THE most populous state in the US is bone dry, and time is running out to save it. , a hydrologist at NASA鈥檚 Jet Propulsion Lab and the University of California, Irvine, put out a stark warning last week: start rationing water now to avoid disaster.
, Famiglietti warned that the state is down to its last year of above-ground reserves, and that its groundwater backup is rapidly disappearing. 鈥淐alifornia has no contingency plan for a persistent drought like this one,鈥� he wrote, 鈥渆xcept, apparently, staying in emergency mode and praying for rain.鈥� Groundwater is now a primary source of water, as the state experiences its fourth year of severe drought.
聯California has no contingency plan for a persistent drought except praying for rain聰
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California has pumped 15 cubic kilometres out of its main aquifers every year since 2011, according to . In some places, the ground is sinking at a rate of 30 centimetres a year as a result. No one even knows how the groundwater is being used, as the state has no policies to keep track of it.
Famiglietti also called for the speedier implementation of California鈥檚 Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, the first law empowering local agencies to regulate and keep account of groundwater extraction. The act requires full sustainability by 2042. 鈥淏y then, there may be no groundwater left to sustain,鈥� he wrote.
This article appeared in print under the headline 鈥淐alifornia鈥檚 thirst鈥�
