California Water Data

A clutch of new data tools from Circle of Blue puts California’s water crisis into context.

Map © Jordan B. Bates and Aubrey Ann Parker / Circle of Blue

Infographic: California’s water withdrawals from 1985 to 2005, as well as information on population demographics and arsenic contamination in the Central Valley. Click image to enlarge.

As the most populous U.S. state enters the summer of 2014 in the throes of a ruinous drought, new data tools put California’s water crisis into context. An interactive dashboard shows current and historic reservoir levels and is updated daily. Arsenic contamination and water use data are plotted by zip code or county. And a high-resolution map illustrates the audacious canal system that binds the state together.

These tools are part of Choke Point: Index, an investigation into the condition of water resources in three essential American farm regions.