California is a western State of America with a population of about 40 million. It is the 3rd largest state and the most populous one in the. California has experienced the longest drought which as of January 29th 2019 had lasted 371 weeks beginning on December 27, 2011. The extreme cases were recorded in between 2014 and 2015 where almost no rainfall was experienced. The prolonged drought has caused acute water shortage in the state, seriously dented the agricultural based economy and adversely affected the state’s wildlife. The effects of the drought are still being experienced 2 years after the drought.
The drought resulted in a severe water shortage in the state. Responding to this, the state introduced strict water conservation measures wherein the urban centers were to reduce water consumption by 25% by whatever means necessary (Sokolow et al. 941.) Water scarcity triggered a hike in water price in the state and this extending to the agricultural sector and therefore the nutrition of the state was affected. The low income earners were the most affected as they only use water for domestic purposes. The availability of water has a direct bearing to the level of health of a state. The scarcity of water will expose the citizens to diseases and nutritional disorders both directly and indirectly adhered to water conservation the measures imposed during the drought.
California has an agricultural based economy. The state is the leading producer of nuts, wine, cotton, and flowers. The horticultural economy is sustained by irrigation as the region experiences long summers. Between the year 2011 and 2017 the country’s agricultural sector incurred significant losses. The state government reduced water flow to the farms by 50%. And the farmers had to pump water from the ground reserves. Research conducted by U C Davis on the economic impact of the drought shows that $1.5 billion was lost (revenue losses of $1 billion and $0.5 billion in additional pumping costs). The impact of the drought on the economy of California was only mitigated by the low fuel prices and the steadiness of the dollar over the drought period. Otherwise, the consequences would have been dire.
The drought also gave rise to wild fires with the ground dry or covered in grass and hay plants. Without enough green cover to regulate the fires they spread over 30000 square acres in a single night. A trail of barren land was left behind. No agricultural activity could be carried out on the burnt land as all nutrients were lost.It was waste land. Efforts to recover it are ongoing. According to the California Department of Forestry and Fire protection (cal fire), about “8,527 fires occurred burning an area of 1,893,913 acres (766,439 ha) occurred during the drought.” With fires lasting up to 15 days the damage was irreversible. The land was made barren, crops were burnt, animals died and others were displaced by the flames. The fires had the citizens counting losses after they were put out.
The state of California continues to experience the effects of a 6 year drought. The economy is recovering from the losses incurred during the period as a result of lost revenue and and increased pumping costs. The people of California have to abide l with the stringent measures imposed by the state government as it seeks to regulate water use and recover the water lost from the ground reserves through pumping. The drought will continue to affect the people of California directly and indirectly even as they prepare to brave the next storm that comes their way.
In a democratic state, the electoral process is fair and fair thus transition of power from one regime to another peaceful. Discontent parties use peaceful means such as electoral petitions to air their grievances. This ensures that the transitions are peaceful and the country is politically stable as the sitting government is always legitimate. Political tension and instability in states signify a collapse of democracy (Okoya 28). The stability of a nation is attributed to a proper and peaceful transition from one regime to another. In order to sustain the democratic edifice, political regimes must transfer power to each other in a peaceful and timely process. Sustained political stability is only been achieved through democracy.
Democracy propels economic growth by ensuring economic policymakers are effective. Countries using democratic governance achieve political stability, which is then followed by economic prosperity. Democracy encompasses transparency and accountability ensuring that the policymakers are directly accountable to the people through the electoral process. (Park Jang Ho 130) asserts there is an increase in the Gross Domestic Product of a country in the election year and the rise is sustained through the consequent years. This growth, stimulated by the election, translates into an improved economic standing. A democratic country experiences accelerated economic growth rates owing to the democratic process of elections. Democratic governance results in improved international relations. It is improbable that a democracy wages war against a fellow democracy as they will result in a peaceful resolution in the face of conflict. There is sustained pressure from the international community on the autocratic governments to transform into democracies.
The United Nations through World Bank uses sanctions, reduced funding of projects and also completely cutting financial aid as tools of enforcing democracy.
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Works Cited Sokolow, Sharona; Godwin, Hilary; Cole, Brian L. Impacts of Urban Water Conservation Strategies on Energy Greenhouse Gas Emissions, and Health: Southern California as a Case Study” American Journal of Public Health; Vol. 106, Iss. 5, (May 2016): 941-948. "Drought Impact Study: California Agriculture Faces Greatest Water Loss Ever Seen". UC Davis, 2019, https://www.ucdavis.edu/news/drought-impact-study-california-agriculture-faces-greatest-water-loss-ever-seen/. Okoli, Al Chukwuma, and Philip Iortyer, "Electioneering and dialectics of political stability in Nigeria: Implications for sustainable democracy." Research on Humanities and Social Sciences vol.4, no.13, 2014 p.28 Park, Jang Ho. “The economy and elections in Korea: An analysis of the political business cycle.” International Review of Public Administration, vol. 16 no.2, 2011, pg 130 Oechslin, Manuel. "Targeting autocrats: Economic sanctions and regime change." European Journal of Political Economy vol.36, no. 1, 2014 pg.21