As California quickly approaches what is likely to be a fourth year of punishing drought, residents are being asked to cut water use to historic lows. But while urban residents are catching up — including record reductions in Los Angeles in August — urban consumption still represents only a small fraction of total water use in the state.
Where the rest of it goes depends on who you ask. The California Department of Water Resources says 50% of the state’s water goes to environmental uses, 40% to agriculture and 10% to urban areas.
But experts say those calculations tell only part of the story, especially because the environment’s share tends to shrink dramatically in dry years. Instead, a clearer picture begins to emerge when you consider water intended for domestic and commercial use. Of that, 80% goes to agriculture and 20% to urban areas.
While agriculture’s share may seem outsized to some urban dwellers being asked to let their lawns turn brown, experts say the sector is also dealing with cuts, shortages and shifts caused by drought and climate change, even as it continues to play a major role in the mater state and nation. However, California’s environment is often overlooked in the noisy debate over urban and agricultural water use, as its constituents – plants, animals, rivers and aquifers – have little voice in the matter.
The 50-40-10 breakdown “is misleading,” said Peter Gleick, co-founder and senior fellow at the Pacific Institute. – Firstly, it means that we as a society have made a decision to give half of the water to the environment. When the reality is that we have taken 50% of the water from the environment. The environment used to have everything.”
That is not to say that environmental water does not still play an important role in California. Each year, state water managers are tasked with doling out enough supplies to maintain the state’s scenic rivers, managed wetlands and wildlife habitats as well as the salinity of springs used by farms and cities.
But the accounting system is based on a normal year, and in California that is increasingly rare. When the state encounters dry conditions, the environment is among the first to take a hit, and this can have harsh consequences for wildlife.
Last year, for example, limited environmental releases from Shasta Lake caused river levels to drop and the water to warm — conditions that are inhospitable to the state’s Chinook salmon. Officials have now taken to transporting the fish, which are at risk of extinction, to cooler waters where they have a better chance of survival.
Jeffrey Mount, a senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, said it’s all part of an annual equation made more delicate by worsening drought conditions and the demands of urban and agricultural water users. Critically, about 3.5 to 4 million acre-feet of water must flow out of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta — a hub in the state’s system that provides water to millions of Californians — or “the delta becomes too salty for people to use ,” Mount said.
By 2021, the bulk of the water flowing off the surface of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Delta watersheds was used for agriculture, Mount said. The water Southern California got came primarily from reservoirs, “and there was almost nothing for the environment.”
“It’s a mistake to actually bring the environment into the discussion,” he said. “That’s why the 50-40-10 figure is so misleading, and it’s probably not what we should be talking about. But it’s fair to discuss the relationship between what we call consumptive use of water — that is, water to support domestic and business use in California. And that 80% figure for agriculture is correct.”
While it may be tempting to vilify agriculture for its huge share, Mount and other experts said the sector plays an invaluable role in the nation’s food supply. Although agriculture accounts for only about 3% of the state’s gross domestic product, it accounts for about 13% of all agricultural production in the country, more than any other state. In some ways, the proportion makes sense.
“It’s hugely unbalanced, but it’s also kind of logical because of history and because of economics,” Gleick said.
Part of the reason agriculture uses such a large portion of the state’s water is because it’s consumptive, Gleick explained — meaning most of the water used by crops doesn’t return to the system. In contrast, water that runs down a bathroom sink can be captured, treated and reused for other purposes.
The consumptive nature of agriculture is the same reason outdoor irrigation is among the first cuts to be made in urban areas, where an estimated 44% of water goes to watering lawns and other uses outside the home. In Southern California, for example, officials this summer limited millions of residents to one or two days a week of outdoor watering and saw a significant reduction in demand as a result.
But the total volume of water is only one metric for assessing agriculture’s share, according to Isaya Kisekka, professor of agricultural water management at UC Davis. Instead, he said, the best way to look at water use is to look at nutritional water productivity, or how much protein, nutrients and calories are produced by a unit of water.
Farmers also assess economic water productivity — or how much economic value is produced by that unit of water — which “has been increasing in the state for a few years now,” he said. “That’s when crops like almonds, pistachios, grapes come into play, and that’s why you’ve seen a lot of growers switch to those crops, because they have very high economic water productivity.”
The state has actually seen a dramatic swing away from field crops like wheat, cotton and alfalfa and towards fruits, vegetables and nuts in recent years. Cotton production, for example, was down 26% in 2020 compared to the previous year, while pistachios and almonds were up 41% and 22%, respectively, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
The reason for that shift is primarily financial, Mount said.
“Agriculture is not a public trust resource that belongs to everyone,” he said. “Agriculture is run by businessmen and women, and they seek to maximize profits on their throughput.”
But that footprint is shrinking, especially as the state ramps up enforcement of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, a 2014 law aimed at reducing the pumping of groundwater from below the state’s surface. (In dry years, farmers tend to lean heavily on the underground supplies, leading to a variety of problems, including drying up of wells and land subsidence in the state.)
The action “changes everything, because they’ve been extracting groundwater for a hundred years, and now they have to stop doing that,” Mount said of farmers. “Right there, that’s 500,000 to 700,000 acres of irrigated land that has to go out of production to meet the requirements of that law.”
Last year, severe drought and reduced water supplies left 395,000 acres of California farmland — an area larger than Los Angeles — dry and unplanted, costing an estimated 8,745 jobs and $1.2 billion in direct costs. This year’s impact could be even greater, with researchers estimating that nearly 800,000 acres could be left fallow, including about half of all rice acreage in the state.
That could have disastrous and unintended consequences for migratory birds, Mount said, because they rely on flooded rice paddies during their annual fall migration.
Driven by both nature and economics, farmers are improving their irrigation practices, Kisekka said. That includes shifting away from flood irrigation — a practice that literally includes floodplains — and toward techniques like drip irrigation, which doles out one drop at a time.
However, conditions today are more dire than almost ever recorded: The state looks set to enter another year of drought; Pressure is mounting on Southern California to reduce its use of Colorado River water, and warming temperatures driven by anthropogenic climate change continue to evaporate more of the state’s surface water. Another round of severe reductions in water allocations from state and federal suppliers also looks increasingly likely in 2023.
As with other sectors, “agricultural water users have experienced unprecedented cuts in both surface water withdrawals and allocations from state and federal water projects since the governor’s first drought proclamation in April 2021,” Steve Lyle, director of public affairs for the California Department of Food and Agriculture, said in an email -mail. He said that allocations from the projects have at times been “as little as five percent of the contracts”.
Although California has a framework to control allocations, it cannot go so far as to tell farmers what crops to grow. Alfalfa, for example, saw a 22% increase in production in 2020 despite being so water intensive.
Kisekka said farmers have continued to grow alfalfa — and export it to other states and nations — because demand remains “skyrocketing” and prices have risen. Many dairies, feedlots and other businesses use alfalfa in their feed rotations.
The state is also somewhat hampered when it comes to water rights, which in California have long operated under an antiquated system sometimes referred to as “first-in, first-served,” which basically means that water rights are handed out based on who which was first. in line, Mount said.
“There is authority to take water from people, but you have to make a very compelling case that it is wasteful and unreasonable use,” he said, adding that current laws are very clear that “growing a crop is not regarded as waste and unfair use.”
The rules have long been a battleground in the state, with some farmers quickly fighting restrictions and other efforts to reduce use. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s water supply strategy, released in August, also drew criticism from experts for its apparent unwillingness to take on “Big Ag.”
“It’s long overdue to revamp the water rights rules in California, but to say it’s a heavy lift politically would be an understatement,” said Gleick, of the Pacific Institute.
That doesn’t mean that urban users are off the hook either. While farmers have come under scrutiny for using the state’s water to grow crops exported overseas, Californians also import vast amounts of water — often in the form of manufactured goods like cars, lumber and even craft beer, Mount said.
Kisekka added that a lot of water is represented in the meals on California’s dinner plates, and that “we should be careful not to throw away food.”
And while agriculture’s 80% share is unnerving to some, it’s not that different from usage elsewhere in the world. Both nationally and globally, around 70% to 80% of the water goes to agriculture.
As for whether an almond orchard should take precedence over an urban lawn — that probably depends on who you ask, Gleick said.
“It’s understandable that a homeowner who has asked to let their beautiful lawn go dry sees farmers using 80% of the water and they think, ‘Well, that doesn’t seem fair,'” Gleick said. is just not how it really works. Farmers really also have a lot of challenges that they have to face during drought.”
Simply put, he said, “agriculture uses a lot of water because it takes a lot of water to grow food.”
What areas in California have the greatest water shortage?
18 percent of those living in the San Joaquin Valley said they have been affected “a lot” by water shortages, more than any other region of the state. In the north, in the Sacramento Valley, 42% said they have been affected somewhat or a lot.
Does California have a water shortage? Californians are living through the state’s driest period on record. Officials have urged people to save as reservoirs run low and demand outstrips a supply stressed by climate change. A large share of the state’s water is used for agriculture, and growers have seen water supplies cut back during the drought.
Where is the most water shortage?
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA)* is the most water-scarce region in the world. Home to 6.3 percent of the world’s population, the region contains only 1.4 percent of the world’s renewable freshwater. As population pressure in the region increases, so does the demand for water resources.
Where is the most water shortage in the world?
Overall, the Middle East is the region with the highest incidence of water shortages, and the effects have an impact beyond borders.
Where are water shortages most common?
Regions and countries where access to water is most at risk include:
- Northern and Central India. In India, 163 million people are without access to clean water near home, or 15% of all rural residents and 7% of all urban residents. …
- Bangladesh. …
- Myanmar. …
- Southern Mozambique. …
- Southern Madagascar.
What town in California run out of water?
Cape Town may have been the first major modern city to come within days of running out of water, but it won’t be the last.
Is Mendocino California running out of water?
By Kate Fishman | 15 July 2022 “Climate change is worsening the natural drought pattern we have.” Unfortunately, this is not the first time Mendocino County has faced water shortages, including the devastating Phase 4 water crises along the coast that began last fall.
How long before CA runs out of water?
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) now predicts that California only has enough water supplies to last one year.
What is the biggest water problem in California?
Newsom has asked residents and businesses to reduce water use by 15%. But in March, urban water consumption increased by 19% compared to March 2020, the year the current drought began. It was the highest water consumption in March since 2015, the Norwegian Water Resources Control Board reported earlier this week.
What are two of the main water issues for California?
California’s Water Supply Demand for water is greatest during the dry summer months when there is little natural precipitation or snowmelt. California’s capricious climate also leads to longer periods of drought and major floods.
What is the water issue in California?
In fact, California is moving into new â and worrisome â territory for three reasons: increasing heat, which causes increased evaporation; the continued depletion of groundwater supplies; and increasing water shortages on the Colorado River, the main external water source for Southern California.
What are some of the greatest environmental challenges that California faces?
These include:
- Sea level rise, coastal flooding and coastal erosion. …
- As sea levels rise, saltwater pollution of the state’s delta and living systems will increase. …
- Loss of Sierra snowpack and water supply. …
- Forestry and higher risk of fire. …
- Damage to agriculture. …
- Increased demand for electricity.
What are the 4 main issues regarding California and the Bay Delta? The San Francisco Bay Delta Watershed faces a number of significant environmental and economic challenges. Population growth, increasing water demand, habitat loss and water pollution continue to present difficulties in planning for the watershed’s future.
What is the biggest danger to California from climate change?
Higher temperatures and drought are likely to increase the severity, frequency and extent of wildfires, which can damage property, livelihoods and human health. On average, 4 percent of the land in California has burned per decade since 1984.
What threats does California face with climate change?
A changing climate presents California with five key climate hazards: (1) higher temperatures and extreme heat events, (2) more severe wildfires, (3) more frequent and intense droughts, (4) flooding due to extreme precipitation events, and (5) coastal flooding and erosion from sea level rise.
Is California in danger of climate change?
Meanwhile, a growing body of research suggests that climate change is likely to increase the risk of extreme precipitation events along the Pacific coast of North America (12, 13), including California (14–16), and of subsequent severe flooding events (17, 18).
What is the biggest environmental problem in California?
Air pollution in particular is one of the most pressing environmental health problems in California. Whether it’s through smoke inhalation during wildfires or compromised air affecting daily life, pollution has become a public health concern for the California Department of Public Health.
What is the #1 environmental problem?
Climate change is the major environmental problem humanity will face in the next decade, but it is not the only one. We’ll take a look at some of them – from water shortages and loss of biodiversity to waste management – and discuss the challenges we face.
What is the biggest water problem in California?
Newsom has asked residents and businesses to reduce water use by 15%. But in March, urban water consumption increased by 19% compared to March 2020, the year the current drought began. It was the highest water consumption in March since 2015, the Norwegian Water Resources Control Board reported earlier this week.
How is the water drought in California?
How dry is California? The drought in California and the American West has been exacerbated by rising temperatures caused by climate change. Scientists have found that the region as a whole, from Montana to California to northern Mexico, has experienced the driest 22-year period in more than 1,200 years.
How long will it be before California runs out of water? The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) now predicts that California only has enough water supplies to last one year. Jay Famiglietti — a water scientist at NASA — broke the news in an article published by the LA Times this month.
Is California in a drought right now?
2021 Overview All 58 California counties are now under a drought emergency proclamation. Most rain and snow falls in California from November to April. It fills the reservoirs and aquifers that we use to supply homes, businesses and farms.
What parts of California are in drought?
“Exceptional drought” extended into parts of California’s Central Valley agricultural district north of Los Angeles in this week’s report. It is the most severe of the weekly update’s four drought categories. The area includes parts of Kern, Tulare, Fresno, Madera, Mariposa and Tuolumne counties.
Is California currently in a drought 2022?
These include reservoirs and melted snowpack. But we are now facing a historic level of dryness that has lasted for 3 years. And it only gets worse: 2022 had the driest January, February and March in over 100 years.
Are we in a drought 2022?
As of September 27, 2022, 42.65% of the United States and 50.88% of the lower 48 states are in drought. in the US and 50.88% of the lower 48 states are in drought this week. acres of crops in the US are experiencing drought conditions this week.
Will 2022 be a dry year?
The conditions seem to be a “recipe for drought”. As California’s 2022 water year ends this week, the parched state is bracing for another dry year — the fourth in a row. So far, in California’s recorded history, six previous droughts have lasted four or more years, two of them in the last 35 years.
Will there be drought in 2022?
The frequency and duration of droughts has increased by almost a third globally since 2000, says the UN. The climate crisis is fueling this according to Drought in Numbers, 2022. It says that more than 2.3 billion people around the world are currently facing water stress.
Is California in a drought 2022?
As California’s 2022 water year ends this week, the parched state is bracing for another dry year — the fourth in a row. So far, in California’s recorded history, six previous droughts have lasted four or more years, two of them in the last 35 years.
Is CA running out of water?
Water conservation falls short Since the drought emergency was declared in July 2021, Californians have reduced water use by 2%, well below the 15% target. The map shows the California Hydrologic Regions where the North Coast region conserved approximately 14% and the Colorado River region increased water use by 3.6%.
Is California currently in a drought 2022?
These include reservoirs and melted snowpack. But we are now facing a historic level of dryness that has lasted for 3 years. And it only gets worse: 2022 had the driest January, February and March in over 100 years.
What is the biggest danger to California from climate change?
Higher temperatures and drought are likely to increase the severity, frequency and extent of wildfires, which can damage property, livelihoods and human health. On average, 4 percent of the land in California has burned per decade since 1984.
Where in California is safest from climate change? 1. San Francisco, California. California may not be the first place that comes to mind when you think of climate resilience, but San Francisco is a different story, earning the highest score of the 50 cities in our study.
Is California in danger of climate change?
Meanwhile, a growing body of research suggests that climate change is likely to increase the risk of extreme precipitation events along the Pacific coast of North America (12, 13), including California (14–16), and of subsequent severe flooding events (17, 18).
Will California keep getting hotter?
While all areas of the state are projected to see increases in the number of local hot days over the next 30 years, according to the report, Southern and Central California are expected to experience the largest increases in heat waves, with Imperial, Riverside and Fresno counties seeing the largest probability.
In what way is California’s climate predicted to change in the future?
Sea levels are predicted to rise 2 to 7 feet on the California coast by 2100, and the frequency of extreme events such as droughts, heat waves, wildfires, and floods is expected to increase.
What threats does California face with climate change?
A changing climate presents California with five key climate hazards: (1) higher temperatures and extreme heat events, (2) more severe wildfires, (3) more frequent and intense droughts, (4) flooding due to extreme precipitation events, and (5) coastal flooding and erosion from sea level rise.
What affects the climate in California?
The climate in California varies widely from hot desert to alpine tundra, depending on latitude, altitude and proximity to the Pacific coast. California’s coastal regions, the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, and much of the Central Valley have a Mediterranean climate, with warmer, drier weather in the summer and cooler, wetter…
What environmental problems does California face?
As the state deals with another severe drought and a challenging fire season, a new PPIC survey on Californians and the Environment finds that Californians are increasingly concerned about drought and water supplies.
How does global warming effect California?
Heat waves are becoming more common, the snow is melting earlier in the spring – and in Southern California, less rain is also falling. In the coming decades, the changing climate is likely to further reduce water supplies, increase the risk of wildfires and threaten coastal development and ecosystems.
What influences California’s climate?
The climate in California varies widely from hot desert to alpine tundra, depending on latitude, altitude and proximity to the Pacific coast. California’s coastal regions, the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, and much of the Central Valley have a Mediterranean climate, with warmer, drier weather in the summer and cooler, wetter…
Is the California drought because of global warming?
Indeed, our results show that even in the absence of trends in average precipitation—or trends in the occurrence of extremely low precipitation events—the risk of severe drought in California has already increased due to extremely warm conditions induced by anthropogenic global warming.