Californians were recently warned that water levels in the San Luis Reservoir were dangerously low and that water deliveries from the project would likely be shut down as early as this weekend.
The San Luis Reservoir supplies water to the Santa Clara Valley, San Benito County as well as farmers in the Central Valley. As of July 22nd, the reservoir stood at 11% of total capacity (226k AF) which puts storage well below the levels recorded during the driest season recorded in 1976-1977. This news comes in spite of a robust rainy season in California with YTD precipitation roughly 16% higher than the long-term average and over 200% higher than the driest 1976-1977 season.
So, why are California’s reservoirs drying up in spite of a solid rainy season? The answer lies in the environmental regulations implemented to protect the Delta Smelt, a 5-7cm fish and endangered resident of the California Delta. Regulations designed to protect the non-native species have prevented pumping of water from the California Delta in Northern California leaving many reservoirs in Southern California empty. So rather than take advantage of a solid rainy season the State of California has opted to squander the opportunity to refill its water infrastructure and pump the water through the San Francisco bay and into the Pacific Ocean instead.
As background, the majority of California’s precipitation falls in the northern part of the state. Historically, that precipitation flowed through various rivers and accumulated in the California Delta between Sacramento and San Francisco. The water was then pumped from the California Delta into various state and federal water projects to supply water to farmers, residential and commercial interests in the southern part of the state. In recent years, however, pumping from the Delta has been limited or outright restricted in favor of protecting various environmental concerns, including the Delta Smelt population. When not pumped into the canal systems, the water that accumulates in the Delta is simply flushed into the Pacific Ocean. In fact, nearly 50% of California’s annual fresh water supply is flushed into the Pacific Ocean each year despite “severe drought” conditions.
Ironically, California Governor Jerry Brown recently advocated for, and ultimately passed, a bill allocating $2.7BN of new funding for new water storage projects. We’re sure, however, that those funds will be used in a responsible manner and not to simply hire union labor to build new reservoirs that are never filled due to endless pandering to the state’s environmental special interest groups.
I have no sympathy for California and its self created problems.
Anon- The residents did not create this problem. You may want to look more toward weather modification and other artificial controls.
“Weather modification” is not forcing California to let the rain that is falling there run off into the ocean instead of being stored in its reservoirs and used for the State’s water needs, people are.
Anon -Read to comprehend. Drought is lack of rain, TPTB can HAARP up a high pressure system off the coast to limit rainfall among other things in the toolbox.
San Luis Reservoir was built in the 1960s as part of the California Water System, which includes the Aqueduct carrying water from the Delta south through the Central Valley; some water goes on to LA.
Originally, water was pumped from the canal into the reservoir at night when electric power was at a cheaper rate from PG&E than during the day. During the day, water was released through a hydro plant and the electricity was sold to PG&E at a higher rate.
The evaporation rate from San Luis equals the inflow from rainfall. IOW, no net yield from the reservoir itself for consumptive use. Even in normal times, if water were not pumped up from the canal, the reservoir would go dry. IIRC, its capacity is two million acre-feet.
(As part of my job in the 1960s, I had a guided tour of the Project, from the Oroville dam on down south to the Tehachapi pump station and the tunnel through the mountain on south to LA. At the time, I was designing a similar project for Texas, conveying water from Texarkana to the Panhandle.)
You can’t fix stupid so move (or drink dirt). And that’s why the Public Schools can’t fix themselves: Vote Trump who supports School Choice.
To paraphrase the mighty jim quinn, someone on this forum has been calling this one for what is is for several years, oh, yeah, me.
The maroons that downed me, Pumping water into an area that has no water is an artificial control. Cali would be a dried up dust bowl to this day had water not been brought into that state….what part of that don’t you get? The resident did not make the problem of that geographical area being arid. Get a clue and blame the right people who have decided to dry that place up for whatever reason they may have.
Bwhahahaha! Stupid is as stupid does. The really fucked up part of all this is when Kalifornians do get tired of this shit and move, they act just like the turd world scum being imported from the middle east and mejico. The refuse to assimilate into their new home and instead spread the disease of Kalifornication instituting the same bullshit in their new home that drove them out of their previous home. We really need to build a wall around that place to protect the rest of ‘Murica.
It is elected politicians that are the cause of CA drought. Ever since they mandated the fresh water/rainfall to go into the ocean and especially when you include the compounding effect of yer after year.
I don’t know if it was the EPA (federal) or CA lawmakers, but in either case, fighting for water is a survival issue.
And another piece of the puzzle is immigration.
For reasons that escape me (I lived in Bakersfield for a few years, had to go there to keep a job) literally millions of people have moved to California in the last five decades. Some were forced to (like me), but most WANTED to go there. Something about good weather (normally CA has three seasons, fire, flood and mud), pristine beaches (with more people than grains of sand on the holidays), the fabulous cuisine (OK, maybe), the attractions and resorts ….
But none of those imports brought any water supplies with them. CA is famous for environmentalism, but cares little about the human environment – crowded into four or five major cities, packed into suburbs, stacked in high rises – and now getting really thirsty. Bruce Krasting says another La Nina cycle is starting, so the low precipitation days are coming back – where are all these folks gonna find a drink? And with the farmers being dried up to save a tiny fish, where are all these folks gonna find food?
Accumulated stupidity is gonna make CA uninhabitable.