In California water news today, Pressure mounts to solve California’s toxic farmland drainage problem; California’s towering redwoods face uncertain future; Drought and warm temperatures: Does one create the other?; Key Obama climate orders still on the books; Federal judge sides with Klamath Basin fish over farmers; Straw wars! Bay Area push to ban plastic straws picks up steam; Poseidon’s Huntington Beach desalination plant: What to know about its pros and cons for Southern California water; Three-eyed fish and two-headed turtles? The stench of this river spanning US-Mexico border is legendary; and more …
On the calendar today …
- The California Water Commission will meet for the second day of a three day meeting to review and potentially adjust the Public Benefit Ratios for the competing water storage projects. Click here for the agenda and webcast link.
- Webinar: Introduction to the Groundwater Resource Hub and tools for groundwater dependent ecosystems (GDEs) from 12pm to 1pm. Click here for webex information.
- Santa Clara Valley Water District takes up the California Water Fix project at 5pm. Click here for the agenda. Webcast link will be on this page.
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
Pressure mounts to solve California’s toxic farmland drainage problem: “Many Americans know the name Kesterson as the California site where thousands of birds and fish were discovered with gruesome deformities in 1983, a result of exposure to selenium-poisoned farm runoff. Thirty-five years later, it is one of the oldest unresolved water problems in the state. Selenium, a naturally occurring element, is essential to people and animals alike in small doses. But selenium continues pouring off many San Joaquin Valley farms in larger quantities, which can be toxic. The United States Bureau of Reclamation, which is legally obligated to solve the drainage problem as owner of the Central Valley Project irrigation system, has failed to find a fix. … ” Read more from Water Deeply here: Pressure mounts to solve California’s toxic farmland drainage problem
Water board releases plan to address salt contamination: “The San Joaquin Valley has long been among the world’s leaders in agriculture production and technological and biological advancements have allowed an area that represents less than 1% of the nation’s total farmland to account for 8% of the country’s agricultural output. And while many farms use best practices to minimize the effect agriculture pesticides, fertilizers and other chemicals have on the land, growing techniques of the past, such as flood irrigation, and the pressure to feed a growing population on shrinking acreage, such as the use of synthetic fertilizers, have had a lasting affect on surface and groundwater. … ” Read more from the Foothills Sun Gazette here: Water board releases plan to address salt contamination
South Bay water bills could increase as Delta tunnels project moves forward: “California Gov. Jerry Brown’s twin tunnel project in the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta could receive a significant boost thanks to one Bay Area water district, but that extra help could result in higher water bills for some customers in the South Bay. While the Contra Costa Water District discusses the future of the project later Wednesday, the Santa Clara Valley Water District will vote on the amount of money it will allocate toward the project — a decision that could ultimately increase water bills for folks in the South Bay in the coming decades. … ” Read more from NBC Bay Area here: South Bay water bills could increase as Delta tunnels project moves forward
California’s towering redwoods face uncertain future: “Millions of people venture into California’s redwood forests to tilt their heads and behold the giants that stand taller than a football field set on end, can live for more than 2,500 years and form the backbones of coastal woodlands from Big Sur to southern Oregon. At Armstrong Redwoods State Natural Reserve near Guerneville, the 308-foot Colonel Armstrong tree stands so tall that earthbound admirers can’t see the behemoth’s uppermost 100 feet. But it and the other old-growth redwoods of equal majesty are essentially relics, comprising a mere 7 percent of the 1.6 million acres of the coastal redwoods, a species that flourished throughout the Northern Hemisphere during the age of dinosaurs and is now found nowhere else on Earth but the California-Oregon coast. … ” Read more from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat here: California’s towering redwoods face uncertain future
Drought and warm temperatures: Does one create the other? “The development of drought is a complex process that involves multiple, interwoven relationships between precipitation, land surface temperatures, soil moisture, humidity, and atmospheric patterns. Often, drought is typified by the combination of a lack of precipitation and hot temperatures. However, the exact relationship between the two is not yet fully understood, nor is the role that temperature plays in the development of drought. In an effort to better understand temperature, and its relationship with drought, NOAA’s Modelling, Analysis, Predictions, and Projections (MAPP) Program Drought Task Force set out to research how temperature factors into the development of drought. This research was just completed and published recently, available on the MAPP website. ... ” Read more from Weather Nation here: Drought and warm temperatures: Does one create the other?
Key Obama climate orders still on the books: “President Trump appears to relish signing documents that unravel his predecessor’s work. But Trump, who has signed heaps of executive orders with much fanfare, still hasn’t used his pen to jettison some parts of President Obama’s climate change legacy. At least 10 executive orders with strong implications for climate change are still on the books, and they carry the force of law until they’re rescinded by a president through another executive order. The untouched documents promote policies like boosting energy efficiency, responding to ocean acidification and studying how climate change affects the Chesapeake Bay. It’s unclear whether Trump plans to leave them on the books or just hasn’t gotten around to axing them yet. … ” Read more from E&E News here: Key Obama climate orders still on the books
In regional news and commentary today …
Federal judge sides with Klamath Basin fish over farmers: “Local tribes and environmental groups declared victory Tuesday after a federal judge shot down a bid by Klamath Basin farmers and water districts to block dam releases meant to prevent fish disease outbreaks. Basin irrigators argued the rain and snow fall in 2017 reduced the chance of fish disease outbreaks this year, but said drought conditions in the basin this year could cause significant economic impacts to their region if water deliveries are delayed by the dam releases. ... ” Read more from the Eureka Times-Standard here: Federal judge sides with Klamath Basin fish over farmers
Judge upholds Klamath River injunction: “A federal judge in San Francisco will not suspend or modify a court injunction aimed at protecting threatened coho salmon from a deadly parasite in the Klamath River. The ruling, handed down late Monday by Judge William Orrick, further delays the start of irrigation season for local farmers and ranchers heading into what is expected to be a difficult drought year. Scott Cheyne, assistant director of the Klamath Irrigation District, said the holdup is already having a negative effect on agriculture across the basin — wheat fields are stunted, ranchers are worried about growing enough forage for cattle, and row crops, such as garlic, are especially under stress. … ” Read more from Capital Press here: Judge upholds Klamath River injunction
Straw wars! Bay Area push to ban plastic straws picks up steam: “Oakland is now the latest Bay Area city to consider a proposal to bar food vendors from serving plastic straws unless requested. Councilmember Abel Guillen, who introduced the proposal in March, says the legislation is part of broader effort in the city to reduce environmental waste. In 2006, Oakland adopted a policy called the Zero Waste Strategic Plan, which aims for a 75 percent reduction by 2010. “To make further progress on our waste-reduction goals and shift our culture away from single-use products, my ordinance will focus on ‘by request only’ use and better enforcement of existing legislation,” said Guillen in a statement. ... ” Read more from KQED here: Straw wars! Bay Area push to ban plastic straws picks up steam
Bakersfield: Cancer-causing chemical found in Grimmway Farms water: “A cancer-causing chemical has been found in the drinking water at Grimmway Farms facilities in Kern County, potentially endangering some 1,500 employees. The company is mitigating the issue by bringing in bottled water for employees to drink. A company representative said that high levels of 1,2,3 trichloropropane, also known as TCP, were found in wells located at two Arvin facilities during a recent test, a freezer facility at 14141 Di Giorgio Road and the other at 11412 Malaga Road. The company said the levels at the facilities exceeded the state maximum level of 5 parts per trillion. … ” Read more from Bakersfield.com here: Bakersfield: Cancer-causing chemical found in Grimmway Farms water
Santa Barbara: Federal Emergency Management Agency Close to Releasing New Flood Hazard Maps: “In the wake of the Thomas Fire and the Montecito debris flows, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s new flood hazard maps are expected to be released in May, a FEMA representative announced Tuesday. Santa Barbara County officials and partner agencies, in conjunction with other resources, showed their findings during a community meeting in Santa Barbara to plan for potential future rain events that may be dangerous due to the post-fire conditions of local watersheds. “We will be providing the draft data set to the county this month, and in June that data will be widely available,” FEMA Region IX representative Eric Simmons said. “Recovery maps are hazard maps.” … ” Read more from Noozhawk here: Federal Emergency Management Agency Close to Releasing New Flood Hazard Maps
Poseidon’s Huntington Beach desalination plant: What to know about its pros and cons for Southern California water: “The day of reckoning is drawing near for Huntington Beach’s long-planned desalination plant, which would help quench Orange County’s thirst with sea water and free up imported water for the rest of the Southern California. Twenty years and $50 million into the process, officials with plant purveyor Poseidon are optimistic they will get their final two permits — possibly by year’s end. They tout the project as a drought-proof source of water that will provide a stable supplement to the more volatile groundwater and imported sources in a future filled with aquatic uncertainties. ... ” Read more from the Daily Bulletin here: Poseidon desalination plant: What to know about its pros and cons for Southern California water
Three-eyed fish and two-headed turtles? The stench of this river spanning US-Mexico border is legendary: “The river is so foul that rumors swirl about two-headed turtles and three-eyed fish. If you fall in, locals joke, you might sprout a third arm. So go the stories about the New River, whose putrid green water runs like a primordial stew from Mexico’s sprawling city of Mexicali through California’s Imperial Valley. The river, with skull-and-crossbone signs warning about the danger it poses, reminds Calexico resident Carlos Fernandez of a scene in “The Simpsons Movie” where Homer Simpson disposes of pig feces by dumping them into a lake. … ” Read more from the LA Times here: Three-eyed fish and two-headed turtles? The stench of this river spanning US-Mexico border is legendary
Along the Colorado River …
Arizona utility tries to end multi-state Colorado River feud: “Arizona’s largest water provider on Tuesday tried to defuse a multi-state dispute over the Colorado River, saying it regretted the belligerent-sounding words it used to describe its management strategy for the critical, over-used waterway. The Central Arizona Project, which provides water to about 5 million people, pledged to be more cooperative with other river users and promised “to have a more respectful and transparent dialogue in the future.” … ” Read more from the Denver Post here: Arizona utility tries to end multi-state Colorado River feud
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.
