In California water news today, Independent governance eyed for State Water Project; Billions in water bond funding await decision by California voters; Little-Known Accounting Policy Could Fuel Green Infrastructure Surge; Tribal nations hold some of the best water rights in the West; Pruitt promises action on rising threat from contaminants; and more …
On the calendar today …
- The Delta Conservancy Board will meet this morning at the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area from 9am to 1pm. Click here for details.
- The California Water Commission will meet at 9:30am. Agenda items include an update on the Water Storage Investment Program, a briefing on the Division of Safety of Dam regulations, and approval of the State Water Project 2017 review. Click here for more information. Click here to watch on webcast.
- Public meeting for the California WaterFix Contract Amendment from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Courtyard Marriott, near UC Davis Medical Center in East Sacramento. Click here for more information.
- The Southern California Water Dialog will meet to discuss Moving Forward on Funding Stormwater Water Capture and Treatment at 12:00pm at Metropolitan Headquarters in Los Angeles. Click here for more information.
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
Independent governance eyed for State Water Project: “The Legislature created the Department of Water Resources in 1956 for the purpose of managing the State Water Project, then in its early stages of planning. That project now comprises 700 miles of tunnels, pipelines, aqueducts and siphons that transport water from California’s north to its more arid south, serving 26 million people and 750,000 acres of farmland along the way. It’s a huge project with a lot of infrastructure, and it’s most of what DWR does. But more than 60 years later, there is a move under way to take control of the project out of the hands of DWR and place it in an independent commission. … ” Read more from Capitol Weekly here: Independent governance eyed for State Water Project
Billions in water bond funding await decision by California voters: “The Friant Kern Canal provides much of the water to valley crops, and it’s sinking. The November bond measure would pump 750 million in for repairs. The sinking has cut the canals carrying capacity in half. Fresno County has endorsed the measure. Supervisor Buddy Mendes says unlike Prop 1, the 2014 bond measure which failed to deliver enough funds to build Temperance Flat Dam, the funding in this plan is clear. “It’s specific language, and it has a series of what it will do, and one of the things is fixing of the Friant Kern Canal.” … ” Read more from ABC 30 here: Billions in water bond funding await decision by California voters
Little-Known Accounting Policy Could Fuel Green Infrastructure Surge: “In the years to come, we’re likely to see a lot more “green” and distributed infrastructure projects from water utilities, like permeable pavement, rainwater capture and efficiency rebates. That’s because coming up with the money needed to scale these projects just got a lot easier. In the water world, most big infrastructure projects like treatment facilities and pipelines are usually financed by water agencies selling bonds, which can help them raise millions of dollars for a project that only needs to be paid off a little bit at a time over many years. That’s because these projects are owned by the agencies and are considered an asset on which they can capitalize. ... ” Read more from Water Deeply here: Little-Known Accounting Policy Could Fuel Green Infrastructure Surge
Tribal nations hold some of the best water rights in the West: “Tens of thousands of people on the Navajo Nation lack running water in their homes. But that could change in the coming years, as the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project goes into effect. It’s expected to deliver water to the reservation and nearby areas by 2024, as part of a Navajo Nation water rights settlement with New Mexico, confirmed by Congress in 2009. Three other Native water settlements currently await congressional approval. They arise from federal legal decisions recognizing that many tribes in the West hold water rights that largely pre-date — and therefore override — the water rights of non-Native settlers. ... ” Read more from High Country News here: Tribal nations hold some of the best water rights in the West
Pruitt promises action on rising threat from contaminants: “Soaring numbers of water systems around the country are testing positive for a dangerous class of chemicals widely used in items that include non-stick pans and firefighting foam, regulators and scientists said Tuesday. The warnings, and promises by Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt of official action to confront the related health risks, came in a summit with small-town and state officials increasingly confronting water systems contaminated by the toxic substances. ... ” Read more from the AP here: Pruitt promises action on rising threat from contaminants
In commentary today …
Opponents of Delta tunnels deserve their day in court, says the Sacramento Bee: They write, “It’s one thing to streamline environmental reviews for a major project, which happened for the Golden 1 Center in downtown Sacramento. It’s entirely another to dismiss any environmental lawsuits and prevent others from being filed. That’s what a Southern California congressman is trying to do, to clear the path for the highly contentious $17 billion Delta tunnels project. It’s an outrageous overreach on a slippery legal slope. Congress should reject it. This latest twist in the long-running drama over the Delta tunnels came last week when Republican Ken Calvert of Riverside County, chairman of the House appropriations subcommittee for the Interior Department, unveiled a spending bill. ... ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee here: Opponents of Delta tunnels deserve their day in court
Farmers must work together to solve water problems, say Ben DuVal, Brandon Fawaz and Jim Morris: They write, “It isn’t easy for farmers from different parts of a watershed to talk with each other about water. This is true for neighbors on a creek, it is true in the Central Valley and it is true in the Klamath Basin. Though there will always be conflicts within agriculture about water, we can find new ways to talk about those differences. Improving our communication on water opens the door to working together. Working together increases our ability to develop new ideas, advocate for solutions, adapt to changes and defend what we must protect. … ” Read more from Ag Alert here: Farmers must work together to solve water problems
Marine Protected Areas Are Important, but they can’t do their job of protecting aquatic ecosystems if people fail to respect their boundaries, says Patricia Fernandez: She writes, “The glare of the sun over the Pacific Ocean warms my cheeks as I listen to the sound of a majestic gray whale as it surfaces nearby. A peaceful scene, one could say. But the scene is ruined by a nearby fishing boat chugging along headed straight for us. Cue the longest and loudest horn blow our captain has ever made, followed by obscenities yelled by our guests and other sailors nearby watching. The whale plunges below as the insensible boat plows right overhead. ... ” Read more from Scientific American here: Marine Protected Areas Are Important, but they can’t do their job of protecting aquatic ecosystems if people fail to respect their boundaries
In regional news and commentary today …
Diversion pool accessible this weekend for the first time since spillway emergency: “The public will have access to the Diversion Pool this weekend for the first time since the spillway emergency in February 2017. The pool is the dammed portion of the Feather River running from immediately below the dam past the spillways to the Thermalito Diversion Dam. The spillways dump into it, and it filled with a lot of debris when the main spillway broke up and the emergency spillway came into use briefly. State Parks and the Department of Water Resources announced Tuesday that part of the pool will be open to kayakers, and part of the Brad Freeman Trail on the north side of the waterway, will be open 8 a.m. to sunset, Friday through Monday. … ” Read more from the Chico Enterprise-Record here: Diversion pool accessible this weekend for the first time since spillway emergency
Arcata braces for rising seas: “With the Humboldt Bay and the Pacific Ocean lapping thirstily at its southern edges, Arcata’s low-lying lands are facing eventual inundation. It likely won’t happen overnight, and property in the area may still see use, and even fresh construction, for decades to come. But preparing for the inevitable, with all its uncertainties, is a mission Arcata can’t avoid, and it’s using projections and planning horizons that stretch far into the future – even to the year 2100. … ” Read more from the Mad River Union here: Arcata braces for rising seas
Sonoma County to seek half-year extension on controversial septic system changes: “Sonoma County officials will ask state regulators for more time to craft new rules governing the estimated 45,000-plus septic systems in the county’s unincorporated areas after facing resistance from rural residents who feared the changes could force them to undertake costly and unnecessary upgrades. The Board of Supervisors decided Tuesday to seek a six-month extension so county leaders can gather more community input and address concerns raised by homeowners, many of them from along the Russian River and on Fitch Mountain outside Healdsburg. … ” Read more from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat here: Sonoma County to seek half-year extension on controversial septic system changes
Sonoma County Water Agency to present Russian River estuary plan on May 31: “The Sonoma County Water Agency will host a meeting in Jenner next week to update the public on Russian River estuary management efforts to maintain a closed estuary during the summer months. “Communities along the lower river have long been interested in the estuary management project,” said Fifth District Sonoma County Supervisor and Water Agency Director Lynda Hopkins in a media announcement of the meeting. “Each May to October, the Water Agency manages the estuary to improve steelhead and coho salmon habitat and minimize flood risk for riverside communities. Estuary management is a key part of the Russian River Biological Opinion. Our annual community meeting is a great opportunity to receive current information and ask questions.” ... ” Read more from Sonoma West here: Sonoma County Water Agency to present Russian River estuary plan on May 31
Yolo Habitat Conservancy plan approved by Supervisors: “It’s been more than 20 years in the making — Yolo supervisors have finally adopted the Yolo Habitat Conservancy plan with a unanimous vote. The Environmental Impact Statement found that there are 12 species that need to be protected in the county and that 653,549 acres of land will be conserved over the next 50 years with long-term permits for things such as urban projects and activities, rural projects and activities, operations and maintenance, conservation strategy implementation, and neighboring landowner protection program. Taro Echiburu, Community Services Department director, told Yolo County Supervisors on Tuesday that the department was at a “remarkable” point by adopting the plan that “has been a long time in the making.” … ” Read more from the Daily Democrat here: Yolo Habitat Conservancy plan approved by Supervisors
San Diego water bill investigation: Plan to fix things at Water Department for good: “San Diego City Councilman Chris Cate on Tuesday announced he has reopened the high water bills saga to look into how to prevent water meter misreads and accidental high bills in the future. Cate proposed a long list of items to the Public Utilities Department, but despite the flood of calls to his office about sky high water bill having gone down, Cate said, “we want to make sure that we are doing it right.” ... ” Read more from Channel 8 here: San Diego water bill investigation: Plan to fix things at Water Department for good
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- NEWS WORTH NOTING: Reclamation pauses Klamath Project deliveries through May 26; Delta Conservancy Hosting Workshop for the Central Delta Corridor Conservation Strategy on June 5
- CAL WATER FIX HEARING: Ruling letter addressing outstanding procedural motions from the case-in-chief phase of Part 2
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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.
