Hurricane Hilary …
Flooding disaster threatens Southern California as Hilary takes aim
“Hilary was making its presence felt in Southern California at the beginning of the weekend despite steadily losing wind intensity off the coast of Baja California. AccuWeather meteorologists warn that impacts from Hilary are likely to be highly disruptive, damaging and dangerous as the storm flings copious amounts of moisture northward into early week. AccuWeather meteorologists are concerned that a life-threatening flooding disaster may unfold in some of the desert areas and mountains in Southern California to southern Nevada, where more than a year’s worth of rain could fall. “The impact from Hilary has the potential to be an extraordinary event, one that is rare and unprecedented,” AccuWeather Director of Forecasting Operations Dan DePodwin said. … ” Read more from AccuWeather.
As historic Hilary storm barrels toward California, state calls for all-hands-on-deck help
“After issuing its first-ever tropical storm warning for Southern California, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services is preparing for potential flash flooding, power outages and high-speed winds from the remnants of Hurricane Hilary. The storm, which is losing strength as it moves north from Mexico, is expected to make landfall as a tropical storm early Sunday and bring “life-threatening” rain and flooding, as well as punishing winds across a wide swath of the south state. Winds of 39 mph or higher are expected to buffet coastal areas from the California-Mexico border to Point Mugu, and may reach as far east as the Mojave Desert. The extreme weather, according to the National Weather Service, could overwhelm flood-control systems, topple trees and power lines and damage infrastructure. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
Hurricane Hilary could threaten crops, agriculture in the Central Valley
“Hurricane Hilary is expected to hit parts of California’s San Joaquin Valley this weekend, bringing rare August downpours that may have a significant effect on the region’s crops. The Central Valley supplies 8% of the country’s agricultural output and 40% of its fruits and nuts – much of which is grown in the massive agricultural corridor between Bakersfield and Fresno, where Hurricane Hilary is quickly approaching. With several harvests coming up that rely on typically bone-dry conditions through August, the quality of a number of different crops could be at stake. Grapes, almonds, spinach, tomatoes and other local crops are especially vulnerable, according to AgShared, an agricultural services company in Bakersfield. … ” Read more from SF Gate.
HILARY SEE ALSO:
- Live updates: Tracking Hurricane Hilary as it approaches California, from the LA Times
- Potentially historic summer storm event to unfold in SoCal this weekend as weakening Hurricane Hilary threatens to move ashore as tropical storm–causing severe flood risk in SE desert region, from Dr. Daniel Swain, Weather West
- Unusual Pacific Storms Like Hurricane Hilary Could be a Warning for the Future, from Inside Climate News
- Hurricane Hilary moves very near to Mexico’s Baja coast packing deadly rainfall, from the Associated Press
- Hurricane Hilary triggers California’s first tropical storm watch ever, with heavy rain and flash flooding forecast, from The Conversation
A tropical storm in August? California’s year of extremes grinds on
“For California, where punishing droughts over the past two decades have shriveled crops and caused wells to run dry, it has been another year of extremes. Only this time, they’re of the opposite kind. It started with winter storms that drenched cities and towns, buried the Sierra Nevada in snow and caused an enormous long-vanished lake to reappear in the Central Valley. And it is poised to pass another milestone this weekend, as Hurricane Hilary lashes Southern California and its bone-dry inland deserts, which normally receive only a scant few inches of rain a year. All of this is quite a turnaround from the past three years, the state’s driest on record, when officials were imposing strict controls to save water. Hilary, which forecasters say could weaken to a tropical storm by the time it makes landfall in California, has no direct meteorological connection with the storms from early this year. But, taken together, they reinforce a key maxim about the weather in California: There’s no such thing as an average year — only very wet, or very dry. … ” Read more from the New York Times (gift article).
It’s not your imagination. The weather is bonkers right now
“If you’ve found yourself wondering if it seems like there are more noteworthy weather events than usual, you’re not alone. After droughts contributed to the recent devastating fires on Maui, Southern California is experiencing its first-ever tropical storm watch. And with flooding in the Northeast and many of Utah’s national parks, there are a lot of things to keep up with. Many of the weather events are even happening for the first time or for the first time in decades. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cites rising temperatures as a cause—and the impacts could begin to pop up more frequently. And this weekend, it’s a particularly wild one. To help you keep track of everything that’s going on, we’ve rounded up the major weather events happening now. … ” Read more from Fast Company.
In California water news this weekend …
State Water Board begins rulemaking to Make Conservation a California Way of Life
“Moving to strengthen California’s water supply and resilience to climate change through long-term water conservation practices, the State Water Resources Control Board today formally began the rulemaking process for the Making Conservation a Way of Life regulation. The first public comment period is open from August 18 until October 17, 2023. … ” Click here for more information.
Did you know? Tools for tracking Lake Tahoe’s clarity were invented at the Vatican
“Researchers with UC Davis’ Tahoe Environmental Research Center have been tracking water clarity for more than 50 years. But the method for taking those measurements can be traced back to the 1800s in Vatican City. It was then that Papal scientist Father Angelo Secchi developed the Secchi Disk: a small weighted plate that is used to gauge visibility as it’s lowered deep into open water. “Angelo Secchi was possibly the greatest scientist nobody’s ever heard of,” Brother Guy Consolmagno, the current director of the Vatican Observatory, said. … ” Read more from KCRA Channel 3.
The real story behind that photo of a weirdly unscathed house in the rubble of Lahaina
“The image has gone viral: The house, with its crisp white facade and cheerful red roof, appears untouched. Surrounding it are piles of scorched rubble left behind by the fast-moving fire that decimated Lahaina last week. The historic Front Street home was not the only property to survive the fire. Entire subdivisions were spared as flames leapfrogged across the island. But the indelible image of the improbably unscathed house amid a backdrop of devastation is so extreme that some have questioned whether the image was digitally altered. The situation is all too real, said Dora Atwater Millikin, who owns the house with her husband. “We lost neighbors in this, and neighbors lost everything,” Atwater Millikin told The Times. But their home remains, she confirmed. She’s still mulling over why. … ” Continue reading from the LA Times via Yahoo News.
Once feared, Diablo Canyon now key to California clean energy goals
“During a 1981 protest described by Rolling Stone as “the boldest demonstration yet against a nuclear future,” singer-songwriter Jackson Browne peacefully crossed a blue line, held out his wrists, and waited for Sheriff Deputy Gary Hoving to take him into custody. Law enforcement had prepared for potential violence, bringing helicopters, boats and trucks. But the protestors had trained to passively resist, and those protests in September ‘81 turned out to be festive. Fearing the potential for nuclear disaster, Browne was one of more than 2,000 protestors arrested in the seaside community of Avila Beach during the multi-day protest. But civil disobedience wouldn’t stop the the plant from opening — and over time, it would become vital to the local economy as San Luis Obispo County’s largest private employer and a major source of tax revenue. … Fast-forward to the present day, and concerns about Diablo Canyon are back in the forefront. Now, though, some worry about closing the facility, the last working nuclear power plant in California. Read the full story at the Courthouse News Service.
In commentary this weekend …
What has kept storms like Hurricane Hilary away from California for so long?
Ned Kleiner, a scientist and catastrophe modeler at Verisk with a PhD in atmospheric science from Harvard, writes, “In an average summer, Palm Springs receives less than half an inch of rainfall. Between Saturday and Monday, it is predicted to receive 5 to 7 inches of rain (10 times the usual amount for three months in just three days) from Hurricane Hilary, which is rapidly intensifying off the coast of Puerto Vallarta. The storm is projected to strengthen to a Category 4 storm as it moves northwest before turning and making a beeline for Southern California. Of course, as with any hurricane, there is some uncertainty as to Hilary’s path — in the so-called “spaghetti plot” that shows possible tracks the eye of the storm could pass west of Los Angeles and make landfall near San Luis Obispo, or it could make landfall in Baja California and dump most of its rain in western Arizona. But the models’ best guess (as of Friday morning) appears to be that the storm will pass almost directly over Los Angeles, delivering damaging winds and heavy rainfall in the region. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
In people news this weekend …
Promotions, passings, profiles – submit people news items to maven@mavensnotebook.com.
HEATHER DYER: Mastering the art of personal resilience
Imagine being a leader that promotes life, the rich, full, and healthy lives of our people, as the biggest driver of our organizational success. A leader who creates a culture of vitality; supercharging growth, engagement, and productivity in those around you. In a world full of chronic environmental stressors, you, and your people, have the ability to do more than just survive to the weekend. Taking lessons of biology and endangered species recovery, we can embrace the potential of transforming our lives from one of constant fight-or-flight reactions to one thriving within our work and home environments. The truth is, the process all started with a fish. Heather Dyer is the CEO/GM at the San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District. She has spearheaded regional cooperative efforts to build over $400M of local water infrastructure, completed the district’s first ever Strategic Plan, and is nearing completion of the Upper Santa Ana River Habitat Conservation Plan. Ms. Dyer holds a B.S. in Resource Biology and M.S. in Marine Biology, and earned an Executive MBA at Claremont Graduate University in 2019.
Podcasts …
WE GROW CALIFORNIA: Back from Sacramento
Darcy and Darcy welcome California State Senator Kelly Seyarto, who represents the 32nd District. Last year, Senator Seyarto toured the Central Valley, met with farmers, and learned about their operations, challenges, and innovation. Darcy and Darcy find out how that trip changed his ag and water policy perspectives, if at all, and hear firsthand about the Sacramento battleground.
FIFTH & MISSION: A fungus is infecting Californians — climate change may be growing its territory
Once largely confined to the Central Valley, the fungal respiratory illness known as valley fever is beginning to appear in Northern California, including the Bay Area. Scientists believe that climate change is driving the spread. Chronicle intern Gabe Castro-Root joins host Laura Wenus to discuss the growing alarm about this fungal disease. Then researcher Jennifer Head explains why valley fever’s spread could be a sign of things to come.
WHAT ABOUT WATER? Drilling deeper won’t fix this
People in the lower Colorado River basin are now witnessing drastic cuts to their allotments. In many cases, developers find alternate sources of water by drilling into underground aquifers. But in places like Pinal County, Arizona, that groundwater is already becoming scarce. We hear from , who sits on both the Pinal County Board of Supervisors and the board for the Central Arizona Pipeline. Without sufficient water for crops, and facing some of the highest temperatures on record, he says farmers in his area will fallow up to 70 per cent of their land this year.
THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER: Water Stress in the U.S. with NYT’s Chris Flavelle and CSIS’s Caitlin Welsh
CSIS’s Caitlin Welsh and New York Times climate reporter Christopher Flavelle join the podcast to discuss water stress playing out across the United States, and potential solutions.
WATER IS A MANY SPLENDOR’ED THING: Personal Values Go a Long Way
It was around 1960 and a new guy rolled into Reno, Nevada. He was driving a white, 1957 Cadillac Burits convertible that still had the New York plates on it. Ted Arman turned a lot of heads on that first day. People were thirsty at that time to find investors for their mine and Ted was the man who had the financial connections. His growing connections in mining eventually landed him as owner of a massive sulfide mine located just west of Redding, California. Little did he know this mine was to become one of the worst environmentally damaged mines in the world. But there is a good nugget to be gained by this situation. Water is a Many Splendor ’ed Thing brings you another water relationship that has a personally significant impact to your life. Produced by Steven Baker, Bringing People Together to Solve Water Problems, water@operationunite.co 530-205-6388
Sunday video …
Preserving JFK’s Landmark Speech at San Luis Dam: DWR Commemorates Historic Presidential Visit with Newly Remastered Video
“On August 18, 1962, President John F. Kennedy joined then-Governor Edmond “Pat” Brown and other State and Federal officials to celebrate the landmark groundbreaking of the San Luis Dam, a joint Federal-State reservoir and part of California’s State Water Project (SWP). The facility, San Luis Reservoir, continues to serve to this day as a critical piece of California’s water management, storage, and delivery system. To mark the anniversary, this year DWR is unveiling a newly remastered video of the speech that uses cutting edge video editing technology to give viewers a glimpse into the past and to better preserve it for the future. Kennedy’s speech provides a glimpse into what the West’s landscape looked like at that time and DWR and its Federal partners’ vision for the future. Read article and view video from DWR.
In regional water news this weekend …
BAY AREA
Marin water utility set to begin studies of new supply options
“The Marin Municipal Water District is preparing to launch more in-depth studies of new water supply projects, beginning with assembling consulting teams. The district board is set to vote on contracts with new consulting teams next month to begin preliminary technical, environmental and engineering studies of larger, more complex projects. The projects include expanding local reservoir storage, constructing a brackish Petaluma River desalination plant and installing new pipelines to transfer Russian River water directly into local reservoirs. Unlike the broader study completed earlier this year that identified which of the supply options the district could pursue, the more in-depth analyses are needed to provide details on how and whether they can be built, as well as the costs and environmental impacts. … ” Read more from the Marin Independent Journal.
Marin Municipal Water District approves 5.4% raise for non-union staff
“The Marin Municipal Water District board has approved a pay raise for managerial and other non-unionized staff while urging a swift conclusion to prolonged contract negotiations with hundreds of union employees. The board voted unanimously on Tuesday, with Ranjiv Khush absent, to approve a 5.4% hike for about 40 employees who are not represented by Service Employees International Union Local 1021. The non-union employees include division directors, managers and certain employees such as human resources staffers and the board secretary. … ” Read more from the Marin Independent Journal.
CENTRAL COAST
Ducks Unlimited projects underway at popular Elkhorn Slough in California
“The latest phase of a decades-long effort to help restore California’s largest tract of tidal salt marsh south of San Francisco Bay is underway this summer, thanks to the efforts of Ducks Unlimited and its partners at Elkhorn Slough. For years, Ducks Unlimited has partnered with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Elkhorn Slough Foundation on the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve to restore degraded salt marsh and surrounding habitats. Meandering seven miles inland from the coast, the Elkhorn Slough sits at the center of California’s iconic Monterey Bay. Last century, the mouth of the sinuous waterway was relocated to create a harbor which resulted in stronger tides washing in and out of the slough. … ” Read more from Ducks Unlimited.
More than 1,000 gallons of sewage poured into Carmel River
“The Monterey County Health Department is warning the public to stay out of the Carmel River following a large sewage spill. According to the county, an estimate 1,200 gallons of sewage entered the storm drain system from Carmel Valley Ranch. … ” Read more from KSBY.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Huntington Beach officials clear waters and beach due to oil-like ‘sheen’
“A “sheen” in the ocean off the coast of Huntington Beach is believed to have originated from a 40-foot vessel that sank nearby, prompting officials to clear the waters and close a stretch of the beach Friday, authorities said. The sheen originated around Bolsa Chica State Beach, just north of Huntington Beach, after the vessel sank about 7 p.m. Thursday, a spokesperson for the U.S. Coast Guard said. The size and impact of the sheen has not been determined, but initial reports estimate 300 gallons of diesel on board the boat, according to a statement from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Office of Spill Prevention and Response. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
Coastal power plants extended, not Redondo
“The California Water Resources Control Board voted Tuesday to extend the use of four coastal power plants. Redondo Beach was not one of them, for reasons cited as the plant’s ownership and litigation concerns. The waterfront AES plant is now within four and a half months of permanent closure, unless further action is taken by Dec. 31. The plant was previously extended for two years in 2021. “I’m very excited, I think the water board is doing the right thing,” said Redondo Beach Mayor Bill Brand. “Frankly, until the power plant and the powerlines are down, (I won’t) rest easy.” … ” Read more from Easy Reader.
Along the Colorado River …
Group proposes to fill Lake Mead by draining Lake Powell
“A group of conservationists and scientists are proposing a drastic solution to save the Colorado River system and our drinking water: fill Lake Mead and drain Lake Powell. The group Glen Canyon Institute published their proposal called “Fill Lake Mead First,” and has lobbied the Bureau of Reclamation for this solution. “We need to start making plans for prioritizing Lake Mead. It’s the more important reservoir. If there isn’t enough water in the system to fill both Lake Powell and Lake Mead, we should prioritize storage in Lake Mead,” said Executive Director Eric Balken. “We need to start planning for a major overhaul of the river system. And there’s just not going to be enough water to fill both Powell and Mead,” he said. “Even after this biblical water year where we had flows that were 170% of average, Lake Mead is still in a tier one shortage,” Balken said. He argues the change could prevent the evaporation that occurs in the waterways and end up saving water for millions. … ” Read more from Arizona Family.
Chemical treatment to be deployed against invasive fish in Colorado River
“The National Park Service will renew efforts to rid an area of the Colorado River in northern Arizona of invasive fish by killing them with a chemical treatment, the agency said Friday. A substance lethal to fish but approved by federal environmental regulators called rotenone will be disseminated starting Aug. 26. It’s the latest tactic in an ongoing struggle to keep non-native smallmouth bass and green sunfish at bay below the Glen Canyon Dam and to protect a threatened native fish, the humpback chub. The treatment will require a weekend closure of the Colorado River slough, a cobble bar area surrounding the backwater where the smallmouth bass were found and a short stretch up and downstream. Chemical substances were also utilized last year. … ” Read more from ABC News.
As feds ready rules on ‘forever chemicals,’ Arizona’s water monitoring fund is going broke
“A state program that helps small water systems monitor contaminants to ensure safe drinking water for Arizonans could be insolvent by 2026, the Department of Environmental Quality says. The budget crunch comes as federal regulators prepare to impose new rules about harmful “forever chemicals” in water. The Monitoring Assistance Program will not disappear but is likely to increase in cost and operate differently, the agency said. The long-term reason for the deficit in the budget is rising costs and the fact that fees for the public water systems that take part in the program have remained the same for nearly two decades, officials said. The fees fund the program. … ” Read more from Arizona Central.
In national water news this weekend …
Brita water filter company accused of false advertising
“A lawsuit filed against the maker of some of the nation’s most popular water filtration systems has accused the Brita company of falsely advertising that its products remove or reduce hazardous contaminants from tap water. The proposed class-action lawsuit, which was filed Wednesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, claims that deceptive advertising has led customers to falsely believe that Brita products filter such contaminants as arsenic, nitrate, hexavalent chromium and certain PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” from tap water. Brita is owned by Clorox Co., which is headquartered in Oakland. Clorox released a statement Wednesday saying it was still reviewing the complaint, but looked forward to “defending ourselves vigorously.” … ” Read more from the LA Times.
