Millions in California set to face water restrictions as state battles 3-year drought
April 28, 2022, 6:53 am

Millions in California set to face water restrictions as state battles 3-year drought

Millions in California facing water restrictions as state battles 3-year drought (Photo: Pixabay)

The Anews reported, citing Anadolu Agency, millions of Californians are set to face biting water restrictions that will affect residents across the US's most populous state as it battles a drought now on its third year.

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which is responsible for the Los Angeles, Ventura and San Bernardino counties, announced on Tuesday (Apr 26) that it will limit the area's 6 million residents to watering outdoors just one day per week as the state grapples with warmer temperatures.

About one-third of the region is facing an emergency due to "severely limited" water supplies in northern California, which has traditionally served as a main resource for the water-starved south. But climate change has greatly impacted the state's status quo.

Snow pack has been particularly limited in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, and the state just recorded its driest three-month start to any year on record. Water levels have also hit record lows in the Colorado River, another major waterway for California's populous south.

Death valley in California, USA (Photo: Pixabay)

The agency said on Twitter: "The past three years are projected to be the driest in our state's history, leading to drought conditions unlike anything we've experienced before."

The record low water levels and above-average temperatures continue to stoke fears ahead of this year's wildfire season.

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Further north, the East Bay Municipal Utility District voted on Tuesday to increase the region's water emergency level for some 1.4 million residents following California's "bleak" snow survey and "very low" precipitation over the past winter.

That means residents will have to reduce water consumption by 10%, limit outdoor watering to three times per week, and restaurants and cafes are being mandated to only provide water on request. The new emergency level also establishes fines for the area's largest water wasters who exceed a threshold of 1,646 gallons of water per day.

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Those households will receive a $2 fine per every 748 gallons over the threshold.

Board President Douglas Linney said in a statement: "Despite a strong rainy start in October and December, the dry winter has compelled us to move into our next phase of action to ensure we have adequate supplies in case the drought continues next year."

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He added: "We've spent decades planning and preparing for these events and are confident our efforts, combined with customer water savings, will get us through this drought."

Source: anews

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Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.