Scientists have discovered that the pace of the decline of the Central Valley's underground water supplies has accelerated dramatically during the current dry spell as heavy agricultural pumping has drawn down the area's underground water supplies.
The research shows that the decline in the amount of water in the Central Valley has worsened in the last few years.
Jay Famiglietti is the executive director of the Global Institute for Water Security. Most people don't know that California's water is disappearing much faster than they think.
In a study published this month in the journal Nature Communications, Famiglietti and other scientists found that since the beginning of the year, the rate of underground water loss has increased.
They found that since 2003 the Central Valley has lost 36 million acre-feet of water, which is 1.3 times the full water-storing capacity of Lake Mead.
According to Famiglietti, the trajectory is one for 100% disappearance. The water is for the future. It's vanishing.
The goal of the act was to curb overpumping and stabilizing the levels of the underground water supply. Local agencies have until 2040 to achieve sustainable goals under the law.
The findings show that there is a need to speed up the implementation of the law. Since the 1960s, the long-term average has been five times faster.
There is a rush to pump as much water as possible before new restrictions take hold. It will be too late by the time SGMA is implemented. There won't be anything left to do.
Amid the driest three-year period ever recorded in California, as well as a larger megadrOUGHT worsened by global warming that has blanketed the American Southwest for 23 years, there is a rush on water.
When there is less water available from the rivers and canals, agriculture in the Central Valley usually depends on the ground for two-thirds or more of its water supply.
GRACE Follow-On is the latest in a long line of data from NASA satellites. Changes in Earth's gravity field are tracked by the satellites to measure the amount of water above and belowground.
The scientists looked at other data and compared their findings with estimates from a computer model. They compared the current dry spell to previous dry spells from 2006 to 2011.
There have been successive drops in average water levels in a stairstep-like pattern over the last 20 years.
Pang-Wei Liu is a NASA scientist and the study's lead author. In the next five to 10 years, the rate of groundwater depletion is going to get faster.
Almonds, pistachios, grapes, walnuts, tangerines, rice and other crops are produced in the Central Valley, which is one of the world's major farming areas.
There have been shifts in crops. The state's almond orchards have grown from 760,000 acres in 2011. The farmers have planted more trees.
According to Famiglietti, the recent increase in water-level declines is probably the result of farmers planting lucrative orchard crops and drilling deeper wells before the hammer comes down. Thousands of new agricultural wells have been drilled in the valley.
Problems for shallow domestic wells have arisen because of the push to drill more irrigation wells. More than 1,400 dry wells have been reported to the state this year, the highest number since officials began tracking dry wells.
The research shows that it's important for California to move forward with implementation of the law, which requires local agencies to make progress towards their goals. She said that the study shows that we need a framework that allows people to act.
Climate change will cause more frequent and more intense dry spells, so Curbing Overuse will be important.
Marcus said that SGMA has hope of a future in which people's kids and grandkids can farm and live in the central valley. The framework and regulation will need to be in place.
People in the Central Valley's rural communities are suffering as more wells dry up. Residents living with dry taps have been relying on bottled water, household tanks and truck-delivered water while they wait for a solution.
Some of the valley floor is sinking due to the draining of the aquifer. As falling water levels leave underground spaces in layers of gravel, sand and clay, the ground collapses and reduces the water-storing capacity. The canals and wells in parts of the valley have been damaged due to the land sinking.
The researchers found that the losses of water far exceeded the reductions.
According to Famiglietti, California has lost water. The tragedy of the commons is what it is.
The scientists analyzed trends in three areas of the Central Valley and found that the northern part of the basin is also suffering from the effects of water scarcity.
Most of California's water comes from the ground. It is comparable to unconstrained withdrawals from a bank account because it is disappearing at rates that are nearly 5 times faster than historical rates.
He said that the water savings account is crucial for California's future. The pace of withdrawals needs to be slowed to sustain the water.
Famiglietti is the lead researcher on the study. He and other scientists have used NASA satellite data to assess how quickly water is being taken out of the Colorado River Basin. From South Asia to the Middle East to the Great Plains, he's studied the effects of water scarcity on food production.
He will become a professor at Arizona State University in the new year.
Many parts of the U.S. and other countries don't have good management of the water. The declines in water levels are largely unseen andunderappreciated. Many of the world's major food- producing regions have been found to have widespread and worsening problems of depletion due to the use of satellite data.
The research is supposed to make the invisible visible.
He said that the data shows a dire picture in California.
Famiglietti said that the pace and scale of its disappearance vastly exceeds what can be replaced. Food production will also be affected if the water goes away. Higher food prices are a result of that.
Many more people are at risk of losing access to drinking water as water levels continue to fall, according to Famiglietti.
California's law promises to eventually impose restrictions on agricultural water use in the Central Valley. Most areas don't restrict pumping at the moment.
It is defined by the law as managing water supplies in a way that can be maintained without causing undesirable results. According to researchers, taking large portions of farmland out of production is needed to address the water deficit.
According to Famiglietti, California has a chance to begin to manage and preserve the Central Valley's water resources before it's gone.
He said that it was vanishing quickly. It could be our last chance in California to get it right. We need to make sure it's working.
There is more information about Pang-WeiLiu et al.
Journal information: Nature Communications
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