extreme conditions

California Overestimates Water Supply by Ignoring Climate Change

California Overestimates Water Supply by Ignoring Climate Change

The Department of Water Resources significantly overestimated the state water supply in 2021 because of an error to take into account severe drought due to climate change, the California State Auditor said in a report Thursday. The agency has relied on historical climate data when developing its forecasts, instead of taking into account new methods that better account for extreme conditions, the report said.