Predictions are that sub-zero temperatures are to return - I guess hospitals will have high season... *Lunatic*, n. One whose delusions are out of fashion.
The problem is that this means we're not getting rain. The Eastern Pacific is currently experiencing a La Niña effect, which is the opposite of an El Niño - during the La Niña cycle the Eastern Pacific experiences unusually cold water temperatures. This saturates the Pacific Northwest with moisture (they had record snowfall and rainfall over the last month, with the worst flooding in Washington State in a century) and leaves California high and dry.
2007 and 2008 were dry winters, but 2009 is shaping up to be even worse. At a monitoring station in the California delta near Sacramento the rain gauge measured 4 inches - instead of the usual 23 inches. La Niña means the already bad situation will continue to grow worse.
Water rationing is likely in Southern California later this spring and it is highly likely that we'll have more severe rationing here in Monterey - we are not part of the state water system and have been overdrawing the Carmel River for years.
Californians could stand to consume less water, but we're not as profligate as some other parts of the country. The 1986-93 drought led to widespread installation of water-saving devices and practices that are still with us 20 years later, but much more can and must be done. Of course, this comes at a time of profound economic and political weakness for the state, which won't make those problems or solving the water issue any easier.
Global warming is going to exacerbate this - state studies show that the Sierra Nevada snowpack, source of most of our water, will disappear as snow is replaced with rainfall. Snow can be stored all winter; rain can't. In turn this leads to a drier climate, and an increased fire danger from the dead trees and plants that gave up after not getting enough water.
Of course, it could be worse - from approximately 1000 to 1200 California and the Southwestern US experienced a "mega-drought" - an extended dry period. It is possible that California may be entering another such period. Since 1976 we have had more dry years than wet ones, and since 1998 we have only had a few good years of rain (2004-06).
So, while I am enjoying this bit of July in January, I would prefer rain. Lots and lots of rain. And the world will live as one
I was shocked that people could behave like that in a desert. keep to the Fen Causeway
...
The replacement of the phrase "Global Warming" with "Climate Crisis" must have been a success, because no one around here is making snarky comments about global warming. It's mostly of the "OMG this is not even normal for Chicago. Soon we'll be turning to cannibalism like Franklin's men. It simply MUST be a sign of the end of the world." variety. Come, my friends, 'Tis not too late to seek a newer world.
