A+Hot,+Dry+Winter+in+California.+Could+it+be+drought+again?

=A Hot, Dry Winter in California. Could it be drought again?= [|New York Times] February 13, 2018

Smoke from the Thomas Fire over Ventura County in Southern California in December. Credit George Rose/Getty Images []

__Summary__ Off the West Coast, a high pressure ridge has persisted for the past 3 months, blocking and weakening many Pacific storms from reaching California. According to scientists, this resilient ridge looks similar to the one that lingered from 2012 to 2016, which caused California's worst, but does not look as extreme. According to the United States Drought Monitor, most of southern California is experiencing moderate or severe drought, a change from three months prior when less than 10 percent of of the state was in moderate drought. State water officials inform us that there is plenty of water in California's reservoirs so restrictions on water use are unlikely. Some studies show that the persistence of blocking ridges is connected to climate change, but conditions in the Pacific Ocean could also contribute to the formation and positioning of a ridge. The high temperatures also cause a thin California snowpack, which means that more precipitation as rain than as snow. This changes the proportions of snow and rain and can affect the availability and timing of water for people, industry, and agriculture.

__Relation to Class__ In our course, we have learned about changes in weather patterns due to ocean currents and climate change. In this article, the author suggests possible reasons for the persistence of blocking ridges, which include the El Nino and La Nina. In APES, we have learned that the El-Nino Southern Oscillation occurs in the Pacific Ocean every few years and can cause surface waters to become warmer by weakening westerly winds (Miller 161), which may be a cause of the persistent blocking ridges in the Pacific Ocean.

__Opinion__ I feel that humans should be more careful when performing activities that may harm the environment, like polluting air and water. As we have seen in the article, the persistent blocking ridges may be caused by climate change due to harmful human impacts on the environment. I also think that state and federal governments should establish laws that can regulate water distribution in a time of drought or when the timing and availability of water changes to ensure that there is sufficient amounts of water in times of need.

__Law__ This article relates to the Water Resources Development Act of 1986, which authorizes and modifies projects for navigation, flood control, environmental restoration, recreation, hurricane and storm damage reduction, ecosystem restoration, shore protection, aquifer storage/recovery, and navigation mitigation. This act could be used to create projects that would better protect our water supply so that during times of drought, there will be a less worry about our water supply.