Super extreme drought! The U.S. Southwest is experiencing its driest conditions in 1,200 years

A megadrought in the U.S. Southwest that has been afflicting the Southwest for at least 20 years is causing the region to experience its driest conditions in 1,200 years, with last year being particularly severe, according to a new study published in Nature Climate Change. .

In the study, the researchers analyzed tree-ring patterns, which provide information on soil moisture levels over long periods of time, and found that the current megadrought, which has surpassed the worst drought experienced at the end of the 15th century, has been since The driest since 800 AD.

The study area included southern Montana to northern Mexico and from the Pacific Ocean to the Rocky Mountains.

Since 2000, average soil moisture deficits have been twice as high as in any drought since the 20th century, and more severe than even the driest regions in the worst megadroughts of the past 12 centuries. These findings were confirmed by comparisons with historical climate data.

According to NOAA, the term "megadrought" is used to describe severe and intense droughts that span decades.

The study shows that about 42% of soil moisture is deficient due to climate change caused by human activities.

"High temperatures and low precipitation from summer 2020 to summer 2021 have exacerbated already worrying conditions, which will require multiple rainy years to remedy," said study author Park Williams, a geographer at UCLA. its impact.”

For the past 20 years, the western United States has had dry weather with occasional brief precipitation. Los Angeles received less than 0.1 inch of rain in January, according to NOAA. In mid-February, things will get worse.

UCLA climatologist Parker Williams, who led the research project, said years of above-average rainfall and snow would be required to overcome the megadrought.

The City of Los Angeles is aware of the crisis in its drinking water supply and is working hard to make the most of every dro. Los Angeles has excavated several large, open soil basins to absorb rainwater and replenish aquifers. The Los Angeles government has also set a small goal of recycling 100% of all wastewater.

Recycled water is circulated through a wastewater collection system throughout the city of Los Angeles' sewer network. The high-purity treated water is of better quality than distilled water and can be used as drinking water after treatment.

Tracy Minamed, head of the Los Angeles Department of Health and Environment, said as much as 12 million gallons of groundwater per day are already being treated and supplied, and there are plans to increase that number to more than 200 million gallons per day.

In addition to this, the Los Angeles Department of Health and Environment has other dry-weather diversion projects designed to collect runoff from city streets and treat it for local irrigation.

In addition, some urban designs incorporate water-saving elements—such as replacing asphalt with permeable paving stones. "Decades ago, people might have been reluctant to pay more taxes for recycling water and harvesting rainwater. But now there seems to be a willingness to do so," Minamiad said.