The western United States is experiencing a hot, dry and dangerous summer

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In New Mexico, half of the states face “exceptional drought” conditions, and the water area Delayed allocation To farmers and Urge them If possible, do not grow crops at all.

According to the United States Drought Monitoring Agency, a total of nearly 85% of Westerners are currently suffering from drought conditions. After several years of drought and hot conditions, climate change has exacerbated nearly half of the drought in the region.

The most direct cause of this year’s drought is the weak summer monsoon, coupled with La Niña (La Niña) conditions, leading to storms in the north. But the problem goes far beyond the reduced rainfall and snowfall in recent months. According to a report, the southwestern region has experienced the driest period since the 1500s, which is a matter of two decades. Science learning last year.

Climate change accounts for 46% of the severity, pushing what should be a moderate drought to areas considered by scientists as “extraordinary drought”; many other studies have found that rising temperatures will mean “more frequent and severe droughts in the southwest” , famous The 2018 National Climate Assessment.

“Snow melts faster. There is more evaporation.” said Newsha Ajami, director of urban water policy for Stanford’s “Western Water” initiative.

Alarm bell

Regions are already scrambling to resolve the growing danger.

In California, Governor Gavin Newsom (Gavin Newsom) Already proposed Spend more than 5 billion US dollars to meet emergency water needs and support regional water infrastructure, among other tasks.he still Declare a drought emergency Covering 41 counties, almost covering Northern California and the Central Valley (the state’s rich agricultural areas).

In Marin County (Marin) in the north of San Francisco, the county is basically isolated from the district’s water supply system, and the water level in the reservoir is extremely low after rainfall this year is nearly record low.The water area is under discussion Establish at least one temporary pipeline This is the first time since the state’s severe drought in 1976-1977, it was ensured to cross the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge to ensure water supply.

Researchers, officials and emergency responders are also preparing to usher in another terrible fire season, which is an early start.The Palisades fire near Los Angeles has burned down Over 1,000 acres In recent days, more than 10 million people have fled their homes with dry brushes.

“Some factors of fire season risk are foreseeable; Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at the University of California, said that he is concerned about the atmospheric conditions that lead to droughts, floods and wildfires. “All foreseeable are knocking. Ring the alarm bell. “

New normal

Some climate models found Warming increases variability Changes in rainfall patterns have created what the researchers who study the state of California describe “WhippedBetween the more extreme periods of drought and flood.

However, even if the average precipitation level remains the same, years of extreme conditions cannot naturally offset each other.If regions have not fundamentally reconsidered how to manage water resources, then this often means simply changing from one disaster to another (see California drought in 2012-2016, followed by floods that triggered mudslides and scouring The road. Pushed a dam Near the breaking point).

“We must change our way of thinking to’drought is a normal thing,'” Ajami said. “Then, when we are in a wet year, we should be excited and do a billion things to capture as much water as possible to ensure that we can store enough water when we dry again.”

That will require better use of groundwater by cleaning up contaminated aquifers and reinjecting them in heavy rain years. Once the water in the area enters the system, it will also need to be used more effectively, reduced as much as possible, reused and recycled.

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