Cowabunga! Fewer recreation options, but we need the water: Opinion cartoon by SW Parra
Fresno-area public safety officials have spoken: stay out of the rivers swollen with Sierra snow melt.
Said Dustin Hale of Cal Fire at a Thursday news conference alongside the Kings River:
“We have not seen this in decades. (The water) looks tempting, but the temperatures are in the low 50s. That impairs your ability to breathe.
“You not only put yourself at risk, but rescue teams, as well.”
But as you look past the rivers for water recreation options (and remember there are plenty, from municipal pools and splash parks to water parks and lakes), remember there’s a silver lining.
State and local water officials are scrambling to siphon as much of a record snow melt as they can. Paul Gosselin, deputy director of the state water agency’s groundwater management office, said managers are flooding empty fields with water and letting it soak into water tables that have been depleted by overpumping during years of drought.
To date, Gosselin said Monday, almost 92,000 acre-feet of water has been captured and used for groundwater recharge, “and that’s just beginning.”
No, you can’t surf the underground “ocean” — but at least there’s a promise of a greener California.
