By Joseph Kane, Robert Puentes and Adie Tomer
The Brookings Institute Blog
Water may be scarce in California and other parts of the Southwest, but people are flooding in, according to newly released Census data. The influx of residents into these areas not only coincides with a changing labor and housing market, but also has far-reaching implications for water infrastructure.
Although a number of water challenges beyond population pressures are emerging in these regions, drought concerns remain at the forefront, as illustrated weekly in the U.S. Drought Monitor. Based on a variety of climatic and hydrologic measurements, the data help gauge the intensity of drought conditions — from “abnormally dry” to “exceptional drought”—at the county level, and they reveal how the most severe, long-term drought impacts are gripping many Western localities.
Source: Brookings analysis of U.S. Drought Monitor data
Note: U.S. Drought Monitor totals are drawn from the 5/26/2015 update
Source: Brookings analysis of U.S. Census data
In total, the country’s population grew by about 45.2 million from 2000 through July 2014, most of which (25.8 million, or 57 percent) occurred in counties experiencing some level of drought. In addition, nearly 9.5 million more residents are living in counties that are currently dealing with a severe drought or worse, where crop losses are likely to occur, water shortages are common, and water restrictions may be imposed.
Read full coverage here.