California Cold Snap Threatens Citrus Crop, Strands Motorists

California is experiencing a cold snap which may have impacts on it's local Zookeepers, farmers, and the homeless. This trend seems to be the case as of late. Since the drought that dried up much of the mid west throughout last year, these random weather events appear to be escalating.

(Alternative source)

SAN DIEGO — The bright sun and clear skies were routine, but the cold was not, as Californians bundled up with sweaters and gloves and stocked up on firewood Friday to brace for several nights of freezing temperatures.

Zookeepers turned up the heat for chimpanzees in San Diego, and tourists covered their hands on Hollywood walking tours. Still, the cold snap wasn't enough to throw many off their strides.

Now I can't suggest that there due to one another, but it does appear that what is happening climatically ,at least in the U.S., would suggest a dynamic correlation or chain of events; that transpired due to short rainfalls and low precipitation during hot summer months last year.

These impacts have already IMO begun to manifest themselves in several key agricultural areas, disrupting one of our nations key pathways of transportation for international exports and crop production along the Missouri and the Mississippi River.

Source

Water releases from dams on the upper Missouri River are planned to be significantly scaled back later this month and these reductions are expected to negatively impact the Mississippi River water level between St. Louis and Cairo, IL beginning December 1. Of particular concern are hazardous rock formations near Thebes and Grand Tower, IL, which threaten navigation when water levels drop to anticipated, near historic lows. The rock formations, combined with the reduced flows from the Missouri River, will prohibit the transport of essential goods along this critical point in the river, effectively stopping barge transportation on the middle Mississippi River around December 10.

The ramifications of the transportation problems are yet to be known. And unless we get significant amounts of moisture this winter and spring in the right places, I can't foresee the situation getting better. Now to compound the issue even further, there may also be a significant event happening in California as you read and I type, that could create a problem for it's agricultural industry.

Source

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - An Arctic air mass sent temperatures plunging across California, forcing the 17-hour closure of a key interstate highway through the mountains north of Los Angeles and threatening citrus crops in the state's vast central valleys, authorities said on Friday. Temperatures throughout the state fell by as much as 20 degrees Fahrenheit (11 degrees Celsius) below normal, allowing snow to accumulate at elevations as low as 1,500 feet, the National Weather Service reported.

(Alternative source)


As I browsed through this material I thought to myself, where was this information coming from and who are the authorities as mentioned in the above source which provided the info. As I popped up a few links I came across an interesting article that provided a source of authority to look up and research. Apparently there is a consensus amongst scientists that the U.S. is experiencing an increasing threat to it's vital infrastructure, and unless we act the affects may be dramatic.

Source

WASHINGTON — The impacts of climate change driven by human activity are spreading through the United States faster than had been predicted, increasingly threatening infrastructure, water supplies, crops and shorelines, according to a federal advisory committee.

If your interested in reading where this information was drawn from and collected, you can view a draft climate assessment report available to the public here. I haven't read the report yet, if there are inaccuracies between what the sources say compared to the assessment feel free to share.

(Alternative source)

If we don't get some of that cold here in the Midwest soon, our crops will be hit hard with bugs and rodents...among other issues. It's too cold where it shouldn't be and to mild where it should be colder. The weather is all out of wack, and it seemed to start last year IMO, so that would make this the second year in a row the weather hasn't been right.
I hate to see what the prices at the grocery store will look like in the near future. They already make me want to cry.

Interesting.
It's supposed to be 70 degrees in D.C. tomorrow, strange for January.

I remember it snowing on the first day of spring in 1989 in Pennsylvania. I also remember it being 80 degrees on Halloween in 1992 or 1993.

The weather is going to continue to change forever, and there is nothing anyone can do about it.

Yes, it's warm here in the South-East. I don't even need a sweater. All this strange weather is getting creepy.

We haven't really had any decent reprieve from the eternal Hell climate known as hot & OMFG here in FL yet, either. I want to say we should be seeing low to mid 60's for highs in January, but I think realistically, we average in the mid 70's? It seems like it should be substantially cooler, but logically, I know we don't hit that kind of cold very many times a winter. That said, it was 87* the other day, and I swore it was May weather. It was definitely above average, by at least 10 degrees. It'll straighten itself out, as it has before. It's apparently been much hotter than that here for the date in the past, because we didn't break the date record.
As for the rest of the US, maybe we should be looking at this like a climatic fever of sorts. The only question is when will the fever break & temps begin to drop. Sometimes with people, meds & intervention don't help with the fever, and you just have to let it run it's course while monitoring. Frankly, I think the same applies to nature after a point, there's only so much we can do to help.

The California cold snap has caused major damage to the state's $8 billion fruit and vegetable industry, destroying substantial portions of the citrus crop and affecting lettuce, broccoli, avocado and artichoke crops from San Diego in the south to Santa Cruz in the north, experts say.

Consumers will almost certainly face sharp price increases at grocery produce departments, and growers are exhausted from several nights of trying in vain to raise temperatures in their fields by means of wind, fire, water and even a sprayed-on plastic coating.

The above quote is from an article written on December 24, 1990. The only thing that happened was that some fruits and vegetables cost a little bit more for a few months. This kind of weather in Southern California, while not common, is really not that unusual.

Link

The weather in the Pacific Northwest is normal, very normal. The only things unusual about the last couple of years is that spring seems to come late, and summers are a bit colder. It is definately not warmer here. And there is no drought. Our snowpack levels are above average this year.

What you are seeing is normal variations in the weather, that have always happened and will always happen. Next year we will be probably be hearing about the Mississippi river flooding and blizzards all winter long.

We got the water issue, we built dams. You build greenhouses.

Yes I saw this earlier when I was planning to fly out to EDW this a.m.
Chula Vista will have freezing temps tonight.
Flight plan cancelled.

Send some of the warm weather this way, as it was 24 degrees here last night, which is quite cold for my area. Brrrrrr.

The first year that I moved up to Oregon, about ten years ago, it was 70 degrees in February and we were sitting on the beach in shorts. This lasted for a few weeks. That is almost unheard of, at least up here. I would love for that to happen again!