An overview map of the Central Valley project at the C.W. Jones Pumping Plant, a federal facility which supplies water to the project's network of irrigation canals and reservoirs.

In Record Drought, California Scrambles for Answers

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President Obama urges cooperation. But Republican opposition and a maze of state plans are causing a frantic confusion, while vulnerable farmers see immediate and long-term pain.

Infographic: California Drought In Motion — 10 Dry Years Animated GIF (2003-2014)

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When layered, weekly images of the U.S. Drought Monitor for California show how much worse this drought is than any in the past decade.
A dry irrigation ditch on the edge of the historic Tulare Lake Basin in California's Central Valley. Photo by Matt Black

Obama Pledges Over $2 Billion for U.S. Drought Relief, Climate Adaptation

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The president announces $US 1.2 billion for those affected by severe weather now and proposes $US 1 billion more for adaptation and research.
Seaguls from the coast fly far inland and into the dry landscape of California's Central Valley.

Drought Exposes Vulnerabilities in California Water Management

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California is poorly prepared for another severely dry year

Peter Gleick: Learning from Drought: Five Priorities for California

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Droughts – especially severe droughts – are terribly damaging events. The human and ecosystem costs can be enormous, as we may relearn during the current California drought.

California, Texas, and the Southwestern U.S. Face a Critical Year for Water Supplies: 2014 Preview, Part I

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After a dry 2013, reservoirs are near record lows for the start of a calendar year, setting the table for widespread water restrictions, reduced agricultural and energy production, and political bickering in 2014.
Groundhog Day Bill Murray California Drought Aubrey Ann Parker Circle of Blue

Groundhog Day & California’s Drought

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Like the 1993 classic film starring Bill Murray, the state is stuck in a perpetual time loop of drought, wildfire, and civic dispute, according to managing editor Aubrey Ann Parker.

California Drought Saps Water Reserves Above and Below Ground, Says Satellite Data

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Snow is scarce, reservoirs are approaching bottom, and groundwater is being exhausted in the nation’s most populous state. More than a dozen communities face water shortages in the next 60 to 100 days, and there will be zero water deliveries from the state’s largest canal system this year.

Peter Gleick: What Californians Can Expect from the Drought

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It is now early 2014 and the rains have not come, for the third year in a row.

Peter Gleick: California’s “Bellwether” Drought

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It is time to recognize the serious California drought for what it is: a bellwether of things to come; a harbinger of even more serious challenges to California water resources allocation, management, and use.

California’s Historically Dry 2013 Redefines Drought

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Even the soggy parts of California saw less rain than Phoenix.
Colorado River

Fortune Telling: Colorado River Teeters Toward First-ever Shortage Declaration

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In the short term, water prices would rise and groundwater pumping would increase. In the long term, demand would have to drop.