In Rancho Mirage, southern California, lush private gardens flourish in absurd contrast to the parched surrounding landscape. But green lawns like these are under threat, as the drought that has plagued the state since 2012 refuses to let up.
In January last year, when rainfall figures for the preceding 12 months slumped to the lowest levels since records began in 1885, governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency. He is now enforcing residential water restrictions after another snowless winter. Public lawns will be replaced with “drought tolerant landscaping” and enforced cuts to water-usage of 25% will be mandatory for California’s 38 million residents. Meanwhile, farmers, who use the majority of the state’s water supply, face further unemployment and low yield as more fields are left fallow. Overpopulation, intensive agriculture and climate change have all been suggested as possible factors exacerbating the situation but, whatever their role, California may no longer be the infinitely fertile oasis it once seemed.
