DAILY DIGEST: Florida company fined $5.3 million for ‘ripping’ Tehama County field; The story of the Brown family is the story of California; Push to change wildlife act sparks lobbying blitz; and more …

In California water news today, Florida company fined $5.3 million for ‘ripping’ Tehama County field; The story of the Brown family is the story of California; Push to change wildlife act sparks lobbying blitz; What a Colorado River in Decline Means for the Radical Idea of Resurrecting Glen Canyon; and more …

On the calendar today …

• The Delta Independent Science Board meets at the Big Break Center in Oakley.  Click here for more information.
• A Webinar: Update on Water Quality Regulations & Litigation from 1 to 2pm, free webinar from Nossaman LLP.  Click here for more information.

In the news today …

Florida company fined $5.3 million for ‘ripping’ Tehama County field:  “Another farming company has been fined millions of dollars for “ripping” land in Tehama County.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that a farming company has agreed to pay $5.3 million in civil penalties and costs to perform work to repair disturbed streams and wetlands on property near the Sacramento River.  The property is adjacent to land whose owner, John Duarte of Modesto, last year agreed to pay $1.1 million in civil penalties and costs to repair damage from using deep rippers to break up soil on his 450 acres south of Red Bluff, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. … ”  Read more from the Redding Record-Searchlight here:  Florida company fined $5.3 million for ‘ripping’ Tehama County field

Global Climate Action Summit begins in San Francisco:  “This week San Francisco is ‘the place’ to talk and debate climate change. Thousands of political and business leaders, scientists, activists, journalists and celebrities will gather in the Golden City for a global summit on climate change.  The initiative of California Governor Jerry Brown is to make California a worldwide flag-bearer on such a relevant issue, especially when the federal government is in retreat after President Trump decided to pull out of the Paris climate agreement more than a year ago. Brown will be leaving office in January, but not without leading California to major gains in renewable energy and cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. He has also dealt with record drought, floods, mudslides and massive wildfires while in office, all related to the ongoing climate change scenario impacting the state. … ”  Read more from the Weather Network here:  Global Climate Action Summit begins in San Francisco

The story of the Brown family is the story of California:  “Just as Gov. Jerry Brown is winding down his fourth and final term as governor of California, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Miriam Pawel is out with “The Browns of California,” an exploration of his legacy and that of his father, former Governor Edmund G. “Pat” Brown.  From 1959 to 1967, Pat Brown launched several major initiatives in his two terms. The California Master Plan for Higher Education (tuition-free for California residents) endures today, albeit with significant changes. ... ”  Read more from KPBS here: The story of the Brown family is the story of California

Push to change wildlife act sparks lobbying blitz:  “Action in Congress and the Trump administration to overhaul the Endangered Species Act (ESA) is spurring a lobbying frenzy.  Industries that have long sought to reduce the compliance burden of protecting imperiled animal and plants species are seizing a rare moment with a Republican Congress and White House that are sympathetic to their cause. ... ”  Read more from The Hill here:  Push to change wildlife act sparks lobbying blitz

In commentary today …

A permanent solution to California’s water woes – seawater, says Michael L. Waxer:  He writes, “Environmental calamities recently have battered California with alarming frequency. Over the past year, we have suffered the most damaging wildfires in our history. But, as in Steinbeck’s era, chronic water scarcity remains our most serious environmental problem.  In some corners of the state, extreme water conservation has become a year-round way of life. This is certainly the case on the Monterey Peninsula.  The region is the state in microcosm. … ”  Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle here:  A permanent solution to California’s water woes – seawater

More conservation, Cooperation Vital to Our New Era of Water Shortages,  says Ted Kowalski:  He writes, “The agency tasked with managing water and power in the West recently issued its annual report on projected future water levels at Lake Mead, the reservoir that provides water to Arizona, Nevada and California. This report by the Bureau of Reclamation confirmed that it will not impose mandatory water cutbacks in 2019. But it also projected a more than 50 percent chance of cutbacks in 2020 if water levels in the lake continue their decline and fall below 1,075ft.  This latest report reflects the gravity of the situation in the Colorado River Basin and reinforces what many of us across the West already know: “Aridification” is the new normal. We know the Southwest is a warm and dry climate, and it is only getting warmer and drier. Scientists tell us it’s no longer accurate to call this a drought, which implies that a brighter, wetter future is right around the corner. … ”  Read more from Water Deeply here:  More conservation, Cooperation Vital to Our New Era of Water Shortages

In regional news and commentary today …

Salt River restoration gets $1.13 million boost:  “A $1.13 million restoration award from a state agency will buoy efforts to excavate the Salt River watershed, the seven-mile channel of the Eel River that local conservationists have spent decades trying to restore.  The money comes from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, which this year handed out $27.8 million to a diverse geographical spread of water body restoration efforts. The Salt River watershed, running from near Fortuna to a Pacific Ocean estuary, is just one of those projects.  “There’s a lot of history and awareness of Salt River here,” said Matt Wells of the agency’s grants branch. “This is the culmination of a lot of efforts, both externally and internally.” … ”  Read more from the Eureka Times-Standard here:  Salt River restoration gets $1.13 million boost

Judge puts controversial Healdsburg logging plan on hold:  “Planned logging near a Healdsburg stream that provides some of the last refuge in the region for wild coho salmon has been put on hold after a court decision overturned a timber harvest plan for the 160-acre site.  Sonoma County Superior Court Judge Rene Chouteau determined last month that the plan approved by Cal Fire last fall inadequately analyzed potential impacts for endangered and threatened fish species in Felta Creek and the greater Russian River watershed into which it drains.  Chouteau also agreed with neighbors’ claim that property owner Ken Bareilles failed to sufficiently address the effects of logging trucks on narrow roadways and five rural bridges they would travel to haul lumber from the remote parcel. … ”  Read more from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat here:  Judge puts controversial Healdsburg logging plan on hold

How Wet Will Sacramento Get In Winter 2018?: “The cloud cover across parts of Northern California is a reminder the seasons are changing and experts say it’s time to get prepared for the rainy season.  “I am not ready for the winter,” a viewer tells CBS13.  “I think it would be awesome to get all that rain over here,” said another.  According to the National Weather Service, El Nino is expected to jet through Southern California, which means there’s a chance extra rain will travel to the northern regions. …:  Read more from CBS Sacramento here:  How Wet Will Sacramento Get In Winter 2018?

As Cal Am’s desal project is set for approval, important questions remain about its water’s cost: “As the California Public Utilities Commission is set to consider approving California American Water’s proposed desalination project sometime in September – as the Weekly went to print, it was not yet clear if it would be considered on Sept. 13 or Sept. 27 – crucial questions about the cost of that water remain unanswered.  For Cal Am ratepayers and shareholders, those answers – mainly, how the project’s financial risk is allocated between the two groups – have massive implications. ... ”  Read more from Monterey Weekly here:  As Cal Am’s desal project is set for approval, important questions remain about its water’s cost

San Bernardino districts aim to capture 98% of surface water:  “Two San Bernardino Valley water districts — the one whose main mission is to import water from Northern California and the one that conserves water in the Bunker Hill Basin — voted Monday to support a plan that would capture 98 percent of local surface water and store it underground.  It was a rare joint love fest — er, meeting — of the San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District directors who came to the San Bernardino Valley Water Conservation District headquarters in Redlands. After three presentations by six staffers, directors applauded, praised the staff, hailed the spirit of cooperation and posed for a picture. … ”  Read more from the Community News here: San Bernardino districts aim to capture 98% of surface water

State sues feds to stop renegade border sewage flows:  “The State of California is suing the federal government over persistent renegade sewage flows in the Tijuana River Valley.  California’s Attorney General and San Diego’s Regional Water Quality Control Board contend the federal government has repeatedly violated the Clean Water Act.  The lawsuit says federal officials have failed to collect and divert contaminated renegade flows that ended up fouling U.S. waters. … ”  Read more from KPBS here:  State sues feds to stop renegade sewage flows

Along the Colorado River …

What a Colorado River in Decline Means for the Radical Idea of Resurrecting Glen Canyon: “Ever since Glen Canyon Dam was completed in 1963, people have talked about tearing it down.  Environmentalists have lamented the devastation of a canyon and a river. Edward Abbey wrote about a plot to blow the dam up in his 1975 novel “The Monkey Wrench Gang.” And in the early 1980s, the group EarthFirst! unfurled a 300-foot black banner meant to look like a crack down the dam’s concrete facade, in an early stunt of environmental activism. … ”  Read more from Arizona Public Media here:  What a Colorado River in Decline Means for the Radical Idea of Resurrecting Glen Canyon

Also on Maven’s Notebook today …

• NEWS WORTH NOTING: Frazier: State Water Project contract amendments a bad deal for taxpayers; Valley Congressmen continue fighting the water grab; Feinstein: Senate funding bill ‘big win for California’
• SCIENCE NEWS: DWR Lead Scientist Ted Sommer wins career achievement award; The pros and cons of hydropower; A new floating PIT tag antenna for studying salmon movement; and more …

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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.