Droughts can have many devastating impacts on a community. New research indicates that one such impact in California is a staggering increase in water prices statewide.

What's happening?

The study, conducted by researchers at the University of California, Davis, was published in October in the journal Nature Sustainability. It showed that extreme weather conditions lead to massive swings in surface water prices, as evidenced by the increases seen during drought conditions.

During droughts, researchers found, the price of water from California's rivers, lakes, and reservoirs jumped up to $487 per acre-foot, or more than three times the price during an average wet year.

Groundwater prices stayed relatively flat. Researchers also discovered that groundwater basins don't typically hold excess surface water, but that doing so could help keep prices down.

"The extreme volatility in prices surprised me," study author Madeline Turland said in a UC Davis release. "This study shows why coordinating both sources matters — it can lower costs now and help communities and farmers better weather future climate swings."

Why are droughts important?

The study highlights the importance of governments, utilities, and individuals planning for extreme weather conditions such as droughts. As human activities continue to pollute our planet, these conditions are projected to continue to happen more often.

The heat-trapping pollution caused by burning fossil fuels has increased global temperatures to never-before-seen levels. The last 10 years have been the 10 warmest in history, and experts expect those records to keep getting broken.

Droughts have, of course, happened historically. But with the higher temperatures come more frequent and severe extreme weather events, including droughts. And with droughts come a number of other problems. 

Farming becomes more difficult, so food can become scarcer and more expensive. Dry conditions also increase the likelihood of wildfires, such as the fatal ones that devastated parts of Southern California in January.

What can I do about droughts?

If you live in a drought-prone area, you can take a number of steps to conserve water. Using your dishwasher, for instance, wastes less water than washing dishes by hand. You can also capture rainwater to help keep your lawn and garden healthy.

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But to actually reduce or reverse the trend of warming temperatures and increasing droughts, we all must take additional action to limit the amount of fossil fuels we burn. Some governments have started this with the pledges made within the Paris Agreement, but individuals can take action, too.

Installing solar panels or switching to an electric vehicle can make a big impact in your personal carbon footprint. But smaller actions — such as bringing reusable bags to the grocery store and using every last bit of your health and beauty products — also add up and make a difference by reducing waste and pollution.

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