In California water news this weekend …
La Niña may signal scant relief from California’s seemingly endless loop of hot, dry weather
“After a brief interlude of mild temperatures Saturday, a warm-up is forecast to begin Sunday as upper-level high pressure builds into California, the National Weather Service said. High temperatures will climb by several degrees on Sunday. California just recorded its hottest September on record, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the state looks to be stuck in a nearly endless loop of hot, dry weather. With a strong La Niña developing, the dry pattern is looking ever harder to break, and could be settling in to stay for a while. The forecast for the upcoming week is seasonably Santa Ana-ish, and does nothing to contradict that supposition. … ” Read more from the LA Times here: La Niña may signal scant relief from California’s seemingly endless loop of hot, dry weather
NOAA projects persistent drought conditions stretching from Texas to California this fall
“Some of the parched hills across the west that have been ravaged by fire in recent months will see little relief this fall. New maps from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predict drought-like conditions impacting nearly all of the desert southwest and the most populated regions of California as well as much of west Texas and southern Oregon. NOAA tweeted Thursday that the drought conditions will begin to settle in across the great plains in October, with California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming contending with widespread persistent drought conditions through the end of the year. … ” Read more from WAVY here: NOAA projects persistent drought conditions stretching from Texas to California this fall
California thought it could delay climate disaster. Now millions of acres are burning.
“California tried harder than any state to fight climate change. Two governors imposed a groundbreaking emissions cap-and-trade system while state regulators forced American automakers to build more efficient cars. None of those policies kept California from becoming the poster child for what climate change really looks like. … ” Read more from Politico here: California thought it could delay climate disaster. Now millions of acres are burning.
Setting ‘good fires’ to reduce the West’s wildfire risk
“The wildfires burning across the American West for the past two months have scorched millions of acres of land and scarred the region’s collective psyche. As residents wait for the ashen air and ambient dread to lift, the devastation from Southern California to northern Washington has surpassed that of even the “Big Blowup” of 1910. The weeks of uncertainty – marked by orange skies and lung-stinging smoke, emergency warnings and mass evacuations – have burdened people with acute fire fatigue. Or most people. As flames incinerate wide swaths of landscape, Jeremy Bailey suggests that the West needs more fire. That’s right: more. … ” Read more from the Christian Science Monitor here: Setting ‘good fires’ to reduce the West’s wildfire risk
Department of Water Resources calls for Delta community’s input
“The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) recently launched an environmental justice community survey to gather input to inform Delta Conveyance Project planning. The survey, entitled, “Your Delta, Your Voice,” seeks direct input from communities that may be disproportionately affected by the proposed project. Specifically, DWR is seeking direct feedback from the people who live, work, recreate, raise families, run businesses, grow crops, worship or advocate for equity in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. … ” Read more from The Press here: Department of Water Resources calls for the community’s input
Trump blathers about ‘little tiny fish’ and ‘tiny little windows’ during Hannity interview
“President Trump is using the soft terrain over at Fox to restart campaigning after his contracting Covid-19 and spending several days at Walter Reed hospital. Trump called into two sycophants on Thursday. First, he spoke with Maria Bartiromo in a grueling, for viewers, 55-minute-long unhinged Q&A. He followed that bonkers interview with a scattered and evasive primetime call with superfan Sean Hannity. The president covered most of the same ground during both interviews. … ” Read more from the Rolling Stone here: Trump blathers about ‘little tiny fish’ and ‘tiny little windows’ during Hannity interview
Column: Trump unleashes another unhinged rant about California water and wildfires
Michael Hiltzik writes, “During an unhinged 26-minute interview Thursday on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show, President Trump begged off the scheduled Oct. 15 debate with Joe Biden, promoted yet another untested treatment for COVID-19 and again made the false claim that mail-in balloting in the coming election will be rife with fraud. We’ll leave it to the ever-growing army of Trump fact-checkers to unpack most of this torrent of lies and misrepresentations. We’re more interested in scrutinizing comments he made about California’s water policy and wildfires. … ” Read more from the LA Times here: Column: Trump unleashes another unhinged rant about California water and wildfires
In people news this weekend …
Governor Newsom has appointed Erin Mellon, 32, of Sacramento, as Director of Agency Communications.
From the Office of the Governor: In this role, Mellon will work across the Administration to connect Californians with the work government agencies and departments do on their behalf. Mellon has served as Deputy Director of Communications at the California Department of Water Resources since 2017. Prior to that, Mellon served as Communications and Outreach Advisor at the California Natural Resources Agency and Communications Director at ChargePoint Inc. She has held a variety of communications positions in both the public and private sector, working on a broad range of environmental and social justice issues. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $139,728. Mellon is a Democrat.
Podcasts …
NOTEBOOK PODCAST: Implementing SGMA, and the lawsuits in the Indian Wells Valley
In 2014, the State of California passed the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, or SGMA, that was intended to bring the state’s groundwater basins into balance within 20 years. The Indian Wells Valley, a critically overdrafted basin, recently submitted their groundwater sustainability plan, and passed a groundwater replenishment fee, raising water costs for some users by 7000%, triggering lawsuits. I speak with Attorney Eric Garner about SGMA implementation and the pending litigation in the Indian Wells Valley.
WATER IS A MANY SPLENDOR’ED THING: Glaciers
Steve Baker writes, “Glaciers have sculpted mountains and carved out valleys around the world. Glaciers are always in motion, advancing or retreating in response to changing climate. Here in California glaciers have carved their history into the Sierra Nevada mountains and the Cascade Range. Remanence of these events can be found in the California Central Valley and portions of the state of Nevada. Water is a Many Splendor’ed Thing brings you another water relationship that has a personally significant impact to your life.”Podcasts here Produced by Steven Baker, Operation Unite® Bringing People Together to Solve Water Problems, Online at www.operationunite.co
In regional water news …
Red Bluff: Groundwater Sustainability Plan outreach meetings get underway
“The first round of public outreach meetings for the Groundwater Sustainability Plan kicked off Thursday with a virtual meeting via Zoom. The plan, which is the undertaking of the Tehama County Groundwater Sustainability Agency, is a part of meeting the requirements of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act passed into law in 2014, said Groundwater Commission Chairman Clay Parker. … ” Read more from the Red Bluff Daily News here: Red Bluff: Groundwater Sustainability Plan outreach meetings get underway
Tale of two counties: How Sacramento, Yolo Counties differ in addressing climate change
“Two neighboring counties in Northern California are approaching the climate crisis differently. Facing an almost daily barrage of wildfire smoke, rural Yolo County recently declared a climate emergency, but Sacramento County, with the state Capitol at its heart, is facing the same smoke and has not declared a climate emergency. That upset activists like Phoenix Leri, an organizer with the youth-led climate group Fridays For Future Sacramento. “We want to make it clear to our leaders that we can’t take this slow,” Leri said. “For decades we’ve been either denying or ignoring climate change completely.” … ” Read more from Capital Public Radio here: Tale of two counties: How Sacramento, Yolo Counties differ in addressing climate change
Wildfires have ravaged Napa Valley. Will California’s wine industry survive?
“In late summer, Napa Valley was forced to confront a harsh reality: Harvest season in this world-famous wine region is now also fire season. The unprecedented fire events of 2020 have left little doubt that California’s wine country has entered a new, dangerous era. First, in August, came a lightning siege that sparked fires throughout the state. One of the lightning strikes touched down in Napa. The resulting fire would ultimately grow to over 360,000 acres, resulting in five deaths. … ” Read more from National Geographic here: Wildfires have ravaged Napa Valley. Will California’s wine industry survive?
Catastrophic Glass Fire marks new, dangerous era for Napa wine industry
“In late summer, Napa Valley was forced to confront a harsh reality: Harvest season in this world-famous wine region is now also fire season. The unprecedented fire events of 2020 have left little doubt that California’s Wine Country has entered a new, dangerous era. First, in August, came a lightning siege that sparked fires throughout the state. One of the lightning strikes touched down in Napa. The resulting fire would ultimately grow to more than 360,000 acres and kill five people. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle here: Catastrophic Glass Fire marks new, dangerous era for Napa wine industry
Rodney Strong receives regional water board notice of violation
“Klein Food Inc., the group that operates Rodney Strong Vineyards, recently received a notice of violation (NOV) of permit requirements from the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board in response to a wine spill that occurred earlier this year when a wine storage tank door failed releasing approximately 97,000 gallons of wine, some of which made its way into nearby Reiman Creek. … ” Read more from Sonoma West here: Rodney Strong receives regional water board notice of violation
Cool air brings a flash of relief to Bay Area, but winter La Niña could loom
“Bad enough that the rain predicted for this weekend never materialized. According to climate experts, there’s growing evidence that the entire winter could be drier than usual — another ominous twist in a troublesome year. The driving force in all this is the likelihood of a La Niña event in coming months, forecasters say. In the short term, this dampens the hope that rainfall in coming weeks could bring the state’s lethal fire season to the end. Beyond that, it raises the odds of another severe drought for the state. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle here: Cool air brings a flash of relief to Bay Area, but winter La Niña could loom
Bay Area’s chances for abundant winter rain appear slim
“After an already dry year marked by unrelenting fires, the Bay Area might not be getting the rain relief it needs this winter. “The three-month outlook for January, February and March has most of California above normal for temperature but below normal for precipitation, and that would also include Marin for below-normal chances for precipitation,” said meteorologist Matt Mehle of the National Weather Service. The agency is forecasting an 85% chance of La Niña conditions to continue this winter, which tend toward wetter weather in the Pacific Northwest and drier conditions farther south. The Bay Area is somewhere in the middle, Mehle said, but the outlook is drier this year. … ” Read more from the East Bay Times here: Bay Area’s chances for abundant winter rain appear slim
Monterey: “Cal Am, Marina open to meeting on desal project ‘solution’
“California American Water and Marina city officials are in the process of setting up talks on the company’s desalination project after exchanging letters over the past several weeks. In a Sept. 25 letter, Cal Am president Rich Svindland reached out to Marina officials, proposing talks aimed at resolving differences over the company’s paused desalination project and suggested a series of “possible options that could be mutually beneficial for the city, Cal Am, and the region as a whole.” … ” Read more from the Monterey Herald here: Monterey: Cal Am, Marina open to meeting on desal project ‘solution’
Prospective Westlands Water Board Members look past legal challenges to get water, focusing on innovation
“November 3 is filled with many elections many of us have not heard of. Unbeknownst to many, some voters will pick five new members of the Board of Directors of the Westlands Water District. GV Wire℠ had a chance to speak with two of those running for seats by Zoom on Thursday. Both offered insights into how Westlands can change its reputation, how farmers can change their approach, and what their biggest adversaries are in the fight for water. … ” Read more from GV Wire here: Prospective Westlands Water Board Members look past legal challenges to get water, focusing on innovation
Video: Algae in California Aqueduct causes water challenges in Dos Palos
“This year, the water supply has been cut off multiple times due in part to high levels of algae in the California Aqueduct clogging equipment.” Watch video here: Video: Algae in California Aqueduct causes water challenges in Dos Palos
Dos Palos receives $11 million in state funding to help with water issues
“The City of Dos Palos is set to receive $11 million in state funding to address water issues that have plagued the community in recent months and previous years. City leaders say the grant funding will pay for the construction of a new water treatment plant and some improvements to the existing facility, which was built in 1969. Approximately $6 million will come from the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, and $5 million is through Proposition 68, which California voters approved in 2018. … ” Read more from KFSN here: Dos Palos receives $11 million in state funding to help with water issues
Santa Clarita: Good news about your water
Maria Gutzeit and BJ Atkins write, “This pandemic is top of mind for most of us today, but this just adds to what seems to be an ever-growing list of concerns. We have good news! You don’t need to worry about the water here in Santa Clarita. SCV Water was formed almost three years ago, when Senate Bill 634, authored by Sen. Scott Wilk, was enacted. This restructured water governance in this valley. Four smaller agencies combined into one, creating the new SCV Water Agency. Since then, it’s been a whirlwind of big changes. Good changes. … ” Read more from The Signal here: Good news about your water
How the coronavirus is changing L.A. County’s waste stream
“The coronavirus outbreak has indelibly imprinted itself on life in Los Angeles — down to the composition of trash washing up on its beaches. Volunteers at L.A. County’s largest annual cleanup event recently collected nearly 750 pieces of disposable personal protective equipment such as masks and gloves, said Shelley Luce, president and CEO of Heal the Bay. The nonprofit has for the past 30 years coordinated the L.A. County portion of Coastal Cleanup Day, which was this year reimagined as Coastal Cleanup Month due to the pandemic. … ” Read more from the LA Times here: How the coronavirus is changing L.A. County’s waste stream
Trygve Sletteland and Sonia Madeira de Ley: Opposition to Orange County desalination project
They write, “We support the commentary by Charming Evelyn of the Sierra Club. Poseidon Water Co. wants to build a desalination plant in Orange County and seeks a deal that would lock our water utility into buying its unnecessary water for decades. This water would be five times more expensive than the groundwater from our well-managed aquifer here in Orange County. … ” Read more from Cal Matters here: Opposition to Orange County desalination project
Vast new reservoir in south Orange County gets its first drops of water
“Right now, it’s just a huge hole in the hills off Ortega Highway in San Juan Capistrano. Really huge, as it’s designed to hold 1.6 billion gallons of water. It’s still dry as dirt, but promises to be a central component of future water supplies for the 165,000 people served by the Santa Margarita Water District. While the district currently imports 100% of its drinking water from the Colorado River and northern California, the new Trampas Canyon Reservoir is part of a plan to generate 30% of potable water supplies locally and to recycle more wastewater. … ” Readmore from the OC Register here: Vast new reservoir in south Orange County gets its first drops of water
Along the Colorado River …
These hay fields may know something we don’t: how to save the Colorado River
“Grand County rancher Paul Bruchez stands in a hay field near Kremmling, holding a small tuft of hay between his fingertips, twirling it back and forth, seeing how quickly it disintegrates after a summer without water. The plant, known as timothy, is native to Colorado and feeds thousands of cattle here in the Upper Colorado River Basin. This hay species and others are being closely watched this year as part of a far-reaching $1 million science experiment, one designed to see if ranchers can take water off of hay fields and successfully measure how much was removed, how much evaporated, and how much was used by plants. They also need to know how reducing their irrigation in this fashion affects the nutritional value of the hay. ... ” Read more from Channel 9 here: These hay fields may know something we don’t: how to save the Colorado River
Ocean patterns help scientists forecast drought, water flow in the Colorado River
“By analyzing what researchers call “long-term ocean memory,” scientists have been able to identify connections between flow rates in the Colorado River and sea surface temperatures in parts of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The breakthrough analysis — described Friday in the journal Communications Earth and Environment — allowed scientists to develop a forecasting model capable of predicting the Colorado River water supply on multi-year timescales. … ” Read more from UPI here: Ocean patterns help scientists forecast drought, water flow in the Colorado River
In national water news …
The immense potential of solar panels floating on dams
“Solar farms need vast swaths of land that might not always be easily available. So why not put them on water? Many countries in Asia are starting to do that by sprinkling floating solar panels on lakes, ponds, and reservoirs. But coupling floating photovoltaics (PV) with hydropower could be even better, researchers show in a new study published in the journal Renewable Energy. Floating solar farms on existing hydropower reservoirs could cut solar costs and meet 40 percent of the world’s energy needs, they found. … ” Read more from the Anthropocene here: The immense potential of solar panels floating on dams
U.S. now experiencing worst drought conditions since 2013
“Drought conditions have deteriorated to their worst conditions since 2013 across the country following a dry summer in the West, Northeast and Great Lakes. Flash drought conditions persist in parts of Upstate New York, Pennsylvania, throughout New England, small portions of Wyoming, Idaho and Oregon and the northern and central Plains. … ” Read more from The Weather Channel here: U.S. now experiencing worst drought conditions since 2013
A running list of record-breaking natural disasters in 2020
“So far 2020 has been a standout year for all the wrong reasons, including its devastating natural disasters. Wildfires have ravaged the western U.S., and tropical cyclones have popped up left and right, with several causing significant damage to coastal areas. The latest storm, Hurricane Delta, is headed for the Gulf Coast. … ” Read more from Scientific American here: A running list of record-breaking natural disasters in 2020
Droughts are threatening global wetlands
“University of Adelaide scientists have shown how droughts are threatening the health of wetlands globally. Published in the journal Earth-Science Reviews, the scientists highlight the many physical and chemical changes occurring during droughts that lead to severe, and sometimes irreversible, drying of wetland soils. “Wetlands around the world are incredibly important for maintaining our planet’s biodiversity and they store vast amounts of carbon that can help fight climate change,” says project leader Associate Professor Luke Mosley, from the University’s Environment Institute and School of Biological Sciences. … ” Read more from Science Daily here: Droughts are threatening global wetlands
Also on Maven’s Notebook this weekend …
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NOTICE: Eastern San Joaquin Surface Water Panel Review Public Meeting November 6
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NOTICE: Public Comment Opens for Madera Groundwater Sustainability Plans
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NOTICE: Term 91 Notice of Curtailment
Featured image credit: “The Lands End” by David Yu
