The California drought has come to an end, but we must stay vigilant about its potential return
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD — science@theaggie.org
For the first time in 25 years, the California drought is over. This news follows a series of continuous winter storms, which have replenished reservoirs that were previously depleted. As inconvenient as the rain may be, it has increased the water supply we have so desperately needed.
Before you go and celebrate by taking an hour-long shower, it’s important to note that we may — and likely will — find ourselves back in the drought, and soon. Once the winter is over and the rain starts to dwindle, the environment will become dry once again. Even though California is no longer in a drought, many other states still are, and access to fresh water continues to decline throughout the world as a result of climate change.
It’s also important to consider the cause of the season’s excess rain. Rising temperatures from greenhouse gas emissions lead to increased evaporation, which means that more moisture is stored in the atmosphere. Since this water needs somewhere to go, it gets released as rain. These downpours have an uneven geographic distribution, and as a result, certain areas are affected by unusually extreme storms — resulting in dangerous conditions and claiming the lives of many individuals — while other areas experience intense dryness.
Without climate change, we would have more stable weather patterns and temperatures wouldn’t be as high in the first place, limiting the occurrences of major events like floods, hurricanes, wildfires and droughts. Instead, these weather phenomena and natural disasters are increasing in frequency, wreaking havoc on both the environment and the global population.
Wildfires have been an especially prevalent issue in California; the Palisades fire in January 2025 burned 24,000 acres of land, and in the 90 days following the Los Angeles fires, there was a 24% increase in respiratory problems reported by those living in the area. Climate change is one of the main contributors to the severity of these fires — the warm atmosphere dries out shrubs and trees, providing optimal kindling to fuel the flames.
The impacts of water shortages extend beyond the realm of environmental concerns as well. It is expected that water insecurity will eventually become a leading cause of wars; as food production decreases and fewer crops can be grown, worldwide economic and political issues will only intensify. International conflicts will erupt and cause tension regarding shared resources, including control over water and food sources. Global cooperation will be necessary in order to avoid these issues, but this is unlikely; water conflict is already present in many countries, including Yemen, Sudan and Syria.
To minimize the harmful impact that we, as humans, have on the status of the drought, there are steps we can take to conserve water. These include reducing the amount of time that faucets are left on, limiting water use for lawns and yardwork and checking over your water bill to implement environmentally-conscious changes as needed.
On a brighter note, as long as we experience increased rainfall (which we can expect a lot of throughout this quarter!) we may as well be appreciative of the resulting greenery. Take the time to have a picnic at the Arboretum, or perhaps venture out for a nice hike. Our planet is by no means a perfect place to live, but California’s drought-free declaration — even though it may only be temporary — is something to celebrate.
Written by: The Editorial Board — science@theaggie.org
