New Research Involves Renewing Groundwater Supplies, Not Filling Reservoirs

In a test on a potential new way to reduce the effects of California's recurring drought conditions, researchers are looking not to expand reservoirs, but rather find a way to funnel the excess rainwater from the El Nino winter back into the groundwater, where it can be put to better use during the drier seasons. Currently, the majority of rain runs off into the ocean, simply because a large portion of the land is covered in concrete or asphalt, which doesn't allow rainwater to permeate. Through this ongoing experiment, depicted in Geoffrey Mohan's L.A. Times article, the water is instead redirected to the fields of involved farmers, where the water is able to seep into the soil.

While creating new reservoirs and expanding existing reservoirs could accomplish the same goal, the experiment aims to show that it can be accomplished more naturally and cheaply. Simply by harnessing the power of gravity, storm runoff could be forced into irrigation channels. From the irrigation channels, several fields in succession can be watered before the rest of the runoff can make it to nearby lakes and rivers. Once upon a time, farmers used only surface water and groundwater to tend to their crops. In this day and age, the groundwater levels are so depleted, especially during drought seasons, that there isn't enough water to make that system feasible.

That system could once again become helpful for farmers and common folks alike, once the groundwater levels have been put back to normal. Through a large-scale application of the concepts present throughout the experiment, everything from wells to reservoirs could be filled with the rainwater that would normally be wasted as runoff to the ocean. Unfortunately, not very many people have volunteered to be a part of the study. Some are, quite reasonably, simply unwilling to risk their trees in the event that the experiment ruins them. More often, state or federal agencies control the water in dams and canals and put up a lot of red tape due to their worries that the water may benefit people who aren't paying for it.

The research is risky, but well worth it in the long run. The water might spur fungal disease in the trees, but it also might kill off worms and mites. The test measures whether the concentration of contaminants like nitrogen-based fertilizers increases in the total groundwater and what effects that might have on the ecosystem. In general, the experiment is looking to make sure whether this would be an effective way to store water for use in drier times. From what has been measured so far, the irrigation hasn't ruined the test trees, but it will still be a while before significant results can be found.

According to researchers' approximations, there are about 3.6 million acres of agricultural land in California alone that have the proper characteristics to make them usable in groundwater-refilling projects. The only issue is that everyone would have to work together to make this concept a reality. For the first few years, crop yields will likely decrease due to the plan, which will make many farmers want to drop out. However, if they all stick it out to the end, the groundwater levels would eventually become properly equilibrated, which would extremely dampen the effects of future drought conditions in the area. It would just take a lot of cooperation between individual farmers and governmental agencies, as well as a unified belief that renewing the environment will have far more positive effects, both economically and otherwise, in the long  run than making a quick buck today.

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Drought Conditions Prevent Ability to Store Sustainable Energy

For companies like Southern California Edison, the drought is taking its toll on their sources of sustainable energy. When water stored in artificial lakes high in the mountains is released, it flows down to turn hydroelectric turbines and convert the water's kinetic energy into electrical energy for use by consumers. This system only works when the water is available for use. Because of the drought, water levels have dropped so far that the hydroelectric system has been put on hold for the time being. According to Ivan Penn, in his L.A. Times article, the hydroelectric power is not the only source of power being lost due to depleted water reserves.

Renewable resources are those that are considered to be constant in nature, that will always be available on Earth. Sunlight, wind, and water are some examples of such resources. You may ask, “Why is water considered 'renewable' if a drought can reduce the amount available?" This is due to the fact that, while a drought reduces the availability of water in specific parts of the world, the amount of water available throughout the entire world remains relatively constant. 

As more and more research comes out showing the negative effects that coal and fossil fuels have on the environment, as well as the rapidly diminishing supplies of such resources, both government agencies and private corporations search for a more sustainable alternative. Wind and solar energy seem to provide the greatest return on investment, to the extent that many homeowners have installed their own solar panels to harness the Sun's natural power for themselves. Unfortunately, power companies have yet to find a way to store excess energy. Just as blackouts and power reductions can be caused by too little power being produced, too much power can overload the power grid and damage everything connected to it.

Edison has a system that, in non-drought times, would be quite effective in storing excess energy for later use. when the water has flowed down the mountain and through th3e turbines, it ends up in another manmade lake. When their solar panels and wind turbines collect more energy than can be used by consumers, the excess energy is used rather than given away at negative prices. The energy is used to power pumps that bring the water back up the mountain and stored back in the starting lake. In this way, "energy" can be stored, though not in the classical sense.  Since energy can only be converted, not created or destroyed, the excess energy is converted from electrical to mechanical (pumps) to potential (water on top of the mountain). Then, when the energy is needed again, the water is released from the lake and the potential energy becomes kinetic, then electrical once again. 

At nighttime, stored energy is needed to make up for the fact that no solar energy is being collected. While Edison's energy storage system, of course, has loss associated with it, since all processes lose some energy as heat, it is better than the alternative in which excess energy is given away to competing companies in order to prevent overloading of the power grid. However, drought conditions have everyone at a loss. How else can the energy be stored in an economical, efficient, and environmentally-friendly manner?  

As Penn points out, it's not as if we can control Sun or wind on command. Renewable energy sources are great and have become more utilitarian and widely used in recent years, but it seems that the most effective use of researchers' time would be to find a better way to store the energy.  If renewable, sustainable energy can be stored and easily accessed, then there would be little reason to use fossil fuels and other degradative materials as energy sources. As such, solar, wind, and hydroelectric power are arguably the best and cheapest energy sources, but they can only live up to their true potential if scientists find an effective way to store the excess. 

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