California's drought is now entering its fourth year. The ongoing drought is the state's the third worst since records began over 100 years ago.

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Hot, dry weather and high winds mean wildfires are now adding to the difficulties posed by water shortages; these have been incredibly harsh on the parched state in recent weeks. In the past week alone, fire crews in California have battled over 200 new wildfires.

Officials said this week that there are no signs that the rate of fires will decrease any time soon. This year, emergency services have been called out to over 3,600 fires – well above the five year average of 2,500.

Two of the largest fires, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada and Yosemite National Park, have forced residents to evacuate more than 500 homes, Associated Press reported on Wednesday. AP said the fires' spread underlined the "Tinder-dry conditions" across the state.  

The prolonged drought could have serious ramifications for US agriculture as a whole, as California produces 15 percent of the nation's agricultural crops by value and almost half of all US-grown fruits, nuts and vegetables.

The state is also one of the major dairying regions of the US, producing $7bn (£4.1bn) worth of milk each year. Experts estimate that reduced pasture and higher hay and silage costs under the current drought could cost the dairy industry $203 million (£120m) in revenue losses.

In the run-up to World Water Day in March, Washington DC-based policy group Worldwatch Institute warned that Western US States, including California, which produces the majority of many of the country's fruit and vegetable crops, are at severe risk from water shortages and changing weather patterns.

Worldwide, farming is thought to account for about 70 percent of water withdrawals. However, this figure disguises massive variations; Europe uses an average 44 percent of its water for agricultural use, whilst in the United States, agriculture accounts for around 80 percent of water consumption and in California 90 percent of water is used for agricultural purposes.

This week a paper from the University of California Davis suggested that the current state of drought is "responsible for the greatest water loss ever seen in California agriculture."

The UC Davis assessment estimates that the drought has so far cost the state of California $2.2  billion (£1.3) this year, of which around $1.5bn (almost £900m) has been borne by agriculture.

"California's agricultural economy overall is doing remarkably well, thanks mostly to groundwater reserves," said Jay Lund, director of the university's Centre for Watershed Sciences. "But we expect substantial local and regional economic and employment impacts. We need to treat that groundwater well so it will be there for future droughts."

California, which is reliant on underground water reserves in times such as this, is the only US State without a framework for groundwater use. Richard Howitt, lead author of the US Davis report, described the state's water use as a "slow-moving train wreck." Howitt added, "A well-managed [groundwater] basin is used like a reserve bank account. We're acting like the super rich who have so much money they don't need to balance their checkbook."

Commenting on the findings on Tuesday, Karen Ross, Secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, said, "We have to do a better job of managing groundwater basins to secure the future of agriculture in California."