On the calendar today …
- MEETING: Central Valley Flood Protection Board beginning at 9am. Agenda items include Presentation on the current status and strategy of the Public Law 84-99 Rehabilitation Program to address repairs of sites damaged during the 2019 and 2023 storms, 2023 Inspection and Local Maintaining Agency Report of The Central Valley State-Federal Flood Protection System, and the Reorganization of Reclamation Districts in Yolo and Sacramento Counties. Click here for the agenda and meeting materials.
In California water news today …
Series of atmospheric rivers takes aim at West Coast next week
“The West Coast is in for a wild weather ride over the next week as a series of atmospheric rivers take aim through the first week of February, with clean-up from this week’s atmospheric river flooding in San Diego continuing. The superhighway for atmospheric rivers (ARs) is back open, and everyone from Seattle to Los Angeles to Phoenix is nervously eyeing the Climate Prediction Center’s warning of risks for flooding, heavy rain, heavy snow and high winds for the third soaker, still a half-week out. “You have a big pattern change out West,” said FOX Weather Meteorologist Amy Freeze. “We talk about the atmospheric river, that’s taking aim on the West Coast. Pay attention to this one. It’s said to blast the Golden State in a week. I know, a week ahead of time, what’s going on? Well, this has got all the hallmarks of a high-end flooding situation for California, some beach erosion, mudslides, potentially, and a lot of mountain snow.” … ” Read more from Fox Weather.
SEE ALSO:
- More atmospheric rivers are on the way. Here’s what the west can expect., from the New York Times
- California weather set to see huge swings, ending in atmospheric river storm, from the San Francisco Chronicle
California’s reservoirs maintain capacity as snowpack struggles to rebuild
“California nears competition of a January that has seen far less rain and snow than the previous year leaving a significantly lower snowpack while reservoirs statewide remain at historic highs. The month began with a disappointing snowpack measurement in the Central Sierra Nevada at the Phillips Station snow survey. Snowpack levels were measured at 30% of the average for Jan. 2, which was a stark contrast to the over 200% above average snowpack measurement taken at the same location on Jan. 10, 2023. … ” Read more from Fox 40.
Evaluating Voluntary Agreements in the Bay-Delta Watershed
“Updates to flow and other regulatory requirements for California’s Bay-Delta watershed are long overdue. For much of the last 12 years, state political leadership has prioritized efforts to develop voluntary agreements (VAs) with water users over completing updates to the watershed’s water quality standards. Now the State Water Resources Control Board has restarted the regulatory process and is considering what role proposed VAs will play in it. Our new policy paper—Five Guiding Principles for Effective Voluntary Agreements: A Case Study on VAs for Water and Habitat in California’s Bay-Delta Watershed—describes five principles for evaluating VAs that should guide the Board’s deliberations. … ” Continue reading at Legal Planet.
Jay Famiglietti: Protecting the Earth’s groundwater
“For decades, Jay Famiglietti, A82, E16P, has been singing a persistent refrain: Freshwater availability on earth is shrinking. A hydrologist who pioneered satellite technology to measure groundwater depletion around the globe, he’s seen constant declines in water aquifers ranging from California to China. “Not only are things getting worse, but in some places the pace of decline is accelerating—and that includes California and Arizona,” he says. “We’ve been kicking the can down the road for a long time.” In his role as Global Futures Professor at Arizona State University (ASU), Famiglietti now finds himself in a unique position to do something about the challenge of groundwater depletion. … ” Read more from Tuft’s Now.
Groundwater levels are starting to decline across portions of California; here’s the areas of highest risk
“Groundwater levels are on the decline worldwide and one of the areas seeing the biggest change is right here in our own backyard. A study in Journal Nature found groundwater levels are decreasing from the Sacramento Valley to the Central Valley at a rapid pace over the last four decades. Scott Jasechko, co-author of the study and assistant professor of water resources with the Bren School of Environmental Science & Management at UC Santa Barbara, said he and his colleagues analyzed measurements from over 170,000 wells in more than 40 countries. “If we continue doing what we are doing, things may get worse before they get better,” Jasechko said. … ” Read more from CBS Sacramento.
SEE ALSO: The 6 states facing the most serious groundwater crises, from The Hill
DAN WALTERS: California regulators want to spend billions to reduce a fraction of water usage
“Hydrologists measure large amounts of water in acre-feet – an acre of water one-foot deep, or 326,000 gallons. In an average year, 200 million acre-feet of water falls on California as rain or snow. The vast majority of it sinks into the ground or evaporates, but about a third of it finds its way into rivers. Half of that will eventually flow into the Pacific Ocean. That leaves approximately 35-40 million acre-feet for human use, with three-quarters being applied to fields and orchards to support the state’s agricultural output, and the remaining quarter – 9-10 million acre-feet – being used for household, commercial and industrial purposes. In other words, nearly 39 million Californians wind up using about 5% of the original precipitation to water their lawns, bathe themselves, operate toilets and cook their food. … ” Read more from Dan Walters.
California to uncloak water rights as it moves records online
“For a state that prides itself on technological innovation, California is surprisingly antiquated when it comes to accessing fundamental facts about its most critical natural resource – water. Most anywhere else in the West, basic water rights information such as who is using how much water, for what purpose, when, and where can be pulled up on a laptop or smartphone. In California, just figuring out who holds a water right requires a trip to a downtown Sacramento storage room crammed with millions of paper and microfilmed records dating to the mid-1800s. Even the state’s water rights enforcers struggle to determine who is using what. … ” Read more from Western Water.
Forum: ‘Wastewater to tap’ could become reality for Californians
“California regulators approved new rules last month to enable water suppliers to treat wastewater and redistribute it as drinking water. The state says that the new standards, which took years to craft, are the most advanced in the nation for treating wastewater and will add millions of gallons of additional drinking water to state supplies. But hurdles, including stigmas that surround what’s known as “direct potable reuse,” persist. We talk about California’s new approach to wastewater recycling and its potential to address shortages and ensure a consistent water supply in the face of increasing demand and climate challenges.” Listen at KQED.
White House rule dramatically deregulated wetlands, streams, and drinking water
“The 1972 Clean Water Act protects the “waters of the United States” but does not precisely define which streams and wetlands this phrase covers, leaving it to presidential administrations, regulators, and courts to decide. As a result, the exact coverage of Clean Water Act rules is difficult to estimate. New research published today in Science by a team at the University of California, Berkeley, used machine learning to more accurately predict which waterways are protected by the Act. The analysis found that a 2020 Trump administration rule removed Clean Water Act protection for one-fourth of US wetlands and one-fifth of US streams, and also deregulated 30% of watersheds that supply drinking water to household taps. “Using machine learning to understand these rules helps decode the DNA of environmental policy,” said author Joseph Shapiro, an associate professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ARE) at UC Berkeley. “We can finally understand what the Clean Water Act actually protects.” … ” Read more from UC Berkeley.
Seattle’s salmon death problem may have been solved
“Huge numbers of salmon in the streams of Washington state’s Puget Sound die every year due to tire pollution, but researchers may have found a way to prevent the massacre. By making pavements permeable, scientists hope to protect the coho salmon from tire wear particle pollution entering the streams via stormwater runoff. Four different types of permeable pavement have been shown to act as filters to tire pollution, preventing up to 96 percent of the tire particles from escaping, according to a new paper in the journal Science of the Total Environment. … ” Read more from Newsweek.
California coastal protections versus housing: The battle is on
“Building housing is difficult virtually anywhere in California — but especially along the coast, where there can be an extra layer of permitting. One of the Legislature’s strongest advocates for more home-building is trying to change that — and he’s starting with the coastline of San Francisco. State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, introduced legislation this month that would chip away at the authority of the California Coastal Commission, the state agency charged with preserving public beach access and evaluating coastal development, over neighborhood areas along Ocean Beach. “We’re in a deep housing crisis in California — and that includes the coast,” Wiener said. … ” Continue reading at the San Francisco Chronicle.
North America experienced an unprecedented ‘hot drought’ in the last century, new research shows
“Western North America has experienced an unprecedented “hot drought” over the last century, according to new research that shows the amplification of heat in the region over recent decades. “Hot drought,” a climate phenomenon that occurs amid concurrent heat and drought conditions, has affected the western portion of the continent in recent decades at a frequency and severity that was not seen in the hundreds of years preceding modern times, the paper, published Wednesday in Science Advances, found. Researchers studied tree rings using a new technique called blue light intensity, which involves shining visible light into the ring on the blue wavelength on the spectrum, Karen King, assistant professor of physical geography at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and author of the study, told ABC News. … ” Read more from ABC News.
DWR’s Go Golden Initiative celebrates a year of remarkable partnerships
“In February 2023, the Department of Water Resources (DWR) launched the Go Golden Initiative to highlight partnerships between the State and local organizations and water agencies to fund bold and innovative projects that strengthen California’s water infrastructure and build community resilience. Over the past year, Go Golden has highlighted more than $196 million in grant funding awarded to 22 local water providers through multiple grant programs to water resilience projects throughout the state. “As the wild weather of 2023 showed us, climate change is making California’s weather patterns more dramatic and unpredictable, with wide variations across the state,” said DWR Deputy Director of Communications Margaret Mohr. … ” Read more from DWR News.
In commentary today …
The Middle East can show the world how to save water
“No visit to the Emirati city of Al Ain is complete without a trip to its oases, where farmers tend to thousands of date palms, fruit trees and fodder crops that are made possible by a system of aflaj – Iron Age irrigation channels that have been included in Unesco’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This ingenious collection of complex underground and surface channels is an engineering marvel, but it also reveals how the importance of fresh water is imprinted not just on the landscape but in the hearts of the people. The persistence of the falaj networks shows what many in the Middle East have understood for centuries: that the struggle for clean water is a life-or-death one. … ” Read more from The National News.
In regional water news and commentary today …
NORTH COAST
Copco 1, last of three remaining Klamath River dams, breached by blast
“Copco 1, the oldest of the three remaining dams on the Klamath River, was breached Tuesday. Crews blasted away a plug in Copco’s adit, a 10-foot-diameter tunnel that was drilled at the base of the dam last summer. Ren Brownell, spokeswoman for Klamath River Renewal Corporation, which is coordinating the dams’ removal, said crews went about 100 feet into the dam and left a 12-foot concrete plug at its upstream end. A steel pipe was installed on its exterior and covered with concrete and a large rock. Earlier this month, openings were created at the two other hydroelectric dams — Iron Gate and John C. Boyle — as part of drawing down water from the reservoirs behind the dams. A fourth dam, Copco 2, was removed last year. … ” Read more from the Capital Press.
SACRAMENTO VALLEY
New wells tap into huge water storage possibilities: Roseville unveils two facilities that will boost its groundwater reserves
“If Northern California has another wet winter, Roseville is ready to save some of that rain for later. The City of Roseville recently dedicated two new Aquifer and Storage and Recovery (ASR) wells. These specialized wells allow the City to not only pump water up for use, but to recharge its groundwater basin. It’s like putting water in the bank. And that basin is huge—double the size of Folsom Reservoir. Roseville and its water partners now have access to 1.8 million acre feet of potential groundwater storage space. At full capacity, Folsom Reservoir holds about 975,000 acre feet. Each acre foot can supply three typical homes for a year. “It’s a big achievement,” says Sean Bigley, Roseville’s Assistant Environmental Utilities Director. “It’s a small footprint with huge water storage potential.” … ” Read more from the Sacramento News & Review.
DWR approves local Groundwater Sustainability Plan
“The state Department of Water Resources has approved the Solano Subbasin Groundwater Sustainability Plan, and awarded a $4.4 million grant to implement the plan. “The Department of Water Resources has evaluated the groundwater sustainability plan submitted for the Sacramento Valley – Solano Subbasin and has determined the GSP is approved,” states a letter addressed to Chris Lee, general manager of the Solano County Water Agency. “The approval is based on recommendations from the staff report … which describes that the Solano Subbasin GSP satisfies the objectives of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act and substantially complies with the GSP Regulations,” states the letter, signed by Paul Gosselin, deputy director of Sustainable Groundwater Management with DWR. … ” Read more from the Daily Republic.
BAY AREA
Marin Municipal Water District’s 5-year plan on verge of approval
“After eight meetings, including a two-hour discussion this week, Marin Municipal Water District’s five-year targets are teed up for approval. “This has been a really big, very heavy lift,” board member Matt Samson said. “With all this work, hopefully it’s a pretty clear guiding document for staff.” On Tuesday, ratepayers and board members gave favorable reviews of the strategic plan, which outlines goals for water supply, drought resiliency, land stewardship, fiscal responsibility and organizational excellence. While the board is expected to approve the document, the members suggested several new edits they said should be compiled in a final draft before taking a vote. … ” Read more from the Marin Independent Journal.
CENTRAL COAST
Cuyama water lawsuit continues as Grimmway, Bolthouse drop out
“The Cuyama Valley Groundwater Basin adjudication started its Los Angeles County Superior Court hearings in January, but Bolthouse Farms and Grimmway Farms are no longer plaintiffs in the lawsuit. Originally filed in 2021, the adjudication calls for a judge to rule on how much water everyone can pump from the basin, which is one of California’s 21 critically overdrafted basins that has a state-required groundwater sustainability plan. The sustainability plan calls for a 60 percent reduction in water use in 20 years. The suit sparked frustration for Cuyama residents, who later launched a boycott against the carrot-growing companies and a petition calling for the corporations to drop the lawsuit. … ” Read more from New Times SLO.
SEE ALSO: California’s Cuyama Valley water lawsuit continues as Grimmway and Bolthouse exit, from Fresh Plaza
Solvang discusses potential wastewater connection with Los Olivos
“Two neighboring communities in the Santa Ynez Valley are looking into possibly aligning their wastewater lines, while some locals worry the project would lure unrelated developers to stream in with it. In early January, the city of Solvang received a request from the Los Olivos Community Services District (LOCSD) to consider exploring the potential impacts of allowing Los Olivos to connect with Solvang’s wastewater treatment plant, rather than construct its own. Solvang’s city staff sought feedback about the proposal—to research the feasibility of Los Olivos placing a new wastewater line along Alamo Pintado Road to link with Solvang’s existing infrastructure—from the City Council during its Jan. 22 meeting. … ” Read more from the Santa Maria Sun.
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY
Manteca water use drops as population increased during 2023
“Manteca used less water overall in 2023 despite growing. Water use last year dropped 6 percent to 4.523 billion gallons from 4,821 billion gallons in 2022. Meanwhile, population increased by roughly 1,500 people or 2 percent to 90,000 residents. The numbers reflect the city’s consistent message that wiser use of water is a must is being heeded. The 2023 water use is also lower than in 2021 when 4.708 billion gallons of water was used. The city relied on wells for 40.7 percent of its water in 2023. That’s down from 46.6 percent in 2021 and 46.1 percent in 2022. … ” Read more from the Manteca Bulletin.
“Where’s the river?” Bakersfield lowers required Kern River flows pending interim flow agreement
“Required flows down the Kern River channel were lowered by the City of Bakersfield on Monday as officials have collected more data on how much water is actually needed for the river to get west of town, according to an email from the City Water Resources Department. The move is part of a larger effort to re-water the river through town per an ongoing lawsuit against Bakersfield by several public interest groups. In late December, parties involved in the lawsuit were ordered by Kern County Superior Court Judge Gregory Pulskamp to come up with an interim flow regime that would keep fish populations healthy pending full environmental studies that would set long term flows in wet and dry years. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
State approves Santa Clara River groundwater sustainability plan
“In a letter dated Jan. 18, 2024, the California Department of Water Resources’ Sustainable Groundwater Management Office notified the Santa Clarita Valley Groundwater Sustainability Agency that the Groundwater Sustainability Plan for the Santa Clara River Valley – Santa Clara River Valley East Subbasin has been approved. The approval comes following the State’s detailed review of the GSP, which was approved by the SCV-GSA Board of Directors on Jan. 3, 2022. “After a multi-year development process including stakeholder input, our Board approved the GSP in January 2022. Now, approval of the plan by the Department of Water Resources represents an important milestone as we prepare for the future in the Santa Clarita Valley,” said Gary Martin, president of the SCV-GSA Board of Directors. … ” Read more from SCV News.
Metropolitan Water District reports record level water stored, lowest water revenue in decades
“Metropolitan Water District representative Cynthia Kurtz reported that the agency has 3.4 million acre-feet of water in storage, enough to meet the future demand of its customers regardless of the weather. The MWD provides Pasadena with about 60% of its water supply. At Tuesday’s Municipal Services Committee meeting, Kurtz said this is the most storage MWD has ever had since 1979. “It was a wet year and when it’s a wet year, demands are down.” … ” Read more from Pasadena Now.
Metropolitan launches construction of new water tunnel, celebrates student who named machinery
“A tunnel boring machine that will help complete a water pipeline to serve growing western Riverside County communities is being named for 20th century environmentalist Rachel Carson, thanks to third-grade Moreno Valley student Jessica Wang whose submission was chosen in a recent contest held by Metropolitan Water District. Metropolitan launched the tunnel project and celebrated the winning name during an event held today at the March Field Air Museum. The new mile-long portion of the Perris Valley Pipeline is being built under the museum, starting with the tunnel excavation by the 13-ton, 16.5-foot-long machine newly named by Wang. In Wang’s submission, she wrote, “Rachel (Carson) was important because she was the woman who challenged the notion that humans could obtain mastery over nature by chemicals, bombs and space travel . . .Carson loved writing and nature.” … ” Continue reading this press release from the Metropolitan Water District.
IMPERIAL/COACHELLA VALLEYS
Lithium Valley has its skeptics, despite looking like a sure thing
“Sonia Herbert has been skeptical of the “white gold” rush that has overtaken Imperial County recently and hasn’t been afraid to wonder aloud if there’s enough lithium beneath the surface to live up to the hype. Early in 2023, Herbert had her doubts, even saw the community turn down the county’s overtures to put up a sign outside the township proclaiming, “Welcome to Lithium Valley,” she said. But Herbert has softened her stance over time. “Well, they say it’s going to be a clean energy, like it’s coming up through geothermal wells, it’s being captured. So there’s not going to be any like sludge ponds and all that business. So as long as they keep it clean and environmentally safe. It sounds like it’s a great deal,” she said in late 2023. … ” Read more from the Holtville Tribune.
Lawsuit could block massive lithium project near Salton Sea
“White House energy advisor John Podesta, major auto company executives and others are expected to attend a long-awaited ground-breaking on Friday morning for an innovative, billion-dollar lithium extraction and geothermal power plant at the dusty southern edge of the Salton Sea. The Hell’s Kitchen 1 plant, the first of as many as seven that are planned atop a massive, underground lithium brine reserve by developer Controlled Thermal Resources, received enthusiastically unanimous approvals on Tuesday from the Imperial County Board of Supervisors. But even after more than a decade of work, the groundbreaking might be premature. … ” Read more from the Desert Sun.
SAN DIEGO
Leucadia residents plead with city to finally fix longstanding drainage issues
“With buckets and sandbags, the people who live and work near Leucadia Roadside Park desperately fought an ultimately unsuccessful battle to keep rising floodwaters from entering their homes and businesses as a record-setting rainstorm hammered the region Monday. Two days later, they pleaded with the Encinitas City Council to finally resolve drainage problems that have bedeviled the low-lying area for decades, saying the city’s previous attempts have done little, if anything, to improve the situation. Monday’s storm, which dropped more than 3 inches of rain onto Encinitas, provided ample evidence that drainage is still a huge unresolved issue in Leucadia, they said. … ” Read more from the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Will disastrous flooding force San Diego to finally fix its storm drains?
“Hundreds of San Diegans are assessing the damage caused by Monday’s flash floods, which washed away cars, caused a sinkhole in Miramar and blanketed homes and streets in Southcrest with mud and debris. The intense rainfall in the span of just a few hours laid bare the longstanding inadequacies of San Diego’s stormwater infrastructure. And it provided a glimpse into the future, when climate change is likely to hit low-income communities of color the hardest. For decades, politicians and bureaucrats have swept the stormwater problem under the rug. Major storms are still relatively rare, and surface-level infrastructure needs like potholes tend to draw the most attention from constituents. … ” Read more from KPBS.
City of San Diego addresses critics of storm preparations in flooded neighborhoods
“Three days after devastating floods and record-breaking rain that caught thousands of San Diegans off guard, the city held a news conference Thursday to address the most pressing questions: how did this happen, and what’s being done to prevent it from happening again? Kris McFadden, the deputy chief operating officer with the city of San Diego, provided more details on the work stormwater crews did ahead of Monday’s unprecedented rain and what’s happening now. “You have to look at bird’s eye view of the entire area,” McFadden said. … ” Read more from NBC 7.
Along the Colorado River …
Nevada Supreme Court backs state engineers in water management case
“The Nevada Supreme Court has affirmed the state engineer’s authority to merge multiple water basins into one hydrographic “superbasin,” a decision that could profoundly affect groundwater management in the state and overrides a lower court’s finding that the state engineer had overstepped its authority. At the heart of the dispute was State Engineer Order 1309, which proposed combining seven basins into a single entity. This initiative aimed to address concerns about groundwater overappropriation in Nevada, particularly in an area northeast of Las Vegas where developers envisioned a new city. … ” Read more from the Courthouse News Service.
SEE ALSO: Nevada Supreme Court Affirms Protecting Water for Wildlife, press release from the Center for Biological Diversity
What to know about Southern Nevada’s 2024 water plan
“In states dependent on the dwindling Colorado River, planning is key. That’s what the Southern Nevada Water Authority does every year with the release of its Water Resource Plan, which serves as a yearly check-in for how conservation measures are faring amid low water availability. The authority’s board approved the plan at its January meeting. The authority is a coalition of the region’s government entities in charge of securing water resources for the state in the long term. Such a task is further complicated by Nevada’s small allowance of Colorado River water and historic lows in Lake Mead, which supplies about 90 percent of the state’s water. … ” Read more from the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Water managers hope for snow to raise Lake Powell water level
“The nation’s second-largest reservoir is in better shape than last year, however, the Lake Powell water level is still lower than it should be. Lake Powell hit a record low of 22% capacity in early 2023 following the effects of long-term drought and downstream water use. Record snowpack shortly followed, helping the reservoir rebound to about 40% capacity. As of Thursday, the reservoir is just 33% full. “The dry winter has not been kind to us,” said Gene Shawcroft, Utah’s Colorado River commissioner. … ” Read more from KSL.
In national water news today …
What are the odds that extreme weather will lead to a global food shock?
“Envision, for a moment, a multiyear period of extreme weather, including heat waves, freezes, droughts, floods, and windstorms, topped off by extreme weather during an El Niño event, leading to major crop failures in the U.S. A disruption of the global agricultural and food supply chain results, leading to panic buying and price shocks. Water shortages cause significant social disruption as populations vie for limited vital resources. The number of countries able to maintain a sustainable level of output shrinks dramatically, the global economy contracts at an accelerating pace, and political tensions rise as countries look to maintain food security. Trade disputes, increased competition and inequality, social unrest, and crime increase, causing widespread business interruption, falling profits, and layoffs, primarily in the agricultural and agriculture-dependent industries. … ” Continue reading from Yale Climate Connections.
