As many of us know California is well known for being in a dangerous state of a drought that has lasted since 2014, but recently since late 2016 and early 2017 Southern California has been receiving tons of rain. Northern California calls this nothing, but for those in So Cal, this rain is a big deal. The US Drought Report and NWS report steady rain has pulled 15% of the state (all of it in the north) out of drought conditions. In the city of Sacramento the river has been opened for the first time in 10 years. The rain has caused flooding in some areas or in places up North the snow piled up tons. As one who lives in So Cal and doesn’t own an umbrella, after the storms trying to find one in stores was very difficult as well as people scavenging to buy things like jackets and parkas.
Our California drought is believed to have started decades ago, but one astonishing fact to put into perspective is that in a course of three years Los Angeles got 11.93 inches of rain. That is 17.93 inches below normal for a three years time span. On February 13, California’s Oroville dam was breached causing it to release tons of water onto nearby homes. Around 200,000 people were evacuated in that area as it could become dangerous. Officials have to fix the problem or it could further risk the possibility of it completely collapsing.
Although all this rain has been great, we still need to learn to conserve that water. Some say it still may take more rain to fully fix the drought problem. Simple things like shorter showers, making sure no faucets are left open, or regulating our sprinklers will make a difference eventually. Let’s conserve our water for a better and greener future.
