The Drought Goes From Bad To Catastrophic

As we previously commented, when scientists start using phrases such as "the worst drought" and "as bad as you can imagine" to describe what is going on in the western half of the country, you know that things are bad. However, in recent weeks the dreadful situation in California has gone from bad to catastrophic as the U.S. Drought Monitor reported that more than half of the state is now in experiencing 'exceptional' drought, the most severe category available. And most of the state – 81% – currently has one of the two most intense levels of drought.

h/t @TimOBrien

As WaPo reports,

While California’s problems are particularly severe, that state is not alone in experiencing significant drought right now. There are wide swaths of moderate to severe drought stretching from Oregon to Texas, with problems impacting numerous states west of the Mississippi River.

Some of the most severe droughts outside of California are impacting large pockets in Oklahoma, Texas and, particularly, Nevada, where more than half of the state is currently experiencing one of the two most intense drought conditions:

*  *  *

As we concluded previously,

Most people just assume that this drought will be temporary, but experts tell us that there have been "megadroughts" throughout history in the western half of the United States that have lasted for more than 100 years.

If we have entered one of those eras, it is going to fundamentally change life in America.

And the frightening thing is that much of the rest of the world is dealing with water scarcity issues right now as well.  In fact, North America is actually in better shape than much of Africa and Asia.  For much more on this, please see my previous article entitled "25 Shocking Facts About The Earth’s Dwindling Water Resources".

Without plenty of fresh water, modern civilization is not possible.

And right now, the western United States and much of the rest of the world is starting to come to grips with the fact that we could be facing some very serious water shortages in the years ahead.

Comments

[the grateful un...]

the major issue with california water is transportation, the energy required to move that water to where its needed. the way the system works is that agriculture buys the water from the supplier, (at a discounted price) then in turn they sell what they don't need to municipal districts (at a profit of course). the less farmland there is the more water there is for residential needs. we could have a water glut in a few years, because the residential rate structure is growing, and agriculture is shifting toward mexico. the illusion that water shortages are just excuses to raise rates and cut off supply is not entirely unfounded. many dams and reservoirs are adding capacity, which allows them to buy water when supplies are available and the price is low. less agriculture, residential conservation, its all good for the water districts, they have plenty of water, and they can raise rates. (buy water bitchez)

[ChargingHandle]

DESALINATION. It might be time to build 3 of these plants along the thousand plus miles of seashore in California. The feds cannot print water so they seem clueless on what needs to happen. 

[Ghostmaker]

We need to seal the border of California to prevent the liberal disease from spreading.

[Ghostmaker]

We need to seal the border of California to prevent the liberal disease from spreading.

[Ghostmaker]

We need to seal the border of California to prevent the liberal disease from spreading.

[Laddie]

The population of California is near 50 million much larger than the water supply and it is PRIMARILY through Immigration, legal and otherwise, that California is growing so large, indeed America keeps growing, again through immigration.
And I used to wonder why the environmentalists were silent on the topic, then I read:
http://www.vdare.com/walker/050202_sierra.htm

Just what is the cost to buy off the Sierra Club—once the most respected environmental organization in America?

A low nine figure sum does the job according to the Los Angeles Times in its story last fall about David Gelbaum, one of the key funders of the 112-year-old environmental organization. ["The Man Behind the Land" by Kenneth R. Weiss, Oct. 17, 2004]

A nice round $100 million was enough for Executive Director Carl Pope to toss the principles of honesty, democracy and conservation out the window.

Many of us involved in the grassroots effort to restore population sanity to the Sierra Club were suspicious that the mysterious $100 million in donations might have immigration strings attached.

After all, the 1996 switch from common sense to political correctness was an abrupt change from the earlier position that the Club should work to "bring about the stabilization of the population first of the United States and then of the world."

Our suspicions were correct. The LA Times article revealed that shadowy funder Gelbaum donated generously on condition that the Sierra Club not address immigration as an environmental issue.

Said Gelbaum, "I did tell [Sierra Club Executive Director] Carl Pope in 1994 or 1995 that if they ever came out anti-immigration, they would never get a dollar from me."

The story continued:

“Gelbaum, who reads the Spanish-language newspaper La Opinión and is married to a Mexican American, said his views on immigration were shaped long ago by his grandfather, Abraham, a watchmaker who had come to America to escape persecution of Jews in Ukraine before World War I.

” ‘I asked, 'Abe, what do you think about all of these Mexicans coming here?' ‘Gelbaum said. ‘Abe didn't speak English that well. He said, 'I came here. How can I tell them not to come?'’

"I cannot support an organization that is anti-immigration. It would dishonor the memory of my grandparents."

[Monty Burns]

Gelbaum, like the rest of his tribe, wants to destroy the ethnic cohesiveness of America. Don't buy into this altruism bullshit.

[Limbs Akimbo]

Around here, private wells are going dry.

All lake levels are low (some have been dropping for years)

But...LETS BUILD MORE GOLF COURSES!!!!!!

[knowshitsurelock]

NAWAPA was put together 50 years ago, and was funded with 14 trillion dollars.  Our government has squandered these funds, when NAWAPA would have brought full economic development and full employment to the entire north american continent, turned millions of acres into airable land, completely wiped out poverty, and paid off all the debts.

So, that's why we could not have NAWAPA because it would have fixed everything, and then what would the politicians have to bitch about?

[dizzyfingers]

Back in the 70s someone who was on the WQA told us about a "plan" to resettle the population as DC, its minions, and puppetmasters would find convenient. Next step, FEMA?

The urge to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule it. H.L. Mencken

[Your Creator]

Make your own fresh water in a factory. More long term factory jobs.

[IronShield]

Whatever you do, keep the Californifuks out of your state.  Pray for water, do the rain dance, sacrifice something (like give up Starbucks for a day), anything; but end the drought before they start to migrate; deity forbid.

[the grateful un...]

i think articles like this need a dual posting, one for all the california haters (so they can find each other without scrolling through the entire list).

[Moustache Rides]

Well, HAARP it up you cock-asses.  They have no trouble making superstorms all over the east coast.  I mean, do I have to think of everything.

[_SILENCER]

They've sprayed us with chemtrails like vermin in Cali for the last five or so years. God knows the effect that shit's been having.

Desalination plants would of course work miracles, but illegal aliens are far more important.

[Serfs_Up]

Catastrophic?  BULLSHIT! When I see manicured brown grass at EVERY golf course in CalifuckinFornia, then and only then will I believe there is drought. 

[Monty Burns]

Desalination using reverse osmosis technology is getting increasingly feasible.

Might sound crazy, but what about a pipeline from the Great Lakes?

[Dickweed Wang]

Those mutherfockers better not even think of crazy shit like trying to steal water from the Great Lakes or rerouting the Missouri river to "solve" their problems . . . . watch, it's coming.

[Lord Koos]

Time to stop washing the Lexus and watering the golf courses...

[InsaneAngloWarLord]

We could ship water west from the great lakes via railroad in tanker cars like we do oil from the tar sands and the dakotas. we could even use the very same tanker cars. Warren Buffet has a mega boner dreaming about that shit. Carving up the great lakes and selling it to the highest bidder. Now I am getting a hard on.

We should get right at this asap before one of those GE Mach I Nukes on lake Ontario spills it guts into the worlds largest fresh water system and ruins the opertunity.

[roadhazard]

That map is overblown. Zero dry weather in the South this summer and the SW has been getting plenty lately. California is FUBAR.

It hasn't been above 75* on my porch all summer.

[RWCook]

no mention of the millions of acre-feet of water sent downstream to the SF Bay to protect a non-native 4" bait fish...