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 …
- PUBLIC HEARING: Ecosystem Amendment to the Delta Plan from 4pm to 6pm. The Delta Stewardship Council is proposing to amend the California Code of Regulations, title 23, sections 5001-5015, inclusive, and add section 5005.1, Appendix 3A, Appendix 4A, and Appendix 8A to implement the policies established by the Council in the 2022 Ecosystem Amendment to the Delta Plan pursuant to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Reform Act of 2009 (Wat. Code, § 85000 et seq.). The proposed regulation amendments implement five core strategies for achieving the coequal goal of protecting, restoring, and enhancing the Delta ecosystem that form the basis of the policies, recommendations, and performance measures in the Delta Plan. Click here for more information.
In California water news today …
Coalition files protest against Delta Conveyance water diversion application that would cause irreversible harm to Delta ecosystem and its people
“A broad coalition of California tribes, nonprofits, environmental organizations, and commercial fishing groups have filed a protest with the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB), calling on the denial of the Delta Conveyance Project (DCP) Change in Point of Diversion (CPOD) Petition. For sixty years, California politicians have proposed to divert water from the Bay-Delta and pump, tunnel, or transport it for other uses in other places throughout the state. And for sixty years, the science has demonstrated that such plans will harm fish and wildlife, communities, and people. The current Delta Conveyance Project (“DCP,” “Tunnel,” or “Project”) proposal is no different. Pushed forward by politicians in plain contravention of the best available science, the continued drive to take more and more from the Delta—more of its water, more of its history, more of its culture—must be rejected by the State Water Resources Control Board (“State Water Board” or “Board”), so that the fate of Tribes, communities, and ecosystems are not left to the whims of political power brokers. … ” Read more from Restore the Delta.
CSPA protests water right petition for proposed Delta tunnel
“CSPA, AquAlliance, and the San Joaquin Audubon Society filed a protest on May 13, 2024 opposing the Department of Water Resources’ (DWR’s) petition to change its water rights. The change in water rights would allow DWR to construct and operate a proposed tunnel under the eastern side of the Sacramento – San Joaquin Delta estuary. If constructed and operated, the tunnel would divert and move massive amounts of Sacramento River water to the San Joaquin Valley and southern California each year. The tunnel would harm fish, birds, and land animals. It would worsen water quality in the Delta and San Francisco Bay. … ” Read more from the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance.
Inside the giant ‘sky rivers’ swelling with climate change
“In January 2024, Anna Wilson was sitting aboard a Gulfstream IV jet, observing a deceptively calm-looking sea of white clouds over the northern Pacific Ocean. Through her headphones, Wilson – an atmospheric scientist and extreme weather expert – could hear her colleague give a countdown. At the back of the plane, another colleague dropped slim, cylindrical instruments through a chute, into the brewing storm below them, to measure its strength as it approached the US West Coast. The type of storm they were tracking is known as an atmospheric river – a weather phenomenon that has been attracting more and more attention in recent years, as scientists and the public race to understand its sometimes devastating impact. Research suggests that atmospheric rivers are getting bigger, more frequent and more extreme, due to climate change; and the damage they cause is getting worse. … ” Continue reading at the BBC.
Williamson Act bill ignites property-rights debate
“Two leading California farm groups – Western Growers and the state’s Farm Bureau — are on opposite sides of legislation that would make it easier for growers to get out of their Williamson Act contracts if they don’t have access to enough water. The Williamson Act provides property tax relief to farmers and owners of open space in exchange for a 10-year agreement not to develop it or convert it to another use. Assembly Bill 2528 by Assemblyman Joaquin Arambula, D-Fresno, would allow landowners in areas with critically impacted aquifers to cancel their contracts without paying the mandated fees of 12.5% of land values. … ” Read more from the Western Farm Press.
Column: California farmers are low on water. Why not help them go solar?
Columnist Ian James writes, “It sounds like a climate solution everyone should be able to support: Let’s make it easier and cheaper for farmers with dwindling water supplies to convert their lands from crop production to solar energy generation, if that’s what those farmers want. So what’s stopping such a bill from sailing through the California Legislature? “Change can be difficult,” said Shannon Eddy, executive director of the Large-scale Solar Assn. Tell me about it. Even as coal, oil and gas combustion fuel an ever-deadlier rise in global temperatures, finding a spot to build a solar or wind farm where no one will object is damn near impossible. Some concerns are legitimate, such as safeguarding wildlife habitat and sacred Indigenous sites. Others, not so much. Take, for example, false claims that living near renewable energy projects can cause health problems — claims that have been spread by groups with ties to the fossil fuel industry, and by former President Trump. … ” Continue reading at the LA Times.
Multi-disciplinary committee jointly publishes report on the intersection of SGMA and cover crop use in the Central Valley
“A multi-disciplinary authorship group of over 30 individuals has published a report comprised of literature review, policy analysis, and recommendations pertaining to the water impacts of cover crop practices in California’s Central Valley under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). The report, entitled “Cover Cropping in the SGMA Era,” is the product of a convening process jointly developed by the California Association of Resource Conservation Districts (CARCD), California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), Natural Resources Conservation Service of California (NRCS-CA), and University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) and assembled by Sustainable Conservation. Cover crops are non-income generating crops that are used to protect and improve the soil between regular annual crop production (such as tomatoes), or between rows of perennial tree and vine crops. The benefits of cover cropping include improved pollinator habitat, infiltration, water storage, carbon capture, and soil health, as well as decreased runoff and erosion – all vital factors in California’s changing agricultural context…. ” Continue reading from Sustainable Conservation.
Governor addresses ACWA Spring Conference attendees
“During a surprise appearance at the 2024 ACWA Spring Conference & Expo in Sacramento, Gov. Gavin Newsom addressed climate change adaptation while expressing strong support for local control of water resources. Newsom joins a long list of California governors who have spoken at ACWA conferences throughout the association’s history, including past Gov. Jerry Brown. Gov. Newsom’s address highlighted several areas of interest to ACWA member agencies. Water has remained a leading issue during Newsom’s second term in office, and he made that abundantly clear during his 15-minute address. California Secretary for Natural Resources Wade Crowfoot introduced Newsom during Crowfoot’s May 8 keynote speech, which also focused on the critical role of California water management in an era defined by climate extremes. After receiving a standing ovation, Newsom opened his address by noting dramatic swings between record-breaking climatic shifts and how his administration has responded by giving local water agencies flexibility in taking action, one of several points applauded by conference attendees. … ” Read more from ACWA’s Water News.
One state agency’s journey toward climate resilience
Andrew Schwarz and Romain Maendly with the Department of Water Resources write, “California is well known for its Mediterranean climate, swinging from cool, wet winters to hot, dry summers. While those conditions are great for skiing and outdoor wedding planning, they also drive extreme variability from year to year. Droughts and floods are a part of California’s hydrology in a way that is unmatched anywhere else in the United States. We have a saying here, “there’s no such thing as an average year” (it’s true, we have 5 defined water year types: wet, above normal, below normal, dry, and critical). The California Department of Water Resources (CDWR) has been helping manage this variability for nearly 70 years. Today, CDWR owns and operates the largest State-owned water system in the world (the State Water Project) that delivers water to 27 million Californians and 750,000 acres of farmland. 1 in 12 Americans get some portion of their water from the SWP! CDWR also manages flood risk and groundwater throughout the State, distributes millions in grant funding, and updates the California Water Plan every 5 years. Managing these resources in the face of accelerating climate change has been and continues to be a major focus. … ” Read more from the Alliance for Global Water Adaptation.
In commentary today …
Climate change won’t wait for better budget years. Californians need climate bonds now
“In the face of increasing pressures from both accelerating climate change and the contracting annual state budget, California needs a climate resilience bond on the November ballot, so that voters can voice their support for consistent, continued funding of essential state programs that provide clean drinking water, wildfire mitigation, wildlife protection and clean air. Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia, D-Coachella, and state Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, have each drafted vital climate bond proposals — Assembly Bill 1567 and Senate Bill 867, respectively — that promise an investment of $15 billion to support the climate resilience of our state that is not subject to the cycles of annual general state funding. … If there were ever a time to intensify our resolve to protect our natural resources and communities, safeguard water and air quality, and build wildfire resilience, it is now. Last year was Earth’s warmest on record, marked by record flooding in the Bay Area and elsewhere, extreme wildfires and debilitating heatwaves. … ” Read the full commentary at the San Jose Mercury News.
In regional water news and commentary today …
NORTH COAST
Last Klamath River dam starts to come down as nation’s largest removal project proceeds
“The removal of the last of four dams scheduled to be taken down on the Klamath River began Monday as work crews descended on Oregon’s 68-foot J.C. Boyle Dam. Located about 12 miles north of the California border, the earthen dam with two turbines and a power-generation plant produced hydroelectricity from 1958 to earlier this year, when the reservoir behind the dam was drained for the historic dismantling work. The dam is being removed, like the others downstream in California, in a monumental effort to help rewild the 250-mile Klamath River, where fish, notably salmon, have been shut out of the river’s remote upper watershed since the early 1900s because of the power project. The $500 million demolition is the largest dam removal in U.S. history. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES
Rise Gold files lawsuit against Nevada County
“Rise Grass Valley has filed a petition for a peremptory writ of mandate against the County of Nevada, the Board of Supervisors and DOES 1-50 in the Superior Court of Nevada County. The writ seeks to overturn either the denial of vested rights for the historic Idaho-Maryland mine, or the decision to deny the application and use permit for the mine. Both decisions by the Board of Supervisors were unanimous. Rise Gold Corp, incorporated in Nevada, has their principal offices in Vancouver, British Columbia. Rise Grass Valley lists their offices as being in Grass Valley, Calif. According to a release on Rise Gold’s website (the risegrassvalley.com website was unreachable at publication time) should the lawsuit be unsuccessful: … Rise’s mineral estate will lose all value, which will allow Rise to bring a takings action against the County under the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. … ” Read more from YubaNet.
Middle Truckee River Watershed Forest Partnership works to restore over 60,000 acres and protect nearby communities from wildfire
“This summer, residents and visitors to the Truckee region of the Tahoe National Forest can expect to see fuels reduction work in various locations. Planned treatments include mechanical thinning, mastication, hand thinning and prescribed fire. This work will protect crucial water supplies for the Reno metropolitan area, reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire in the Sierraville and Truckee regions, protect thousands of nearby recreation areas, residences and businesses and enhance overall forest health. These projects are being collaboratively undertaken through the Middle Truckee River Watershed Forest Partnership, comprised of Truckee River Watershed Council, Truckee Meadows Water Authority, The Nature Conservancy, National Forest Foundation and Tahoe National Forest. Together, partners are working to restore the health of Truckee-area forests and the Middle Truckee River Watershed to enhance public safety, reduce potential wildfire severity, protect water resources and restore forest health in this area. … ” Read more from the Sierra Booster.
Tackling Tahoe’s wildfire worries: Campfires, forest health biggest threats
“Wildfires loom in the Tahoe region every summer. Smoke and fear fill the air. The Caldor Fire in 2021 caused the evacuation of 50,000 residents on the South Shore and decimated 221,835 acres. According to the USDA Forest Service, 85 percent of wildland fires in the United States are caused by humans. This includes campfires left unattended, burning debris, equipment uses, discarded cigarettes, firearms and arson. The Forest Service determined that the Caldor Fire was likely started by a bullet strike. Abandoned campfires are the No. 1 cause of fires in the Tahoe Basin, according to Carrie Thaler, forest fire chief for Forest Service, Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit. Other causes of wildfires include poor forest health and weather conditions such as drought and lightning strikes. … ” Read more from the Tahoe Guide.
BAY AREA
Point Reyes seashore study favors elk fence removal
“A new study suggests a plan to remove a controversial fence to free tule elk in the Point Reyes National Seashore would achieve the park’s preservation goals while still effectively managing the herd.The “Tomales Point Area Plan Environmental Assessment” looks at the potential effects of the proposal to remove the 8-foot tall, 2-mile fence. The plan was pitched after two large die-offs at the 2,900-acre Tomales Point Tule Elk Preserve during droughts. “Long-term benefits to vegetation would be expected once the elk are able to roam, due to the dilution of the elk population across a broader range,” the report says. “Expansion of the elk range would also provide a source of natural grassland disturbance to the planning area through the elks’ grazing behaviors.” … ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News.
San Francisco poised to become first U.S. city to ban ‘forever chemicals’ in firefighter gear
“San Francisco is poised to become the first city in the country to issue a ban on firefighter clothing manufactured with so-called forever chemicals. Local lawmakers are expected to pass an ordinance on Tuesday prohibiting the use of protective equipment made with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. The long-lasting compounds do not break down, allowing them to linger almost permanently in the environment. PFAS can be ingested or absorbed into the skin and have been linked to harmful health effects, including decreased fertility, low-birth weight and developmental delays in children, a higher risk of certain cancers and increased cholesterol levels, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. … ” Read more from NBC Bay Area.
Revelations of possible radioactive dumping around the Bay Area trigger new testing at parks
” … For most of the 20th century, the former Stauffer Chemical Co. disposed of thousands of tons of industrial waste near its factory grounds along Richmond’s southeast shoreline. … But the barbed-wire-ringed Richmond site wasn’t Stauffer’s only dumping ground. According to DTSC archival records, Stauffer discarded industrial waste at several Bay Area sites — including present-day César Chávez Park and the Albany Bulb, two popular parks built atop former municipal landfills. But it wasn’t until last year that DTSC officials shared the chemical manufacturer’s historic disposal records with regulators in charge of the other sites. “This was news to us,” said Keith Roberson, an engineering geologist for the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Board, which has oversight of the former municipal landfills. “It was documented in a letter from 1980. No one that currently works for the Water Board was familiar with that letter.” … ” Read more from the LA Times.
Tracy resident sentenced to serve home confinement and probation for computer attack on Discovery Bay water treatment facility
“Rambler Gallo was sentenced to serve six months of home confinement and 36 months of probation for intentionally causing damage to the computer network for the Discovery Bay Water Treatment Facility, located in the Town of Discovery Bay, Calif., and thereby threatening public health and safety. Specifically, Gallo intentionally uninstalled the main operational system for the water treatment plant that operates the automated monitoring system that protects the entire water treatment system, including monitoring and controlling the chemical levels and filtration of the water across all the Discovery Bay water service facilities. The sentence was handed down on Wednesday by Haywood S. Gilliam Jr., United States District Judge. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey and Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Robert K. Tripp. … ” Continue reading from the Department of Justice.
SEE ALSO: Man gets home confinement for cyber attack on East Bay water treatment plant, from the San Jose Mercury News
Pleasanton council authorizes issuance of $19M in water revenue bonds
“The Pleasanton City Council unanimously approved finance documents to allow the city to issue water revenue bonds with a principal maximum amount of $19 million, which will help pay for water system improvement projects and the first phase and design work for drilling new wells as part of the city’s Water Supply Alternative Project. Following the council decision to authorize the bond issuance during the May 7 council meeting, staff said pricing and interest rates for the bonds will be established on May 20 or May 21 with the goal of having the city receive the bond proceeds on June 4. … ” Read more from Pleasanton Weekly.
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY
Merced River, San Joaquin River in Merced County to close for recreational use
“The Merced River and the San Joaquin River will be closed for recreational use throughout Merced County, announced the Merced County Sheriff’s Office on Monday. Sheriff’s officials say the snow melting the Sierra Nevada Mountains, is provoking more water to be released into the county’s waterways and is making conditions very dangerous in the rivers. The announcement comes after Sheriff Vern Warnke says they have encountered tragedies along the river recently, including people going missing after going to the river. … ” Read more from Your Central Valley.
State-funded treatment plant will ensure drinking water for disadvantaged Merced County community
“Having secured a $45 million grant from the State Water Resources Board’s Safe and Affordable Funding for Equity and Resilience (SAFER) drinking water program, the severely disadvantaged community of Dos Palos recently broke ground on a new facility that will create a safe, affordable and reliable drinking water supply for approximately 7,500 people. Expected to be complete by December 2025, the new plant will use two filtration systems to treat water piped in from the California Aqueduct, over 20 miles away. The facility will treat 4 million gallons of surface water per day to drinking water standards.
The plant’s design includes solar panels to reduce operational costs and space for a third filtration system that could treat an additional 2 million gallons per day in the future. … ” Read more from the State Water Resources Control Board.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Santa Margarita Water District’s largest recycled water reservoir nears capacity
“While people all over the world celebrated the Star Wars franchise on Saturday, May 4, the Santa Margarita Water District did so by hosting South Orange County families at its annual Water Festival. SMWD staff donned “Water Jedi” shirts, Stormtroopers roamed the headquarters Saturday morning. and children participated in various hands-on activities and met an owl, a “wise protector of the galaxy.” The fun continued throughout the morning with Jedi bus tours of district infrastructure locations, beginning with the first trip to the Trampas Canyon Reservoir a few miles off Ortega Highway in San Juan Capistrano. … ” Continue reading at the Capistrano Dispatch.
IMPERIAL/COACHELLA VALLEYS
When the Salton Sea shrank, it took Bombay Beach with it. Utah should heed the warning
“Candace Youngberg’s feet crunch across the parched playa as she walks to her favorite art installation on the Salton Sea shoreline in Bombay Beach, California. The large, handmade metal sign reads “S.O.S.” — an acronym for Save Our Sea. “The artist made it as a way to bring awareness,” she said as she stood in front of it. “Save our sea, because there’s so many people here in Bombay that love it and we want it saved. We don’t want it to go away. I mean, we don’t want to get any smaller than it already is, that’s for sure.” Bombay Beach is tucked inside the Imperial Valley. It’s a quaint, eclectic township with a tight-knit community, located about 40 minutes from the site of Southern California’s famous Coachella Music Festival and about an hour north of the border of Mexico. … ” Read more from KUER.
SAN DIEGO
Floating solar panels proposed for Sweetwater Reservoir
“They generate green energy. The save money. They slow evaporation. They float. And the Sweetwater Authority wants to put them on its Sweetwater Reservoir. General Manager Carlos Quintero said the water agency is exploring the environmental impact of a 9.5 acre floating solar array that would be placed near the Sweetwater Dam. It would cover roughly 1.3% of the reservoir, Quintero said, and could generate as much as two-thirds of the energy needed to make the reservoir water drinkable and decrease a small amount of evaporation. “Really, the main benefit is to our ratepayers,” Quintero said. “We could be saving upwards of $27 million in a 25-year span.” The idea does not float with a group of concerned residents who started Save Sweetwater Reservoir. … ” Read more from NBC 7.
Along the Colorado River …
Proposed settlement is first step in securing Colorado River water for 3 Native American tribes
“A proposed water rights settlement for three Native American tribes that carries a price tag larger than any such agreement enacted by Congress took a significant step forward late Monday with introduction in the Navajo Nation Council. The Navajo Nation has one of the largest single outstanding claims in the Colorado River basin and will vote soon on the measure in a special session. It’s the first of many approvals — ending with Congress — that’s needed to finalize the deal. Climate change, the coronavirus pandemic and demands on the river like those that have allowed Phoenix, Las Vegas and other desert cities to thrive pushed the tribes into settlement talks. The Navajo, Hopi and San Juan Southern Paiute tribes are hoping to close the deal quickly under a Democratic administration in Arizona and with Joe Biden as president. … ” Read more from the Associated Press.
Nearly half of Colorado River tribes have unresolved water rights claims. New agreements could change that
“The Colorado River provides water to more than 40 million people. The Basin includes 30 federally recognized Indian tribes and seven states (Colorado, Wyoming, California, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada). Tribal nations in Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming have been left out of key agreements involving the Colorado River for well over a century now. In April, the Upper Colorado River Commission – that’s an agency at the nexus of many Colorado River discussions in the Upper Basin – voted to back a new proposed agreement that would make regular meetings with tribes be mandatory for the first time in the group’s 76-year history. … ” Read more from KGNU.
Nevada water right holders have little choice but to sell, say water regulators
“After two decades of dwindling aquifers, landowners in northern and central Nevada are choosing to surrender their groundwater rights to the state in exchange for cash payments, and more are waiting in line. Everyone from family farmers to residents in mid-sized towns depend on groundwater in Nevada, but over-pumping and persistent drought means there is simply not enough water to go around. The Voluntary Water Rights Retirement Program was allocated a total of $25 million in funding last year to address groundwater conflicts by purchasing groundwater rights from private landowners in over-pumped and over-appropriated basins in northern and central Nevada communities, and there’s been massive interest. … ” Read more from the Nevada Current.
In national water news today …
April 2024 was Earth’s warmest on record
“Last month continued our planet’s feverish pace to the year, with April 2024 ranking as the warmest April on record. April was also the 11th month in a row of record-warmth for the world, according to scientists and data from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information. The average global temperature in April was 2.38 degrees F (1.32 degrees C) above the 20th-century average of 56.7 degrees F (13.7 degrees C), making it the warmest April in the global climate record. April 2024 also marked the 11th-consecutive month of record-high global temperatures. … ” Read more from NOAA.
