California Legislators Demand Federal Plan For Water Collection During El Niño

Republican legislators in California have submitted a letter to President Obama and Gov. Jerry Brown asking for details about how the government, along with state agencies, intend to collect water during El Niño, the Pacific climate shift that is expected to bring a warm, wet winter.

More importantly, it is expected to bring record rainfall to California, which has been experiencing severe drought for the last several years. In the last year, the state has imposed statewide water restrictions and imposed fines for violations of those restrictions.

"We need him to offer up solutions," Republican Devin Nunes said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. "If it does rain this winter and we let it all go to the ocean again like we did three years ago, the whole state is going to run out of water. A plan is not opposing what we're trying to propose. He has a responsibility as the governor of California to come clear [sic] with what his plan is."

The letter, obtained by the LA Times, reads in part, "We believe that federal and state environmental policies and regulations have negatively impacted California's current situation by denying us the ability to capture water for human use and consumption now and to better prepare ourselves for situations likes the current drought."