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"the Central Valley, which is, geologically speaking, a desert" Source? It seems contrary to what wikipedia says on the subject: "The northern Central Valley

"the Central Valley, which is, geologically speaking, a desert" Source? It seems contrary to what wikipedia says on the subject: "The northern Central Valley has a hot Mediterranean climate; the more southerly parts in rainshadow zones are dry enough to be Mediterranean steppe or even low-latitude desert." -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Valley_%28California%29#Climate http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Valley_%28California%29...

smeyer 12y ago
I'm not sure why you're being downvoted. As your wikipedia link explains, calling the Central Valley a desert is not 100% off-base but is definitely an exaggeration to the point of being incorrect. Parts of it are semidesert and parts of it get too much precipitation to even begin to qualify as a desert.
rconti 12y ago
It's worth clarifying, because every time this comes up, some California-basher says "hurr durr why are these morons trying to farm in the desert" while ignoring the fact that, pre-irrigation, natural runoff from the mountains made many areas in central California swamps/wetlands. It's incredibly fertile land with an absolutely massive water source (in "normal" years). It's the diversion of water that's caused the issues, which have been exacerbated by the drought.
thrownaway2424 12y ago
Indeed, why does anybody talk about "The Central Valley" at all? The northern part is sopping wet at all times, prone to flooding, and the main problem for agriculture in many counties is that the groundwater is only 8 inches under the surface. That's the Sacramento Valley. The southern part has a dramatic gradient from somewhat dry in Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties to extremely dry in Kern County. That's the San Joaquin Valley. It makes as much sense to conflate these areas as it would to talk about El Paso and Austin as being part of the same ecosystem.

smeyer 12y ago

I'm not sure why you're being downvoted. As your wikipedia link explains, calling the Central Valley a desert is not 100% off-base but is definitely an exaggeration to the point of being incorrect. Parts of it are semidesert and parts of it get too much precipitation to even begin to qualify as a desert.

rconti 12y ago

It's worth clarifying, because every time this comes up, some California-basher says "hurr durr why are these morons trying to farm in the desert" while ignoring the fact that, pre-irrigation, natural runoff from the mountains made many areas in central California swamps/wetlands. It's incredibly fertile land with an absolutely massive water source (in "normal" years). It's the diversion of water that's caused the issues, which have been exacerbated by the drought.

thrownaway2424 12y ago

Indeed, why does anybody talk about "The Central Valley" at all? The northern part is sopping wet at all times, prone to flooding, and the main problem for agriculture in many counties is that the groundwater is only 8 inches under the surface. That's the Sacramento Valley. The southern part has a dramatic gradient from somewhat dry in Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties to extremely dry in Kern County. That's the San Joaquin Valley. It makes as much sense to conflate these areas as it would to talk about El Paso and Austin as being part of the same ecosystem.