As California’s drought deepens, rural communities are running out of an increasingly precious resource: water.
Many communities in the Central Valley are running out of water as heavy pumping depletes groundwater that isn’t being replenished by rain and snow. More than 1,200 wells have run dry this year statewide.
This is close to a 50 percent increase over the preceding year, according to the California Department of Water Resources. By contrast, fewer than 100 dry wells were reported annually in 2018, 2019 and 2020. State data shows that 64 percent of wells are at below-normal levels.
The groundwater crisis is most severe in the San Joaquin Valley, California’s agricultural heartland, which exports fruits, vegetables and nuts around the world.
Shrinking groundwater supplies reflect the severity of California’s drought, which is now entering its fourth year. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, more than 94 percent of the state is in severe, extreme or exceptional drought.
According to KTLA.com, California just experienced its three driest years on record, and state water officials said Monday they’re preparing for another dry year because the weather phenomenon known as La Nina is expected to occur for the third consecutive year.
And, of course, the drought has had an adverse effect on agriculture. According to the Associated Press, an estimated 531,00 acres (215,000 hectares) of farmland went unplanted this year because of a lack of irrigation water, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
California’s groundwater troubles come as local agencies seek to comply with the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, which Gov. Jerry Brown signed in 2014 to prevent groundwater overpumping during the last drought. The law requires regional agencies to manage their aquifers sustainably by 2042.
However, compliance with the law has been a rocky road, yet there is agreement that the law will lead to more sustainable groundwater supplies over the next two decades.
