cerns all about the pay areas water supply. many worry about the health of a key reservoir. we went to the reservoir where officials are getting worried about the future. >> the images were both alarming and unheard-of. >> we should be standing 5 feet of snow. >> this is the first time we had had no snow at this location. >> the snowpack is at a record low. one of the reservoirs is feeling the impact. this reservoir collects of melting snow. 165 miles to our faucet. 85% of the supply comes from the sierra. over to million people rely on this water source. while visitors walk on adm we hopped on a boat to see how detroit was impacting the reservoir.

you might think a reservoir that relies on still would be empty. he is the assistant manager for water at the san francisco public utilities commission. he says even though the reservoir is 70% full there should be a lot more. >> we will go out there and we won't see any snow. >> he has seen both the highs and the lows. >> on a good year that waterfall falls into the reservoir. we don't even see the rocks. >> the falls is falls is blowing at 2300 gallons a second. on a noble year it would be five times that rate. more evidence of a drought. dark areas on granite where water should be flowing. the defined boundary of the high watermark. we reach an area seen by few.

the connection between a river and a reservoir. this water will take three days to make it to the bay area. behind me is the net main source of snow melts. on an average it will fill it up three times, this year it will not happen one time. by june reservoir storage book is that 80% of capacity. we are actually still borrowing from history. the supply right now includes water from the past couple of winters. >> based on the drought we started planning as if we might have eight years of drought. a series of dry years we may have to live through. we are using are planning that we did in the past to help us manage. >> it is just one piece of the puzzle. the entire system is only

at 54% of capacity. hoping for a productive winter is not enough. the planning is happening now. >> if next year is as bad as this year we will go to mandatory rationing. we will have to assume it is going to get worse. >> the falls will soon try up leaving this reservoir in a vulnerable place. each turn of a faucet will determine what it will look like next year. it is not just humans who are affected we are also seeing a change in wildlife. there is not enough water in the spawning areas for the fish. for thousands of years they migrated from the river to the ocean. when they are ready to respond back north again.

now, they are in grave danger from a much bigger threat. >> the fishing has always been good on this river. >> he has fishing in his blood. born and raised in northern california he works as a commercial fishing guide. >> we have had good fishing on this river for a long time. >> he has been fishing here since he could walk. >> in here you can see that drift boat sitting in a good spot. to the left is kind of softer water. the fish like to hang out over there. >> he has seen this river threw the good times and the bad. >> i am lucky to be able to live here. we have this kind of a fishery so close to home. >> but the fourth consecutive. of drought has created a struggle

between man and the endangered salmon. >> it is disaster if does exit don't hatch. >> we could lose his pitch altogether. >> he is a biologist and knows the river well. he keeps close count on the speak salmon. -- he keeps close count of the salmon. here is a big problem, this area is normally underwater. look at what i am looking at. these rocks the female salmon comes in and with her tail she did say hole. she lays her eggs in the hole. imagine now the river is rolling over this. the mail salmon comes in to fertilize the egg, the female salmon comes back, she covers it up. an area like this would accommodate 1000 spawning salmon

when it is dry like this it can accommodate no salmon. >> it reduces the area they have to spawn in. that limits access to the river so it concentrates this fish in the smaller habitats. also water temperature is a biggest concern we have. >> these mountains should have several feet of snow. this week they -- this year they have none. that means no snow melt coming down to chill the river the perfect temperature of spawning salmon. last year it was 60 degrees devastating the salmon eggs. >> it really limits the area they can spawn in. >> this warmer water is what has everyone worried. the fish can survive losing spawning grounds but if it is warm water on top of that it could decimate the salmon.

>> it has been a real concern lately. >> the salmon's future could depend on how the water gets divided up in the state. it is a delicate balance. too little water for men will call prospal's for the economy, too little water for the fish means eggs won't hatch. >> if we lost the salmon it would be bad for everyone. my kids or grandkids would not have an opportunity to fish. they would have to go to alaska or washington. >> it is a struggle between the needs of the salmon and the people of california. >> we are all in this together. there are no easy answers. the fish need cold water. >> three weeks ago the state implemented a closure on the river

banning fishing and they are hoping to prevent fishermen from catching salmon on the way to their spawning grounds. this year the problem may be too warm water. now to the affect on crops, specifically almonds. you may have heard it takes a gallon of water to grow one single allmond. that idea has made allmond growers the target of water shaving. we went to the central valley to talk to the farmers. >> they now cover 1 million acres of farmland with california supplying all of america's and what much of the world's almonds. >> we are very visible. >> reporter: -- >> they are the target of scorn for using too much water.

>> they all take a lot of water. there is no way around it. they require a lot of water. >> he has been a farmer for 30 years. >> the almonds have increased tremendously in value. >> it is a $6 billion business for california. in allmond is more than a not, the hall is used as a high protein feed for dairy cattle. >> there is nothing wasted in this thing. >> residents are facing mandatory water restrictions, unsettling perhaps for city folks but he says that is nothing new to farmers. >> it is unfortunate people have to cut back 25% but, we have been cutting back for 25 years. >> he says his water supply has been cut off this year. >> we are struggling.

>> you are buying water from other farmers? >> that is correct. name maybe growing crops that aren't doing too well in the market. >> he says he and other farmers are conserving. allmond water use is down five% over the last 40 years. >> watering based on three demand rather than just going out and watering. >> that is why there is 1600 miles of irrigation. >> it saves us over 1000 feet a year. >> that is about 325,000 gallons of

water. >> today, if we can find water it is $1400 and up. >> too much for him to justify this year's asparagus crop. >> those 600 acres have the planes in them. they have no water. >> cutbacks have forced farmers to reduce worker hours. >> we employ 100,000 people in california. those people are concentrated in the central valley where jobs can be difficult to secure. >> the almond board says almond growers support the same number of workers as general motors has in all of south america. >> it is going to be devastating to those communities. i see the end of the road next year. >> you would be done. >> i would be done.

>> it is not hard to imagine how this will look if the drought continues which means all californians, politicians, farmers, will face tough choices over how to use our limited water supply. we have talked about the problem, what about a solution? after the break we go to a coastal county where they are making big strides with small changes.

we visited santa cruz and found that every drop counts. it is all in the little things. going forward the focus will be on personal accountability. in the new kitchen a faucet is being installed reducing the outpour. >> we have saved 80% of their water. >> in the last year one third of restaurants transitioned to

water saving fixtures. across town in the city of santa cruz it is golf course sounds heard when it's water budget was cut in half. they eliminated 30 acres of irrigated turf. resident have let their lawns go brown, some are putting in the fake stuff, the governor says more must be done but, what? >> people who live here are quite aware so, that is good. but, for letting to forest know there is a drought and make the showers a little shorter. >> 3 million taurus come to a year. >> for people who come in out of state you have to wonder, they would not think of a drought as being as severe as it really is.

>> this summer rental owners are doing more. >> we will visit the sites and make sure they have low-flow shower heads. >> in this city mandatory rationing is back and stiff penalties for residents who don't come five. if you do get fined if there is water school, similar to traffic school, you will learn what to do right next time. >> water school help those who were really not sure of what they were supposed to do learn about the supply. >> the city of santa cruz is completely self-sufficient. no rain equals no water. >> we are dependent upon the rain that falls here. we capture what we can in a relatively small reservoir.

>> reporter: the rest we take out of flowing surface. >> every house will be nudged a little harder. the water district is going from a one size fits all utility bill to a specially prepared home water report. >> it shows him how much water they are using. >> after running the pilot program the district found that on average they saved about five%. >> it is hard to know how much water you should be using. >> a personalized home water reports, handy, helpful, another tool to fight the drought. starting this month they are also rolling out their own personalized home reports for customers who request one and i did that. here is a look at mine.

hit shows you that i am using about 84 gallons a day, which is actually lower than the average customer. plus, a report lets me see how my usage changes. you can see during the summer months i use twice as much of water, all that water spent on outdoor irrigation. soon after receiving this report i received tips on how to save water outdoors, how to upgrade and how to look for leaks. if you are in east of a customer and want to find us we posted the link on our website under the california drought section. evidence of the drought lasting over decades or a century. it has found in all of our trees. up next how redwood trees and other native plants are providing clues.

the one thing that could save us from a drought.

for over 60,000 california foster children, it's a challenge to replace clothes that are too small or worn out. i grew 3 inches last year. i don't need anything fancy. i never had much to begin with. when i look nice on the outside i feel better on the inside. to help, sleep train is collecting new clothes for kids big and small. bring your gift to any sleep train and help make a foster child's day a little brighter. not everyone can be a foster parent, but anyone can help a foster child.

as california enters its fourth year of drought researchers have uncovered evidence that the past droughts have lasted for decades. part of that evidence is in our trees. those long period of drought are called megadrought and have helped shaped california's landscape. how nature is providing clues about california's past.

>> this year san francisco experience here first of january since records began when the rain fell at all. this was followed by the warmest february on record. san francisco has seen 13 straight months of normal to above normal temperatures. we are looking at another year of lackluster snow. the drought monitor shows we are under dry conditions. >> it is already the fourth year and we don't know when it will end. we know there is history of dry records of low precipitation. i don't know if the drought will end of next year. i think we need a plan. >> most droughts last a you years but megadrought's kid left up to 100 years. one clue is found in tree rings. >> warmer conditions the tree will grow more. during a dry year there are no rings. he will have a thin

ring and sometimes if it is really dry there is no ring at all. >> these trees, which go in the bay area, capture the history of droughts for decades. they can look at soil sediment samples from the bay which show high amounts of salt water reaching into the delta. during wet years more fresh water is present. california has not been this dry in 500 years. >> there were several hundred years during the warm period the bay was actually saltier for several hundred years and the surrounding marshes turned into the registration became more salt adaptive. >> we have got to be careful what we wish for. one thing that could end a megadrought would be a super storm. they are for every to max 00 years ago or so. -- they happen

every to max 00 years or so. we are long overdue for another superstar but until that time we are in for a long, dry weight. there is nothing left here but a little bit of a trickle of a creek. there should be a lot more water in this reservoir. it is a microcosm of what is going wrong in the state of california. the storms that did bring us rain did a little for the sierra snowpack. most of the snowpack is already gone. there is no telling how long the drought could last the tree rings show our region has been through much worse for much longer. with the demands we are putting on resources we could be accelerating the natural cycle of megadrought's.

the choices we make now could determine whether the past is likely to repeat itself. >> i am optimistic. i am not so optimistic we will do it. it is a contentious issue. we fight over water, we always have. >> thank you for joining us for this half-hour special on the california drug. our -- our coverage -- thank you for joining us for this half-hour special on the california drought. you can find water restrictions we leave on our website. tonight at 10:00 there is a multimillion dollar waterpark under construction with the drought. that is tonight at 10:00. that was our half-hour special on the drought.

we will see you tonight at 10:00 with the latest news.

it's been mighty cold in here since "the big chill." what say we warm our hearts by... "st. elmo's fire"? yes! couple of wine coolers and some '80s rob lowe -- i can get into that. i'm still holding out hope i'll have plans tonight. great. two for two. haley? oh, so fun, but i'm gonna have to say no. i have a photography-class thing. what kind of a thing? oh, you know just an exhibit, like, to show our photos. is it something that we should go to? claire we just made plans. mom, this is a college class. i'm not in the third grade. don't you have nap time there? no. i have free periods, during which i sometimes nap. is it me, or was she just being purposefully vague? alex, i want you to go through her stuff and find out about this thing tonight.