6 thoughts on “El Nino”

  1. Just remember that the first 2-3 Spanish attempts to colonize LA ended in starvation because of drought. During the Medieval Warm Period a massive drought settled over the Southwest, destroying Anasazi culture. That’s how bad it can get there. Nuclear-powered desalinization is indicated, but not PC enough.

      1. Californians already have all their coal-powered electricity coming from Nevada and the Navajo Reservation and the Northwest, so as to not dirty up their pristine skies. Next is to import water instead of using your own better? Fine. Just be prepared to pay dearly for it, or don’t whine when it gets diverted for local use in Utah and Colorado and Montana.

        1. No question that CA water policies are idiotic, but if Tucson could stop pumping the aquifer, and Phoenix didn’t need so much river water, there would be more available for CA. Also, some of it could recharge the Rio Grande for Mexico before it goes over the hill. My idea is that there are some places that occasionally get too much water (like TX a few weeks ago, or the Red River Valley), and it would be nice to have a way to send it where it’s needed.

  2. Last winter was supposed to be nice and wet, but wind patterns diverted the rain north around California. If the global circulation models were better we might know where a small input might alter wind patterns to our advantage.

  3. A few months ago, I caught “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” on cable. It was filmed circa 1982 in the L.A. Valley. What struck me was that even though it is technically a desert, in the movie it looked like a lush, verdant paradise. Mature shade trees, green lawns, full-to-the-brim swimming pools, etc. (Yes, I did just think of Phoebe Cates in That Scene. Sue me.) I’m guessing that back then, Jerry Brown wasn’t quite so enthused to make the place uninhabitable.

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