Is the current drought due to climate change? Will such droughts become more prevalent in the future? We cannot fully answer these questions yet. What makes sense right now, however, is to make California more “drought-proof.”
The Netherlands — vulnerable to flooding from rivers and from the sea — has put in place (PDF) a number of “flood-proofing” measures that protect it against low-probability, high-impact flood events (floods expected to occur once every 1,250 years). It’s time for California to develop a package of drought-proofing measures that protect it against low-probability, but high-impact droughts.
The $7.5 billion bond measure passed by California voters in November to help the state cope with drought, through such things as promoting water conservation and constructing more water-storage facilities, is a good start. What‘s really needed, though, is an effort that models what a 1-in-1,000-year drought would look like in California, and then implements a cohesive strategy — including contingency measures — that would allow the state and its citizens to successfully weather such a crisis.