In California water news today, California urged to rethink 40 years of ‘piecemeal’ freshwater protections; Flows and ecosystem function dominate Delta Plan amendment; The lowdown on California’s levees as another atmospheric river approaches; Western US braces for another round of heavy downpours, mountain snow; Citizens committee files to stop dam re-licensing, says DWR is untrustworthy; Central Valley Water Board approves grasslands permit despite testimony by fishing, tribal and conservation groups; San Francisco Estuary: Big picture review of regional science and governance; California auditor faults counties, state for lack of wildfire disaster planning; Most U.S. states have cut environmental budgets and staffing since 2008: study; PFAS update: EPA progress under PFAS Action Plan; and more …
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- NEWS WORTH NOTING: PPIC Report: A path forward for California’s freshwater ecosystems; Reclamation, DWR move forward with seismic upgrades at B.F. Sisk Dam; Reclamation seeks public comment on the proposed Lake Powell Pipeline Project
- DELTA eNEWS: ~~ ISB Teleconference~ Christmas Faire~ Lighted Boats~ Winery Weekend~ DCB Meeting~ Water Webinar ~~
- WATER PLAN eNEWS: ~~ SGC Team~ Forest Stewardship~ Water Reuse~ Winter Plenary~ Splash ~~
California urged to rethink 40 years of ‘piecemeal’ freshwater protections: “When wet weather mercifully returned to California in 2017, it not only stabilized a booming farming economy and pulled millions of residents from drought – it also staved off an extinction event brewing in the state’s majestic snow-fed rivers. Ultimately the drought had relatively minor impacts on most urban Californians who suddenly had to do things like let their lawns go brown or – gasp – ask for water while dining out. But under the surface, 18 fish species including coho and chinook nearly disappeared for good from California rivers and streams. … ” Read more from the Courthouse News Service here: California urged to rethink 40 years of ‘piecemeal’ freshwater protections
Flows and ecosystem function dominate Delta Plan amendment: “With the Delta lagging behind the Bay on four of the State of the Estuary Report’s five indicators, the last long-range plan for restoring its ecological health abandoned, and the threats from climate change becoming ever more alarming, the need for a new regulatory vision for the region may never have been greater. A pending amendment to the Delta Plan, shared by Ron Melcer at the State of the Estuary Conference as part of a policy update session, is meant to provide that vision and the strategies to achieve it. The amendment — to Chapter Four of the Delta Plan, which focuses on the Delta ecosystem — was developed in response to the state’s pivot away from the 2013 Bay-Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP), said Melcer. … ” Read more from Estuary News here: Flows and ecosystem function dominate Delta Plan amendment
The lowdown on California’s levees as another atmospheric river approaches: “Once one realizes just how dependent the Bay Area is on levees, we can understand their true importance. That’s because, few things are more damaging and destructive than a levee break and we’ve covered many of them over the years. Given the amount of levees in California, almost 9,200 miles of them, really big levee breaks are few and far between. … ” Read more from KTVU here: The lowdown on California’s levees as another atmospheric river approaches
Western US braces for another round of heavy downpours, mountain snow: “An expansive storm system is forecast to spread rain and snow across the West into this weekend, creating dangerous travel conditions across the region. The storm has been slowly moving toward the western United States through the second half of the week. The first drops of rain are expected to arrive along the coast of Northern California on Friday afternoon. … ” Read more from Accu-Weather here: Western US braces for another round of heavy downpours, mountain snow
Citizens committee files to stop dam re-licensing, says DWR is untrustworthy: “The Feather River Recovery Alliance has filed a motion to intervene with the Department of Water Resources’ pending application to re-license operation of the Oroville Dam. “Although steps have been taken to identify physical concerns at the Oroville Dam through the current Comprehensive Needs Assessment being conducted by DWR, the Forensic Report on the 2017 Spillway Failure identified other causes that are not being addressed,” said a press release from the alliance. “The lake level continues to be managed for water supply rather than for safety, despite ongoing issues identified by the (Comprehensive Needs Assessment) team that have not yet been fixed.” … ” Read more from the Chico Enterprise-Record here: Citizens committee files to stop dam re-licensing, says DWR is untrustworthy
Central Valley Water Board approves grasslands permit despite testimony by fishing, tribal and conservation groups: Dan Bacher writes, “The Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board today voted 4-1 to issue a 25-year permit to continue discharges of selenium and other toxins from commingled agricultural and stormwater runoff into the San Joaquin River and the San Francisco Bay Delta, despite testimony from dozens of representatives of fishing, tribal, environmental justice and conservation groups challenging the permit. The staff promised the board that they would revisit the permit for the Grasslands Bypass Project in two years. … ” Read more from the Daily Kos here: Water Board Approves Grasslands Permit Despite Testimony by Fishing, Tribal and Conservation Groups
San Francisco Estuary: Big picture review of regional science and governance: “Offshore, kelp forests were dwindling. Outside, hillsides were burning. Inside the Scottish Rite Center in Oakland, scientists and policy people were sharing the latest findings concerning the vital shallows in between: the San Francisco Estuary. The patient pursuit of knowledge, essential to smart action in a changing world, had chalked up a fruitful two years. Of the action itself, there was rather less sign. Felicia Marcus might speak to that better than anyone. As chair of the State Water Resources Control Board, she had coaxed along a nine-year process, mandated by law, to raise minimum flows in the major rivers that sustain the Estuary. The Board took the first of several wrenchingly hard decisions 12 months ago. Result: the process was put on hold, pending another round of stakeholder negotiations, and Marcus lost her job. … ” Read more from Estuary News here: Big picture review of regional science and governance
CSUF researchers look at how California’s history of rain and snow can help explain climate change: “Stephanie Hernandez considers herself a steward of Earth. To do her part, she is studying California’s past climates to better understand current and future environmental concerns, including the fight against global climate change. To find out more about how major floods, fires and droughts played a role in past climates, Hernandez, an earth science major, and fellow Cal State Fullerton faculty and student researchers are working on a first-ever study focusing on California’s precipitation history and comparing it with the past 10,000 years. … ” Read more from the OC Register here: CSUF researchers look at how California’s history of rain and snow can help explain climate change
California auditor faults counties, state for lack of wildfire disaster planning: “A California state Auditor’s Office report released Thursday ripped state officials and local governments for failing to adequately set up “plans to alert, evacuate and shelter” residents as deadly and destructive wildfires swept through communities over the past three years. In addition to singling out three specific counties for their lack of planning, the report criticized the state Office of Emergency Services for not providing assistance to help local governments make plans in preparation for wildfires. … ” Read more from the Redding Record-Searchlight here: California auditor faults counties, state for lack of wildfire disaster planning
Nature’s ‘Brita filter’ is dying and nobody knows why: “On “good” bad days, the shells lie open at the bottom of the river, shimmering in the refracted sunlight. Their insides, pearl white and picked clean of flesh, flicker against the dark riverbed like a beacon, alerting the world above to a problem below. “That’s what we look for in die-offs,” says biologist Jordan Richard, standing knee-deep in the slow-flowing waters of the Clinch River in southwest Virginia. He points at a faint shape submerged about ten feet upstream. “I can tell from here that’s a Pheasantshell, it’s dead and it died recently. The algae development is really light.” … ” Read more from NPR here: Nature’s ‘Brita filter’ is dying and nobody knows why
Most U.S. states have cut environmental budgets and staffing since 2008: study: “Most U.S. states have cut funding and staffing at their environmental agencies over the past decade, according to a study by a green advocacy group, raising questions about the Trump administration’s policy to shift more enforcement of federal environmental laws to states. The report by the Environmental Integrity Project released on Thursday showed some 30 states have reduced funding for pollution control programs, 16 of them by more than 20%. Forty states, meanwhile, have cut staffing at environmental agencies, half of them by at least 10%, the report showed. ... ” Read more from Reuters here: Most U.S. states have cut environmental budgets and staffing since 2008: study
Government studying PFAS: “Two decades after concern emerged about a class of chemicals used in everything from Teflon pans to firefighting foam, the federal government has started the first in a series of detailed studies of the impact the chemicals have had on human health. The goal is to determine what role the chemicals, known generally as PFAS, play in a long list of health conditions including thyroid, kidney, liver, cardiovascular and autoimmune diseases, among other ailments. The studies will involve thousands of adults and children in eight communities nationwide, and the findings will help determine just how extensive of a cleanup is necessary at sites where groundwater or drinking water supplies have been contaminated. … ” Read more from the New York Times here: Government studying widely used chemicals linked to health issues
PFAS update: EPA progress under PFAS Action Plan: “Earlier this year, we wrote about EPA’s PFAS Action Plan, the agency’s blueprint for addressing contamination and protecting public health from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The PFAS Action Plan, released in February 2019, details a number of actions EPA plans to take with regard to PFAS, including time frames for implementation. EPA has been making some progress towards implementation, albeit not always on the timeline set forth in the Plan. Below are a few updates since February … ” Read more from the National Law Review here: PFAS Update: EPA progress under PFAS Action Plan
In regional news and commentary today …
Conservation nonprofit buys chunk of Mogul’s massive ranch on the Eel River, in the path of the ‘great redwood trail’: “The Wildlands Conservancy has launched a two-phase acquisition to preserve the historic Dean Witter Lone Pine Ranch, a 30,000-acre property that includes 20 miles of the “Grand Canyon” of the National Wild and Scenic Eel River. The property includes fantastic geology, a major carbon sequestration opportunity with 86 million board feet of fir, pine and oaks, a herd of Roosevelt elk, and significant wetlands. … ” Read more from the Lost Coast Outpost here: Conservation nonprofit buys chunk of Mogul’s massive ranch on the Eel River, in the path of the ‘great redwood trail’
Friday’s ‘atmospheric river’ storm front triggers Sonoma County flash flood watch: “After a brief respite, another potent storm front approached the Bay Area Thursday, triggering a flash flood watch for the 77,758-acre burn area of the massive Kincade Fire and a prediction of as much as 4 inches of rain in the North Bay hills. The brunt of the storm will target the Russian River area of Sonoma County, where waterways are already swollen from nearly a week of rain. … ” Read more from KPIX Channel 5 here: Friday’s ‘atmospheric river’ storm front triggers Sonoma County flash flood watch
Rains make way for Lagunitas Creek coho return: “After a dry fall, the first storms of the winter kicked off the annual migration of coho salmon from the Pacific Ocean to the streams where they spawn. Over 10 inches of rain fell on Lake Lagunitas last week—slicking roads, knocking out power and felling branches. Streamflows are now high enough to allow endangered central California coast coho to migrate through Lagunitas Creek and into tributaries, said Eric Ettlinger, an aquatic ecologist for the Marin Municipal Water District. ... ” Read more from the Point Reyes Light here: Rains make way for Lagunitas Creek coho return
Officials keep an eye on reservoirs amid Bay Area storms: “Despite the recent storms in the Bay Area, water levels in South Bay reservoirs haven’t moved much. The waters at Calero Reservoir are calm but far from full at just 42% of capacity – same as the last week of November before all the talk of Atmospheric Rivers. “We’re seeing reservoir levels below the historic 20-year level,” said Matt Keller from Valley Water. … ” Read more from NBC Bay Area here: Officials keep an eye on reservoirs amid Bay Area storms
Patterson: Community workshop set on proposed Del Puerto Canyon Reservoir: “Two agencies partnering on a proposed West Side reservoir in the Patterson area will hold a community workshop on the project Wednesday, Dec. 11. The Del Puerto Water District and San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors Authority are proposing to build and operate the reservoir. The project will deliver water from the Delta-Mendota Canal to the reservoir, where it will be stored and released on a managed basis, according to a press release. … ” Read more from Westside Connect here: Patterson: Community workshop set on proposed Del Puerto Canyon Reservoir
Eastern Sierra: LADWP asks to intervene on proposed energy storage projects, says it is not involved: “Before the break, we reported that a company submitted preliminary applications to study the feasibility of energy storage projects with new reservoirs above Walker Lake and Pyramid Lake. The applications, filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, contemplate sending power to transmission lines that deliver energy to Los Angeles. They are two of four projects being proposed by the developer, Premium Energy Holdings. Last week and after the story ran, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) offered comments on the proposals. … ” Read more from the Nevada Independent here: Eastern Sierra: LADWP asks to intervene on proposed energy storage projects, says it is not involved
Vandenberg Air Force Base at high risk of water scarcity, according to report: “Vandenberg Air Force Base is among the U.S. military installations most at risk for water scarcity, according to a new federal government report. Of the 102 military bases identified as at risk for water scarcity in the Government Accountability Office report published on Nov. 27, Vandenberg was the only one that was identified in all six climate-related assessments that sought to identify such installations. … ” Read more from the Santa Maria Times here: Vandenberg Air Force Base at high risk of water scarcity, according to report
Poway to be cited for faulty reservoir system that contributed to water contamination: “The recent contamination of Poway’s water was caused in part by storm drain and reservoir connections that are not in compliance with state regulations, a state official told KPBS Wednesday. The system was overwhelmed during last week’s rains and stormwater flowed into a reservoir of treated water that was then piped into homes and businesses, according to Sean Sterchi, the San Diego District Engineer for the state’s Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water. ... ” Read more from KPBS here: Poway to be cited for faulty reservoir system that contributed to water contamination
Along the Colorado River …
A River in Deficit: Deception and science in the Colorado River: “The Colorado River once dumped millions of gallons of water annually into the Gulf of Mexico, but now dries up before it ever reaches the sea. This withering is due to aqueducts and dams constructed despite scientists’ warnings, according to the new book Science Be Dammed: How Ignoring Inconvenient Science Drained the Colorado River. The book, published by the University of Arizona Press, argues against the common story that developers in the early 1900s used the best scientific information available at their time, and instead posits they continued to develop throughout the Southwest while knowing the environmental damage it could cause for future generations. ... ” Read more from Tucson Weekly here: A River in Deficit: Deception and science in the Colorado River
For decades, groundwater beneath Arizona’s big cities has been spared. That’s about to change: “While groundwater is rapidly falling in rural farming communities across Arizona, Phoenix, Tucson and other cities haven’t reached that desperate situation. That’s because in the urban areas of the state — where there are rules limiting groundwater pumping — underground water levels have stabilized or risen in many areas in the past four decades. But there’s a catch: Water levels have risen in large part because of water imported from the Colorado River, which supplies cities and is also put into the ground to recharge groundwater. Water levels in some of the wells surrounding these recharge sites have jumped 150 to 200 feet since the early 1980s. … ” Read more from Arizona Central here: For decades, groundwater beneath Arizona’s big cities has been spared. That’s about to change
Megafarms and deeper wells are draining the water beneath rural Arizona – quietly, irreversibly: “Vast expanses of lush green fields are multiplying in the Arizona desert, forming agricultural empires nourished with billions of gallons of groundwater in the otherwise parched landscape. Arizona’s groundwater levels are plummeting in many areas. The problem is especially severe in unregulated rural areas where there are no limits on pumping. The water levels in more than 2,000 wells have dropped more than 100 feet since they were first drilled. The number of newly constructed wells is accelerating, and wells are being drilled deeper and hitting water at lower levels. This free-for-all is draining away the water that homeowners also depend on, leaving some with dry wells. … ” Read more from Arizona Central here: Megafarms and deeper wells are draining the water beneath rural Arizona – quietly, irreversibly
It’s one of Arizona’s most precious rivers. Hundreds of new wells may leave it running dry: “A flash of red streaked through the trees: a vermilion flycatcher. The brightly colored bird chirped and trilled, adding to a chorus that rang from the towering trees. Beneath the shady canopy of cottonwoods and willows, the San Pedro River flowed shin-deep, gurgling through smooth rocks. This green artery, which snakes north from the Mexican border into southeastern Arizona, nourishes an astoundingly rich variety of life, including more than 350 species of birds, many of which stop here during migration. The forests and wetlands along the river teem with animals from frogs to bobcats to butterflies. The ecosystem depends on the river, and the river itself depends on an unseen source. ... ” Read more from Arizona Central here: It’s one of Arizona’s most precious rivers. Hundreds of new wells may leave it running dry
New way to monitor snowpack could be critical in the arid West: “At a time when monitoring mountain snowpack is crucial for communities throughout the American West, has the next generation of measuring snow depth arrived? Some top researchers seem to think so. “We really feel we have the next evolution for water management,” said Jeffery Deems, a research scientist for the National Snow and Ice Data Center. … ” Read more from the Durango Herald here: New way to monitor snowpack could be critical in the arid West
Precipitation watch …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
WATER PLAN eNEWS: ~~ SGC Team~ Forest Stewardship~ Water Reuse~ Winter Plenary~ Splash ~~
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