Nos están secando el oeste

A study by the Union of Concerned Scientists and UC Merced finds that human-caused climate change has significantly reduced snowpack and streamflow while increasing irrigation demand in the western US. Approximately half of these impacts are attributed to the emissions of 'Carbon Majors'—the 122 largest industrial CO2 emitters. The report highlights severe consequences in agricultural regions like California's Central Valley, where Carbon Majors' emissions are linked to 10% of groundwater loss, and argues for the financial accountability of these companies for climate-driven water damages.

• Human-caused climate change has led to a 36% reduction in April snowpack, a 13% decrease in warm-season streamflow, and a 4.3% increase in crop irrigation water demand in the western United States.
• Between 40% and 64% of the climate-driven impacts on the western US water cycle are attributable to emissions from the 'Carbon Majors' (the 122 largest industrial CO2 emitters) since 1950.
• Emissions from Carbon Majors specifically caused an annual reduction of 15% in April snowpack (over 28 million acre-feet) and a reduction of approximately 12 million acre-feet in warm-season streamflow.
• In California's Central Valley, 20% of the recorded groundwater loss is attributed to human-caused climate change, with 10% of the total loss specifically attributable to Carbon Majors' emissions since 1950.
• Climate-driven water cycle disruptions have caused significant economic losses, such as the 2020-2022 California drought which resulted in $2.7 billion in direct agricultural revenue losses.
• The timing of water availability is shifting, with the date when rivers reach half of their annual total volume occurring 5 to 30 days earlier in the region's basins due to these emissions.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2026). Nos están secando el oeste. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-08/Wringing-the-West-Dry_Spanish.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Nos están secando el oeste. 2026. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-08/Wringing-the-West-Dry_Spanish.pdf.

Wikipedia

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

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2026nos, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Nos están secando el oeste}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2026}, month = aug, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2026-08/Wringing-the-West-Dry_Spanish.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }