Home / April Drought Declared & SV2 Environment Partner Interest Circle (EPIC) Wades into the Problem

April Drought Declared & SV2 Environment Partner Interest Circle (EPIC) Wades into the Problem

Is the current drought a big deal? 

Santa Clara County declares a water emergency. How far behind is San Mateo County? Californians walk a tightrope, crossing between too little water and too much need. Farmers in Santa Clara County just lost their surface water allocations. How long before homeowners lose landscape watering rights – it’s happening in Fresno County. Farmers are plowing under crops, and ranchers are harvesting their beef early. There is not enough water to sustain agriculture. Food supplies will get out of whack – spiking prices and hurting low-income residents. Family farmers get punished with higher costs and lower revenue. We need to move beyond reactionary cuts, moving water around, and living with less until average returns. It’s time for new thinking.   

A more intelligent response compared to today is coming to the EPIC Drought conversation. Learn why a new formula can increase water supply, adding resilience and sustainability. Our guests will share how to meet water needs today and handle the more extensive shortages coming with a warmer climate. Realize the part you can play. 

  • Heather Cooley, Director of Research at the Pacific Institute, reveals droughts are not poor timing and bad luck. Our ecology is shaped and dependent on drought.
  • Jarrad Fisher of the San Mateo County Conservation District. His job title of Water for Farms, Fish, and People Program Manager, says a lot. Jarrad will sharpen our perspectives.
  • Kevin Watt is the owner of Early Bird Ranch and a member of the TomKat Ranch Educational Foundation. He lives to blend the best of conservation science with production agriculture. 

Attend the EPIC drought discussion to understand how you can improve California’s water supply today and tomorrow. RSVP: EPIC Drought Conversation

Fewer showers may bring wimpy flowers but residents of the Russian River watershed have more significant worries. Now is their time to save and retain as much water as possible to buffer or minimize the losses caused by drought.  How ready are you to conserve and become more resilient? It’s time for all of us to lead by example. As California’s ecology includes drought, this is not a temporary problem.

Complete the following quiz and gauge your water-conservation prowess. We will discuss the answers and more at the EPIC meeting on June 14, 2021. 

Test your water prowess:

  1. How much water does a lawn need each week?
    1. An established lawn does not need much
    2. About 3 inches or 3 hours of watering
    3. Around 1 inch or 1 hour of watering
  1. What is the expected impact on the Sierra Nevada snowpack of global warming in the next 20-40 years? 
    1. 15% reduction
    2. 40% reduction
    3. 50% reduction
  1. How much landscape water use is reduced by proper mulching?
    1. 10%
    2. 45%
    3. 70%
  1. Waiting for the kitchen faucet water to become hot wastes around how much water?
    1. 5 gallons
    2. 3 gallons
    3. 1 gallon

Join us for a conversation on drought. You can amaze other SV2 partners with your water-conservation knowledge while learning more about the big picture issues and challenges created by drought. Understand how you can take action to help yourself, your neighbors, and your communities. RSVP: EPIC Drought Conversation

Additional questions for the meeting (not for the event description)

  1. How much of the Bay Area’s water comes from Hetch Hetchy Reservoir?
    1. 45%
    2. 85%
    3. 95%
  1. What percent of the Tuolomne River (fills Hetch Hetchy) is diverted to the Bay Area?
    1. 80%
    2. 50%
    3. 15%
  1. Select the 2016 native salmon run size on the Tuolomne River.
    1. 12,000
    2. 434
    3. 5,340
  1. To conserve water when showering, which technique should you use?
    1. Convert to a sea shower
    2. Skip showers and use more perfume
    3. Replace showering with sponge baths
  1. California’s last drought was from 2012-2016. Since 1970, how many other droughts have there been?
    1. 5
    2. 3
    3. 2

3 (bonus points if you can date them – 1976‒77, 1987‒92, and 2007‒09)

Source: https://www.ppic.org/publication/droughts-in-california/, April 2021

  1. Landscape watering accounts for what percentage of total urban water use? 
    1. 35%
    2. 50%
    3. 65%

50% Source: https://www.ppic.org/blog/californias-cities-ready-next-drought/ April 2018

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