HANFORD, Calif. (AP) – Knee-high tufts of grass dot the streets of Hardwick, a rural neighborhood with a few dozen homes hemmed in by vineyards and walnut and almond orchards in California’s agriculture-rich San Joaquin Valley.
Nearby, the Kings River – swollen with rainwater and Sierra Nevada snowmelt – meanders through fields. Water is abundant in the river but it may not last.
Despite winter storms that have turned much of California’s parched landscape to vibrant green, the drought has yet to loosen its grip on thousands of residents in the valley. Many people must still use water stored in large tanks in their yard to wash dishes and bathe.
Scientists at Stanford University and NASA say excessive pumping of wells during the drought has tapped out some underground sources of water that will never recover.
At the height of the drought, nearly 2,400 wells dried up, affecting 12,000 people, state officials said.