1) Rather than creating conservation regimes that may extend far into the future—as this editorial suggests even during periods when more than enough water is available—as a response to current dry conditions, the proper response is to capture more of the wealth of water that falls on Northern California during the normal wet years; and that involves dams.
2) The decline in housing prices in California (with a mention of Sacramento) is the subject of this article from New Geographic.
An excerpt.
“To read the popular press, one gets the impression that the collapse of the housing market is concentrated largely in the suburbs and exurbs, as people flock back to the cities in response to the mortgage crisis and high gas prices. A review of mortgage meltdown “ground zero” California indicates the picture is far more nuanced.
“California’s metropolitan areas have seen the greatest median house price decreases in the nation. Each of the four largest metropolitan regions, Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego and Sacramento have experienced median house price decreases of more than 25 percent over the past year... These decreases have not been distributed in a way that belies much of the ‘Back to the City’ hype….
“Sacramento: Sacramento indicates the most unexpected results, with the central area experiencing by far the largest house price declines, at 42 percent. The lowest house price declines were one-half that rate, in the outer suburbs (generally more than 10 miles from downtown), at 21 percent, while the inner suburbs experienced a decline of 29 percent.”
