Gavin Newsom declares a drought emergency – but it’s limited to two counties in California

Gov. Gavin Newsom officially declared a drought emergency Wednesday in one of the driest regions of California, the Russian River watershed in Northern California.

While the governor stopped short of declaring a statewide drought, the move makes various forms of drought assistance available for Sonoma and Mendocino counties and could allow the state to take swifter action on curtailing farmers and others from pulling water from the river.

Newsom said his order won’t bring the imposition of water-conservation mandates, however.

The Democratic governor issued the declaration during a visit to Lake Mendocino in Ukiah, where he stood in a cracked, dry lake bed that vividly demonstrated the impact of the drought.

“I’m standing currently 40 feet underwater, or should be standing 40 feet underwater,” he said.

The lake is normally fed by the Russian River, and Newsom was accompanied by officials from the region who have been pleading for help in recent weeks.

“As a result of a lack of rain, our region’s two primary reservoirs are at historically low water storage levels,” said Grant Davis, the general manager of Sonoma Water, the agency serving 600,000 residents in parts of Sonoma and Marin counties. “Lake Mendocino here is one of those reservoirs, and is at about 43% capacity. With no additional rain, and continued consumption from water users downstream, we anticipate the very real possibility of not being able to release water from this reservoir by fall.”

State Sen. Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, added: “Lake Mendocino is the canary in the coal mine when it comes to California’s drought.” McGuire said he is working with colleagues in the Legislature to propose a $2 billion budget proposal focused on the drought.

Newsom’s disaster declaration also cited the ultra-dry conditions in the Klamath Basin, along the California-Oregon border, but his drought declaration only applies to the Russian River area.

Newsom’s top water policymakers accompanied him to Lake Mendocino and pledged to closely monitor the impact of declining water levels on endangered fish species such as Chinook salmon. Environmentalists say protections for fish were relaxed in the last drought to free up more supplies for farms and cities, leading to dramatic declines in fish populations.

Even though Newsom has acknowledged California is “in the second year of these drought conditions,” he’s refused to declare a statewide drought emergency. Such a declaration could translate into sweeping cutbacks in urban water use, including restrictions on watering lawns.

He stuck with the no-declaration stance Wednesday, saying, “I anticipate being strategic and targeted in terms of the formal emergency declarations as needed. We’ll be strategic based upon conditions as they take place. As relates to statewide order, we have certainly gamed that out, but right now, we’re not prepared to advance a statewide order.”

Officials in his administration have said a statewide declaration is more likely to occur in 2022 if the state endures a third straight dry winter.

Some political observers believe that Newsom, who is likely facing a recall later this year over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, is reluctant to make the state’s drought official because any restrictions could anger voters.

Central Valley legislators continued pressing him Wednesday to make the declaration statewide.

“With the governor’s drought declaration today in Sonoma and Mendocino counties, the Central Valley can’t afford to be overlooked,” state Sen. Andreas Borgeas, R-Fresno, said in a statement. “California is in a drought. We need a statewide emergency declaration immediately in order to deliver more water to farmers and growers in the Valley.”

Senate Republican Leader Scott Wilk of Santa Clarita added: “While the overwhelming majority of the state is experiencing extreme drought conditions, Governor Newsom has chosen to only serve his French Laundry wine and cheese crowd.” The recall movement blossomed after Newsom dined at the French Laundry, an expensive restaurant in Napa Valley, during the pandemic shutdowns.

Water agencies in the Russian River area have already taken initial steps toward conservation as water levels have fallen. The city of Calistoga, for example, recently declared a “Stage II” emergency and imposed water restrictions effective May 1.

Declaring a regional emergency, rather than a statewide emergency, isn’t unprecedented. When former Gov. Jerry Brown declared an end to the last drought, in 2017, he kept the order in place in Fresno, Kings, Tuolumne and Tulare counties. That order still stands for those counties.

This story was originally published April 21, 2021 at 12:28 PM with the headline "Gavin Newsom declares a drought emergency – but it’s limited to two counties in California."