'Man-made disaster': Critics say California drought caused by misguided environment policies
By Malia Zimmerman
Published April 16, 2015
FoxNews.com
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Jeff Thengvall leaves after releasing irrigation water to provide water for the rice fields in Richvale, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
The blistering drought that has Californians timing their showers, driving dirty cars and staring at brown lawns and empty swimming pools is a “man-made disaster,” according to critics, who say the Golden State’s misguided environmental policies allow much-needed freshwater to flow straight into the Pacific.

In an average year, California gets enough snow and rain to put 200 million acres under a foot of water, but environmental opposition to dams over the last several decades has allowed the majority of the freshwater to flow into the ocean, even as the state’s population exploded to nearly 40 million people. The current drought has left farms parched and residents under strict water consumption orders, but some say it didn't have to be that way.