Governor Declares Drought Emergency in Northwest Counties Lake Mendocino was largely dried up due to drought conditions in January. Photo by Bobby Cochran Photography courtesy of Russian River Flood Control, & Water Conservation Improvement District ### California Gov. Gavin Newsom today declared a drought emergency for parched water systems along the Russian River watershed that serve hundreds of thousands of Californians in two counties. The emergency declaration will give state agencies the power to relax some water quality requirements, allowing more water to be stored in reservoirs serving Mendocino and Sonoma counties. Most of the state is suffering severe drought conditions due to low rainfall and snowpack, but state water officials said that the other regions aren’t hit hard enough yet to declare a statewide emergency.