With California already experiencing major heat waves, on July 8, Governor Gavin Newsom reported that nine more counties were added to the regional drought state of emergency, leaving California in the midst of a severe drought.

The region drought state of emergency now accounts for 50 out of the 58 counties, which is about 42% of California’s population. The counties not included in the emergency are Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Diego, San Bernardino, Imperial, Ventura, and San Francisco. Although Los Angeles isn’t one of the counties included, Governor Newsom still pushes for all residents across the state of California to cut back on water usage.

According to Governor Newsom, if we want to combat the drought, we need to reduce our water usage by 15%, which is enough water to supply 1.7 million households for a year.

“The entire state is in a drought today, and to meet this urgent challenge we must all pull together and do our part to reduce water use as California continues to build a more climate resilient water system to safeguard the future of our state,” said Governor Newsom.

To help Californians fight the drought, agencies are partnering with water suppliers to promote the Save Our Water campaign. The campaign teaches us different ways to conserve water, some of which include: taking 5-minute showers, fixing leaks, filling bathtubs halfway or less, and installing aerators.

“The realities of climate change are nowhere more apparent,” said Governor Newsom, “than in the increasingly frequent and severe drought challenges we face in the West and their devastating impacts on our communities, businesses and ecosystems.”

Governor Newsom has proposed a $5.1 billion package to aid California’s drought and water infrastructure across the state. He is confident we can cut down on water usage because we have responded to previous droughts positively before.

As for long term goals, “because of California’s surplus…we’re in position to put $5.1 billion to use that will allow us to have emergency opportunities as well as immediate and long-term investments on water infrastructure all up and down the state,” Governor Newsom said.

Many reservoirs across California are rapidly depleting due to record-breaking temperatures linked to climate change. According to Wade Crowfoot, the Natural Resources Secretary, the U.S. Drought Monitor shows that some cities in California recently have had temperatures 17 degrees above average. 

Due to the high temperatures and droughts, some cities have gone without running water, but by following the tips the Save Our Water campaign has given us, we can overcome this major drought.

Photo courtesy of COMMONS.WIKIMEDIA.ORG