Fires & drought plague the US west coast

Russian River

A major heatwave hit the entire west coast of America last week and was even worse than predicted when a heat dome settled in.  It exacerbated what was already one of the most severe droughts in the region, prompting experts to warn that this could be the worst wildfire season ever. 

The Salt Fire north of Redding California near the Oregon border has consumed more than 11,000 acres and numerous homes and structures. But there are many more fires raging in all the states affected. Authorities warned not to set off fireworks for July 4th celebrations. 

The Russian River Valley where much of California's wine industry is situated is under extreme pressure. The Russian River serves as the main source of drinking water for more than 600,000 people in Sonoma, Mendocino and northern Marin counties. Some of the richest farmland in the nation is being left fallow because the water is running out. 

But it's not just California. Oregon's Williamette Valley suffered unprecedented extreme heat during the heat wave. No one knows how grapes will fare under these conditions. They are hoping that it is early enough in the season for the grapes to be able to withstand it, but Pinot Noir is particularly sensitive to heat. Most of the region grows cool climate grapes, and temperatures were 25 to 30 degrees above normal. 

This is what climate change looks like. 

Record-breaking heat wave to hit US west coast

A record-breaking heatwave is about to hit the west coast of the United States during the worst drought on record. 

From California to Oregon and Washington State, temperatures are expected to remain well above normal for days. The National Weather Service has issued warnings. 

⚠️Record-Breaking and Dangerous Heatwave coming to the West. Over 80 sites are forecast to break daily high temperature records starting this weekend. All-time June monthly records could also be broken in some locations in the Pacific Northwest.  

https://weather.gov/safety/heat

What is that going to do to the 2021 grape harvest and all other crops?  The last time California had a record-breaking heatwave, it came at harvest time in September 2017 and turned the grapes into raisins. 

Update 28-06-21

It's hit as predicted and it is unprecedented. Portland, Oregon reached a temperature of 112 degrees Fahrenheit (44.4 Celsius) on Sunday, breaking the all-time record of 108 F (42.2C) which was set just a day earlier. Seattle this 104. 

When temperatures reach this high, grapes shut down to conserve water. If this continues, mitigation strategies will have to be implemented. 

Extreme drought in the US

Houseboats on a shrinking Lake Oroville

They estimate that 88% of the western states are experiencing drought. Four states are under extreme drought conditions which are expected to get even worse. The entirety of four states -- California, Oregon, Utah and Nevada -- have drought conditions. The situation is dire as ponds, streams and wells dry up and cattle go thirsty just as summer is approaching. The fire situation is expected to bring a new level of tragic loss to the region.  The Storm Prediction Center's fire weather outlook was classified as "critical" or "extreme" across parts of Wyoming, Utah, Colorado and Arizona.

Lake Mead, the country's largest reservoir, is at its lowest level since it was filled and electricity production at the Hoover dam is down by 25%. The Colorado River which supplies over 40 million people will deliver 30% less water this year. About 130 houseboats have been removed from a shrinking Lake Oroville in California. 

Las Vegas, home to 2.2 million people, gets just 4 inches of rain a year. That's unsustainable. Having lawns is being made illegal in some places. Utahns are being asked to pray for rain while farmers are being asked not to grow. Some are predicting a megadrought that will last many decades. God help the USA.

They haven't really measured the extent of damage the last season did to the vineyards. This coming season can do nothing but add to the injury. 

I have said since we moved to Ireland, thank God for being on an island in the Atlantic. I am grateful for every drop of rain we get.

Lake Oroville Dam before the drought

 

Drought in California, again!

The U.S. Drought Monitor map shows the entire Bay Area in extreme drought conditions as of May 4, 2021.

U.S. Drought Monitor

The San Francisco Bay area has gone from severe to extreme drought in just two weeks. 

Wells are drying up in the San Joachin Valley because of less snow in the Sierra Nevada. 

Sonoma County supervisors declared a drought emergency and vineyards in the Alexander Valley are scaling back crop production. 

North Coast wineries are preparing for another wildfire season. 

My heart bleeds for the people who worked so hard to establish such a wonderful legacy of creating the nectar of the gods. But what's the solution?  It will only continue to get worse most likely until California suffers the ultimate disaster. And yet people continue to plant more crops and expand into new territories whether it makes sense or not. And their places burn yet they rebuild. I suppose if the insurance pays, they have to. 

Reservoirs are running low and there are no conservation measures in place. And it's only May. I fear what the summer will bring. 

Drought in Ireland

 

The five-year-old Rondo vines are loaded with clusters

Weather prediction is about to become more accurate in Ireland, just at a time when there's little weather to report. We have not had any rain in ages and have been watering daily, but not in the vineyard. I hope the vines can survive the drought we are experiencing.

The three-year-old Solaris vines are looking good. 

The earth is parched and the leaves that blew off the trees in the last storm are so dry that everywhere you take a step outdoors is crunchy underfoot. The cats are actually scaring themselves with the noise. This is a truly unusual situation for us. Midday is silent as the cats take siestas in the shade of the trees, birds stop flying and even the insects settle down somewhere. There are many more insects this year than last -- all different kinds including many butterflies flitting about. Everyone is coming to the oasis to drink and bathe but the water level is way down.

It's looking pretty good for no rain in weeks. 

The hottest day of the year so far was yesterday and reported in Furnace, Newport just a few miles from here at 26.9C. Irish Water is about to restrict watering and there's little respite in the forecast. So all we can do is pray and go paddling around Clew Bay. It's gorgeous out there and much cooler on the water. See you later.

Croagh Patrick, the Holy mountain

Nephin range with Ross in the foreground

The head of the inlet 

Our house in the centre

Our village of Ross

Croagh Patrick as clouds arrive

Beautiful but no rain

Drought!

I was wondering when we last had rain so I looked it up on Met Eireann.

CLIMATOLOGICAL DROUGHTS AND DRY SPELLS 2020
A partial drought is ongoing at Dublin Airport. The length of this dry period is now at 35 days long with 5.8 mm of rain falling since Wednesday 18 March 2020. Between Wednesday 18 March to Wednesday 1 April 2020, there was 0.0 mm of rainfall recorded every day at that station. Meanwhile new dry spells are ongoing at three stations: 16 days at Claremorris, Co Mayo and 15 days at each of Markree, Co Sligo and Knock Airport, Co Mayo.

We are in County Mayo. We've had to water the garden every day, and it looks like several more days before we get any drops out of the sky. At least the solar-powered fountain has been working well. I hope the vineyard survives this. The rest of the garden is looking pretty fine.

Here's is the full drought statement to date. It's also been quite hot - shorts, T-shirts and flip flops weather. Lots of butterflies and bumblebees. But no honey bees. 

https://www.met.ie/cms/assets/uploads/2020/04/20200421_drought.pdf

Vines are dying in California

I have a feeling I'm not going to like being right.   A comprehensive study has shown that climate change accelerated by man is responsible for the drought in California and will continue to have significant effects. An article in the New York Times said:

"A report this week by researchers at the University of California, Davis, projected that the drought would cost the California economy some $2.7 billion this year. Much of that pain is being felt in the state’s huge farming industry, which has been forced to idle a half-million acres and has seen valuable crops like almond trees and grape vines die."

It's not even that the grapes have become raisins, it says the grape vines have died. I've just found a picture and stats on how much impact the drought has had. They are not yet talking about this much but if you dig a little you'll find that it bad and getting worse.

"Dead and dying grape vines in Bakersfield, California, USA. Following an unprecedented four year long drought, Bakersfield is now the driest city in the USA. Most of California is in exceptional drought, the highest level of drought classification. 428,000 acres of agricultural land have been taken out of production due to lack of water and thousands of agricultural workers have lost their jobs."

If "wine is sunlight held together by water" as Galileo professed, then California is in deep trouble. They have way too much sunlight and way too little water.

Some producers are benefiting from the drought. Oregon and Washington state are replacing apples with grapes which need only half the water.   Vintners in regions of California less affected by drought say their yields will be lower but the wine tastier as a result of reduced rainfall.


But for many in the regions most affected, including Napa and Sonoma, the situation has been dire and getting worse sparking water wars. In each of the last four years, people thought it was as bad as it could get, but it keeps getting worse. And yet, it's even worse for the nut farmers.