Credit: CC0 Public DomainCalifornia recorded alarmingly low levels in rain over the past year according to measurements made this week. This has worsened an already severe drought and primed vegetation for a potentially disastrous fire season.Northern California was the most affected, as snow and rain provide water to other areas of California.Southern California was not as fortunate."Rain Years" are those that last from the beginning of July through the end of June. The last 12 months were the driest in Los Angeles's 144-year history, according to Jan Null, a meteorologist and founder at Golden Gate Weather Services.Null monitors rainfall in California. It found that the L.A. got 5.82 inches of rain from July 2020 to June 2021. This is 41% more than what the city usually records.Los Angeles, despite this grim distinction, was in a slightly better place than its neighbor to the north.Null stated that L.A.'s average rainfall between July 2018 and June 2021 was 92%.According to data from Golden Gate Weather Services, the Northern Sierra region had its third driest year ever and its second driest 2-year period.Null stated that California can typically weather one dry year without major impacts. "When we have back-to-back [dry] year after another, that's when problems start to occur."He continued, "If I had to choose one metric for California water, it would be the northern Sierra Nevada." "That's because that's where the Sacramento River, Lake Shasta and Whiskeytown feed into Lake Oroville, which is the largest reservoirs."California is currently in its second dry year. 2020 will be the 13th driest year in terms of statewide precipitation, and the fifth-driest year in terms of statewide runoff. This is according to the California Department of Water Resources. The agency uses an October-to September "water year" for measuring rainfall. Governor. Gavin Newsom declared a drought crisis in 41 of the state’s 58 counties."The current water-year is not over. ... It's evident, we will be very dry," Jeanine Jones, an interstate resource manager at DWR, said. "Runoff-wise I believe it will be among the top five driest," said Jeanine Jones, an interstate resources manager at DWR.Similar numbers have been observed by the National Weather Service for Los Angeles, which uses the October-September water years to measure precipitation.Downtown Los Angeles has only received 5.82 inches of rain since October. Normal rainfall would have been 14.64 inches, according to David Sweet, a meteorologist at the Oxnard station.Sweet stated that the rainfall since October 1st has been only 40% below normal. This is the second consecutive year that it's been significantly lower than normal.The state is increasingly concerned about the impact of less rain on water supplies, which is a growing problem.Some areas in California, including Silicon Valley and wine country, have already implemented water restrictions. However Southern California's water resources are better. However, these supplies are very limited.Officials in Silicon Valley are calling for a 33% reduction in water consumption compared to 2013. They also plan to rely almost exclusively on groundwater.L.A. County Department of Public Works monitors water supply in several ways. This includes measuring and capturing rainfall.Director Mark Pestrella stated that the department averages 65 billion gallons per year. Since October 2020, however, the department has only captured 14 billion gallons of water. Pestrella stated that this is approximately 22% of the average annual rainfall L.A. captures."It's kinda a one-two three punch of drought, since there's no water within the local L.A., and also the Colorado River was extremely dry. The northern Sierra Nevada, and southern Cascades were extremely dried," stated Benjamin Hatchett - an assistant research professor at Desert Research Institute. It is just incredible bone dry across the entire state.Dry conditions can increase fire risk. Sweet stated that it puts a lot stress on the vegetation and on the hillsides. "Fire dangers can be expected to be very high."Experts predict that summer will bring more rain and worsening conditions.Hatchett warned that "once June gloom ends, things will dry out really quickly." Then, it's just an issue of an ignition. ... We are praying that we don't get another lightning strike like last year. This was not the worst-case scenario.Three fires are raging in Northern California this Week, illustrating the dangers of a dry-out landscape. Lava fire, started by lightning on Saturday, had grown to over 23,000 acres Friday. The fire forced evacuation of many thousand people. It was fueled by gusty red flag winds that started earlier in the week. The Salt fire, which was ignited Wednesday night in the south, grew to 4,500 acres in 24 hours.California's drought has many other consequences, including fire. Jones from the California Department of Water Resources stated that harmful algal blooms are increasing in number, causing water to be contaminated with dangerous chemicals.California's heat waves and dry spells are evidence of the increasing effects of climate change."Droughts and heat often go hand in hand. "Heat waves have become more intense, longer, and more frequent over the past two decades," William Patzert, a retired oceanographer, said.Droughts are not uncommon in the West, California is not exempt. He said that the intensity of this drought is much worse than the ones in the '50s or '60s."This isn't climate change for the future. This is climate change now.Continue reading Where did the Sierra snow go this spring, California's rivers and water supply are not affectedLos Angeles Times, 2021.Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC
