. Earlier this month, Newsom expanded a drought emergency declaration to include Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta counties. Last year was the state s most destructive fire season on record with more than 4 million acres burned. Some 10,000 structures were damaged or destroyed. Lightning sparked doze