Wringing the West Dry

Research by the Union of Concerned Scientists and University of California, Merced, indicates that emissions from the 'Carbon Majors'—the 122 largest industrial carbon producers—are responsible for approximately half of the climate-driven reductions in snowpack and streamflow, and increases in irrigation demand across the western United States. The analysis highlights specific 'hot spots' in California and the Pacific Northwest, noting that these emissions contributed to a 15% reduction in April snowpack and a 6.1% decrease in warm season streamflow. In California's Central Valley, 10% of observed groundwater loss is attributed to these companies. The document argues that the fossil fuel industry should be held financially accountable for these damages, as local governments and vulnerable communities currently bear the economic costs of adaptation and infrastructure failure.

• Human-caused climate change has significantly altered the water cycle in the western United States, reducing April snowpack by about 36%, warm season streamflow by approximately 13%, and increasing irrigation demand by 4.3%.
• Emissions from the 'Carbon Majors' (the 122 largest fossil fuel and cement companies) since 1950 are responsible for roughly 40% to 64% of the impacts of human-caused climate change on the region's water resources.
• The specific contributions of Carbon Majors' emissions since 1950 include a 15% annual reduction in April snowpack, a 6.1% decrease in warm season streamflow, and a 2.4% increase in irrigation demand.
• In California's Central Valley, 10% of the total observed groundwater loss is attributable to emissions from the Carbon Majors, while human-caused climate change overall accounts for 20% of that loss.
• Climate change is shifting the timing of water availability, with the midpoint of annual streamflow occurring roughly six days earlier due to Carbon Majors' emissions, and between 5 and 30 days earlier in some mountainous regions.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2026). Wringing the West Dry. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-08/Wringing-the-West-Dry_English.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Wringing the West Dry. 2026. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-08/Wringing-the-West-Dry_English.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=Wringing the West Dry |date=August 2026 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-08/Wringing-the-West-Dry_English.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2026wringing, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Wringing the West Dry}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2026}, month = aug, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-08/Wringing-the-West-Dry_English.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }