Wednesday, August 26, 2015

NASA Report Shows Central Valley Land is Sinking Faster the Ever

The State Department of Water Resources released a study last week showing that land subsidence in the Central Valley due to groundwater pumping is occurring even faster than previously thought. The updated information came from satellite data that was analyzed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena. Land near the town to Corcoran in Tulare County sank 13 inches just in the last eight months of 2014. In Sacramento County, land subsided 2 inches in that same period. The DWR says land subsidence is already causing physical damage to the California Aqueduct as well as to pipelines, well casings and other infrastructure. The DWR identified the main cause is the excessive pumping of groundwater due the drought conditions, and the absence of surface water deliveries to Valley farms through the State and Federal water projects. Vic Bedoian reports from Fresno.