In California water news today …
Forecast for California’s atmospheric river event is in flux
“Meteorologists are confident that California will see rain next week associated with an atmospheric river, but they’ve yet to nail down rainfall amounts and the exact timing of the storm. Forecasters use a series of weather models to look at the forecast several days ahead, and on Thursday, these suggested the storm will likely arrive later than originally expected. The models showed some disagreement around just how much rain the storm will deliver. “The broader weather pattern that’s dominated for the past few weeks is possibly in the process of shifting, and predicting that shift into a new regimen, or new weather pattern, is one of the harder things to do as forecasters,” said Marty Ralph, the director of the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego. “The two models are showing different behavior in terms of that shift.” … ” Read more from SF Gate.
Major storminess in the West can snarl pre-Thanksgiving travel but could also end the wildfire season
“As the Thanksgiving and winter holiday seasons get underway, AccuWeather meteorologists warn that travel across the West can be slowed by multiple strong, moisture-packed storms moving ashore over the next few weeks. The period of stormy weather will at first be limited to the Pacific Northwest into this weekend, but then it will expand south, with impacts coming to California and the interior Great Basin region beginning next week. Next week’s storms could be the first significant ones of the winter season, packing heavy rain, mountain snow and strong winds. While detrimental to travel in the run-up to the Thanksgiving holiday, the storminess will have a silver lining: It could help put a lid on the wildfire season across a large portion of the West. … ” Read more from AccuWeather.
Solano County Water Agency rejects continuing conversations with California Forever
“California Forever offered to pay for a study to be done on waterways in Solano County to start conversations about how to get water to their proposed city.”
California’s drought is over but forests are still dying. What’s happening?
“While the historically wet year in California came as relief for the state’s drought-battered forests, large numbers of trees continue to die — especially in Lake Tahoe. Across the mountainous region, rust and apricot hues of withered woodlands have shrouded hills and valleys while fear of toppling trees has prompted closures of trails and campgrounds, dealt tree crews more work and wood than they can handle and forced homeowners to pay top dollar to clear hazard trees. The die-off at Tahoe is documented in recent aerial surveys by the U.S. Forest Service. The tree data, which is collected in flyovers of California annually, is still being sorted but already it’s showing that parts of the state are seeing trees die at the same — and sometimes greater — pace than they did during the recent three-year drought, which came to an end with the big storms this past winter. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
California’s scientist union plans to stage the first-ever strike by state civil servants
“Scientists in California state government plan to walk off the job next week in what would be California’s first-ever civil servant strike. After three years of fruitless bargaining, followed by an impasse declaration and mediation talks, the California Association of Professional Scientists will stage a rolling three-day strike Nov. 15-17, the union announced Thursday in an email to members. The union has asked for significant, double-digit raises — which some experts have previously characterized as unrealistic. After reaching impasse in late October, CAPS’s bargaining team met with the state and a mediator on Wednesday. Their next meeting is scheduled for Nov. 28. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
In people news this week …
Dr. Daniel Swain: The weather whisperer
“Want to know whether to grab an umbrella as you’re heading out the door? UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain has some advice: Don’t trust your smartphone.The typical weather app is “only looking at raw data, and a limited set of raw data at that,” Swain says. “It’s not contextualizing the information, as a human meteorologist with a lot of accumulated background knowledge would.” Absent that context, an app might serve you a sunny readout as you’re getting ready to leave for work, only for a chance of rain to materialize on screen a few hours later. “Public perceptions are that weather predictions are worse than they’ve ever been, even though they’ve actually been getting steadily better over time,” Swain says. “Which is a real shame, because you can get free access to taxpayer-funded knowledge and nuance from real humans at the National Weather Service, who provide a forecast that isn’t going to change dramatically hour by hour.” … ” Read more from the University of California.
Understanding the connection between surface water, groundwater and the environment with Caitlin Cornwall
“When Caitlin Cornwall walks along Sonoma Creek and observes the native plant habitat, listens to the birdsong in the air and watches the current rippling downstream, she knows that the health of the ecosystem depends on having a sustainable groundwater supply below the surface. Caitlin, through her work as a project manager at Sonoma Ecology Center, has been monitoring the creek for a long time and understands the complex relationship between water underground and what flows above. Sonoma Ecology Center monitors stream flow along Sonoma Creek through an agreement with the Sonoma Valley Groundwater Sustainability Agency. In “gaining reaches,” the water that flows in a creek comes from underground, while in “losing reaches” the stream filters water down through the creek bed and into the aquifer. … ” Read more from the Sonoma Valley GSA.
Former Kern River Watermaster recognized for his leadership and legacy in Kern County water
“The usually unflappable Mark Mulkay found himself at a rare loss for words as he accepted both the Water Leader and Water Legacy awards from his peers at the annual Water Association of Kern County dinner held Nov. 8. The recently retired Kern River Watermaster had to take a moment before addressing the audience, made up of Kern County water district managers, board members, staff and a few politicians. “I’m usually not this emotional,” he said. Then he joked: “Unless I’m really, really angry.” Mulkay noted that he began his water career in the San Joaquin Valley after moving to Kings County from Idaho to work for the J.G. Boswell Farming Company in 1983. He came to Kern County in 1993 where he became the General Manager of Kern Delta Water District. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
In regional water news and commentary today …
NORTH COAST
Mendocino County CSD hears from public on restaurant fees, water systems, and boundaries
“For the second time in a row, the Mendocino City and Community Services District (MCCSD) held an unusually lengthy and well-attended monthly meeting on Monday, October 30, 2023. Besides conducting the regular business of the District, the Board heard many of the same frustrations as the last meeting: the apparent lack of progress towards a community water system, agendizing a regular discussion on establishing such a system, and the rationale for allocating sewer fees. A request to consider expanding the District boundaries was also raised again. During Public Expression, Peter Lopez from Café Beaujolais asked for some guidance in light of the multiple agencies seeking information about their sewage and water usage, particularly the MCCSD and the State Division of Drinking Water. … ” Continue reading from the Mendocino Beacon.
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES
Federal funds would boost water agency fire readiness
“Last week the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would allocate $7.25 million to help protect water agency infrastructure in California’s 3rd Congressional District against fire. If the legislation is also supported by a Senate majority, the Georgetown Divide Public Utility District would get $1.25 million to construct a 2-million-gallon fire resilient water storage tank to aid in fire suppression efforts, according to a news release from the office of Congressman Kevin Kiley. The South Tahoe Public Utility District would see $1 million to replace deteriorating waterlines, improve infrastructure and install new fire hydrants. The fiscal year 2024 Interior, Environment and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill would provide $42.695 billion nationwide. … ” Read more from the Tahoe Daily Tribune.
“Be a Tree Hugger, Cut Down Trees” says environmental group
“Tahoe Fund is an environmental group committed to improving the environment around Lake Tahoe through various projects. Their top priority right now is cutting down trees, which they believe is essential for saving forests in the Tahoe Basin as well as across the West. “If you love the forest, and I think everyone around here does, you have to start thinking differently. So, hug some of the big trees, but be ok with the idea that we need fewer trees in our forests,” explained Tahoe Fund CEO Amy Berry. Amy Berry, the CEO of Tahoe Fund, recently published an Op-Ed in the Daily Tahoe Tribune titled ‘Losing the trees for the forest,’ in which she emphasizes that the high density of trees in forests is causing them to die. Berry argues that a significant shift has occurred in the views of scientists, environmentalists, and land managers on the issue of forest density since the advent of the notion of ‘tree hugger’. … ” Read more from KTVN.
Nevada Irrigation District acquires PG&E’s South Yuba Canal, Deer Creek facilities
“The Nevada Irrigation District (NID) has acquired the vital infrastructure that brings its water from the mountains to customers in lower elevations. The District has agreed to the transfer of Pacific Gas & Electric’s (PG&E’s) Deer Creek hydroelectric development, including that portion of the South Yuba Canal, Chalk Bluff Canal, Deer Creek Powerhouse, and all associated canals and facilities. Of all the acquisition components, the preeminent infrastructure is the South Yuba Canal. The canal is NID’s primary water conveyance that moves water from the mountain headwaters – from the Jackson Meadows, Bowman and Spaulding area – all the way down to just-above Scotts Flat Reservoir. … ” Read more from YubaNet.
NAPA/SONOMA
Sonoma County crop report for 2022 shows losses due to drought
“Showing the stark difference in weather swings from one year to another, most Sonoma County crops were plagued with drought effects in 2022 that led to a loss for the year overall. “We were down, due to drought. And feed hay was way too expensive,” Santa Rosa’s Beretta Dairy owner Doug Beretta said. Some North Bay dairy farmers drove as far as Idaho to get hay to feed their cows. Others took more drastic measures, selling cows or closing down operations. The just-released 2022 Sonoma County Crop Report shows an almost 2% loss in the total dollar value of crops from the previous year. Dwindling water supplies affected a variety of agriculture segments from dairy farms like Beretta’s to commercial fishing. … ” Read more from the North Bay Business Journal.
BAY AREA
Rain forecast for Bay Area next week. How heavy will it get?
“Thanksgiving is still two weeks away, but the Bay Area could be about to shift into winter weather mode. A storm from the Gulf of Alaska is expected to bring the first significant rainfall of the winter season to Northern California next week. Forecasters say it is still early, and the numbers could change. But on Thursday the National Weather Service predicted there is roughly a 70% chance that parts of the Greater Bay Area — including the North Bay, San Francisco, the Santa Cruz Mountains and Big Sur — will receive 2 inches or more of rain next Wednesday through Friday. San Jose and the East Bay are expected to receive less, with specific forecasted totals coming in the next few days. In the Sierra, the storm is forecast to dump at least 1 foot of snow above 6,000 feet, the National Weather Service says. That would more than double the total that has fallen so far since Oct. 1, bringing it up to historical averages for this time of year after a relatively dry autumn so far. … ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News.
Bay Area Pollution Prevention Group Pesticides Subcommittee wins 2023 award for water quality advocacy
“The Bay Area Pollution Prevention Group (BAPPG) Pesticides Subcommittee has been named the winner of the 2023 Dr. Teng-chung Wu Pollution Prevention Award for its outreach and advocacy activities to reduce pesticides in stormwater and municipal wastewater. The San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board presents this award annually in memory of Dr. Teng-chung Wu, a former Water Board employee and early advocate for pollution prevention. He believed many pollutants could be more effectively eliminated by controlling their sources rather than relying on end-of-pipe treatment. The efforts of BAPPG, a subcommittee of Bay Area Clean Water Agencies, to tackle the impacts of pesticides reflect Dr. Wu’s philosophy. “We applaud the Pesticides Subcommittee for its dedication in tackling the pesticides in wastewater,” said Eileen White, Executive Officer of the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Board. “Removing pesticides from wastewater at the end of the pipe would require an enormous investment in new technology that, frankly, would never be as effective as preventing pesticides from getting into the wastewater in the first place.” … ” Continue reading this press release.
Water quality in the Bay: A small hope
“Looking out at the San Francisco Bay’s dozens of tanker ships, shorelines made of landfill and vast sprawl of urbanity, it’s hard for me to imagine that it used to be one of the most vibrant and ecologically diverse estuary systems in the world. Industrialization, shoreline modification, pollution and dredging are largely to blame for degradation of the Bay’s habitability to aquatic species and water quality. Untangling the Bay from man-made pollutants and restoring its past ecological beauty is probably an impossible task. However, improving water quality and increasing available habitat for a wide range of species may be as simple as restoring a single dollar bill sized organism: the Oyster. EPA reports state that Bay Area water exceeds acceptable levels of pesticides, invasive species, mercury, metals and other contaminants. 90% of wetlands and 40% of the Bays’ aquatic ecosystem have been destroyed in the past 150 years. … ” Read more from the Daily Californian.
Commentary: Moving Pleasanton’s water system forward
Pleasanton City Manager Gerry Beaudin writes, “Water has been top of mind for many Pleasanton residents recently. In a survey conducted in late spring, we clearly heard that water safety and reliability is one of the community’s highest priorities. I can confidently assure you that City leaders are committed to the long-term stability of our water system and keeping you fully informed about how we are meeting that commitment. We’re now in a water environment that has uncertainty about long-term supply reliability and tougher regulations around PFAS are on the horizon. Water issues can be complicated, and we’re working hard to keep you informed about necessary rate increases, water system improvement projects happening now, and how we’re planning for future safety standards. … ” Read more from Pleasanton Weekly.
Valley Water facility near Mountain View border will purify wastewater, use it to replenish groundwater
“Days after Palo Alto officials broke ground on a “transitional housing” complex for homeless residents, they received an application for a very different type of development at an adjacent site in the Baylands: an industrial plant that will turn wastewater into potable water. The Santa Clara Valley Water District, commonly known as Valley Water, submitted on Nov. 7 its application for a sprawling advanced purification plant at 1237 San Antonio Road, near the Mountain View border. Once constructed, the plant will purify wastewater from the existing wastewater plant on Embarcadero Road and then send it south. … ” Read more from Mountain View Voice.
CENTRAL COAST
Los Osos: CA is out of a drought for first time in 3 years, but local water agencies still encourage conservation
“Despite the State of California declaring itself out of a drought for the first time in three years, local community service districts are still urging residents to be water wise. A groundwater basin is the only source of water for Los Osos which has been in overdraft. The winter storms helped improve conditions but did not bring the community out of water restrictions. Los Osos is currently in Stage 3 of a five-stage water shortage contingency plan. With the rainy season ahead, the Los Osos Community Services District says there may be a possibility they pull back. … ” Read more from KSBY.
Carrot boycott: Cuyama farmers and the latest chapter of California’s water wars
“The vast Cuyama Valley overlaps four counties: Santa Barbara, Ventura, Kern, and San Luis Obispo. Carrots are the largest agricultural product in the Valley, where Grimmway and Bolthouse Farms have been the dominant producers since the 1990s. From cattle ranchers at the western end of the region to olives and pistachio growers on the eastern side, small farmers get their water from wells. The entire area is dependent on rainfall, whether you’re farming a few acres or, like Grimmway and Bolthouse, taking the lion’s share for irrigation. Investigative reporter Melinda Burns says California’s Central Valley faces the same water allocation issues. The state has identified 21 ground basins that are threatened by depletion because much more water is being pumped out than can be replenished by rainfall. … ” Read more from KCRW.
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY
Tulare Lake Subbasin/State Board Workshop November 9, 2023
“About 300, motivated people showed up Wednesday evening November 8th at the beautiful and historic Hanford Civic Center to hear the State Water Resources Control Board staff talk about putting the Tulare Lake Subbasin into probation by April 2024. This will cost the area an immediate $30 million fine when it happens – if it happens. This is all part of how the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act is playing out in the San Joaquin Valley. On October 12th staff sent out a 176 page notice of the workshop scheduled on this topic. Folks showed up, listened and then responded. But how did we get to a place where an unelected state agency has the power to come into an area and remove $30 million from an ag based economy? It started decades ago when surface water supplies to the San Joaquin Valley were repeatedly reduced in the name of environmental causes in the Delta. … ” Read more from Water Wrights.
EASTERN SIERRA
An exceptional year for Mono Basin stream restoration
“The Mono Basin has had a very wet runoff year (more than 200% of average), but from a stream restoration perspective, what matters is how quickly the runoff melts, because the resulting flows dictate what kind of ecosystem processes occur. Mild temperatures throughout the spring and the early summer months produced a somewhat diminished peak flow compared to what could have occurred. Even though 2023 had more snow than 2017, streamflow gauges and preliminary field data suggest that the 2023 peak flow events were similar to 2017 for most of the creeks in terms of flow magnitudes and channel activation, with one notable exception. But let’s be clear, 2023 was an exceptional year for stream restoration. … ” Read more from the Mono Lake Committee.
Letter to the editor: Mojave Pistachios finds irony in IWVGA’s support of Bill 779
“In its latest taxpayer funded editorial, the Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority (IWVGA) heralds its lobbying efforts in support of Assembly Bill 779. In its self-serving piece, the IWVGA paints itself as a champion for small farmers and as an advocate for fairness and due process. That’s a rich irony, considering IWVGA’s abusive treatment of small farmers and disadvantaged communities under the guise of implementing the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. The irony becomes hypocrisy when weighing the IWVGA’s words against its actions. Despite paying lip service to small farmers in its editorial, the IWVGA’s Groundwater Sustainability Plan (“GSP”) denies small farmers any permanent allocation of groundwater and deems small farmers’ water rights “inferior” to the “superior” water rights held by IWVGA member agencies. … ” Read more from the Ridgecrest Independent.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Early season atmospheric river to bring significant rain next week to Southern California
“While strong winds remained a concern Thursday, meteorologists have their eye on a moisture-rich storm expected to bring significant rains to Southern California by the end of next week. An atmospheric river system with a “decent moisture plume” is forecast to hit Southern California as early as Wednesday, and is expected to bring up to 4 inches of rain to some areas, said David Sweet, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Oxnard. “We anticipate getting more than an inch, maybe as much as two inches” to much of the Los Angeles area, Sweet said. The mountains could see as much as 4 inches. “It will certainly tamp down any fire threat that we’re dealing with currently,” Sweet said. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
DWR Partners with Rancho California Water District to support agriculture and groundwater conservation
“Earlier this year, Rancho California Water District in Riverside County received funding from the Department of Water Resources’ (DWR) Urban Community Drought Relief Program for two projects that promote agriculture and groundwater conservation in Southern California. Rancho Water’s agriculture project, CropSWAP, was awarded $5 million and has converted 160 acres of water-intensive plants to drought-resilient and climate-appropriate crops. This program pays agricultural water users to switch to lower-water-use crops to put less strain on water supplies as well as support local farmers. CropSWAP will save nearly 9,000 acre-feet of water per year which furthers the goal of water conservation and sustainability. … ” Read more from DWR News.
Plan to replace beach sand, build ‘living shorelines’ adopted by LA County supervisors
“To remedy the impacts of climate change on local beaches, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted to create a coastal resiliency plan on Tuesday, Nov. 7. The plan calls for reusing sediment that is scooped out of flood control channels, mountain river dams and harbors to augment some of the 18 L.A. County beaches that have grown narrower due to loss of sand. It also calls for creating hybrid shoreline devices that combine manmade materials with natural elements to lessen the impact of waves that cause erosion. “L.A. County’s beaches are iconic. They define our region and our identity,” said Third District Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, co-author of the board motion approved by unanimous vote. “If we don’t act soon the public may lose access to these beaches forever.” … ” Read more from the Long Beach Press Telegram.
SAN DIEGO
San Diego selling back some pricey Colorado River water for cheaper Met water
A trade deal is brewing between major southern California water agencies to help restock a major reservoir on the drought-stricken Colorado River and meet federal demands to cut back use. San Diego, Los Angeles and Imperial Valley are the major players trying something that’s never been done before using a water trading agreement inked 20 years ago as a guiding light. Under the proposal, San Diego is going to give up some of its Colorado River water it fought so hard to secure so more can be saved in the larger river system. But instead, it would lean on supplies from northern California, a source that was virtually unavailable to the region due to drought just last year. … ” Read more from the Voice of San Diego.
Regional water board orders Ramona’s Pine Hill Egg Ranch to improve wastewater treatment
“The San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board voted Wednesday to approve a cease-and-desist order for Pine Hill Egg Ranch in Ramona after a report that contaminated wastewater from its egg-processing and composting facilities had gotten into stormwater basins and two nearby creeks. A three-year investigation by regional water quality board staff found that improperly treated wastewater from the egg-processing facility was flowing into stormwater basins on the property, according to the report. The foul-smelling water made its way into the Santa Teresa Valley Creek after heavy rains in the early months of 2023, and testing showed high levels of ammonium-nitrate and phosphorus, the report said. … ” Read more from the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Commentary: States must do more to address Tijuana sewage emergency as federal governments stall
Denise Ducheny, a former California state senator who lives in Imperial Beach, writes, “During the more than 40 years I have resided in San Diego County, trash and sediment accumulation, along with toxic and wastewater contamination of the Tijuana River and our binational coastal waters, have been a persistent health concern for South San Diego and Tijuana residents. I have been actively involved in trying to bring attention to and address these issues since the 1990s, when I first represented the area in the state Legislature. As a full-time Imperial Beach resident since 2009, I long to see skilled surfers and frolicking families enjoy our beach waters again. Anguished cries for emergency attention like those heard in recent years were voiced loudly in the 1980s and 1990s as well, leading to the agreement between the U.S. and Mexican governments to construct the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant in 1996 and the ocean outfall which discharges treated wastewater 3 miles off our shore. … ” Read more from the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Along the Colorado River …
Panel discussing desalination in Mexico fails to include environmental impact, Mexican voices
“On Oct. 24th, the ASU Global Center for Water Technology held a panel about water importation from the Sea of Cortés, highlighting technical feasibility but leaving large gaps related to environmental considerations and representation among its experts. Paul Westerhoff is the director for the Global Center for Water Technology, which is one pillar of the larger Arizona Water Innovation Initiative. The AWII was started at ASU by a large state grant to generate interdisciplinary research and solutions for Arizona water concerns, and The Global Center’s role is to be the technical and economic arm of the AWII. “Our job is to explore the technological solutions that exist, or aid in developing and creating new solutions to address the state water challenges,” Westerhoff said. One of these potential solutions is water desalination and importation from the Sea of Cortés, which is off the coast of Mexico and surrounded by the Baja California peninsula. … ” Read more from the State Press.
Building in Arizona with no water
“Where should new housing be built as the climate gets hotter? That is a question Arizona has been grappling with. A two-decade drought is straining water supplies there, and there is a big demand for housing. The state has one of the strongest laws in the country to limit growth where water is scarce. But as Lauren Sommer reports from NPR’s Climate Desk, there’s a loophole. … ” Read more from KNAU.
