Several news sources featured in the Daily Digest may limit the number of articles you can access without a subscription. However, gift articles and open-access links are provided when available. For more open access California water news articles, explore the main page at MavensNotebook.com.
On the calendar today …
- GRA SAC VALLEY: Implementation of SGMA – Where Are We Now? from 1:30pm to 4:00pm. Join us for our panel discussion on local implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), hosted at Chico State. Panels will include perspectives from the state, from subbasins with Approved Groundwater Sustainability Plans (GSPs), and from subbasins with GSPs deemed Incomplete. There will be an opportunity to ask our panelists questions you have about SGMA during the panel discussion, or you may catch some of us afterward at the Madison Bear Garden in downtown Chico for a social hour after the event. Click here to register.
In California water news today …
California salmon fishing banned for second year in row
“In a devastating blow to California’s fishing industry, federal fishery managers unanimously voted today to cancel all commercial and recreational salmon fishing off the coast of California for the second year in a row. The decision is designed to protect California’s dwindling salmon populations after drought and water diversions left river flows too warm and sluggish for the state’s iconic Chinook salmon to thrive. Salmon abundance forecasts for the year “are just too low,” Marci Yaremko, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s appointee to the Pacific Fishery Management Council, said last week. “While the rainfall and the snowpacks have improved, the stocks and their habitats just need another year to recover.” … ” Read more from Cal Matters.
It’s Official: California Salmon Fishing Closed Again This Year!
““At its March 2024 meeting, the Pacific Fishery Management Council (Council) voted on and approved public review of three alternatives for salmon fisheries along the California coast,” wrote Chuck Bonham, CDFW Director, in a letter to the PFMC. “The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) recommends the Council to close ocean salmon fisheries along the California coast and otherwise constrain salmon fishing in Council managed areas to minimize impacts to Sacramento and Klamath origin Chinook salmon stocks,” urged Bonham. The state blames the salmon collapse on the “drought and climate disruption,” while fishing groups, Tribes and environmentalists point to the government’s complicity in the collapse. “At this point we can’t put the blame solely on drought when Governor Newsom’s water policies are devastating to thousands of families that rely on salmon to pay their rent and mortgages, put food on the table and keep their businesses going,” said Scott Artis, executive director of the Golden State Salmon Association (GSSA). “It’s simple: when the state’s water policies kill off all of the baby salmon, 2 to 3 years later you don’t get many returning adults in the rivers. This is Governor Newsom’s legacy.” … ” Read more from Dan Bacher at the Daily Kos.
SEE ALSO:
- PFMC Recommends Repeat Closure for California’s 2024 Ocean Salmon Fisheries, press release from the Department of Fish and Wildlife
- California’s Commercial Salmon Season Is Closed Again This Year, from KQED
- California salmon fishing season will be closed for second year in a row, from the San Francisco Chronicle
Mid-April storm to eye California with rain, mountain snow
“Even though Pacific storms have become less frequent, as is often the case in April, a new storm is brewing and will slice across California just in time for the weekend, bringing areas of rain, mountain snow and much cooler air, AccuWeather meteorologists say. April marks a typical downturn in the number of storms and opportunities for rain and snow in California, but the atmosphere is continuing its generosity this month following a storm-rich winter season. A storm over the Gulf of Alaska will drop southward just off the coast into Friday and will swing toward California this weekend. “The angle at which the storm is moving in from the Pacific Ocean will make this mostly a California event and not a northwestern United States event,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Heather Zehr said. … ” Read more from AccuWeather.
Water pollution is fueling ocean acidification. Environmentalists urge California to act
“As the burning of fossil fuels and other human activities continue to increase the levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, the ocean is absorbing a large portion of the CO2, which is making seawater more acidic. The changing water chemistry in the ocean has far-reaching effects for plankton, shellfish and the entire marine food web. And here’s one important fact about ocean acidification: It’s not happening at the same rate everywhere. The California coast is one of the regions of the world where ocean acidification is occurring the fastest. And researchers have found that local sources of pollution are part of the problem. In particular, effluent discharged from coastal sewage treatment plants, which has high nitrogen levels from human waste, has been shown to significantly contribute to ocean acidification off the Southern California coast. These nitrogen-filled discharges also periodically contribute to algae blooms, leading to hypoxia, or oxygen-deprived water that is inhospitable for marine life. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
RELATED: Nutrients from wastewater treatment plants may threaten coastal marine life―should California regulate them?, from Maven’s Notebook
Are California water pumps putting endangered fish species at risk of extinction? Experts say so
“Are state and federal water pumps killing critically endangered fish species? Environmental activists say it is a well-documented problem in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta that is now out of control. They accuse state and federal water projects of knowingly putting certain at-risk fish species in grave danger of extinction. “What we are seeing is just the tip of the iceberg of a much larger problem,” Jon Rosenfield said. Rosenfield is the science director of the nonprofit San Francisco Bay Keeper and a fish biologist. “We are in a dire situation with the fish coming out of many years of mismanagement with the drought,” he said. “This is an opportunity to let them have a good year and, instead, we are killing them.” … ” Read more from CBS Sacramento.
USEPA requires monitoring and treatment to limit and reduce PFAS in drinking water
“Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) announced the final National Primary Drinking Water Regulation establishing the first national legally enforceable drinking water standards (Maximum Contaminant Levels or MCLs) for six per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly referred to as “forever chemicals,” including PFOA and PFOS. Under the final rule, the MCLs for PFOA and PFOS are set at 4.0 parts per trillion (ppt or ng/L). For PFHxS, PFNA, and GenX the MCLs are set at 10 ppt. In addition to the MCLs set for these individual PFAS compounds, the final rule also utilizes a “Hazard Index” MCL where the maximum limit is based on any mixture containing two or more of PFHxS, PFNA, GenX, and PFBS. … ” Read more from the Downey Brand.
SEE ALSO:
- New EPA limits on ‘forever chemicals’ in drinking water could cost $1.5 billion per year to implement, from NBC LA
- Are you living in a ‘forever chemical’ hot spot? Here’s a map, from KTLA
- How safe is Bay Area drinking water from ‘forever chemicals’?, from the San Francisco Chronicle
How full are major California reservoirs as state exits another wet winter?
“The majority of California’s reservoirs are above their historic average levels following the end of two wet winters. The state’s largest reservoirs, Shasta Lake and Lake Oroville, were measured at a respective 118% and 122% of their averages for early April, according to data from the California Department of Water Resources. Folsom Lake in the Sierra Nevada foothills exits early April at 116%. Only two reservoirs, San Luis in western San Joaquin Valley and Castaic in Southern California, were below average. San Luis Reservoir was at just 87% and much smaller Castaic Lake in Los Angeles County was at 92%. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
SEE ALSO: Lake Shasta expected to be full by end of April, from the San Joaquin Valley Sun
What water wants: Take care of water and it will take care of you
“Erica Gies has always cared deeply about water. As a young reporter covering renewable energy, she wrote stories for The New York Times about the water-energy nexus. Once she did that, she said, she became more interested in water. … Today, Gies is an award-winning independent journalist and author who has covered sustainability and water in outlets like The New York Times, Scientific American, Nature, The Economist, and National Geographic, among others. Her 2022 book, Water Always Wins: Thriving in an Age of Drought and Deluge, explores how science and hydrologists around the world manage water, ways in which the United States has historically managed (and mismanaged) water, and the “slow-water” movement—how allowing water to sit on the landscape longer and infiltrate underground helps in multiple ways, something River Partners advances in our work reconnecting rivers to their historic floodplains. River Partners sat down with Gies recently to talk about bringing back floodplains, the importance of native seeds and plants in restoration, what California is doing—and what it could be doing—in managing water, and how optimistic she is that we can thrive in an era of weather whiplash. … ” Read more from River Partners.
UCSB research shows more options for reducing water use in agriculture
“A new study out of UC Santa Barbara looked at how to reduce the amount of water used for agriculture. It finds that farming practices have a substantial impact. California is known for growing the nation’s fruits, vegetables, and nuts, but it takes a lot of water to make that happen. With declining groundwater levels and a changing climate, the state needs solutions. UCSB Professor Kelly Caylor said the vast majority of water in California is used for agriculture. “About 80% of the total water that we capture and use as a state ends up going into food production,” Caylor said. … ” Read more from KCBX.
Making cement is very damaging for the climate. One solution is opening in California
“It’s a major contributor to climate change — the way buildings and roads are made with concrete. It’s also a problem that’s growing as more of the world develops. So the race has been on to find solutions for a material that’s responsible for roughly 8% of global carbon dioxide emissions. Now one California startup has developed a technology that reduces carbon dioxide in the making of cement and could have the potential to operate at large scale. Fortera intercepts carbon dioxide exhaust from the kilns where cement is made and routes it back in to make additional cement. In its first effort at commercial scale, the technology is being added to a CalPortland facility in Redding, California, one of the largest cement plants in the western U.S. It opens Friday. … ” Read more from the Associated Press.
New report ‘braids’ Indigenous and Western knowledge for forest adaptation strategies against climate change
“There are 154 national forests in the United States, covering nearly 300,000 square miles of forests, woodlands, shrublands, wetlands, meadows and prairies. These lands are increasingly recognized as vital for supporting a broad diversity of plant and animal life; for water and nutrient cycling; and for the human communities that depend on forests and find cultural and spiritual significance within them. Forests could also be potential bulwarks against climate change. But, increasingly severe droughts and wildfires, invasive species, and large insect outbreaks — all intensified by climate change — are straining many national forests and surrounding lands. A report by a team of 40 experts outlines a new approach to forest stewardship that “braids together” Indigenous knowledge and Western science to conserve and restore more resilient forestlands. Published March 25, the report provides foundational material to inform future work on climate-smart adaptive management practices for USDA Forest Service land managers. … ” Read more from YubaNet.
Forecasters expect slow start to wildfire season
“After a wet winter, forecasters predict a slow start to the 2024 wildfire season in much of the United States. The Great Basin and Southwest may see elevated activity starting this summer. However, a likely midsummer shift in the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), a global climate pattern marked by changes in Pacific Ocean temperatures, adds significant uncertainty to the forecast. That outlook is a 4-month forecast produced monthly by the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), a group of wildland fire experts from eight federal agencies that supports and coordinates wildland fire resources across the country. The report focuses on the occurrence of significant fires—usually, those that require an NIFC management team to be dispatched—compared to the average number of such fires per year since 2000. The outlook helps fire managers determine where to allocate resources. … ” Read more from EOS.
In commentary today …
If raised, Shasta Dam could have been filled to capacity this year, and last year
Edward Ring, director of water and energy policy for the California Policy Center, writes, “So far this year I had the privilege of attending two water oriented events. The first, in February, was at the annual CalDesal conference in Sacramento. The second, in March, was at the Kern County Water Summit in Bakersfield. I sensed there is a growing recognition among the participants in both of these events that not only is California’s state water policy fundamentally broken, because it still prioritizes rationing instead of more projects to increase supply, but also that there is more potential today than ever for regional interests to work together to demand a new approach. Specifically, there is potential for water agencies and water users in California’s rural, agricultural San Joaquin Valley, to stand alongside water agencies and water users in Southern California’s megacities to promote a shared list of water supply projects that will eliminate water scarcity in the state forever. … ” Read more from the California Globe.
In regional water news and commentary today …
NORTH COAST
Trouble in dam removal paradise – Kiewit has pulled-out of Klamath River Dam Project
William Simpson writes, “According to an April 9th Letter from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to Klamath River Renewal Corporation, “… Kiewit has aborted the Iron Gate Development drilling program in its entirety…” An old NASA phrase comes to mind… Houston, we have a problem! In a letter dated April 9, 2024 from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (‘FERC’), Office of Energy Projects to Mark Bransom, CEO of the Klamath River Renewal Corporation (‘KRRC’), FERC stated the following in Item 6 of their Letter … ” Read more from the California Globe. SEE: IN RESPONSE … Klamath River Renewal Corporation responds to story regarding Kiewit pulling out of dam removal project
SEE ALSO: Drawdown of Klamath River Reservoirs, from NASA
Mendocino County launches groundwater study to address well outages along the coast
“Mendocino County Department of Planning and Building Services (County) has initiated a study of groundwater conditions along the Mendocino coast after approximately 40 wells were reported as dry during recent drought years (2021 and 2022). Responding to this issue, the County secured funds from the California Coastal Commission to complete a comprehensive coastal groundwater study. The study aims to enhance understanding of coastal groundwater hydrology and identify the factors contributing to well outages. The last groundwater assessment for coastal Mendocino County occurred in 1982, and subsequent development has intensified pressure on the groundwater resource. This study will propose updated procedures for testing well adequacy and offer development density recommendations to support the County’s Local Coastal Program land use planning update. … ” Read more from Mendo Fever.
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES
How bulldozing a closed Motel 6 could help improve Lake Tahoe’s water clarity
“Lake Tahoe is famous for its clarity. But it used to be much, much clearer. The lake’s sparkling blue water was losing its famed clarity at around a foot per year until mitigation measures were implemented to halt the decline. The ultimate goal is to restore clarity, including by rehabilitating wetlands that serve as natural filters for sediment that flows toward the lake. Last month’s acquisition by the California Tahoe Conservancy of a parcel of land considered an integral part of wetland restoration is a conservation story with some clear winners — the lake and its wildlife — and no real losers. … ” Read the story at the Nevada Independent.
South Yuba Pipe damage – video and photos
“In early February, a rockslide during a severe winter storm took out a portion of the South Yuba Pipe, the PG&E-owned portion of the South Yuba Canal right below Spaulding Reservoir. Today, we ventured on Bowman Lake Road to bring you photos and video of the damage. There is a lot of activity in the area, PG&E crews are assessing the stability of the slope and preparing to remove the debris once the steep slope is deemed safe. … ” Read more and check out pictures at YubaNet.
SACRAMENTO VALLEY
Shasta-Siskiyou Transport of Redding, Calif. to pay over $208,000 penalty for fuel spill that reached Sacramento River
“The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced a proposed settlement with Shasta-Siskiyou Transport of Redding, Calif. to resolve claims of Clean Water Act (CWA) violations after one of the company’s trucks overturned and a fuel product spilled into storm drains in downtown Redding. The fuel reached the Sacramento River. The proposed settlement requires Shasta-Siskiyou Transport to pay a civil penalty of $208,840. “Fuel products can cause severe harm to our waters, wildlife and ecosystems, so it’s imperative that they be transported in a safe manner,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “This proposed settlement shows EPA’s commitment to holding accountable entities that pollute waterways in the San Francisco Bay watershed.” … ” Read more from the EPA.
Senator Padilla’s address at NCWA Annual Meeting: A call to invest in water infrastructure
“We gathered at Sierra Nevada Brewery on March 8 for our Annual Meeting, and we continue to cherish the discussions and insights shared during that event. Among the many highlights of the gathering was a compelling address by Senator Alex Padilla, whose remarks resonated deeply with our shared commitment to safeguarding California’s water resources. Read the excerpt from Chairman Bryce Lundberg’s introduction and watch Senator Padilla’s address below. … ” Read on and watch video from the Northern California Water Association.
Red Bluff column: Penalize first, Projects second
Shanna Long writes, “I wish this were a made-up story, but it isn’t. Our Tehama County Flood Control board is dead set on outlining penalties, even adding language inside a resolution last week about a new ag well moratorium effective in 90 days when we have not implemented one viable groundwater recharge project. I’ll admit this subject is complicated and probably a little boring if you’re not financially impacted by the county’s decision-making. SGMA—The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act states that each groundwater sub-basin in the state must pass a plan to achieve groundwater sustainability by 2042. Tehama County’s groundwater sub-basins—Antelope, Corning, Los Molinos, and Red Bluff—submitted their plans, but the state deemed them incomplete and required them to be resubmitted by April 23, illustrating additions and deletions from their original plan. … ” Read more from the Red Bluff Daily News.
Butte County receives $5.6 million grant for Drought Resilience and Outreach Project
“On Tuesday, the Butte County Emergency Management accepted $5.6 million in grant funding for the Drought Resilience and Outreach Project (DROP). DROP was awarded by the State Water Resources Control Board and aims to be a multi-year project. DROP will allow Butte County to provide solutions to ongoing issues from the notorious California drought. KRCR spoke with Emergency Management Deputy Administrative Officer, Briana Haberman, who said despite having a rather wet fall, there are still lots of improvements to make in Butte County. DROP will create long and short-term solutions for property owners impacted by dry wells. … ” Read more from KRCR.
A continual effort: how Yuba Water Agency reduces flood risk for Yuba County
“Created in 1959, Yuba Water Agency was formed in response to a catastrophic flood in 1955 that displaced 40,000 residents of Yuba City and killed 38. This disaster, caused by a levee collapse on the Feather River, convinced local authorities of the need for an agency to improve flood control systems in Yuba County. Since then, Yuba Water has worked with other local agencies as well as the state and federal government to continuously reduce flood risk for the region through both operational and infrastructure improvements. “It’s a continual effort that will last forever,” says Willie Whittlesey, General Manager of Yuba Water, “but we’re making great strides.” These great strides have included the construction of New Bullards Bar Dam and Reservoir back in 1970 and helping to fund major levee improvements throughout the county. … ” Read more from the Sacramento News & Review.
NAPA/SONOMA
CA Fish and Wildlife launches new Steelhead survey along the Russian River
“As part of a new survey launched this year, personnel with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife are visiting various locations along the Russian River, including at least two in Ukiah, to collect data regarding the Steelhead trout that local anglers are catching. One of the main reasons why the survey is being done in person, according to CDFW staff, is that while the existing “Steelhead report Card program is meant to collect similar data,” only about a third of the report cards are submitted. At least one CDFW employee collecting data for the survey recently visited Riverside Park to watch for anglers, and described another location near Ukiah she stops at as “near Vichy Springs.” When asked about the survey and why it is being conducted, Darrick Muir, Senior Environmental Scientist Hatchery Supervisor, said it was called the “steelhead Creel Survey on the Russian River,” describing it as “a new program this year, and will be carried out for two additional years. … ” Read more from Willits News. | Read via AOL News.
BAY AREA
Editorial: State, local officials should work together to keep Petaluma River clean
“While bureaucrats are sparring over who is responsible, the real question is what is being done to reduce pollution of the Petaluma River? State and local officials are at odds over the level of fecal bacteria found in the river. The state’s San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Board has told the county and Novato that they are out of compliance with a 2019 anti-pollution measure. But local officials dispute the charge, contending that compliance levels have not yet been set for the new permit, to be issued by another state agency, the state Water Resources Control Board. That board says it is not going to issue a new permit until the county and city settle their differences with the water quality board. … ” Read more from the Marin Independent Journal.
Feds contributing another $20 million toward fixing State Route 37
“Ambitious short and long term plans to shore up State Route 37 against rising seas moved closer to breaking ground this week. On Tuesday, congressman Mike Thompson and John Garamendi, who represents an area stretching from Solano County to the Delta, announced that $20 million in new federal highway money will be earmarked toward the highway, which connects US 101 in Novato with Interstate 80 in Vallejo. Urgent work on the seemingly perpetually clogged highway with its two lane segments will help reduce flooding and shore up subsiding soil beneath the road to stop it from sinking further, among other work. … ” Read more from Northern California Public Media.
UC Santa Cruz researchers value salt marsh restoration as a crucial tool in flood risk reduction and climate resilience in the San Francisco Bay
“Salt marsh restoration can mitigate flood risk and bolster community resilience to climate change in our local waterways, according to a recent study published in Nature by a postdoctoral fellow with UC Santa Cruz’s Center for Coastal Climate Resilience (CCCR). The study, titled “The value of marsh restoration for flood risk reduction in an urban estuary,” explores the social and economic advantages of marsh restoration amidst the growing threats of sea level rise and storm-driven flooding. Climate change will put many communities at risk. In California, some of the study co-authors from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have shown that 675,000 people and $250 billion in property are at risk of flooding in a scenario with 2 m of sea level rise combined with a 100-year storm. Flooding due to sea-level rise is amplified by storms, which drive higher coastal water levels via surges, waves, and increased river discharge, along with increasing coastal population density. … ” Read more from UC Santa Cruz.
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY
Riverstone, Madera Co. boomtown, preps $25mil water treatment plant to acommodate growth
“Riverstone is getting a new water treatment facility as the southern Madera County region prepares for continued expansion of housing growth. The Madera County community off of Highway 41 should have its new treatment plant in place by the end of 2025. Madera County Supervisor Jordan Wamhoff recently held a town hall meeting with Root Creek Water District, which oversees the area, to discuss a fleeting issue of water discoloration – a common symptom of new development. … ” Read more from the San Joaquin Valley Sun.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Water board hits landfill with violation for pumping untreated stormwater into waterway
“Chiquita Canyon Landfill has drawn more than 10,000 complaints, a number of lawsuits and calls for it to close from residents and elected officials and is allegedly dumping untreated stormwater into local waterways, according to a complaint issued this week by state water officials. The L.A. Regional Water Quality Control Board issued another violation Tuesday against Chiquita Canyon Landfill, after Castaic and Val Verde residents sent the agency numerous photos of the landfill allegedly pumping from its stormwater basin into the local waterway at night. Multiple photos were posted to local social media groups as well. … ” Read more from The Signal.
Orange County Water District swiftly responds to EPA PFAS ruling
“The Orange County Water District (OCWD) and its 19 retail water providers are intensifying their collaborative efforts to combat PFAS contamination in Orange County following the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) establishment of legally enforceable Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for six PFAS chemicals. Consistent with the requirements of the new MCLs, water providers will work expeditiously to design and construct more PFAS treatment plants to restore impacted groundwater wells within the five-year compliance period. Since early 2020, Orange County water agencies have been actively addressing PFAS following California’s adjustment of health advisory levels for PFOA and PFOS. … ” Read more from the Orange County Water District.
Along the Colorado River …
For the Colorado River and beyond, a new market could save the day
” … Steep cutbacks in water use are critical. But the seven states that rely on the Colorado River can’t agree on how much less each of them needs to take over the long run, in large part because it’s not entirely clear who holds what legal rights to the river and who should get priority over others to its available water. If the states can’t agree, the federal government is reportedly threatening to make the hard choices for them. Paul Milgrom, the Shirley R. and Leonard W. Ely, Jr. Professor in Humanities and Sciences in Stanford’s Department of Economics and a senior fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR), has encountered intractable problems like this before. In 2020, he won the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for his pioneering work creating markets for goods and services that can’t be sold in traditional ways. Water management, he says, is ripe for a market fix — not just for the Colorado River Basin but around the world as water shortages, made worse by climate change, become a defining issue of the 21st century. It’s no longer enough to leave decisions around water use up to federal, state, and local governments alone. … ” Read more from Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.
Water pouring out of rural Utah dam through 60-foot crack, putting nearby town at risk
“Workers hurriedly tried to shore up a rural Utah dam after a 60-foot (18-meter) crack sent water pouring into a creek and endangering the 1,800 residents of a downstream town. State and local leaders don’t think the Panguitch Lake Dam is in imminent danger of breaking open but have told residents to be prepared to evacuate if conditions worsen. Emergency management officials passed out a list of evacuation procedures to worried residents at a Wednesday evening town meeting meant to mitigate panic. “I can’t say that the emergency situation is entirely averted, but I’m very, very encouraged by the progress we’ve made today,” Everett Taylor, an assistant state engineer for dam safety with the Utah Division of Water Rights, told residents of the southern Utah town. … ” Read more from the Associated Press.
Officials brace for ‘uncertainty’ in water transfers to Lake Mead
“Key backup tubes inside the Glen Canyon Dam might be damaged, potentially threatening the delivery of water to Lake Mead in the future if water levels ever dip too low in Lake Powell, according to a Bureau of Reclamation memo. Below 3,490 feet, water releases from Lake Powell are wholly dependent on “river outlet works,” which water managers now feel are not functional and could threaten the water supply downstream. … Activists like Kyle Roerink, executive director of Great Basin Water Network, have long been concerned about the dam and how it was designed. Many have called for the dam to be decommissioned, though no formal plan has gained traction. Roerink said he was surprised that the Bureau of Reclamation didn’t address the dam’s engineering issues in environmental impact statements prepared about the management of Lake Mead and Lake Powell. The flaws in the design are something he expects to complicate river negotiations and the future availability of water to Lower Basin states like Nevada, he said. … ” Read the full story from the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Memo reveals damage to pipes inside Glen Canyon Dam, a threat to Colorado River water supply
“Nearly a year ago, the Colorado River was raging through the Grand Canyon, carrying enough water to raise Lake Mead by an astonishing 2½ feet in just five days. The surge that began on April 25, 2023, was part of a “High Flow Experiment” release from Glen Canyon Dam, churning up sediment to rebuild beaches and sandbars through the canyon. But the pipes used to send that gush of water from Lake Powell through Glen Canyon Dam are in trouble, a memo produced by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation reveals. “In summary, at reservoir levels below the minimum power pool (elevation 3,490 ft), there are concerns with relying on the river outlet works as the sole means of sustained water releases from Glen Canyon Dam,” the memo said. … ” Read more from KLAS.
SEE ALSO: Damage detected at Glen Canyon Dam, could impact future water flow to Lake Mead, from Fox 5
In national water news today …
NOAA releases new National Water Prediction Service website
“The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has rolled out a new website with updated technology and information for water forecasting. The new website, titled National Water Prediction Service (NWPS), was launched on March 27, 2024. It combines data and information from the Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service (AHPS) and NOAA’s Office of Water Prediction. The new website gives users the tools to make informed decisions on water-related matters, making it a great asset to people like stormwater professionals and engineers. … ” Read more from Stormwater Solutions.
“The flooding will come “no matter what”
“Another great American migration is now underway, this time forced by the warming that is altering how and where people can live. For now, it’s just a trickle. But in the corners of the country’s most vulnerable landscapes — on the shores of its sinking bayous and on the eroding bluffs of its coastal defenses — populations are already in disarray. A couple of miles west of downtown Slidell, Louisiana, and just upstream from the broad expanse of Lake Pontchartrain — the 40-by-24-mile-wide brackish estuary separating what is now the mainland from New Orleans — a five-room shotgun house sits on a plot of marshy lawn near the edge of Liberty Bayou. Colette Pichon Battle’s mother had been born in that house. Colette, bright-eyed and ambitious, devoutly Catholic, a force on the volleyball court, was raised in the house until the day she left for college. The family’s very identity had grown from the waters of the marsh around it. … ” Read more from Pro Publica.
White House awards $830 million to strengthen infrastructure against extreme weather
“The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded $830 million in grants to strengthen surface transportation infrastructure against extreme weather events. The money will support 80 projects in 37 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said extreme weather events have been worsened by climate change and the resulting floods, heat waves and wildfires are “one of the biggest threats” to quality of life, supply chains and transportation infrastructure. “This is a country that can no longer politicize or ignore the very real threats that come from climate change,” Buttigieg told reporters on Tuesday. … ” Read more from the Courthouse News Service.
