Stunning Before and After Photos of California’s Lakes Depleted by Extreme Drought
We've matched up recent photos of these three depleted lakes from the California Department of Water Resources with images from Google Earth.
Image credit: Google Earth (before image), California Department of Water Resources (after image).
Chris Dolce (Weather Channel): Mountain snowfall plays a big role in the water supply for California, particularly in the Sierra Nevada.
California’s reservoirs are severely depleted due to the ongoing widespread drought conditions in the state. As of Jan. 21, 2014, 67 percent of California was in extreme drought, the second worst category possible on the U.S. Drought Monitor.
According to the California Department of Water Resources, Lake Shasta and Lake Oroville are only 36 percent of capacity. Folsom Lake is just 17 percent capacity.
Starting with Folsom Lake above, we’ve matched up recent photos of these three depleted lakes from the California Department of Water Resources with images from Google Earth that show the lakes when they were much fuller. Move your mouse over each image to see the startling comparison.
Related
- U.S. Drought Monitor California http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/Home/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?CA
- Once-In-1200-Year California Drought Bears Signature Of Climate Change http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2014/12/08/3600717/california-drought-climate-change-2/
- Leading Scientists Explain How Climate Change Is Worsening California’s Epic Drought
- The Water Levels Of The Middle East’s Biggest Lake Have Dropped 95 Percent In Two Decades
- China’s Largest Freshwater Lake Dries Up: Is the Massive Three Gorges Dam to Blame?
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