2021 Western Drought

[Larry Caldwell]

So far, things have been pretty quiet, but farms are only surviving on federal aid and crop insurance.

https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/water-and-drought/article253476059.html

 

[jerrybob]

Lot of water out in the ocean....a shame we refuse to use it.

A Tale of Two Coastlines: Desalination in China and California

This article was first posted on China-US Focus.The port city of Tianjin is in desperate need of water. The surface and groundwater supplies of this sprawling northeast Chinese metropolis have [...]

www.newsecuritybeat.org

 

[Larry Caldwell]

California produces 25% of the nation's food supply. Not this year. Plan on fruits, berries, vegetables to be rare and expensive. I saw a video of a farmer who had abandoned 200 acres of asparagus. Asparagus is a perennial, and it will take at least two years and a lot of money to put that ground back into production. He may switch to an annual crop with faster return, so the shortages will extend past the rains.

Historic drought threatens California farms supplying much US food

In the valleys of central California, the search for water has turned into an all-out obsession as the region suffers through a drought that could threaten the US food supply.

phys.org

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Lot of water out in the ocean....a shame we refuse to use it.

A Tale of Two Coastlines: Desalination in China and California

This article was first posted on China-US Focus.The port city of Tianjin is in desperate need of water. The surface and groundwater supplies of this sprawling northeast Chinese metropolis have [...]

www.newsecuritybeat.org

What part of the Drinking Water sign did you miss? You can buy water at the supermarket. It's not like you can afford to irrigate with it. Rural people have different priorities than urbanoids.

 

[hslogger]

The drought is just another hoax

 

[jigs_n_fixtures]

Lot of water out in the ocean....a shame we refuse to use it.

A Tale of Two Coastlines: Desalination in China and California

This article was first posted on China-US Focus.The port city of Tianjin is in desperate need of water. The surface and groundwater supplies of this sprawling northeast Chinese metropolis have [...]

www.newsecuritybeat.org

Desalination of ocean water is extremely expensive to bring to a drinking water standard, and if you used the stuff treated to drinking water standards for irrigation, you would add so much salt to the soil that it would be worthless for groaning crops in about ten to fifteen years.

 

[plowhog]

it would be worthless for groaning crops

Is it more suitable for happy crops?

 

[ponytug]

Desalination of ocean water is extremely expensive to bring to a drinking water standard, and if you used the stuff treated to drinking water standards for irrigation, you would add so much salt to the soil that it would be worthless for groaning crops in about ten to fifteen years.

Actually, that isn't totally accurate. Yes, desalination of seawater is energetically and monetarily more expensive than just pumping water out of the ground, or letting it flow downhill. While historically it was often done by boiling, these days, as mentioned above, it is done with reverse osmosis membranes, largely because the cost is lower, with the added benefit that the water is cleaner.

US municipal water costs vary widely, even Arizona pays only ~$1.22/1000gal ($0.32/m3), compare this to desalination water below;

(From The Cost of Desalination - Advisian),
i.e. desalination water is two to five times more expensive (drinking water).

However, the RO water produced from sea water is exceptionally pure, with very low amounts of minerals, as in parts per million low.

Using RO water by itself for irrigation has the challenge that it contains too little of anything else, and tends to leach nutrients from the soil. Rain water accumulates nitrogen through the air, while surface and well waters generally contain added minerals.

Primarily the challenge with using RO water for irrigation is cost, but it is used in some desert countries, e.g. in the Middle East, where the alternative is to import fruits and vegetables over long distances.

All the best,

Peter

 

[newbury]

If every quarter acre or larger lot in Temperate, non-Arid suburbia had a small vegetable garden the need for irrigation water would be drastically reduced.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Some towns have made green lawns illegal. I think golf courses are still safe, and still a vast waste of irrigation water. Rice production has taken a big hit this year.

I think the big hit to our pocketbooks from the drought will be beef prices. Cow-calf and stocker operations run on hay and pasture, and there is a huge shortage of both thanks to the drought. Farmers and ranchers are culling their herds because they can't feed them. Feed lots will be scrambling for animals next year, and are facing a headwind of high feed costs, so may downsize. The price of a decent steak has doubled this year, and may double again.

The drought is not just the US. Brazil and Argentina had short crops last season because of drought. China has been buying massive amounts of grain recently. They're pretty secret about internal matters, but it looks like they are projecting a short crop. Thanks to the drought, they aren't finding much to ship out of Seattle and Portland, so have to go to the Gulf, where a shipping backlog has really slowed things down and increased shipping costs.

The drought is also bad in Canada. Oilseed production is way down, so cooking oil costs will go up. The world uses a lot of cooking oil.

One PNW crop that is pretty obscure is straw. Grass seed and grain farmers bale their straw, stuff it in containers, and ship it to Asia, where it is used for livestock fodder and for growing mushrooms. Those canned mushrooms from China were grown in PNW straw. Production this year is down 60%. Soft white wheat in a PNW crop, used to make noodles, and nobody knows how many fields will even see a combine this year. Barley production is down, so expect your beer to be more expensive.

The bottom line is that food prices will go up. In the US, Canada, Europe, etc., that is an inconvenience. In poor parts of the world it means people will starve.