LOS ANGELES — The start of this year has been the driest in California's history. With the severe drought now in a third year, the state faces depleted reservoirs, a meager snowpack in the Sierra Nevada and a worsening water shortage on the Colorado River.
Under sunny blue skies in Sacramento, where it hasn't rained in two months, officials stood Thursday in front of a mulch-covered garden and appealed for Californians to save water.
"We're asking all Californians to step up," said Wade Crowfoot, secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency. That means reducing water usage immediately and also taking steps that will help conserve in the long run, he said, such as replacing grass with drought-tolerant plants, or switching to water-saving appliances.
