California Faces , Climate Extremes.<br />NBC reports that California has been struck <br />by a series of powerful storms supercharged <br />by atmospheric rivers since Christmas.<br />Those storms have been the cause of at least <br />17 deaths, mudslides, closed roads and hundreds of <br />thousands of people experiencing power outages.<br />NBC reports that three more <br />massive storms have been forecast <br />for California in the coming days.<br />Despite the ongoing flooding, leaders in California <br />are still preparing for the possibility of continued <br />drought this summer in parts of the state.<br />California is experiencing <br />— coincidentally — both a drought <br />emergency and a flood emergency, Karla Nemeth, director of the state <br />Department of Water Resources, via NBC.<br />California is experiencing <br />— coincidentally — both a drought <br />emergency and a flood emergency, Karla Nemeth, director of the state <br />Department of Water Resources, via NBC.<br />NBC reports that the climate extremes <br />in California have forced communities <br />to balance dueling priorities.<br />We are in this constant tension. <br />You want to capture every drop you can. <br />However, these are multipurpose dams — <br />they also have to do flood control. <br />To do flood control, you want <br />dams as empty as possible, Jeffrey Mount, a senior fellow at the Water Policy Center <br />of the Public Policy Institute of California, via NBC.<br />While it remains crucial to store water for hot, dry <br />summers, some reservoirs have been forced <br />to release rainwater in order to manage floods.<br />According to NBC, much of the rainfall that has<br />fallen as a result of the atmospheric river storms <br />will not be stored for later use in the summer.<br />The vast majority of the water <br />on the land is running off. <br />There is no economically <br />viable way to store it, Jeffrey Mount, a senior fellow at the Water Policy Center <br />of the Public Policy Institute of California, via NBC
