As California faces its fourth year in a drought, the farming region of Tulare County, located three hours north of Los Angeles, is at the epicenter of the crisis. To date, 5,433 residents in this rural region twice the size of Delaware are without water. Most live in East Porterville.
Many homes in Tulare County, unlike other drought-afflicted areas, are not connected to a water system; they rely on private wells supplied by groundwater. And for the past 18 months, these wells have been drying up.
Over the past year, Office of Emergency Services (OES), a county agency responsible with responding to large-scale disasters, implemented a bottled drinking water program, a mobile shower unit and a 2,500-gallon potable water tanks that are placed outside a home and connected directly to each home’s plumbing system.
Despite the county’s efforts, it can take up to six months for a family to receive emergency assistance. Tired of waiting, many families are moving to neighboring towns and out-of-state.
“This is very much a square peg, round hole kind of disaster that doesn’t conform to any plans, any rules, any preconceived format of how disasters work,” said Andrew Lockman, manager of OES.
Unlike other disasters that span the course of hours or days at most, the California drought has been growing for years—and it’s not slowing down. In 2014, California recorded its third driest year in 119 years and it’s warmest year on record. Currently, more than 91 percent of the golden state is suffering from a severe drought.
During a visit to the Central Valley in 2014, President Obama outlined a $160 million in federal assistance aimed for ranchers struggling to feed their livestock and food banks for the communities most affected by the drought.
In July, California dropped more than 31 percent of its usage, surpassing the 25 percent mandatory restriction imposed by Gov. Jerry Brown.
Despite the attention and cutback of water usage, the proposed long-term solution of connecting East Porterville to a water system could take 5 to 10 years. Many residents, local leaders and officials fear that the community will be little more than dust by the time a solution is implemented.
See How California Is Using Its Diminishing Water Resources
The Los Angeles Aqueduct Cascades, which bring water 223 miles from the Owens River in the eastern Sierra Nevada mountains, and 137 miles from the Haiwee Reservoir, are a major source of water for Los Angeles. Seen here in Sylmar, Calif. on May 4, 2015. Lucy Nicholson—ReutersThe Los Angeles Aqueduct Cascades are seen in Sylmar, Calif. on May 4, 2015. California's snowpack, which generally provides about a third of the state's water, is at its lowest level on record. Lucy Nicholson—ReutersWith the country's most populous state entering the fourth year of a devastating drought, Governor Jerry Brown has ordered an overall 25 percent cut in urban water use though the first statewide mandatory reductions in California's history. The suppliers with the highest per capita water use would have to accept a 36 percent cut. Lucy Nicholson—ReutersA tractor ploughs a field next to a canal in Los Banos, Calif. on May 5, 2015. California water regulators on Tuesday adopted the state's first rules for mandatory cutbacks in urban water use as the region's catastrophic drought enters its fourth year. However, the state's massive agricultural sector, which the Public Policy Institute of California says uses 80 percent of human-related consumption, has been exempted from cutbacks.Lucy Nicholson—ReutersA worker walks through farm fields in Los Banos, Calif. on May 5, 2015. Urban users will be hardest hit, even though they account for only 20 percent of state water consumption.Lucy Nicholson—ReutersApproximately 9 million acres of farmland in California are irrigated, representing roughly 80% of all human water use. But, farm production and food processing only generate about 2% of California’s gross state product, down from about 5% in the early 1960s.Lucy Nicholson—Reuters"In the Central Valley, where most agricultural water use occurs, the failure to manage groundwater sustainably limits its availability as a drought reserve. The increase in perennial crops—which need to be watered every year—has made the region even more vulnerable," the Public Policy Institute of California states. Lucy Nicholson—ReutersCentral Valley farmers have witnessed land sinking by as much as 3 feet, San Francisco Gate reports, as water agencies tap underground reservoirs at unprecedented depths. Water pours into a canal in Los Banos, Calif., May 5, 2015. Lucy Nicholson—ReutersLivestock products, including meat, dairy and eggs, account for more than a quarter of California's agricultural sector, a $12.5 billion industry, according to the USDA. Cattle are among the most water-hungry livestock, consuming an average of106 gallons per pound of beef. Cattle are seen at Harris Ranch in Coalinga, Calif. on May 5, 2015. Lucy Nicholson—ReutersCalifornia's planting of staple crops such as cotton, corn, oats, barley, wheat, rice, and sunflowers will total 1.72 million acres in 2015, down from 1.90 million acres in 2014, according to data from the National Drought Mitigation Center. A wheat field is seen in Los Banos, Calif. May 5, 2015. Lucy Nicholson—ReutersA water protest sign is seen in Los Banos, California, United States May 5, 2015. Central Valley counties suffer some of the highest unemployment rates in the state, topping out at more than 20% in Colusa County, according to the state's Legislative Analyst's Office.Lucy Nicholson—Reuters
