The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. –Martin Luther King, Jr.
In California water news today, Senator Dianne Feinstein drops support for WIIN Act; Teenage Diver Finds Tons of Golf Balls Rotting Off California Coast; Federal shutdown impacting Eel River salmon; Lake Powell could become a ‘dead pool’ as climate change, political wars and unabated growth drain its waters; and more …
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- DAILY DIGEST, weekend edition: Harder praises Trump, Denham for work to keep water for farmers; CA lawmakers seek funding for the polluted New River; New reservoir rules leave 2B more gallons of water in Lake Mendocino; Drought legislation takes shape in Arizona; and more …
- CALENDAR EVENTS: CA Water Law Symposium: SGMA and beyond; Water and the future of the San Joaquin Valley; Kern County Water Summit; Negotiating effective environmental agreements
- OPPORTUNITY FOR COMMENT: Your input invited in the Delta Plan Five-Year Review Survey
- FUNDING OPPORTUNITY: Winter Rice Habitat Incentive Program Now Accepting Applications
- ARMY CORPS NOTICE: Re-Announcing Sacramento District Regulatory Division Has Gone Paperless – Electronic Submissions Instructions Have Been Updated
- SAN JOAQUIN RIVER RESTORATION PROGRAM: Initial 2019 Restoration Allocation & Default Flow Schedule Released
- FIELD ACTIVITY ADVISORY: Spring-Run Chinook Salmon Juveniles Scheduled for Release January 23 – March 24, 2019
Senator Dianne Feinstein drops support for WIIN Act: Dan Bacher writes, “In a letter sent out to constituents on January 17, Senator Dianne Feinstein said she has withdrawn her support, at least for now, for the WIIN Act, a controversial federal law that would have weakened protections for endangered salmon and steelhead and other fish species and allowed more pumping of Delta water to corporate agribusiness interests. “I understand that you are concerned about a proposed amendment to fiscal year 2019 funding legislation that would have extended portions of the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act (Public Law 114-322) related to California drought,” she wrote.“You may be pleased to learn that this amendment is no longer being considered for inclusion in any current legislative package.” ... ” Continue reading at the Daily Kos here: Senator Dianne Feinstein drops support for WIIN Act
Teenage Diver Finds Tons of Golf Balls Rotting Off California Coast: “A diver in California has stumbled on an unexpected source of plastic waste in the ocean: golf balls. As the balls degrade, they can emit toxic chemicals. And there appear to be lots of them in certain places underwater — right next to coastal golf courses. Two years ago, a 16-year old diver named Alex Weber was swimming off Pebble Beach along the Pacific near Carmel, Calif. “My dad raised me underwater,” says Weber, and she means it. She’s a free diver: no scuba tanks; she just holds her breath. She was diving in a small cove and looked down and saw something weird. “You couldn’t see the sand,” she recalls, still sounding incredulous. “It was completely white.” ... ” Read more from KQED here: Teenage Diver Finds Tons of Golf Balls Rotting Off California Coast
In commentary today …
Raising Shasta Dam won’t solve California’s water woes, says Bob Madgic: He writes, “The proposed raising of Shasta Dam represents just more of the same shenanigans in California’s long water history. As with most dam projects, it will cause more harm than whatever positives might accrue from such an action. California already has 1,300 (named) dams. More water storage projects will not solve the basic fact that the state’s finite amount of water is incapable of meeting all of the demands. This deficit has been created primarily by the transformation of a semi-arid area— the Central Valley — by an infusion of water from northern California. … ” Read more at the Redding Record-Searchlight here: Raising Shasta Dam won’t solve California’s water woes
In regional news and commentary today …
Federal shutdown impacting Eel River salmon: “Holding pools in the lower Eel River have been declining for a decade, fishing guide Eric Stockwell, widely known as Loleta Eric, told us. He thinks the pools reached crisis proportions this last year. During a November interview, Stockwell said, “I track these fish, and they are just waiting and waiting [due to the new pattern of late rain] and usually they are in holes, and then the holes got really filled in. [2017] was the worst I’d ever seen, and I was reporting that to the [regulatory] agencies. I was telling them, ‘Look, you’ve got a hundred big chinook and a sturgeon in 5 feet of water over here. And then this year, when I started investigating the river in August,…I discovered the holes were all basically filled in between Fortuna and Fernbridge.” ... ” Continue reading at the Redheaded Blackbelt here: Federal shutdown impacting Eel River salmon
Along the Colorado River …
Arizona should say yes – and no – to the Drought Contingency Plan, says Robert Robb: He writes, “The term “Drought Contingency Plan” is used loosely to describe two related, but highly distinct, policy decisions. The Legislature should separate the two in its deliberations. Arizona has negotiated a deal with the other Colorado River basin states to better protect Lake Mead. The upper basin states agree to do some things to augment the flow of water into Lake Mead. The lower basin states, including Arizona, agree to do some things to reduce what flows out of Lake Mead. Few argue that the agreement, called the Lower Colorado River Basin Drought Contingency Plan, doesn’t benefit Arizona. … ” Continue reading at Arizona Central here: Arizona should say yes – and no – to the Drought Contingency Plan
CRIT voters approve ordinance to lease some water rights: “By a margin of close to 2 to 1, voting members of the Colorado River Indian Tribes approved Jan. 19 an ordinance to allow Tribal leaders to negotiate for leasing some of the Tribe’s water rights to outside interests. According to unofficial election results posted at the Tribal offices, 435 (63.32 percent) members voted “Yes” for the ordinance, while 252 (36.68 percent) voted “No.” ... ” Read more at the Parker Pioneer here: CRIT voters approve ordinance to lease some water rights
Lake Powell could become a ‘dead pool’ as climate change, political wars and unabated growth drain its waters: “Ever since the Colorado River began filling Utah’s Glen Canyon and its countless side canyons in 1963, conservationists have been calling for emptying the lake that now supports a recreation economy and power generation. Climate change, unbridled development and Western water politics are conspiring to gradually grant this wish. The reservoir has shed an average of 155 billion gallons a year over the past two decades, the result of drought-depleted river flows coupled with rising demands from powerful downstream water users. … ” Read more from the Salt Lake Tribune here: Lake Powell could become a ‘dead pool’ as climate change, political wars and unabated growth drain its waters
Scientists study Lake Powell sediments to see how climate change, humans are affecting the water: “Water is hardly the only substance Glen Canyon Dam holds back. When Lake Powell’s water passes through the dam’s hydropower turbines, it comes out the other side clear and cold, completely different than the turbid flows coming in from the Colorado and San Juan rivers and tributaries with names like Dirty Devil and Muddy Creek. This is because the sediments carried by these rivers and their tributaries draining the Colorado Plateau accumulate on the lakebed. … ” Read more from the Salt Lake Tribune here: Scientists study Lake Powell sediments to see how climate change, humans are affecting the water
Precipitation watch …
After a period of wet weather, an extended period of dry weather is expected across interior NorCal for the remainder of the week into next week.
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
https://mavensnotebook.com/2019/01/21/reservoir-and-water-conditions-for-january-21/
Today’s announcements …
- OPPORTUNITY FOR COMMENT: Your input invited in the Delta Plan Five-Year Review Survey
- FUNDING OPPORTUNITY: Winter Rice Habitat Incentive Program Now Accepting Applications
- ARMY CORPS NOTICE: Re-Announcing Sacramento District Regulatory Division Has Gone Paperless – Electronic Submissions Instructions Have Been Updated
- SAN JOAQUIN RIVER RESTORATION PROGRAM: Initial 2019 Restoration Allocation & Default Flow Schedule Released
- FIELD ACTIVITY ADVISORY: Spring-Run Chinook Salmon Juveniles Scheduled for Release January 23 – March 24, 2019
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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.
