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Does CA have any swamp areas, just curious and not having them to me doesnt change that CA, OR, WA are probably the most diverse (CA being most and also the largest)
One thing that much of CA does not have is natural water supplies (not all but much) esp natural sustainable water for the population to support. Now man has fixed this but is sort of ironic for such a diverse state to miss on a basic human need.
FTR - I love the geography and diversity of it on the west coast, really is pretty amazing (very few places match or surpass CA in this regard around the globe
Does CA have any swamp areas, just curious and not having them to me doesnt change that CA, OR, WA are probably the most diverse (CA being most and also the largest)
One thing that much of CA does not have is natural water supplies (not all but much) esp natural sustainable water for the population to support. Now man has fixed this but is sort of ironic for such a diverse state to miss on a basic human need.
FTR - I love the geography and diversity of it on the west coast, really is pretty amazing (very few places match or surpass CA in this regard around the globe
CA does have a few isolated wetlands. The southern end of San Francisco Bay is one example. The Sacramento/San Joaquin Delta looks a lot like Louisiana, with levees everywhere... but nothing really resembling a classic Gulf Coast swamp.
Does CA have any swamp areas, just curious and not having them to me doesnt change that CA, OR, WA are probably the most diverse (CA being most and also the largest)
One thing that much of CA does not have is natural water supplies (not all but much) esp natural sustainable water for the population to support. Now man has fixed this but is sort of ironic for such a diverse state to miss on a basic human need.
FTR - I love the geography and diversity of it on the west coast, really is pretty amazing (very few places match or surpass CA in this regard around the globe
Northern California, especially north of Sacramento, has plenty of water supplies in most years. You have plenty of runoff from the Sierra Nevada, Cascades, and northern Coast Ranges. You couldn't have the massive agricultural industry in California without that water(which is where most of the water is going to). It's Southern California that has the problem with water, that's why they had to transfer water originally from the Owens Valley in the Eastern Sierra and Northern California(see the classic movie Chinatown). That's why Southern California's massive population is in the long run a messy proposition. The whole area is massively overdeveloped, look at the mess that is the Inland Empire. You could lose over half to two-thirds of the current population of Southern California and it'd be a much nicer place with a much more sustainable economy.
We can't change on what mother nature has gave us. You say that the Pacific NW is more diverse how so? again it is diverse, but IMO Texas is equally if not more diverse. In Texas you have mountains, hills, deserts, grasslands, prairies, swamps, timberlands.
Washington has all of that, plus glaciers, steppe, lava fields, fjords, active volcanoes, hot springs....
I don't think you comprehend all of the micro climates that the ocean and mountains create. With the prevailing ocean winds and the N-S alignment of the mountains, the three western states get both the wet and dry climates and a wide range of elevations.
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Plus in what other state can you go other than California where you can be in a stuck in a blizzard, then a few hrs away going swimming in 70F weather?
Washington has all of that, plus glaciers, steppe, lava fields, fjords, active volcanoes, hot springs....
I don't think you comprehend all of the micro climates that the ocean and mountains create. With the prevailing ocean winds and the N-S alignment of the mountains, the three western states get both the wet and dry climates and a wide range of elevations.
Washington and Oregon.
Does the water in WA an OR get above 70 degrees in the ocean?
Northern California, especially north of Sacramento, has plenty of water supplies in most years. You have plenty of runoff from the Sierra Nevada, Cascades, and northern Coast Ranges. You couldn't have the massive agricultural industry in California without that water(which is where most of the water is going to). It's Southern California that has the problem with water, that's why they had to transfer water originally from the Owens Valley in the Eastern Sierra and Northern California(see the classic movie Chinatown). That's why Southern California's massive population is in the long run a messy proposition. The whole area is massively overdeveloped, look at the mess that is the Inland Empire. You could lose over half to two-thirds of the current population of Southern California and it'd be a much nicer place with a much more sustainable economy.
unerstood and my point was more to where the population resides relative to the natually available water, again to me is just a little ironic given the overall diversity so-to-speak; more than half the population in an areas without a real sustainable natural water supply
Does the water in WA an OR get above 70 degrees in the ocean?
No, but it is over 70 degrees right now in the lakes. The lake I live by is around 80. Lake Washington along Seattle's eastern edge is closer to 70 right now.
Does CA have any swamp areas, just curious and not having them to me doesnt change that CA, OR, WA are probably the most diverse (CA being most and also the largest)
One thing that much of CA does not have is natural water supplies (not all but much) esp natural sustainable water for the population to support. Now man has fixed this but is sort of ironic for such a diverse state to miss on a basic human need.
FTR - I love the geography and diversity of it on the west coast, really is pretty amazing (very few places match or surpass CA in this regard around the globe
Does the water in WA an OR get above 70 degrees in the ocean?
No the waters off the west coast and the PNW are pretty chilly, that is why you don't see hurricanes along the west coast.
Besides that, we are talking about "geographic" diversity here. I don't think you can really argue that Texas is geologically diverse compared to pretty much every state along the west coast of the U.S.
Does CA have any swamp areas, just curious and not having them to me doesnt change that CA, OR, WA are probably the most diverse (CA being most and also the largest)
One thing that much of CA does not have is natural water supplies (not all but much) esp natural sustainable water for the population to support. Now man has fixed this but is sort of ironic for such a diverse state to miss on a basic human need.
FTR - I love the geography and diversity of it on the west coast, really is pretty amazing (very few places match or surpass CA in this regard around the globe
Actually the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is quite huge. And yes, that is a major source of water. It is a misnomer that CA doesn't have "natural water supplies". Actually they are completely natural, and except the Colorado River, all are sourced within California state borders.
The Sierra Nevada snowmelt. The water that LA gets from Mono Lake/Owens valley are fed through streams that run down the eastern Sierras. The Delta is fed through two rivers that flow through the central valleys. However, most of these wetlands have been drained and channelized as they've turned to farmland. Even the mountains north of LA, the San Gabriels, provide many communities such as Pasadena with about a third of the drinking water.
The snow that people ski on at Mammoth Lakes, Lake Tahoe, becomes their drinking and washing water down the watershed.
It is true that water resources are a major issue, but this is largely because of mismanagement, a desire to have lawns like back east (which is changing - many municipalities use gray water (wast water) to water parks/cemeteries/golf courses) and archaic water laws that are impossible to change because of lobbies).
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