Andrea Germanos – Battered By Drought, Forests Lose Ability to Fend Off Climate Change

Forests play an important role as “carbon sinks” by absorbing and storing CO2 emissions, but a new study finds that that droughts—expected to become more frequent with climate change—deal that climate-buffering power a blow. The findings, published this week in the journal Science, show that forests don’t recover as quickly after a drought as had been previously thought, indicating a …

Drought’s lasting impact on forests

SALT LAKE CITY, July 30, 2015 – In the virtual worlds of climate modeling, forests and other vegetation are assumed to bounce back quickly from extreme drought. But that assumption is far off the mark, according to a new study of drought impacts at forest sites worldwide. Living trees took an average of two to four years to recover and …

In Rare Public Admission, North Korea Warns of Worst Drought in Century – Deirdre Fulton

The state news agency of North Korea announced Tuesday that the country is experiencing its worst drought in a century, exacerbating chronic food shortages and drying up rice paddies—imperiling a major sustenance crop in a country where one third of children under five are already stunted due to malnourishment . “The worst drought in 100 years continues in the DPRK, …

California is Sinking and Its Getting Worse By Nathan Halverson

California is sinking – and fast. While the state’s drought-induced sinking is well known, new details highlight just how severe it has become and how little the government has done to monitor it. Last summer, scientists recorded the worst sinking in at least 50 years. This summer, all-time records are expected across the state as thousands of miles of land …

5 Signs the California Drought Could Get Worse – Anastasia Pantsios

California is entering its fourth year of drought, with high temperatures, water shortages and increased wildfires. The state has taken some steps to address the impacts of that, includingaddressing greenhouse gas emissions and rationing its diminishing water supply. But there are signs that the impacts of drought on the state could get even worse. California’s drought could get much worse if climate change isn’t …

California land mass sinking at record rate as farmers desperately drill new wells to use up ground water – P.A. Watson

The days of abundant water are a distant memory for farmers in California. For the Central Valley, the wells are about to run dry. California’s Central Valley is now reportedly sinking at a rate never seen during the state’s historic drought, and farmers are shouldering part of the blame as they continue to pump the land dry in an effort …

1930s Dust Bowl Drought – and Current California Drought – Caused By Warm Ocean Anomalies

A scientific paper published last month in the journal Climate Dynamics by a scientist from NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center and three universities found that the 1930s drought was exacerbated by an anomalous warm spots in the ocean: Unusually hot summer conditions occurred during the 1930s over the central United States and undoubtedly contributed to the severity of the Dust Bowl …

Agriculture Gets Free Pass As California Adopts Mandatory Water Rules – Nadia Prupis

For the first time ever, California’s state water board on Wednesday approved mandatory water conservation rules in the face of a historic drought, now entering its fourth year. But the regulations, which will require water usage cutbacks of up to 36 percent for some communities, are letting the worst environmental offender in the state—the agriculture industry—off the hook. “It’s a …

Catastrophic California drought causing infestation wave of rodents looking for water – L.J. Devon

As California’s climate fades to desert, rats are coming out of their hiding places in search of water. They are coming out to parks to steal water from dog bowls and attacking horse troughs in desperate need of something to drink. They are finding new ways into homes and becoming a menace like never before. Pest control specialists are seeing …