A wrap-up of posts published on Maven’s Notebook this week …
In California water news this week …
Water stakeholders discuss regulatory woes at hearing
“California’s role in U.S. food security took center stage last week at a congressional field hearing in the Central Valley, where lawmakers and industry experts discussed impacts of environmental regulations on agricultural water needs. U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ore., chairman of the House of Representatives Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries, said the purpose of the Friday hearing in Santa Nella was to highlight the importance of San Joaquin Valley agriculture and discuss damage caused by political vs. scientific water management. Panel witness Jason Phillips, CEO of the Friant Water Authority, which operates and maintains the Friant-Kern Canal, said regulatory decisions and legislative inaction have forced the state away from water abundance. … ” Read more from Ag Alert.
House Natural Resources Committee holds hearing titled “Water Abundance: Opportunities and Challenges in California”
“[Last Friday], members of the U.S. House of Representatives Natural Resources Committee held a hearing titled “Water Abundance: Opportunities and Challenges in California.” The committee members heard from California experts on the impacts of compliance with the Endangered Species Act and associated regulatory efforts on local communities, business, and America’s food supply. “Today’s testimony shows how broken our water supply system has become. The U.S. had an agricultural trade deficit in 2019 where, for the first time in 50 years we imported more food than we exported.” said Mike Wade, executive director of the California Farm Water Coalition. “That trend has continued in three of the last five years. When California farms don’t have water to grow our food, we’re depending on other countries to do it. That’s not good for food security or having safe, affordable food choices for the American people.” … ” Read more from the California Farm Water Coalition.
SEE ALSO:
- Video: House Natural Resources Subcommittee field hearing on California water supply, from CNBC
- Local congressman and valley voices discuss water issues, from Your Central Valley
C-WIN PRESS RELEASE: Proposed Central Valley Project operations plan: Time to undo Trump’s damage and put ratepayers, Tribes, communities, and the environment first
“A Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation on the continued operation of the federal Central Valley Project (CVP) favors corporate agricultural profits over the interests of ratepayers, tribes, and the environment and pointedly ignores state groundwater law. The CVP is a massive federal system of reservoirs, aqueducts and pumping stations that delivers water from the Trinity River in Northwest California and Central Valley rivers to San Joaquin Valley agricultural operations and some California cities. The CVP is operated in coordination with its state analogue, the State Water Project (SWP). The CVP and SWP annually provide a small number of corporate farmers a volume of water equal to the total water usage of California’s 40 million residents. Under the direction of President Biden, Reclamation conducted this draft analysis to reassess environmental determinations made during the Trump years. … ” Read more from the California Water Impact Network.
Maddy Institute & California Water Institute FSU, Water Conference
Don Wright at Water Wrights writes, “The Maddy Institute and the California Water Institute at Fresno State University teamed up to host an event titled, “Exploring the Coexistence of Water Users in California” on Wednesday, September 4, 2024. The event ran from 8:30am to 3:00pm and included lunch provided by Wawona Frozen Foods. Panels included Moving and Storing Water, Demystifying Water Data, Ten Years of SGMA and Building Alliances Among Interest Groups for Holistic Solutions. The panels and speakers were All great stuff. But for many, me included, the biggest draw besides closing remarks by California Secretary of Agriculture Karen Ross, was the keynote address given by Wade Crowfoot, Secretary for Natural Resources. Lest we forget, there is a full court press by the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California to get the Fall X2 Line regulations changed or even removed. … ” Continue reading at Water Wrights.
Can California’s US$20bn water utility construction curb a climate change catastrophe?
“Most of California’s population is quite literally in between a rock and a hard place. The rock is the Sierra Nevada, the US’ largest mountain range (excluding Alaska), which runs through the state’s central/eastern side and covers about 25% of California’s land area. The hard place is a sea of hard water – salt water, specifically – in the form of the Pacific Ocean along the state’s western coast. Historically, most of Californians’ drinking water has come from the mountains; a complex series of water utility infrastructure including dams, levees, intakes, and outflows routes melted snowpack through the water system to homes, businesses and farms. But California officials said climate change has exacerbated the already fragile water conveyance system, and the existing infrastructure has been delivering less water than prior years. As a result, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and its State Water Project (SWP), are planning a colossal conveyance infrastructure project at a value of more than $20 billion. … ” Read more from Construction Briefing.
Making groundwater sustainability a reality in California
“Matt Hurley isn’t one to gloss over what he doesn’t know about California water. The Fresno-area attorney has served as general manager, executive officer, consultant or a board member for at least a dozen agricultural water districts and local resource conservation agencies across the San Joaquin Valley. What’s more, he was on an advisory committee that helped draft one of the most consequential pieces of water legislation in California history: The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act of 2014, commonly referred to as SGMA, that for the first time regulated a much-overdrawn resource critical to the state’s economy and the livelihoods of its residents. But in 2019 when Hurley was charged with implementing SGMA in a critically overpumped area of Fresno County, he felt unarmed. Many farmers had asked him how likely it was that groundwater sustainability could be achieved. “I have no idea,’ Hurley recalled saying. “I don’t know how many wells there are. I don’t know where they are. And I don’t know how much they’re pumping.’” … ” Read more from Western Water.
‘I won’t let them drink the water’: The California towns where clean drinking water is out of reach
“In a major milestone, state regulators announced in July that nearly a million more Californians now have safe drinking water than five years ago. But across the state, the problem remains severe: More than 735,000 people are still served by the nearly 400 water systems that fail to meet state requirements for safe and reliable drinking water. Latino farm communities struggling with poverty and pollution are especially hard-hit. About three-quarters of the failing systems in California have violated state or federal standards for contaminants that are linked to serious health problems, such as cancer and effects on developing babies, according to a CalMatters analysis of state data. Among the most pervasive contaminants are arsenic, nitrate and a chemical called 1,2,3-trichloropropane, or 1,2,3-TCP. Combined, elevated levels of these chemicals contaminate more than 220 failing systems serving nearly half a million people. … ” Read more from Cal Matters.
You’ve probably never heard of this ‘forever chemical.’ Scientists say it’s everywhere.
“As cities and towns plan to remove several harmful “forever chemicals” from drinking water, scientists are starting to focus on a less-studied version of the chemicals that is showing up virtually everywhere they look. Trifluoroacetic acid, or TFA, could be one of the most widespread forever chemicals in the environment, according to a growing body of research. While there’s no consensus on its effects on human health, TFA does not break down naturally, and its similarity to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) tied to cancer and other diseases is enough to warrant further study, researchers said. “It’s absolutely everywhere,” said Sarah Hale, an environmental researcher who manages ZeroPM, a project funded by the European Union. “TFA will be the next discussion in America, I can guarantee it. It will be about how should we treat it and what should we do.” … ” Read more from E&E News.
How a California county got PFAS out of its drinking water
“Yorba Linda is a small, sunny city southeast of Los Angeles. It’s perhaps best known for being the birthplace of President Richard Nixon. But in the past few years, Yorba Linda has picked up another distinction: It’s home to the nation’s largest per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) water treatment plant of its kind, according to the city. “This December will be [three] years we’ve been running, and we’re the largest PFAS treatment plant using resin,” says J. Wayne Miller, former board president at the Yorba Linda Water District, for whom the plant is named. Across the country the Environmental Protection Agency estimates there are thousands of water systems, serving around 100 million people, that have harmful levels of PFAS in their drinking water. Under an EPA rule finalized in April, affected water districts will have to take action to clean their water supplies. In Orange County, Calif., the Yorba Linda treatment plant and others around it provide examples of how it can be done. … ” Read more from The Public’s Radio.
Prop 4 explained: Borrowing money to fund environmental and climate-related projects
“Proposition 4 asks California voters to allow the state to borrow $10 billion in bonds for water, wildfire prevention, and other environmental projects. It would require yearly audits of the money. The funds would help clean up and protect water supplies, help with wildfire prevention and response, and provide for projects that try to protect beaches, forests and mountains. This is expected to cost taxpayers another $400 million a year for 40 years to repay the bond. Clean Water Action, CalFire Firefighters, National Wildlife Federation and the Nature Conservancy are among those promoting the measure. “California faces increasing threats from wildfires, water pollution, and extreme heat,” the groups wrote in a joint statement. “Investments today can prevent future costs and damage from a changing climate and more frequent natural disasters.” … ” Read more from KCRA.
The California sand wars: As beaches shrink, neighbors and cities fight for what’s left
“California is a place of magnificent tectonic forces that lift mountains only for them to be constantly eroded by glaciers, wind and rain, ground down to one of the most basic commodities on Earth: sand. Sand covers our deserts, creates our foothills and fills our arroyos. It blankets the shores and piles into towering dunes. It’s everywhere. So why are Californians fighting each other for it? The sand wars are being waged up and down the coast on levels both micro and macro, as beachgoers, neighbors and cities quarrel over their share of a seemingly infinite resource. As beaches shrink, lines are now literally being drawn in the sand. The situation has gained urgency in recent decades, as rising seas and coastal development derailed the normal cycles of sand replenishment. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that California could lose up to 75% of its beaches in the next 75 years. … ” Read more from the LAist.
DAVID SEDLAK: Water for All: Global solutions for a changing climate
“Dr. David Sedlak is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, and director of the Berkeley Water Center and chair of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Water Science and Technology board. Dr. Sedlak is the author of Water 4.0: The Past, Present, and Future of the World’s Most Vital Resource. In this Arizona Water Resources Research Center webinar, Dr. Sedlak discusses his latest book, Water for All: Global Solutions for a Changing Climate. … “What I hope to do today is to share with you some of the things that are in the latest book, Water for All, and to put the types of challenges that you’re experiencing in Arizona and the American Southwest into a larger context, so you could understand that the issues being dealt with on the Colorado River and other places are similar to what’s going on in much of the rest of the world, to understand the drivers and solutions that might be relevant to your situation, and the way in which innovations being developed in Arizona might find applications elsewhere in the world.” … ” Read the full post at Maven’s Notebook.
‘Weather whiplash’ helped drive this year’s wildfires
“While many Californians are praying for rain heavy enough to slow the spread of the 6,078 fires that have burned 977,932 acres in the state this summer, firefighters and climatologists recognize that the heavy winter rains are a big part of what have led this fire season to scorch around three times as much total acreage as in 2023. After Northern California’s brutal summer of fire, including the massive Park Fire that is now the fourth largest wildfire in state history, Southern California exploded with fires this month. The Line Fire in San Bernardino County northeast of Los Angeles grew to 35,000 acres in the week since it ignited, threatening tens of thousands of homes and forcing the evacuation of thousands of residents. While there were 5,053 fires that burnt 253,755 acres by September 11 in 2023, by that date this year, about a thousand additional wildfires had collectively burned over 3.85 times more acres. Much of the increase can be attributed to what climatologists are calling “weather whiplash.” … ” Read more from Inside Climate News.
In commentary this week …
AB 460 hands water bureaucrats even more power
Edward Ring, director of water and energy policy for the California Policy Center, writes, “Siskiyou and Modoc counties have a combined population of 52,700 people and combined area of 10,227 miles. That’s less than the population of Yucaipa in a territory the size of Massachusetts. It’s a big place with almost no political clout. That’s why back in August 2022 when a handful of desperate ranchers and farmers along the Shasta River defied the State Water Resources Control Board, hardly anyone noticed. But the people who did notice have inordinate clout in Sacramento. The ranchers and farmers were backed into an impossible position. New regulations issued by the State Water Resources Control Board forbid them from withdrawing water from the Shasta River if summertime flow dropped below 50 cubic feet per second. This ruling came despite the fact that the 90 year average in that river in August has only been 38 CFS. After fruitless efforts to get the bureaucracy to relent, the ranchers and farmers were left with an existential choice: Let their crops and their cattle die, or pump water. For one lifesaving week, they pumped water. What would you have done? … ” Read more from the California Globe.
California drinking water regulations are putting cost over people’s safety
“Health experts have long warned that pollutants like hexavalent chromium, PFAS and arsenic in drinking water are harmful to human health, even at low levels. While efforts to impose stricter drinking water contaminant limits in California, however, are repeatedly stymied by vested interests like polluters and utility groups, it’s the state’s low-income communities and people of color who bear the brunt of lax standards. Just take the story of public health advocates’ ongoing struggle to protect Californians against the cancer-causing chemical hexavalent chromium, one first brought to the public’s notice by environmental advocate Erin Brockovich. Earlier this year, the California agency responsible for managing and protecting the state’s water resources — including the drinking water flowing out of California’s faucets — formally adopted a maximum level at which hexavalent chromium can be found in the state’s drinking water. On its surface, this sounds like a victory, but there’s a catch — the new rule allows for 500 times more of the chemical than was deemed ideal by the state agency responsible for determining health risks posed by long-term exposures to everyday chemicals. That’s even after a marathon regulatory battle spanning decades. … ” Read more from Truth Out.
Climate costs will only go up if California fails to act. Voters should back a $10 billion bond
Horacio Amezquita, former general manager of the San Jerardo Housing Cooperative and a member of the Community Water Center Board of Directors, writes, “High on the list of things most Californians take for granted is the ability to confidently drink water that comes from their kitchen taps, or to safely bathe in water from their bathroom faucets. Take it from me and the dozens of farmworker families who lived in the housing cooperative that I managed and lived in for years: It’s not something that should ever be taken for granted. To live without a safe, clean water supply is to be constantly aware of its absence. There are the itchy, painful rashes and illnesses caused by showering in contaminated water. There are the constant trips to purchase bottled water. There are the soaring water bills to pay for the drilling of ever-deeper wells that sometimes provide temporary relief. About 1 million Californians live under such circumstances and about a million more are served by water systems the state classifies as at-risk. Given the rising threats to our water supply caused by a changing climate, all Californians should be very concerned. … ” Read more from Cal Matters.
California has enough debt. It doesn’t need $10 billion more for a climate bond
State Senator Brian Jones writes, “Imagine using your credit card to buy something, knowing that by the time you finish paying off the debt, you’ll have spent nearly double the original price due to interest. It’s a poor financial decision most of us would avoid. Yet this is precisely what Democrats in the state legislature are asking California taxpayers to do with Proposition 4: add $10 billion in bond debt — with billions more in interest — to pay for ambiguous, short-term, so-called “climate” programs. Let’s be clear about what bonds are: This isn’t free money. They’re Wall Street loans with high interest rates. The real winners with bonds are wealthy investors, and the losers, of course, are taxpayers. In February, California already had $79 billion in bond debt. Earlier this year, Proposition 1 added another $6.4 billion. Now, we’re being asked to shoulder another $10 billion, plus interest, this time for supposed climate programs that are vaguely defined and, in some cases, dubiously labeled. Guess who’s paying for it all? You, the taxpayer. … ” Read more from Cal Matters.
Editorial: Vote no on fiscally irresponsible Proposition 4
The Santa Cruz Sentinel editorial board writes, “Proposition 4 on California’s November ballot calls for borrowing $10 billion to fund scores of environmental proposals. The Sentinel Editorial Board was divided on the merits of this measure, with some members citing that it is endorsed by the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County and the League of Women Voters of California. The latter’s endorsement reads: “By funding critical projects, Prop. 4 will enhance resilience, protect communities, and ensure California continues to lead in environmental stewardship and innovation. This investment is essential for a sustainable and prosperous future.” But here’s the problem with this measure, and why in the end, we’re recommending voters reject it. After this year’s state budget debacle, elected leaders should not be eyeing new bonds and more debt for an unfocused spending plan. … ” Read more from the Santa Cruz Sentinel.
Public schools: a lost opportunity for stormwater capture
Bruce Reznik, executive director of Los Angeles Waterkeeper, writes, “Temperatures typically hover in the 90-degree range into September in parts of LA County and many other parts of the state. Warm fall temperatures might be pleasant if you work in an air-conditioned office and can enjoy early morning walks with your dog. But if you’re a student in the Los Angeles Unified School District, chances are those hot days are harming your ability to learn. School districts should rapidly ramp up investments in greening schoolyards. Many schoolyards are dominated by asphalt, particularly in the most impacted and underserved neighborhoods. Some LAUSD schoolyard temperatures have hit 145 degrees during heat waves in recent years, presenting significant health and safety issues. … ” Read more from Capitol Weekly.
Editorial: California’s $10 billion Prop. 4 favors politics over sound policy
The Mercury News & East Bay Times editorial board writes, “Proposition 4 on California’s November ballot calls for borrowing $10 billion to fund scores of environmental proposals that unfortunately are more the product of politics than good policy. Voters should reject the measure. After this year’s state budget debacle, elected leaders should not be eyeing new bonds and more debt for an unfocused spending plan. Less than three months ago, to close a $47 billion budget shortfall, Gov. Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers agreed to withdraw $12 billion over two years from the state’s rainy-day fund. That’s roughly 35% of the money in the state’s reserves. That money was supposed to be set aside for a major economic downturn, not a gross miscalculation of state revenues. The state now is in a weaker position to navigate a future recession. With that in mind, the last thing California should do is run up the credit card and increase installment payments, especially not for a hodgepodge of programs. … ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News.
The West should put its straws away. Great Lakes water is not for sale
Dan Pogorzelski, a commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, writes, “It is my hope to put to rest the mistaken belief that Great Lakes water, now, or at any point in the future, will be used to solve the water woes of the western United States. This is not going to happen. Westerners cannot have an honest discussion about their future until we dispel this myth once and for all. Standing anywhere on Chicago’s famous lakefront, it is easy to imagine the freshwater resource in front of you is limitless. I have seen visitors to our city stare in awe at Lake Michigan and say, “You call this a lake? That’s an ocean!” We know our Great Lakes are an enviable resource, one that is becoming more attractive to covetous states in the western U.S. that have been facing long-term drought, a process called aridification by some experts. … ” Read more from the Marin Independent Journal.
In regional water news this week …
20,000 tons of gravel placed into Sacramento River to provide spawning habitat for endangered salmon
“Efforts to provide spawning habitat for endangered winter-run Chinook salmon in the upper reaches of the Sacramento River continue with the Sacramento River Settlement Contractors, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation placing more than 20,000 tons of gravel downstream of the Keswick Dam in Redding. “This gravel is critical for all four runs of Chinook salmon that utilize the Sacramento River,” said Matt Johnson, California Department of Fish and Wildlife Environmental Scientist. “Water flows will push the gravel downstream over time, providing spawning habitat in a vital stretch of river these fish depend on. We want to ensure these fish have the greatest chance to reproduce and it is projects like this allow us to increase the odds of success.” This gravel augmentation project will add to the more than 50,000 tons of rock placed in the upper reaches of the Sacramento River since 2022. … ” Continue reading this press release.
Breaking bread: Celebrating Sacramento Valley agriculture and the farm-to-fork movement
“Breaking Bread, a three-part interview format documentary exploring the relationship between top Sacramento-area chefs and the region’s farming community, was recently re-released on YouTube. Originally airing last year, the program opens with chefs discussing how local agriculture influences the menus crafted in their restaurants. It also takes the viewer out to local farms to show how the food is cultivated and harvested with care to ensure that it will have the desired quality and flavor. The program shows the significance of all the inputs – water, soil, plant quality and care – to growing quality food. The three episodes in the series are titled “The Land,” “The Chef,” and “The Meal,” which tracks the process of cultivation, harvest, and preparation as food travels from the farm to the table. The documentary provides insight into how the passion, care and love that is infused into each step of the process results in a flavorful meal that is enjoyed by the diner. … ” Read more from the Northern California Water Association.
Lake County residents have been angry with Yolo County’s rights to the water in Clear Lake for many years
“As we move into the fall months a number of people are curious about how far down Yolo County can draw the lake. The lake level is currently at 3.6 feet on the Rumsey Gauge. Clear Lake historically reaches its lowest level during the months of October and November. Yolo County can take the lake level down to a plus-1 foot on the Rumsey Gauge. The Rumsey Gauge is a measurement of the lake level that was established back in 1872 when Capt. Rumsey created a gauge to measure the various lake levels. He came up with a standard that is still used today. Rumsey decided that when water ceased to flow over the Grigsby Riffle, the lake would be at zero on his gauge. Zero Rumsey is equal to a height of 1318.256 feet above sea level. When water was above the riffle it would be called plus Rumsey, such as 1 foot, 2 feet and so on. Below the riffle, the lake level would be measured as minus Rumsey. … ” Read more from the Lake County Record-Bee.
Historic river restoration provides Hamilton City new home for flood protection
“With a population approaching 2,200, the town of Hamilton City has one four-way traffic light at the corner of its one high school, a railroad crossing on the east side of town, and acres and acres of agriculture, its main industry. It’s a town that people drive through on their way to or from Interstate 5. And the Sacramento River, California’s largest waterway, flows near the town. This river provides water for agriculture, a rich and complex habitat for river life, and recreational opportunities for residents and visitors. However, during seasonal rains and high-water events, it’s prone to flooding Hamilton City—located within a historic floodplain. Its residents have had to evacuate the town six times over the last 30 years. In 1904, a levee was built to protect the town (and a new sugar factory) from flooding when the Sacramento River swelled. But over the decades, repeated flooding, erosion, and time had all weakened the levee, leaving it unreliable in keeping water out of Hamilton City. River Partners Field Foreman Chris Carrizales, a lifelong Hamilton City resident, experienced each evacuation—and every time was as upsetting as the last. … ” Read more from River Partners.
Reclamation, key partners build a haven for iconic fish species on the American River
“It’s fall on the lower American River, and that means more habitat restoration work to benefit fall-run Chinook salmon and steelhead trout is coming to fruition. This year, the site is River Bend, just a few miles from the confluence of the American and Sacramento rivers. It’s a bucolic and peaceful environment; a place where bicyclists zoom by on the American River Bike Trail and pedestrians wander under the canopy of oaks and other native trees. Just below the Harold Richey Memorial Bridge, crews are building habitat features that will improve the productivity of fall-run Chinook salmon and steelhead, two species that make the journey from the river to the Pacific Ocean and back again. The work, funded by the Central Valley Project Improvement Act and the Sacramento Water Forum, is a both a surgical and holistic approach to helping the fish reproduce and thrive. … ” Read more from the Bureau of Reclamation.
Judge tosses Napa winemaker’s fight over water wells
“A federal judge on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit brought by a lauded California winemaker after Napa County refused to issue permits for water wells on land he owns. Plaintiff Jayson Woodbridge, founder and owner of Hundred Acre Wine Group and Double Vee Properties, says in his 2023 lawsuit that Napa County overstepped its authority and violated state water rights law by refusing to issue permits for water wells unless Woodbridge agrees to a strict limit on the water that could be drawn annually from each well. Woodbridge says this restriction does not apply to existing wells, even though Woodbridge has the same legal right to use the water beneath his land as property owners with existing wells. … ” Read more from the Courthouse News Service.
Popular North Bay beach closed until further notice due to sewage leak
“Bolinas Beach, a popular destination for North Bay surfers, tidepoolers and day visitors, has been closed indefinitely after Marin County officials found human waste seeping out of the bluffs. On a recent site visit to Big Mesa, a rural residential area near the beach without sewage hookups where every home runs on septic systems, county staffers noticed liquid leaching out of a 1.5-mile stretch of eroded cliff face between Agate Beach and Brighton Avenue, according to Marin County Community Development Agency Director Sarah Jones. They also observed white crystals forming around the seepage, “which is an indication of pee, basically,” as well as septic failure, she said. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
An underwater data center in San Francisco Bay? Regulators say not so fast
“Data centers powering the generative AI boom are gulping water and exhausting electricity at what some researchers view as an unsustainable pace. Two entrepreneurs who met in high school a few years ago want to overcome that crunch with a fresh experiment: sinking the cloud into the sea. Sam Mendel and Eric Kim launched their company, NetworkOcean, out of startup accelerator Y Combinator on August 15 by announcing plans to dunk a small capsule filled with GPU servers into San Francisco Bay within a month. … But scientists who study the hundreds of square miles of brackish water say even the slightest heat or disturbance from NetworkOcean’s submersible could trigger toxic algae blooms and harm wildlife. And WIRED inquiries to several California and US agencies who oversee the bay found that NetworkOcean has been pursuing its initial test of an underwater data center without having sought, much less received, any permits from key regulators. … ” Read more from Wired Magazine.
EPA awards Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority $2.79M for imported water project
“The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) today announced an award of $2,790,000 to the Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority for its interconnection pipeline project. These funds will be used to finalize planning activities, including engineering, design, and rights-of-way purchase. The USEPA funding was provided as part of its new resiliency and sustainability program to support drinking water systems in underserved, small, and disadvantaged communities. The Indian Wells Valley has joined only two other California recipients awarded funding. “Across the country, climate stress is often felt as water stress that can burden a community’s drinking water infrastructure,” said Acting Assistant Administrator [USEPA] Bruno Pigott. … ” Read more from the Ridgecrest Independent.
Malibu: Geology study preps dam removal
“State park and wildlife officials announced that helicopters will soon be seen in the skies above Malibu Creek State Park transporting heavy equipment as part of a major geotechnical study in preparation for the removal of the creek’s obsolete Rindge Dam. A team from the Malibu Creek Ecosystem Restoration Project will conduct studies around Sept. 11 and Oct. 7 during the pre-construction, engineering and design phase for knocking down the 100-foot-tall concrete arch dam. … ” Read more from The Acorn.
Making groundwater sustainability a reality in California
“Matt Hurley isn’t one to gloss over what he doesn’t know about California water. The Fresno-area attorney has served as general manager, executive officer, consultant or a board member for at least a dozen agricultural water districts and local resource conservation agencies across the San Joaquin Valley. What’s more, he was on an advisory committee that helped draft one of the most consequential pieces of water legislation in California history: The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act of 2014, commonly referred to as SGMA, that for the first time regulated a much-overdrawn resource critical to the state’s economy and the livelihoods of its residents. But in 2019 when Hurley was charged with implementing SGMA in a critically overpumped area of Fresno County, he felt unarmed. Many farmers had asked him how likely it was that groundwater sustainability could be achieved. “I have no idea,’ Hurley recalled saying. “I don’t know how many wells there are. I don’t know where they are. And I don’t know how much they’re pumping.’” … ” Read more from Western Water.
