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Forget El Niño: California May Never Get Out of Drought, UC Berkeley Prof Says
SF Weekly ^ | Fri, Jan 15, 2016 | Chris Roberts

Posted on 01/18/2016 1:29:16 PM PST by nickcarraway

It's an El Niño winter, and the news is full of rain, sleet, and snow. If only California was as well.

Precipitation so far in this wet winter that is supposed to save us from the worst drought of our lifetimes is only slightly above "normal" — and in some parts of California, including the southern Sierra, precipitation is still below normal.

Think about that. The long-awaited wet weather event has, so far, just barely pushed things to around what's supposed to be "normal."

This may be a hard fact to fathom this weekend, as you drive through more rain in order to reach the snowed-in approaches to Lake Tahoe — lucky you; drive safely — but other scientists agree. The four-year drought that's seen reservoirs and groundwater supplies dry up is not over — not unless several more El Niños follow on this one's heels.

In fact, according to one U.C. Berkeley researcher, the state may never recover from the drought. First, let's take a peek at conditions as of now.

That dark red splotch of the worst-possible drought conditions? That's most of us.

As for the dire prediction that very dry may be the new normal, that's from Berkeley professor B. Lynn Ingram, one of the two authors of a book, The West Without Water, which predicts just such a dire, dry future.

Ingram thinks that rainfall for the 2015-2016 water year — the rainy period that normally runs from October to April — will be at 170 percent of normal. That's wet — very wet. But that won't make up for the four preceding exceptionally dry years, and it also won't help next year, when some scientists believe a dry La Niña will appear.

"We’re in a water deficit of at least two years in most of California," Ingram told Berkeley News's Anne Brice. "This means we would need more than a year of precipitation like this."

"It’s not likely we’ll come out of this drought. With climate change, California and the Southwest are predicted to get drier overall with warmer weather and, subsequently, more evaporation," she added. "Even with a wetter season this year, even next year, the climate is very likely to continue to be drier."

The idea that a dry future is connected to climate is gaining traction.. in some circles. This week, President Barack Obama announced a temporary halt to new leases to coal miners wishing to dig on federal lands.

Climate change was, predictably and unfortunately, utterly absent from last night's Republican presidential debate.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Extended News; News/Current Events; US: California
KEYWORDS: blynningram; california; drought; elnino; kingclone; thewestwithoutwater; ucberkeley; water
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To: DoughtyOne

I still support desalinization plants, and the state should try to herd localities to invest in them.

Israel is headed toward a large portion of their fresh water coming from the Mediterranean. If they can do it...
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“...the state should try to herd localities to invest in them...”?

I guess that this would involve subsidies AND MANDATES (just like ethanol and solar energy)-—well, hell, DONALD TRUMP (BLESSED BE HIS NAME) would be all about that. Of course, we should all ignore the fact that subsidies and mandates cause maldistribution of investments, lead to a product (e.g., water) being produced in a manner that is NOT the most efficient and increases costs. But if Donald wants it...it would have to be sacrosanct.

I’m sure Ted Cruz would say it is up to the state but, personally, would be wondering “why the hell don’t they increase the capacity of their reservoirs as a longer term way to mitigate the problem”.


41 posted on 01/18/2016 2:15:15 PM PST by House Atreides (Cruzin' [BUT NO LONGER Trumping'] or losin'!)
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To: nickcarraway

Gosh, that sounds familiar, seeing as I’ve been telling just about everybody that the predictive value of an El Nino event is indeterminate. This isn’t as bad as 2013-14, but we’re still 30% below normal precipitation for this time of year in this area.


42 posted on 01/18/2016 2:16:22 PM PST by Carry_Okie (The tree of liberty needs a rope.)
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To: nickcarraway

Well, I suppose it could be a drought of Biblical proportions. That could mean Somebody is trying to tell them something.

But the Liberals won’t listen to somebody, either.


43 posted on 01/18/2016 2:18:11 PM PST by Cincinnatus.45-70 (What do DemocRats enjoy more than a truckload of dead babies? Unloading them with a pitchfork!)
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To: nickcarraway
and it also won't help next year, when some scientists believe a dry La Niña will appear.

We've had years with a La Nina event that yielded over 60 inches of rain.

See: "no determinative value."

44 posted on 01/18/2016 2:19:10 PM PST by Carry_Okie (The tree of liberty needs a rope.)
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To: House Atreides

Up to the states, as in when he trashed Proposition 187 as wrong headed? Ted didn’t believe in States Rights then.

Power, Water, Gas, and other intrests go to the state capital for meetings. The Governor can address them and ask them to please consider desalinization projects. The same thing happens with industry leaders.

How much would that cost?

This mindset of yours is exactly why nothing gets done.


45 posted on 01/18/2016 2:27:24 PM PST by DoughtyOne (Every home needs a crewznadian that has been domestically trained.)
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To: DoughtyOne

This mindset of yours is exactly why nothing gets done.
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So we hear from the “GET THINGS DONE” quarter. From that quarter we get all the “let’s all work together with our Democrat friends...they want the same things we do after all....let’s all try to get along”. Hey, we need a president who will MAKE DEALS WITH THE ‘RATS...WHERE CAN WE FIND SUCH A CANDIDATE?


46 posted on 01/18/2016 2:31:20 PM PST by House Atreides (Cruzin' [BUT NO LONGER Trumping'] or losin'!)
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To: House Atreides

Where the hell did you get that out my suggesting the governor relate to cities and business leaders that he thinks we need a desalinization effort, and he’d like to see the state move in that direction.

I told you that wouldn’t cost a dime of state money.

Your reaction is why I seldom try to engage some of you folks.

I give you a ration presentation sans subsides and any state involvement, and you go postal.


47 posted on 01/18/2016 2:37:43 PM PST by DoughtyOne (Every home needs a crewznadian that has been domestically trained.)
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To: nickcarraway
As for the dire prediction that very dry may be the new normal

I think very dry in California is normal, and has been for a long time. It's just that no-one seems to want to come to grips with that reality.

48 posted on 01/18/2016 2:41:12 PM PST by Disambiguator
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To: nickcarraway
33 million people living in a semi-arid steppe.

There is nothing wrong with the climate, it's the people.
49 posted on 01/18/2016 2:46:06 PM PST by kik5150 (Cruz argued 9 times before Supreme Court judges. Trump argues with beauty pageant judges.)
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To: DoughtyOne

Where the hell did you get that out my suggesting the governor relate to cities and business leaders that he thinks we need a desalinization effort, and he’d like to see the state move in that direction.

I told you that wouldn’t cost a dime of state money.

Your reaction is why I seldom try to engage some of you folks.

I give you a ration presentation sans subsides and any state involvement, and you go postal.
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Well, your first sentence in the post to which I’m responding now seems very reasonable...it says, in essence, the governor should state his personal belief and say to other government levels “pretty please build desalinization plants for which I won’t give you a penny”.

But you earlier said (From your post # 21 above):

“I still support desalinization plants, and the state should try to herd localities to invest in them”

Sorry, my image of “herding” involves cracking of whips and forcing things to go where they’d prefer not to go -— and not of some cowboy saying “please, oh pretty please”.


50 posted on 01/18/2016 2:51:06 PM PST by House Atreides (Cruzin' [BUT NO LONGER Trumping'] or losin'!)
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To: House Atreides

Thanks for the attempt...

Later.


51 posted on 01/18/2016 2:59:22 PM PST by DoughtyOne (Every home needs a crewznadian that has been domestically trained.)
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To: dhs12345

nice


52 posted on 01/18/2016 3:22:27 PM PST by JohnnyP
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To: TruthWillWin
"Another predition destined to be wrong."

Is that anything like a pre-dick-shun???

53 posted on 01/18/2016 3:23:45 PM PST by SierraWasp (Hey, lets leap to support someone rich and strong enough who will DO SOMETHING, (even if its wrong))
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To: nickcarraway

Never? No not never! Exactly why will we never get out of this drought as we have those in the past, let me guess globull climate change warming whackadoodles need their government study money!


54 posted on 01/18/2016 4:08:37 PM PST by Mastador1 (I'll take a bad dog over a good politician any day!)
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To: nickcarraway

Somewhere our Creator is humming the Rolling Stones song “Under My Thumb”.


55 posted on 01/18/2016 4:16:45 PM PST by fella ("As it was before Noah so shall it be again,")
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To: nickcarraway; AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Berosus; bigheadfred; Bockscar; cardinal4; ...
Thanks nickcarraway.

56 posted on 01/18/2016 4:23:19 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Here's to the day the forensics people scrape what's left of Putin off the ceiling of his limo.)
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To: nickcarraway

I guess we assume from the map that the the entire country is in draught.


57 posted on 01/18/2016 6:26:56 PM PST by clearcarbon
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