Farmers and landowners in California are spending millions of dollars to drill increasingly deeper wells in California, says National Geographic. Water tables are plunging as groundwater is pumped to alleviate the shortage of rainfall and snowmelt. A Fresno company, Arthur & Orum, works around the clock and has a 12- or 13-month waiting list. A 1,000-foot well can cost $350,000 with pumps installed.
“But experts warn that the new rush for water is unsustainable and that it carries serious consequences for the environment and the future,” says the magazine. Hydrologist Tim Horner of Cal State-Sacramento says, “In California, we are pumping out groundwater faster than it can re-charge.”
Drought conditions “appear to have leveled of, at least for now” in California, says the Los Angeles Times. It cites the latest Drought Monitor, which says 82 percent of California is in “extreme” drought, roughly the same amount as a week earlier. “Things had been on a steady march toward worse,” says the newspaper.