Essay 2 Draft

State of Emergency!
On Friday the twenty seventh of February, Governor Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency for the state of California due to the continuing drought conditions there. He stated that the next step would to be water rationing. The rationing could be put into effect as early as the end of March. This is the third year in a row that California has had below normal rainfall and less than normal snow pack in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The state has said that they have almost three billion dollars in economic loss so far because of the drought. Ninety five thousand jobs have been lost in the agricultural businesses alone. Although the current drought in California is nice weather-wise, it causes further economic difficulties because it increases food prices, reduces the number of agricultural jobs, and causes more wild land fires.
The state of California claims they produce over half of this countries fruits, nuts, and vegetables. It is rated the number one farm state in terms of the value of its crops. California’s agriculture business is valued at over thirty six billion dollars per year.
The unemployment rate in California is currently just over ten percent. This figure is the first time in the state’s history to have an unemployment rate that high. Governor Schwarzenegger hopes to divert some of the agricultural jobs to new public works jobs building controversial new dams and enlarging some existing dams to hold more water. The question is: when will they receive more water? Also adding to the problem is that California’s population is growing at the fastest rate in the country. Currently the state’s growth rate is twice what the national average is. The supply of water is far below the current demand from population growth. Building these new dams and upgrading others will not help the current situation. It would however, help during the next drought cycle.
Drought is defined as a lack of precipitation over an extended period of time. The time frame is at least one full season, usually longer. Droughts are a normal function of climate. It comes and goes in cycles. The last severe drought in the state of California started in 1987 and lasted until 1992. At the Saddle Camp Ranger Station in northern California in 1991 they recorded just over 17 inches of precipitation where the average is 30 inches. The current drought cycle started in the winter of 2006. The same ranger station received less than 17 inches of precipitation in 2007 and just over 18 inches in 2008 at the same 30 inch average. The lowest recorded year was 1975-1976 where 16.6 inches was received.
The cost to fight wild-land fires is increasing at an alarming rate. In California last year the forestry department spent over one billion dollars for wildfire suppression. The current drought cycle will further compound the cost. Some communities report that they survive because of federal dollars spent for fire suppression in their areas. This money is spent on local businesses for food and supplies for the fire crews. The cost is substantial because of the remote or rugged areas the fires usually occur in.
An alternative to the fresh water runoff held in lakes and reservoirs is a process called seawater desalination. There are currently plants on the coast of California but they do not produce fresh water in sufficient quantities for the current population. There are other plants in the planning stages as well. The only problem with them is the cost. They can cost up to three times more than catching and holding fresh water runoff.
People are not the only ones who suffer during drought cycles. California’s pacific salmon and steelhead populations have dwindled to near nothing in recent years. Last year the state was forced to suspend all salmon fishing off the coast of California and parts of Oregon. They just cannot return to spawning streams when the water levels are so low, and lower water levels also raise the water temperature. Higher temperatures due to climate change further compound the problem. The state has pledged millions of dollars to improve fisheries habitat.



http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSTRE51Q5XC20090228
http://www.drought.unl.edu/whatis/concept.htm