California, Notorious for Flakes, Has Almost No Snow

California, Notorious for Flakes, Has Almost No Snow

If You Get My Drift

For too many, there’s not a lot of humor in what the Western states face vis-à-vis the BIG ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE: WATER. They called them atmospheric rivers, as the Earth currents produced massive rainfalls snailing across the Western United States. What should have been a blessing in water-parched California turned into a curse of floods, mud rivers, landslides, destructive waves and surf plus flooded streets… but the rainfall released most of its wet load onto coastal regions. Sure, reservoirs received some needed water, but that precious snowpack, which normally accounts for as much a third of state’s water supply, is not showing up inland, in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada range. The spring melt is supposed to be a major source of replenishment for state’s rivers, lakes, streams and aquifers… but experts suggest that these snow melts may fall well below normal expectations. It is now being referred to as a “snow drought.”

There’s still time for snowfall to develop, but if excessively arid conditions persist in these mountains, their forests become very dry timber in the summer in a state already devastated by wildfires. Writing for the January 3rd Los Angeles Times, Hayley Smith writes what the experts are seeing: “‘In some cases there is literally no measurable snow on the ground at all,’ [Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UCLA Swain] said during a briefing Tuesday [1/2]. ‘What this means is that right now, as of today, snowpack is at or below all-time record-low numbers for the beginning of January, and I know that’s pretty alarming.’”

It's deeply troubling for ski resorts all across the Western states (although a mid-January storm dropped barely enough for many to reopen), but recreational disasters pale in comparison to all the essential water needs in this part of the United States. Even as significant efforts are being implemented – severe water usage restrictions, building new reservoirs to contain rain runoff, redesigning flood channels to capture and slow more rainwater and even Los Angeles’ effort to recycle purified sewage water back into our drinking water supply – it’s clearly not enough. Not enough for California or most of the Western states:

“On Tuesday [1/2], state officials conducted their first snow survey of the season at Phillips Station, near South Lake Tahoe, where the ground was a patchy mixture of grass and powder. The monthly surveys in winter and spring are key to forecasting how the state’s resources will be allocated each year.

“Snowpack at the location measured 7.5 inches, with a snow water content of 3 inches, said Sean de Guzman, manager of the California Department of Water Resources’ snow surveys and water supply forecasting unit. That amounts to just 30% of average for the date, and 12% of the average for April 1, when snowpack is typically at its deepest… ‘The January snow survey is always our first big reveal of snow conditions for the year,’ de Guzman said. ‘Last year on this date, we were standing on almost 5 feet of snow — so vastly different than what we are standing on here today.’

“Electronic readings from 130 stations across California indicate the snow water content statewide is just 2.5 inches, or 25% of average for the date, compared with 185% at the same time last year… ‘While we are glad the recent storms brought a small boost to the snowpack, the dry fall and below average conditions today shows how fast water conditions can change,’ de Guzman said.

“Low precipitation and warm temperatures are causing snow drought conditions throughout the West, not just in the Sierra Nevada, according to the National Integrated Drought Information System. Other regions include the Northern Rockies and parts of the Lower Colorado River Basin and Rio Grand River Basin…

“‘California saw firsthand last year how historic drought conditions can quickly give way to unprecedented, dangerous flooding,’ read a statement from [California Department of Water Resources] Director Karla Nemeth. ‘Although El Niño does not guarantee an above average water year, California is preparing for the possibility of more extreme storms while increasing our climate resilience for the next drought.’

“Seasonal outlooks from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration still favor warmer-than-normal temperatures and above-normal precipitation in California through at least March, de Guzman said, noting ‘we still have a lot of season left.’” Smith. The bigger questions we should ask what the more permanent changes are and what can we do to alleviate the problem.

The struggles to find and maintain adequate water for agriculture (the biggest user) and consumer access are only mounting. How can Las Vegas or Phoenix remain viable or how long will Los Angeles be habitable without solving this mega-issue, particularly as Congress’ polarization – challenging water-preserving infrastructure budget allocations – makes the situation worse? An obsessive-compulsive MAGA drive to keep taxes for the mega-rich low, combined with the general GOP marginalization of climate change, could wind up being an American farm and city killer. Those ubiquitous water issues are constant, including how to allocate the water resources we still have.

Water, water not everywhere, but not a drop to drink? Indeed, the seven Western states which entered into a water allocation agreement in 1922 over the Colorado River, accorded more water than was actually available. After a tumultuous spate of negotiation, in May of 2023, those seven states reached an agreement “to cut consumption and help save a river that provides drinking water for 40 million people and irrigation for some of the country's most bountiful farmland… Arizona, California and Nevada will reduce intake by 3 million acre-feet (3.7 billion cubic meters) through the end of 2026, an amount equal to 13% of their river allotment, under a deal brokered and announced by the Biden administration.” Reuters (5/22/23).

Our priorities cannot be to preserve income and wealth inequality favoring the mega-wealthy while our nation is facing problems that need expensive proactive solutions. Nature truly does not care if Republicans do not want adequately to address these issues or continue to insist that climate change fears are overblown and too expensive to fix anyway. Simply put, Congressional action of inaction will not repeal the laws of physics.

I’m Peter Dekom, and Americans really need to ask how their elected representatives intend to address their needs versus the greedy desires of those who have too much wealth in the first place.