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Deadly Drought
There are very few necessities required for basic human survival, the most
obvious ones being food, air, and water. Unfortunately, all over the United States and
especially the state of California, there has been a continuous drought causing severe
water shortages. A lot of people wake up in the morning and take a long shower before
starting the day, taking for granted the value of the water that is being unnecessarily
overused. The severity of water issues may not be acknowledged while water seems
readily available. However, without mandatory restrictions, continuous wasting of water
will leave the State of California and its residents completely dry. There is not enough
awareness and knowledge among residents to realize the significance of a drought of
this magnitude and understand the urgency of the situation. Although there are
government organizations dedicated to ending the drought, the lack of mandatory water
usage laws and restrictions are allowing the negative effects of the drought to constantly
increase. The state of California should implement water use limits for all people,
homes, and businesses in order to combat the current statewide drought.
The National Drought Mitigation Center (NDMC) suggests a basic definition of a
drought is an absence of precipitation for a long enough period of time to cause major
water deficiency in an area. The NDMC goes on to say that droughts are usually caused
by a combination of natural environmental conditions such as lack of precipitation, and
human behaviors such as overuse or wasting of water. The Committee on Natural
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Resources notes that aside from lower than average precipitation levels, the current
drought has been mainly man-made. Long showers, running taps, lawns and gardens,
and washing machines are some of the things that normally use a lot of water in regular
households.
According to the National Integrated Drought Information system (NIDIS), last
year during the month of April, just over 48% of California was experiencing a moderate
drought and just over 23% of the state was experiencing a severe drought, which was
as bad as it got. The NIDIS drought portal compares those figures from one year ago to
now, stating that currently over 99% of California, which has been experiencing the
poorest conditions out of all 50 states, is experiencing a moderate drought, over 95%
severe drought, over 68% extreme drought, and nearly a quarter of the state is
experiencing the highest level drought, categorized as exceptional drought. The
National Aeronautics and Space Administrations (NASA) Science News notes that
currently over 62% of California is experiencing severely dry conditions.
The NIDIS claims that one of the major commercial areas impacted by the
drought is the agricultural industry. The Committee on Natural Resources expands on
this, noting that thousands of agricultural industry workers (up to 40% in some areas)
have lost their jobs because of the land that has lost fertility all over California. National
Public Radio (NPR) reports the total number of job losses may exceed 20,000 and force
families out of certain regions of the State, taking their kids out of schools mid-year and
ultimately effecting their education.
All of these numbers and figures may be overwhelming, especially for the
average California resident. Basically, what is most important to note is the severity and
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importance of a statewide water shortage. Californias government website suggests
that the current drought California is experiencing is among the greatest in the states
recorded history, considered a state emergency since the beginning of this year. Why is
a major drought of this magnitude important? How does it affect California residents?
What can people do to combat the drought? Once the alarming statistics are revealed,
curiosity rises and there are questions that need to be answered. The continuation of a
drought this widespread will undoubtedly result in a dry state. For this reason the
drought is considered an emergency; simply, residents cannot live without water.
Whats worse is that another government agency, Save our Water, reports that
conditions are not predicted to get better this year unless water usage is lowered by
20% which is the amount California governor Jerry Brown has requested residents to
lower their water usage by. With the amount of water Californians waste every day, it
should not be difficult to lower usage by the targeted amount as long as it becomes a
statewide effort. Unfortunately, nothing has been deemed mandatory by the government
since this January, and Californians have not proven to take initiative on their own. The
Pacific Institutes California Drought website states what may be the most frightening
statistic of all that nearly 30% of Californias 58 counties would run out of water in under
six months if no actions were to be taken.
Human beings can only live for a couple of days without water. California is
months away from completely running out of water and nothing is being done to prevent
it. Although not quite to this extent, California has been faced with many droughts in its
history. It is clearly evident that Californians are not capable of taking the necessary
actions on their own. Government laws and regulations are long overdue and we have
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reached the point of desperation. California received even less rain than average.
According to the California Department of Water Resources since July 1, 2013, the
major California cities of Sacramento, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Sand Diego
have combined for just over 49% of the average amount of rainfall they usually get
during this time. This combined with mass wasting has lead to this point. Farmers are
losing their jobs due to lack of crop growth, families are forced to leave their homes
because the lack of waters negative economical impacts such as job loss, and people
fortunate enough to have water at their disposal are continuing to overuse it. The
government doesnt want to upset its people by forcing increased amounts of
restrictions on them. Ultimately, laws and regulations would greatly benefit all of
California in the long run, especially because more of the same is expected for 2014,
regulating water use is the only hope to save the State of California and its water. The
State of Californias drought websites has simple ideas of how everyday people could
greatly lower their water use with very little effort. It is highly recommended that, if for no
other reason, people will try out some of these ideas to help save themselves, their
families, and the State they call home.






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Works Cited

What is Drought?. (n.d.). What is Drought?. Retrieved , from
http://drought.unl.edu/DroughtBasics/WhatisDrought.aspx

Tracking Agricultural Impacts | U.S. Drought Portal. (n.d.). Tracking Agricultural Impacts
| U.S. Drought Portal. Retrieved , from
http://www.drought.gov/drought/content/products-impacts/tracking-agricultural-impacts

Top Story: Late Storms Allow 5 Percent Allocation to State Water Project Users, Means
Delta Barriers Avoided and Drought Relief Actions for Fish Fast-Tracked.
(n.d.). California Drought. Retrieved , from http://www.ca.gov/drought/

The Man-Made California Drought. (n.d.). House Committee on Natural Resources.
Retrieved , from http://naturalresources.house.gov/issues/issue/?IssueID=5921


Data. (n.d.). California Drought. Retrieved , from http://www.californiadrought.org/data-
and-numbers


Drought 2014: What You Need To Know. (n.d.). Save Our Water. Retrieved , from
http://www.saveourh2o.org/content/Drought2014WhatYouNeedtoKnow


California Drought - NASA Science. (n.d.). California Drought - NASA Science.
Retrieved , from http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-
nasa/2014/07feb_drought/

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Staff, N. (n.d.). California's Drought Ripples Through Businesses, Then To
Schools. NPR. Retrieved , from http://www.npr.org/2014/04/20/304173037/californias-

Executive Update. (2014, May 1). California Data Exchange Center. Retrieved May 8,
2014, from http://www.cdec.water.ca.gov/cgi-progs/reports/EXECSUM