megadrought

9 Stories

Bad News on Great Salt Lake: 'This Is a Crisis'

Researchers say Utah lake could vanish in 5 years if excess water consumption isn't remedied

(Newser) - Since 2020, Utah's Great Salt Lake has lost about 40 billion gallons of water per year, a consequence of the West's megadrought and too much water consumption. Researchers say that stat shouldn't be ignored: If remedies aren't made, the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere...

Great Salt Lake Sees a Historic Low, Again

Water level drops to 4,190.1 feet, after it matched 170-year-old record just this past October

(Newser) - The Great Salt Lake has hit a new historic low for the second time in less than a year as the ongoing megadrought worsened by climate change continues to shrink the largest natural lake west of the Mississippi. The Utah Department of Natural Resources said Monday in a news release...

'Unprecedented Measures' Brought In Amid Calif. Drought

LA residents can only water outdoors for 8 minutes a time, 2 days a week

(Newser) - California is taking tough steps to ration water amid a megadrought so severe that even ancient trees haven't experienced anything as bad before. On Wednesday, more than 6 million people in Southern California were placed under unprecedented restrictions cutting outdoor watering days to one or two a week, the...

Grass Is No Longer Welcome in Vegas

Authorities hope a new law will save billions of gallons amid ongoing megadrought

(Newser) - Las Vegas is the proving ground for a new Nevada state law banning “nonfunctional” grass. It is the first law of its kind in the nation, per the New York Times, and the Southern Nevada Water Authority hopes it will save up to 9.5 billion gallons of water...

US Megadrought Is Worst We've Seen in 12 Centuries
On Parched American West,
a Dire 'Wake-Up Call'
NEW STUDY
Feb 15, 2022 11:02 AM CST

On Parched American West, a Dire 'Wake-Up Call'

Study says megadrought is worst in 1.2K years, a 'worst-case scenario' due to climate change

(Newser) - The American West's megadrought deepened so much last year that it's now the driest in at least 1,200 years and is a worst-case climate change scenario playing out live, a new study finds. A dramatic drying in 2021—about as dry as 2002 and one of the...

Western States Face Federal Water Cuts
Shortage
Means Federal
Water Cuts
Aug 16, 2021 2:32 PM CDT

Shortage Means Federal Water Cuts

Drought fueled by climate change leads to record low levels in major reservoirs

(Newser) - Officials on Monday are expected to declare the first-ever water shortage from a river that serves 40 million people in the American West, triggering cuts to some Arizona farmers next year amid a gripping drought. Water levels at the largest reservoir on the Colorado River—Lake Mead—have fallen to...

Drought in Western US May Be One for the Ages
Worst 'Megadrought' in 1K
Years May Be Upon Us
in case you missed it
Apr 19, 2020 6:53 AM CDT

Worst 'Megadrought' in 1K Years May Be Upon Us

Scientists say dry spell in Western US is worst in modern history

(Newser) - Scientists say a 20-year drought across the western US is in fact an emerging "megadrought" as bad as any in the region over the last 1,200 years. Megadroughts, intense droughts that last decades, have a long history in the Desert Southwest. Indeed, the study area—including nine states...

Western US Poised for Worst Drought in 1K Years: Study

But experts say there's still time to change our ways

(Newser) - Within a few decades, a significant chunk of the US could be in for the worst drought in more than a millennium. That's if we don't change our greenhouse-gas-emitting ways, scientists say: A study co-author says the chance of a megadrought in the central and western US sometime...

'Megadrought' Could Come to Southwest: Study

3-decade dry spell could spark mass migration: experts

(Newser) - An "extreme" drought is already affecting 82% of California, researchers say, and 58% is facing an even worse "exceptional" drought—but perhaps the most worrying news deals with the possibility of a 30-year "megadrought." The odds of that occurring now range from 20% to 50% in...

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