The Reduction Of Annual Water Consumption

    To begin with, According to CNN, CA has the 6th largest economy in the world and the largest economy in the US. California has been considered to be the most important state in the US for its various agriculture. However, California’s drought has increased over the past few years and much of California’s economy comes from agriculture and if we do not fix this drought soon our economy will continue to decrease as well as our

Due to the lack of rain in the past few years, and particularly in the last few months, California faces severe drought. This is the worst drought in more than one hundred years. The impact of California drought affects community, agriculture, organic ranchers, and dairy farmers. Because of these facts, the United States must rethink the way it uses water. Californians alone are asked to reduce their water usage by twenty percent to prevent water waste.

The drought has a strong impact on the Californian economy as well, a whopping 2.74 billion dollars down that drain and twenty thousand jobs lost. Agriculture the major business hit by the drought. Agriculture uses eighty percent of California’s water, although it has a high water usage California agriculture is very important for the national economy (Ross). Half a million acers of farmland has been dried up due to the drought which means less money in agriculture. The almond industry uses ten percent of California’s water, taking one gallon of water to grow just one almond (Holthaus). Many people think that almonds are wasting water since it takes so much resources to cultivate. On the other hand California produces more than eighty percent

“California’s water future is increasingly uncertain,” says Heather Cooley, in her article California Needs Better Water Management and Pricing Policies (Source A). Agriculture uses 80 percent of California’s constrained water supply and proves to be the primary source of California’s drought. There has been no permanent and largely successful conservation effort to save water. However, with a reformed water management and conservation system, California’s largest industry, agriculture, can thrive while saving water at the same time.

California is going on a four-year drought, having many devastating implications that are being felt by everyone in the state. The population hit the hardest has been the farmers of California. California, being economically driven by its agricultural production, is losing hundreds of thousands of jobs every year due to the lack of water. Farmers’ use 80% of water the state produces, directly influencing their production (Mieszkowski, 2014). The country heavily relies on California for much of its produce such as tomatoes, nuts, avocados, strawberries, broccoli, grapes and various others (Cooley et al. 2015). In 2014, harvested acreage was 6.9 million acres, the lowest it has been for the past 15 years. Farmers are now being forced to use significantly less land then before, but also ditch old irrigation techniques and implement new techniques to better conserve water; maximizing production as much as possible in order to combat the drought.

The water users of California have been asked to cut back water use whenever possible. This means shorter showers, drought resistant landscape, and low flow options for faucets and sprinklers. Farmer’s alike have been spotlighted to cut back on water use for it is calculated that they consume 80% of the state’s developed water supply (pacisnt). Although cutting back is a way to help conserve what is available, it is imperative that a new supply of fresh water be found before California overdrafts itself to no supply at all.

California is experiencing its worst drought in history. Throughout the state you can see lakes, rivers and streams drying up and leaving farmers and communities without water. Although it seems that science and global weather patterns caused this severe drought, however irresponsible usage of water paired with state laws on water rights and population growth have all played a role in prolonging this drought that is going into its eighth year. California’s central valley is the world leader in Agriculture, however the valley is also the perfect area for a drought to occur due to climate change. California is in a state of emergency, with the help of reduced water usage along with the state and federal government need to aid in lessening

California suffered the driest year in its recorded history in 2013 (Erdman, 2014). In January of 2014 Governor Jerry Brown identified the drought as a State of Emergency for California and asked that all state officials take actions to help the communities hit the hardest and asked all Californians to cut their water usage by at least 20 percent (Governor Brown Signs Drought Legislation, 2014). The governor and lawmakers in California put together a relief program that gives 687 million in relief to help with the drought and fund conservation improvement, irrigation efficiency and clean up for contaminated groundwater (Governor Brown Signs Drought Legislation, 2014).

Agriculture, probably more than any other human enterprise, is responsible for destabilizing our planet’s water supply. California and their emergency crisis on their low levels of water ultimately having a national controversial impact on the production of the agricultural industry.

The economy, agriculture, and natural life of the state will be in turmoil if there are not more actions and orders put in place to prevent the over consumption of water. This needs to start with preserving current water resources, especially aquifers and groundwater wells, in order to allow the rebuilding process of reservoirs to occur. The distribution of water in the state needs to be altered to accommodate the drought, as the snowpacks and aquifers aren’t up to maximum height, meaning less efficiency. The water acquired through runoff isn’t enough to fuel the entire state of California’s needs as important urban developments and agricultural goods are not being watered (USGS). The winter months usually provide for the entire state as a whole, yet since the beginning of the 2011 drought, many have been forced to change their lifestyles due to the unforeseen circumstances brought on by the arid climate and drought. All in all, the current distribution of water and the usage of the water in the entire state is wasteful and damaging to the environment and future. Support for low-use shower and faucet heads, as well as toilets that use less gallons of water will ultimately be the best start for the state’s solution to the drought. Coupled with executive action by the Governor and a drastic redesign of the distribution of water in the state,the devastating effects of the

The scarcity of water in California will keep getting worse, and the farmers limitations on water will too. Farmers are facing a greater threat than the federal government's limitations on their water consumption. Instead of ignoring the fact that: global warming is changing the environment around them. They should acknowledge that their land is getting significantly drier, and learn how to adapt to the land changing. In order, for them to successfully grow crops, pay their workers, and strive throughout future seasons. California farmers need to focus on what

In her article “California has cut water to some farmers…” Julia Lurie maintains that “[California grows] half of the fruits and veggies that are produced in the U.S.” (Lurie 1). California produces 99% of almonds. Consumers are becoming more demanding with the food production. According to “The Economist” quarterly report on Agriculture suggests that “ by 2050 agricultural production will have to rise by 70% to meet projected demand” (The Economist 1). Because agriculture is vital to this specific demand, these water cuts will make it nearly impossible for farmers to rise up to this challenge.As most people know, water is extremely significant in obtaining well grown crops. These farmers are willing to do this job but can not deliver if water restrictions keep growing on farmers.

The California drought has affected many lives in the long period of time it has been going on. It has affected our wildlife, residents, and especially our farmers. Now how exactly has it affected our farmers? Our California farms use up to 80% of the water used by humans in the state (Mieszkowski). With the drought going on they have to spend an additional $303 million pumping groundwater to make up for the large amount of water they’ve lost from the Central Valley Project and State Water Project (Associated Press). This drought has cost farmers $600 million this year alone. Although the California drought has surely taken its toll, the aftermath hasn’t been all bad.

California having serious issue about the water, but many of us didn’t know what is the meaning and keep wasting water every day. It important to learn more about how drought can affect our lives and we should take the drought seriously. We have to care about the clean water and did not waste them. For example, turn off the water when you brush your teeth, do not let the water running for rinsing, when washing dish by hand, and take a shorter shower

U.S. Secretary John Kerry calls, ” climate change can now be consider another weapon of mass destruction, perhaps the world’s most fearsome weapon of mass destruction” (Arshad Mohammed,2014). In fact, many scientists say that today in California’s drought get worse on the record, for example in 2015, more than 97 percent of California was involved in an average drought or worse. (Stephan Feller, 2016).I try to find some reaches about California’s drought because my family and I are living in California, where it is a significant state in economy and politics. In addition, California’s drought has an effect on everything our life and environment. For example, in 2015, my family felt the weather was too hot, dry and intense, so some of us were more stressed and got sick. Moreover, according to the article “Global Climate Change” heat waves cause more deaths in the USA every year than hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and earthquakes combined. For example, in the summer of 1995, according to Eric, Kleinberg (1995) reported” in Chicago , over seven hundred people had perished-more than twice the number that died in the Chicago Fire of 1871, twenty times the number of those struck by Hurricane Andrew in 1992—in the great Chicago heat wave, one of the deadliest in American history.” Drought in California affects us in many ways; as a result, we should know cause, effect and what to do about California’s drought.