California’s dire drought conditions have finally triggered more meaningful action at the state level. Today, Gov. Brown issued an executive order which calls on state and local water agencies “to implement a series of measures to save water, including increased enforcement to prevent wasteful water use, streamline the state’s drought response, and invest in new technologies,” according to California Coastkeeper Alliance.
The governor issued the statement today as readings of the April 1 assessment came in, which showed snowpack levels are at their lowest since the state started keeping records (approximately 6 percent of normal levels, compared to 24 percent of normal levels last year).
“Today we are standing on dry grass where there should be five feet of snow. This historic drought demands unprecedented action,” said Gov. Brown. “Therefore, I’m issuing an executive order mandating substantial water reductions across our state. As Californians, we must pull together and save water in every way possible.”
Sara Aminzadeh, executive director of California Coastkeeper Alliance, agrees. “Over the next several months we will see some communities run out of clean water, and rivers, streams and wetlands dried up, leaving fish and wildlife stranded. We need action at all levels of government that reflects the urgency and severity of this crisis.”
The lack of snowpack will result in very little or no runoff from the Sierra into California’s reservoirs and rivers, posing a serious problem for the already incredibly water-starved state. Only a few weeks ago, NASA scientist Jay Famiglietti warned “the state has only about one year of water supply left in its reservoirs.”