In California water news today, Trump’s environmental rollbacks hit California hard, despite Sacramento’s resistance; Felicia Marcus: Intentional water management & long-term funding needed to address worsening climate change challenges; Timeline: The long history of California’s Delta tunnels plan; What’s an atmospheric river and why do we get these supercharged storms?; AP Explains: Farm runoff and the worsening algae plague; Shifting TCP treatment costs to polluters; The future of Indian water rights in an age of uncertainty; and more …
On the calendar today …
- The Delta Stewardship Council meets at 9am. Agenda items include a nomination to fill upcoming vacancy on the Delta Independent Science Board, a panel discussion on 2018 Flood Season Preparedness, and an update on the California Water Plan. Click here to read the meeting notice. Click here to watch on webcast.
- The Delta Protection Commission meets this evening at 5:30 pm in West Sacramento. Agenda items include a presentation on Delta Watermaster activities, an update on CA WaterFix activities, and an update on Abandoned and Derelict Vessels (ADV) in the Delta. Click here for full meeting agenda.
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
Trump’s environmental rollbacks hit California hard, despite Sacramento’s resistance: “When 50,000 acre-feet of water went gushing out of the Sacramento River last month, it fast became a test of California’s ability to protect its environmental policies from an increasingly hostile Trump administration. The episode proved humbling. Heeding the calls of big agriculture interests and area congressional Republicans, the administration pumped federally controlled water to Central Valley farms despite protest from the state that the move imperiled the endangered delta smelt. All California could do was temporarily shut its own pumps, which came at the expense of the state’s mostly urban water customers. … ” Continue reading at the LA Times here: Trump’s environmental rollbacks hit California hard, despite Sacramento’s resistance
Felicia Marcus: Intentional water management & long-term funding needed to address worsening climate change challenges: “In this TPR interview, Marcus charts the significant progress California has made on integrated, “intentional” water management, but stresses the need for a long-term funding source to maintain critical water infrastructure throughout the state. Question: The accomplishments of the State Water Resources Board during California’s drought are many; share with our readers what issues you are most proud of successfully addressing. Felicia Marcus: The Water Board and staff most definitely rose to the occasion during the drought. We were on the front lines because we cover so many different issues, and we’re still learning lessons and implementing things that came out of that effort. ... ” Read more from The Planning Report here: Felicia Marcus: Intentional water management & long-term funding needed to address worsening climate change challenges
Timeline: The long history of California’s Delta tunnels plan: “It’s been more than half a century since Californians started talking seriously about building a new conveyance system – canals or tunnels – to divert water around the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta to south Delta pumps for export to farms and cities in the south. California’s Department of Water Resources’ California Water Plan suggested a “Trans-Delta System” in 1957 to convey water around the Delta. And in the 1960s the idea of a “peripheral canal” emerged. Over the decades the plan has changed, but public support or opposition remains largely decided by geography, with more opponents found in the northern part of the state. And the guiding force for such a project – in the 1980s and today – has been Gov. Jerry Brown. … ” Read more from Water Deeply here: Timeline: The long history of California’s Delta tunnels plan
What’s an atmospheric river and why do we get these supercharged storms? “They’re called “atmospheric rivers,” and these supercharged storm systems are known for delivering massive amounts of snow and rainfall in a matter of days on the West Coast of the United States. The long plumes of water vapor in the atmosphere are like rivers in the sky—250 to 375 miles wide on average. On the West Coast, they most often originate in the South Pacific, and as they travel from the tropics across the ocean, they collect incredible amounts of moisture, and funnel it into cities like San Francisco, Sacramento, Portland, and Seattle, where the runoff systems are often unequipped to deal with the days-long deluge. … ” Read more from SF Gate here: What’s an atmospheric river and why do we get these supercharged storms?
AP Explains: Farm runoff and the worsening algae plague: “Harmful algae blooms have become a top water polluter, fueled by fertilizers washing into lakes, streams and oceans. Federal and state programs have spent billions of dollars on cost-sharing payments to farmers to help prevent nutrient runoff, yet the problem is worsening in many places. Here’s a look at the algae menace and what’s being done: … ” Read more from the Merced Sun-Star here: AP Explains: Farm runoff and the worsening algae plague
Shifting TCP treatment costs to polluters: “The California State Water Resources Control Board recently adopted regulations limiting the amount of 1,2,3 trichloropropane (TCP) in drinking water, affecting almost 100 communities in the state. The Board’s regulations set the maximum contaminant level (MCL) for TCP at 5 parts per trillion (ppt) in recognition of the toxic effects of the synthetic chemical. As a result, community water systems and non-transient/non-community water systems with elevated levels of TCP exceeding the MCL will have to spend large sums of money to treat and mitigate water contamination. ... ” Read more from Water World here: Shifting TCP treatment costs to polluters
Risks grow for deadliest US drinking water hazard: “In the weeks after Labor Day, one dozen people who live in or visited Anaheim, California fell ill with a common set of symptoms: fever, chills, and coughing. Ten of the 12, all between the ages of 52 and 94, required treatment at a hospital and were diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease, a pneumonia-like illness that attacks the lungs. One person died. An ongoing epidemiological investigation by the Orange County Health Care Agency found that in September nine of the 12 individuals visited Disneyland Park, Anaheim’s legendary megaresort. In conversations with Disney staff, county health investigators and their state and federal partners learned that water in two cooling towers at the resort had tested positive for Legionella, the bacteria that cause the disease. Cooling towers, a part of large-scale heating and air conditioning units, are a breeding ground for Legionella if not disinfected and maintained. ... ” Read more from the Circle of Blue here: Risks grow for deadliest US drinking water hazard
The future of Indian water rights in an age of uncertainty: “Jennifer Gimbel, a senior research scientist at Colorado State University, moderated the panel discussion entitled, “The Future of Indian Water Right Settlements in an Age of Uncertainty.” Gimbel began her introduction by acknowledging that certainty is the main goal when identifying water rights; states and water users want to know what belongs to Indians and how they want to use it. Gimbel introduced two of the most pressing sources of uncertainty—funding and resources. Over the last few years, states “ponied up” a considerable amount for successful settlements. Nonetheless, states want to maintain control over water, making it difficult to determine how water rights should be administered. ... ” Read more from the University of Denver Water Law Review here: The future of Indian water rights in an age of uncertainty
In regional news and commentary today …
Oroville to get PG&E water through lake: “A test of a different way to get water to residents of Oroville has proved successful, and it will now be extended for at least 10 years. The California Water Service Co. buys part of the water for its Oroville customers from PG&E’s Miocene Canal Project along the West Branch of the Feather River. The project takes water from a dam east of Magalia and transports it via a series of flumes and ditches to a hydroelectric power plant at Lime Saddle and another at Coal Canyon, on the north side of Table Mountain. ... ” Read more from the Chico Enterprise-Record here: Oroville to get PG&E water through lake
Water supply: Santa Cruz County agencies send electrical pulses through the ground in search of solutions: “As Danish geophysicist Peter Thomson rode an all-terrain vehicle in shrinking concentric circles inside a grassy, concave Live Oak field Wednesday, he dragged behind him a thick white pipe on two sleds. Inside, high-tech equipment was sending electromagnetic signals into the ground in order to help draw a 3-D map of the county-owned lot. Based on resistance to the signal, experts from Thomson’s Ramboll engineering, design and consultancy company are able to determine where the ground is primarily sand or clay, and how deep each pocket goes. ... ” Read more from the Santa Cruz Sentinel here: Water supply: Santa Cruz County agencies send electrical pulses through the ground in search of solutions
Public learns more about plan for toxic Jackson dam: “A public meeting was held on November 2 in the Jackson City Council meeting room in Jackson for the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) to discuss an update and review the Remedial Action Plan for the Argonaut Mine dam, located on the corner of Sutter Street and Argonaut Drive in Jackson. After the Unites States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers have concluded that the dam is not stable and poses a threat of failure and uncontrolled release of arsenic contaminated mine tailings, DTSC and EPA teamed up to come up with a plan to prevent the dam from collapsing and spilling the contaminated mine tailings into the community. ... ” Continue reading at the Amador Ledger Dispatch here: Public learns more about plan for toxic Jackson dam
Goleta Water District Board discusses water contaminant reduction program in wake of customer concerns: “Goleta Water District customers have been raising concerns about high levels of water-treatment byproducts in the system, and the board of directors noted Wednesday that it’s an issue the district has been monitoring for a long time. Trihalomethanes, abbreviated as THMs, are byproducts of drinking water disinfection, and are one of the many contaminants the district tests for with water-quality monitoring. There are state and federal standards for THM levels, and the Goleta Water District is compliant with those standards, General Manager John McInnes said. … ” Read more from Noozhawk here: Goleta Water District Board discusses water contaminant reduction program in wake of customer concerns
LA County: Compromise on watershed sediment removal a win, says the San Gabriel Valley Times: They write, “It’s always a good political question: When is a classic compromise a win? Or, rather, a win-win, as the current cliche has it. The problem with both sides getting something of what they want is, of course, when it creates the Solomonic splitting-the-baby situation. When two sides dig in with and advocate for their own one solution for a given problem, saying disaster awaits if it isn’t followed, morning-after agreement that all is well can be a bit embarrassing. But such is political and legal adjudication in this world. ... ” Read more from the San Gabriel Valley Times here: Compromise on watershed sediment removal a win
Historic LA Aqueduct photos: “Water flowing from the Sierra Nevada Mountains in the spring of 2017 was the welcomed result of a winter of historic snowfall that helped California recover from one of its worst dry spells on record. Some of that melting water flows down the mountains and, eventually, into the California Aqueduct, a sprawling system of canals, tunnels and other waterways before it’s used for drinking and irrigation. But decades before that engineering feat began collecting water from the state’s giant natural reservoir in the mountains, there was the Los Angeles Aqueduct. Completed in 1913, it’s difficult to overstate the water lifeline’s importance and its impact on Los Angeles. … ” Continue reading and view photographs from KNBC here: Historic Photos: How Water Flows From the Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains to Los Angeles
Here’s why Cadiz company says its taking ‘a little pause’ from its desert water project: “Fresh from gaining the long-sought federal approval for its massive desert water project, Scott Slater, Cadiz president and CEO, said it’s time for the project to “slow down” a bit. “We are going to take a little pause…and double our effort to allow people to understand this project,” Slater said. “We believe people should support an innovative project like ours. The Cadiz project involves pumping billions of gallons of water annually from an underground aquifer in a remote part of the Mojave Desert in San Bernardino County. The water would be piped to parts of Orange County and other locations, which could include San Bernardino County. Cadiz water could serve as many as 400,000 people. ... ” Read more from the Redlands Daily Facts here: Here’s why Cadiz company says its taking ‘a little pause’ from its desert water project
San Diego: Fingers pointing every which way in flood litigation: “A legal quagmire is developing involving a development company, the city of Escondido, two homeowners whose homes were twice flooded during last winter’s rains, and a neighbor who is accused of filling a drainage easement that may have caused much of the problem. This past summer, an attorney for two northern Escondido homeowners, Ellen Erwetz and Ruben Cruz Sr., sued both the city and KB Homes for damages, amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars, caused when a nearby retention pond overflowed during two big rainstorms causing their Vista Avenue homes to flood. … ” Read more from the San Diego Union Tribune here: San Diego: Fingers pointing every which way in flood litigation
Precipitation watch …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
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About the Daily Digest: The Daily Digest is a collection of selected news articles, commentaries and editorials appearing in the mainstream press. Items are generally selected to follow the focus of the Notebook blog. The Daily Digest is published every weekday with a weekend edition posting on Sundays.
