Newsom takes action on drought

Governor declares drought emergency in two counties but shuns wider mandates.

The governor declares an emergency up north but refrains from statewide mandates.

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday declared a drought emergency in two Northern California counties as he stood on the dry shoreline of Lake Mendocino.

The declaration gives state regulators expanded powers to curtail diversions in the parched Russian River watershed and relax river flow standards that would require more releases from the region’s shrinking reservoirs.

Newsom has been under pressure from some quarters to declare a statewide drought emergency. But the administration favors a more targeted approach.

Noting that water supply conditions vary across California, Newsom said he was not prepared to adopt statewide mandates.

He also cited the 16% drop in overall urban water use since 2013, the eve of the last major drought. Californians, he said, “have a conservation mind-set.”

The drought situation is particularly acute in Mendocino and Sonoma counties because the local water sup