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On the calendar today …
- WEBINAR: Using the Groundwater Accounting Platform to Track and Manage Water Budgets from 12pm to 1:30pm. Are you a landowner, water manager, or water user seeking better ways to track water availability and use? Join us for a webinar to learn how to use the Groundwater Accounting Platform to help you manage your water budget. Co-hosted by the Environmental Defense Fund, California Water Data Consortium, Environmental Science Associates, and Olsson, this webinar will discuss how to maximize key functions of the Platform. Click here to register.
In California water news today …
California is digitizing its 100-year-old paper water rights records. Why that’s a big deal
“In a Sacramento office building, university students carefully scan pieces of paper that underpin California’s most contentious and valuable water disputes. One by one, they’re bringing pieces of history into the digital era, some a century old and thin as onion skin. The student workers are beginning to digitize the state’s water rights records, part of a project launched by the state’s water regulator earlier this year. It may seem simple, but scanning two million musty pages is part of a $60 million project that could take years. The massive undertaking will unmask the notoriously opaque world of California water. Right now, it’s practically impossible to know who has the right to use water, how much they’re taking and from what river or stream at any given time in the state. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
SEE ALSO: Video: See California water board start effort to digitize its ancient water records
Trout trouble could shut off the Delta pumps for Valley farmers
“While California’s water year is nowhere close to the records of 2023, a new culprit is threatening to muck up water supplies for the San Joaquin Valley: fish entrainment in the pumps of the Central Valley Project. Now, pumping restriction on flows from the Old and Middle River is forcing a reckoning between Federal water managers and San Joaquin Valley water users. Driving the news: More than 2,500 Central Valley -based steelhead trout have been entrained at State and Federal water diversion facilities, prompting action from the National Marine Fisheries Service to curtail pumping. … ” Read more from the San Joaquin Valley Sun.
The potential for brackish desalination in California
“In 2017, a nationwide assessment by the U.S. Geological Survey found that brackish groundwater in the nation’s aquifers is more than 800 times the amount currently used yearly. California’s Coastal Basin and Central Valley aquifers contain close to 7 billion acre-feet of brackish water, which, if desalinated, could provide enough water for the state’s needs for the next 160 years. Governor Newsom’s Water Supply Strategy’s Action1.2 targets expanding brackish desalination by 28,000 acre-feet by 2030 and 84,000 acre-feet by 2040. The Strategy directed the Department of Water Resources and the State Water Board to identify brackish desalination projects with the potential to be operational by 2030 and no later than 2040, and to determine the volume of water available for brackish groundwater desalination. Last month, the Department of Water Resources released the report, Projected Brackish Water Desalination Projects in California, and the State Water Resources Control Board released the report, Water Available for Brackish Groundwater Desalination, in fulfillment of their charge. … ” Continue reading at Maven’s Notebook.
SCIENCE IN SHORT: Reversing Delta land subsidence with Steven Deverel
“Thousands of years ago, the plants of California’s Delta began sucking carbon out of the atmosphere and storing it in the soil. Today, roughly the weight of the Golden Gate bridge in carbon dioxide is being kept below ground. But as the equilibrium between dry land and water in the Delta is in flux, that stored carbon is being released back into the atmosphere. Not only does this mean that the Delta is becoming a potent greenhouse gas producer, but the land is subsiding at scary rates. Delta science researchers reviewed our existing understanding of current rates and agricultural practices and put forth a recent publication that makes pointed suggestions to restore a healthy equilibrium and keep carbon where it is best, out of our warming atmosphere and safely below ground. … ” Listen to podcast or read transcript at Maven’s Notebook.
Tomato growers reduce acreage amid surplus
“Processing tomato farmers in California are expected to reduce production this year after a big crop in 2023 and a softening in demand, an agriculture organization is reporting. The state’s tomato canners planned to contract for 11.6 million tons this year, down about 10% from the 12.9 million tons they contracted for last year, according to the California Farm Bureau. The bureau cites USDA statistics projecting a drop in planted acreage from 255,000 last year to 232,000 this year, with growers aiming to produce 50 tons per acre. … ” Read more from the Western Farm Press.
California’s new megafires are taking a toll on wildlife habitat, researchers find
“California’s long-toed salamanders are one of the species threatened by rising rates of extreme fire in the state. Named for the unusual length of one of its hind toes, this salamander is typically dark gray or black with yellow or green markings on its back and measures up to three inches long from snout to vent. During massive California wildfires in 2020 and 2021, about 14% of the long-toed salamander’s range in the affected areas were burned by high-severity fire — the most of any species studied as part of a broader investigation into the toll of these fires on the region’s wildlife habitat. A recent article in the peer-reviewed journal PNAS found these fires, which burned more than 19,000 square kilometers, largely in California’s Western Cordillera ecoregion, burned the habitat of more than 500 vertebrate species. More than 100 species experienced high-severity fire that burned between 5 and 14% of their range in the study area. So the new research offers an important lens on the potential impacts that hotter, bigger, climate-change-fueled fires may have on wildlife and ecosystems. … ” Read more from Yale Climate Connections.
California’s insurer of last resort is a ‘ticking time bomb’
“California residents would be forced to pay billions of dollars to bail out the state’s insurer of last resort if a major wildfire hits, the insurer’s president warned last week in a startling admission that speaks to the growing cost of climate change. The comments are the latest and perhaps starkest indication of how intensified disasters due to global warming are eroding the U.S. property insurance industry and shifting rebuilding costs from insurers to the general public. In California and hurricane-prone Gulf Coast states, property insurers are retreating from risky areas, forcing people to buy coverage from state-chartered insurers that can impose surcharges on insurance policies statewide to pay claims. … ” Read more from E&E News.
In regional water news and commentary today …
BAY AREA
Novato residents oppose water pump station proposal
“Plans to build a water pump station in Novato are drawing opposition from neighbors. The North Marin Water District is considering building the station at “Site 2,” a parcel on a city-owned greenway that borders Arroyo San Jose Creek near Ignacio Boulevard and Palmer Drive. The district wants to replace a pump station that neighbors Lynwood Elementary School, which is 1.3 miles from Site 2. If approved by the water board and the Novato City Council, a 1,188-square-foot pump station could be built there, and 3,750 linear feet of new piping could be installed to connect the station. … ” Read more from the Marin Independent Journal.
San Jose Water proposed increases rankle residents
“Roughly 1 million people in and around San Jose are facing significant increases to their water bills starting next year, if state regulators approve a local company’s plan. San Jose Water Company, a for-profit water retailer, is asking the California Public Utilities Commission to allow an increase of the company’s average water rates by about 22% over three years beginning in 2025, according to state consumer advocates. The water company is also seeking approval to add a surcharge to customers’ bills to recoup $23.4 million it claims to have previously spent on unforeseen costs since its last rates hike in 2021. In a notice mailed to customers, San Jose Water said it’s proposing the rate increases due to “escalating operating expenses” including significant infrastructure replacement requirements and “increasing labor, health care, and other benefits to fulfill the infrastructure replacement.” … ” Read more from the San Jose Spotlight.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Flowing falls, rivers, full reservoirs: Rain brings a water wonderland to Southern California
“It’s possible Southern California has never been as wet as it is right this minute. Waterfalls, swimming holes, rivers, lakes, once-in-a-while creeks, part-time reservoirs; the greener stretches of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties have all of these features. Most are more or less visible (and enjoyable) depending on that year’s rainy season. And this year, two days before the start of spring, all of the region’s natural and unnatural water spots are filled at levels that few local hikers and waterfall watchers and swimming hole enthusiasts (hey, they’re a thing) have ever seen. Two straight years of nearly twice as much rain as usual will do that. “The water was just flowing,” gushed Toni Perez, a retired business owner and teacher, two days after she took an early March march up to Switzer Falls, a popular waterfall and sometimes swimming hole about 3,200 feet up in the mountains north of Pasadena. … ” Read more from the OC Register (gift article).
Coastal Commission approves Talbert Marsh restoration project
“A restoration project at Talbert Marsh got the go-ahead Thursday after the state Coastal Commission approved a coastal permit application submitted by the Huntington Beach Wetlands Conservancy as part of its consent calendar. The roughly 25 acres of Talbert Marsh stretch between Brookhurst Street to the Santa Ana River Trail and make up one of four wetlands the nonprofit owns and maintains. More than 90 bird species have been observed at the marsh in addition to the adjoining wetlands, according to the organization. The project along the southeastern and western shorelines of South Island will address erosion, which Coastal Commission staff said causes the disappearance of coastal salt marsh vegetation and depletes refuge spaces for sensitive bird species that live there. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
IMPERIAL/COACHELLA VALLEYS
Salton Sea communities address needs through SSMP
“To address pressing needs of the Salton Sea communities, the Salton Sea Management Program (SSMP) hosted a pivotal Zoom meeting on Friday, March 15. The virtual gathering deliberated on the recently unveiled community needs report, which identifies the requirements of local communities and delineates how the SSMP plans to address them through its ongoing restoration projects. Comprising a collaborative effort from the California Natural Resources Agency, the California Department of Water Resources, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the SSMP has implemented a 10-year plan. The endeavor will construct 30,000 acres of habitat and dust suppression projects around the Salton Sea. Progress is already underway, with 6,000 acres of aquatic and vegetation enhancement projects currently in the construction phase. According to the SSMP, the heart of the approach is a commitment to community engagement, exemplified by a public outreach project conducted over the past 18 months. … ” Continue reading from the Desert Review.
Video: Restoring the Salton Sea: An in-depth look at lithium, wetlands and the 10-year plan
“This half-hour special dives into the troubles and triumphs at the Salton Sea. … This half-hour special looks at the role these wetlands play and the work being done to support them. It also analyzes the impact growing water demand has on sea levels, with lithium and farming being the two key players. Lastly, the special highlights the efforts underway in the state’s 10-year plan as it works to restore the sea, project by project. It’s a massive and expensive undertaking, but will it be enough to save the sea?” Watch the video below or at NBC Palm Springs.
SAN DIEGO
Local officials emphasize need for federal funding during Senator’s visit to South Bay Wastewater Plant
“A United States senator from California visited the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant Saturday and held a roundtable with EPA, International Boundary and Water Commission and San Diego officials to find out more about the impacts the cross-border pollution has had on local communities. U.S. Senator Laphonza Butler (D-CA) toured the South Bay Wastewater Plant Saturday alongside Maria Elena Giner, Commissioner for the International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), Hector Aguirre, Assistant Director for Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 9, and Yana Garcia, Secretary for Environmental Protection for the California EPA, Butler’s office announced. … ” Read more from Fox 5.
Sewage seeps into California beach city from Mexico, upending residents’ lives: “Akin to being trapped in a portable toilet”
“California resident Shannon Johnson lives a few blocks from Imperial Beach’s turquoise water and waves of “perfect little curls” — but Johnson and her two young children haven’t stepped foot on the sand in a year. “Every time we go by the beach they’re asking, ‘Is it going to be clean? When are they going to fix it?'” said Johnson, 45, a former activist with the Surfrider Foundation, who has been living in Imperial Beach, a small coastal city of 26,000 people 20 minutes from San Diego, since 2010. Heavy metals, toxic chemicals and bacteria including E. coli have been detected in the water, according to a San Diego State University report released last month. Researchers called the contamination “a public health crisis.” It has resulted in over 700 consecutive days of beach closures, leaving residents like Johnson feeling confined indoors with no end in sight. … ” Read more from CBS News.
Along the Colorado River …
Troubled waters: As climate change and usage threaten water in the West, Supreme Court’s decision in upcoming case will carry weight
“Can Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado agree to a new apportionment of the Rio Grande’s waters without the U.S. government’s approval? The Supreme Court of the United States is set to hear a case next week that may affect access to water for millions of Americans — and set a precedent that could impact millions more, as increased usage and climate change further strain supply of the precious resource. On March 20, the Court will consider Texas v. New Mexico and Colorado, a tangled case involving water rights to the Rio Grande, a 1,896-mile river that begins at the base of the San Juan Mountains and runs into the Gulf of Mexico. The case, which has been in litigation for more than a decade, centers around a 1939 compact between the three states over how to apportion the river’s waters. … ” Read more from the Harvard Law Review.
More news in the weekend edition …
In California water news this weekend …
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A drone photo shows snowfall along the South Fork American River near Strawberry in El Dorado County, California. Photo March 8, 2024. By Sara Nevis / DWR California’s largest new reservoir project in 50 years gains momentum
- Court upholds State Water Board’s revised flow objectives for the San Joaquin River
- Balancing water supply resilience and ecology: The Tuolumne River and the Bay Delta Plan
- Coalition asks Newson to amend Salmon Strategy to add flows needed by collapsing salmon populations
- California proposes delaying rules aimed at reducing water on lawns, concerning environmentalists
- Regulators may delay rules to reduce water for lawns
- Satellite photos show California turning green and snowy after winter storms
- Key takeaways from the Sustainable Water Investment Summit
- Scientists say these critical factors will determine how bad California wildfires will be this year
- California unlikely to meet landmark goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions
- Special water sourcing adds ‘sense of place’ to Napa Valley brewer’s beers
- The fight to rid the bay of red algae may cost $11B
- Better snowpack for Colorado River may fend off ‘whiplash’ of recent years
- And more …
Click here for the weekend digest.
