San Francisco water use restricted as massive California drought gets worse

San Francisco water use restricted as massive California drought gets worse

Regulators have barred more people from drawing from rivers and streams as the historic California drought gets worse and worse.

It just keeps getting worse in California as state regulators further restricted the drawing of water from rivers and streams on Friday in a desperate bid to contain the epic problems associated with this long-running drought.

The State Water Resources Control Board is cutting back on 16 water rights held by diverters in the general San Francisco region on the San Joaquin River, Merced River, and Tuolumne River, according to a Los Angeles Times report.

It won’t make much of a difference for San Francisco itself, which will still be able to get water from the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, a resource that is about 95 percent full due to recent storms.

It’s not quite a desperate situation for the city, which will remain in fairly good shape despite the order to end diversions in the Tuolumne watershed.

One exception on the upper San Joaquin will be for landowners who want to divert water that flows by their property.

Irrigation districts, a ranch, a dairy farm, and Pacific Gas and Electric Company will be affected most by the diversion bans. The power company won’t be affected too much because it can still use water for hydroelectric generation, so long as it gets returned to the river.

It adds to the growing list of water rights holders who have been restricted from diversions since last summer as the drought continues to deepen. It’s the first time since the 1970s that a state board as moved to stop withdrawals by senior diverters, however.

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