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On the calendar today …
- LEG HEARING: Senate Committee on Environmental Quality beginning at 9am. Click here for more information.
- MEETING: State Water Resources Control Board beginning at 9am. The Board will consider adopting a Resolution to adopt the proposed regulation to make conservation a California way of life. Click here for the full agenda and remote access instructions.
In California water news today …
Temperatures to challenge all-time highs in California, Nevada
“While the summertime is quite hot across the interior of the western United States in the valleys, basins and deserts, the heat will soon go above and beyond what is typical. AccuWeather meteorologists continue to warn of dangerous heat that will build through Independence Day and last at least into the first weekend of July over the interior Southwest. “Temperatures will begin to run about 10 degrees Fahrenheit above historical averages over interior California this week, but the heat builds to a crescendo for Friday into the weekend as a northward bulge in the jet stream strengthens over the region,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Heather Zehr said. “At its peak, afternoon high temperatures will be around 20 degrees above average in the worst-hit areas.” … ” Read more from AccuWeather.
SEE ALSO:
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- Summer’s first major heat wave to scorch West, from the Western Farm Press
- California burns as heat wave spreads across Western U.S., from the LA Times
As climate change dries out the west, Fourth of July fireworks spark increased wildfire risk
“In two days, fireworks will blast skyward in states across the U.S., painting the night with vibrant blue, red and gold sparks to celebrate Independence Day. Part of what makes these dazzling displays beautiful is also what makes them dangerous: Just one errant spark can ignite an inferno if it has enough kindling. Each year, fireworks trigger tens of thousands of accidental fires across the country, and unsurprisingly, the majority of them happen on July 4. A growing body of research shows that climate change could make this American pastime even more risky. This year, unpredictable rain patterns and an ongoing summer heat wave have turned shrubs and grasslands across the West into a tinderbox for Fourth of July fires, experts say. As fire departments and government officials stress safety measures surrounding celebratory pyrotechnics, others are pushing to phase fireworks out altogether—and replace them with a different luminescent display. … ” Read more from Inside Climate News.
Funding restored for Bay-Delta agreements
“The Budget Act of 2024, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom over the weekend, includes the restoration of nearly $500 million for the Agreements to Support Healthy Rivers and Landscapes (Agreements), formerly known as the Voluntary Agreements. A previous budget bill had rescinded a significant portion of the funding, initiating a major advocacy push by ACWA, the Northern California Water Association, the State Water Contractors and more than 40 other organizations to maintain nearly all funding for the Agreements. … ” Read more from ACWA Water News.
Notice of immediate curtailment under standard water right Term 91
This notice is intended for water right holders whose Permit or License contains Standard Water Right Term 91 (Term 91). Holders of water rights containing Term 91 (Term 91 water right holders) are prohibited from diverting water within the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta (Delta) watershed under such rights when (i) the Delta is in “Balanced Condition” and (ii) Supplemental Project Water (SPW) releases are being made by the Central Valley Project (CVP) or State Water Project (collectively Projects). The State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board), Division of Water Rights (Division) has determined that the Delta is in “Balanced Condition” and SPW releases are being made by the Projects. With this notice, the State Water Board is invoking Term 91 and ordering Term 91 water right holders to immediately stop diverting water under affected water rights. This condition of curtailment will continue until water conditions improve. … ” Read the full notice from the State Water Resources Control Board.
How one of California’s largest reservoirs permanently lost room for 36 billion gallons of water
“California got a particularly rainy winter, but state officials have uncovered another reason why Lake Oroville overflowed with water this spring. The massive reservoir, the state’s second largest behind Lake Shasta, has slowly but surely shrunk. New research from the California Department of Water Resources shows that the lake, used for millions of Californians’ drinking water and irrigating hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland, isn’t quite the size it once was. The agency released its findings June 26, writing that in the 56 years since Lake Oroville was filled, rock and silt settling on the reservoir floor have cut its capacity by almost 113,000 acre-feet, or more than 36 billion gallons. … ” Read more from SF Gate.
Here’s what a proposed California Forever lagoon would look like
“California Forever, the group proposing to build a new community in Solano County, released renderings on Tuesday of a potential lagoon that would sit in the middle of the area. California Forever partnered with Crystal Lagoons, a company that has built man-made lagoons in 23 states. The facility would include a beach, water sports and an entertainment park, California Forever said. In addition to water activities, there would be restaurants, cafes and other entertainment venues in the area, per California Forever. The lagoon will be open to all residents of Solano County. … ” Continue reading at KRON.
Supreme Court ruling could jeopardize California’s environmental rules
“A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling will probably pave the way for more legal challenges — and potential setbacks — for California’s groundbreaking clean air rules and myriad other federal environmental protections. In a 6-3 decision last week, the Supreme Court overturned the so-called Chevron doctrine, a long-standing legal precedent that instructed U.S. courts to rely on federal agencies to interpret ambiguous laws. By invalidating the legal doctrine, the nation’s highest court has effectively stripped power from federal administrative agencies, such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and handed more authority to U.S. courts to independently decide whether newly enacted rules are consistent with federal law. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
Reshaping wildfire policy in the West
“Michael Wara is a legal scholar at the Woods Institute for the Environment and also senior director of policy for the Sustainability Accelerator who develops innovative climate and energy policies focused on wildfire risk mitigation. He and a team of researchers from across Stanford – including Chris Field, Marshall Burke, Michael Mastrandrea, Deborah Sivas, and Stefan Wager – won a 2022 Sustainability Accelerator seed grant to explore policy options, such as prescribed burning, in the wake of recent devastating wildfires across the American West. We caught up with Wara recently to hear what progress the team has made toward the important goals of reducing wildfire risk. … ” Read more from Stanford News.
In regional water news and commentary today …
NORTH COAST
Water scarcity in Upper Klamath may cost local economy $64 million and 1,300 jobs
“A new study from Oregon State University is sounding the alarm on the economic impacts of water shortages in the Upper Klamath Basin. The study, partially funded by Klamath County, shows that the region’s farms and ranches, worth over $368 million annually and employing over 3,000 people, are in jeopardy. The study highlights that this is due to water restrictions, which have already led to a loss of $12 million in income, with more at risk if restrictions continue. … ” Read more from KRCR.
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES
Designated NID canals placed on temporary rotation schedule
“The emergency water shortage continues. Extreme hot temperatures and struggling conservation efforts are quickly depleting the limited local water delivery capacity. In response, the Nevada Irrigation District (NID) has announced the need to implement short-term water outages for a limited number of canals. Water will be temporarily cut off on a three-day rotation to this limited area, beginning July 11, 2024. “We appreciate the early efforts of our customers to reduce demand, however as the summer heat continues, we are compelled to implement stricter measures to ensure supplies last through the irrigation season. The District has exhausted all available measures to help minimize the impact on customers. It is now necessary to implement these rotating water outages for a limited number of canals until water supply is restored,” said Greg Jones, NID’s assistant general manager. … ” Read more from YubaNet.
SACRAMENTO VALLEY
Oroville Dam powerplant offline due to Thompson Fire, DWR reopens main spillway
“The Thompson Fire burning in Butte County has impacted operations at the Oroville Dam, officials say. California Department of Water Resources officials announced on Tuesday that several State Water Project facilities in the area of the Thompson Fire are under evacuation orders – including the Hyatt Powerplant at the Oroville Dam. PG&E has de-energized the high-voltage powerlines and staff have been evacuated, DWR says, but some essential staff have also been relocated to the Thermalito Pumping-Generating Plant. To maintain water releases and temperature control in the Feather River, DWR says the Oroville Dam’s main spillway has been reopened. … ” Read more from CBS Sacramento.
‘We desperately need this project’: Potential grants could fund regional wastewater project for south Yuba County
“Representatives of Olivehurst Public Utilities District (OPUD) and the city of Wheatland spoke before the State Water Resources Control Board on Tuesday in hopes of gaining funds for a regional wastewater treatment and facility project. For the past three years, OPUD and Wheatland officials have been working together to facilitate the Regional Wastewater Treatment and Transmission Facilities Project in south Yuba County. This would effectively merge two wastewater systems and replace them with a modernized, regional treatment facility and transmission system. Upon completion, the upgrade will eliminate Wheatland’s aging, secondary-level wastewater treatment plant. According to the Yuba Water Agency, a partner in this project, Wheatland’s wastewater plant discharges into infiltration basins along the Bear River, posing risks to both source and groundwater quality. … ” Read more from the Appeal Democrat.
Officials urge caution at Sacramento-area rivers as flows move fast and cold
“More people will likely make their way to the American River to cool off as temperatures peak well above 100 degrees this week. But as last winter’s snowpack melts, river flows are moving cold and fast. Already, officials say three people have drowned in the Auburn section of the river. Lauren Shoemaker, state park superintendent for the Auburn State Recreation Area, said it’s important that people be educated about river conditions before they spend time there — or get into any trouble in its waters. “When a water rescue happens, once the emergency is taking place, there’s seconds to make an intervention that is successful,” Shoemaker said. “It’s not even minutes at that point.” … ” Read more from Capital Public Radio.
Sacramento County stops delivering water to homeless as heat wave starts. Here’s why
“Sacramento County stopped delivering water to homeless camps Monday — the first day of an eight day stretch with forecast temperatures over 100 degrees. Alaytreya Gregory, 31, was surprised when the delivery didn’t show up Monday, when temperatures reached 103 degrees, at Camp Resolution in North Sacramento, where she lives in a city-issued trailer without air conditioning. She would go buy water at the store for her and her two dogs, she said, but her food stamps don’t get refilled until Wednesday. “I’m not really sure what to do,” said Gregory, who became homeless after her mother died. “I may go door to door and ask, but people tend to get mad about that. I don’t have any cash on hand right now.” … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
BAY AREA
Cigarette butts, foam particles and shotgun wads: Expect over 3,300 pounds of trash on Bay Area beaches after July 4
“From Stinson Beach to the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, the Bay Area’s beaches offer some of the best recreation, views and ocean wildlife sightings in California. A dynamic ocean and shifting weather mean the coast is ever-changing, sometimes in subtle ways — a new tide pool reef exposed or a drifting dune — and sometimes in larger, more explicit ones — a hollowing out of sand against a seawall or a crumbling bluff. But a few things remain predictable. It is almost certain that amid a heat wave, Friday will be the Bay Area’s dirtiest beach day of the year — with an estimated 3,300 pounds of trash strewn across our coast, based on prior data sets. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
CENTRAL COAST
Switching sanitation billing to the tax rolls is still a thing after the idea fails with Monterey One Water board.
“When the sanitation district Monterey One Water began over a year ago to move from billing six times a year through a third-party contractor to twice a year through the Monterey County Tax Collector, other jurisdictions that have their own sewer collection services planned on making the switch as well at the same time on July 1. Cities like Salinas, Seaside, Monterey and Pacific Grove all have additional sewer collection services, on top of MW1, but instead of billing themselves, contract with MW1 to collect the fees for them. The whole idea of making the switch was to save money: M1W staff estimated they would save the district $400,000 annually. Everything was moving toward approval for the July 1 switch, when a curveball was thrown on June 24 by two representatives to the MW1 Board of Directors from Salinas and Seaside. … ” Read more from Monterey Now.
California community’s future at risk in fight over declining groundwater, residents say
“A lunch of pozole, chips and homemade salsa awaited a group of residents — including ranchers, farmers and owners of stores and restaurants — who gathered at folding tables in a community center to discuss a subject they are deeply concerned about: their declining groundwater. The meeting in late June offered a chance for people to share their fears not only with neighbors, but with three visiting state legislators and a high-ranking water official from Sacramento. “We are an engaged community,” said Lynn Carlisle, executive director of the Cuyama Valley Family Resource Center. “We’re a committed community. But we need help.” … ” Read more from the LA Times.
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY
Central Valley’s agribusiness sector sees dynamic changes
“The agriculture industry in the Central Valley has seen tremendous movement in acquisitions and expansions of existing companies in recent years, impacting the region’s economy and agricultural future. Amidst these changes, advancements in agricultural technology are also reshaping farming practices, with industry leaders leading the charge in addressing the pressing challenges of labor costs and efficiency. California’s Central Valley is the hub for fresh produce, attracting both local and international-based agricultural companies to begin or expand their operations. Recently, Mucci Farms joined that list, expanding with a 32-acre greenhouse in Tehachapi, California. … ” Read moire from Valley Ag Voice.
Merced ID continues its attempts to avoid compliance with the Clean Water Act and CEQA
“On June 27, 2024, CSPA and allies submitted a letter to Merced Irrigation District (Merced ID). The letter was written in response to Merced ID’s recent Notice of Intent (NOI) to rely on the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) produced by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in 2015 for the relicensing of the Merced River Hydroelectric Project and Merced Falls Hydroelectric Project (Projects). Merced ID’s decision to rely on FERC’s FEIS is a continuation of its efforts to avoid compliance with California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requirements and Section 401 of the Clean Water Act. The environmental standards required by the Clean Water Act are more stringent than those applied by FERC. … ” Read more from the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance.
PRESS RELEASE: Court confirms ETGSA’s view of settlement agreement
“Today the Court met for the first time with lawyers for both sides in a lawsuit filed February of this year by the Friant Water Authority and Arvin Edison Water Storage District (plaintiffs) against Eastern Tule Groundwater Sustainability Agency (ETGSA). Both plaintiffs and ETGSA are public agencies established under California law, with the latter having been formed in 2016 to implement the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) for its area of the Tule Subbasin. Plaintiffs’ lawsuit alleges breaches of a 2021 “Settlement Agreement” though which ETGSA agreed to help mitigate land subsidence impacts to the Friant-Kern Canal. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation built the canal, which is operated by Friant Water Authority, in the late 1940s as part of the Central Valley Project. Subsidence caused by groundwater pumping, oil and gas extraction, and other factors has reduced the capacity of the canal to deliver water for decades. … ” Continue reading this press release.
Springville residents irate over continued water outages, company blames residents
“More than a year after floods caused water outages in the small town of Springville in the Tulare County foothills, residents are still struggling with water loss and contamination. Residents are furious with Del Oro Water Company, the private, for-profit company that serves the town, and blame it for the ongoing problems. But staff at Del Oro refute the accusations, blaming residents for overwatering. Since mid-June, residents in the small, upscale Tulare County town have been turning on taps in their homes only to find no running water. The water outages come and go along with warnings from Del Oro not to drink the water because of contamination. So far, residents say they haven’t been helped by anyone and temperatures are soaring. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
‘It’s still contaminated’: East Bakersfield residents fear the worst after water shutoff
“Water is back for over 200 homes that suffered blistering heat without water for days. Initially, after the shutdown of Victory Mutual Water Company wells, East Niles Community Services District temporarily provided water through an emergency contract. Now that setup is gone, but residents say they weren’t notified that Victory Mutual is back providing the water. “It could be East Niles or switch to Victory Mutual right now at any moment,” said Dayna Hernandez, a resident who was affected. “It could be dirty…no clue.” … ” Read more from KGET.
Litigation over Sage Ranch approval appears headed to civil court
“A stone-faced Tehachapi City Council listened Monday night as Tom Neisler, general manager of Tehachapi-Cummings County Water District, appealed for the resolution of litigation between the two public agencies and future cooperation. “Our message is simple,” Neisler said during public comments at the July 1 Council meeting. “Continued litigation will not create new water for the city or the district or resolve other outstanding issues. Our constituents deserve better. We encourage the city’s leaders to reconsider your relationship with the district. Weaponizing the grand jury, playing politics, and pursuing meritless litigation to solve the city’s disagreements with the district is not a benefit to our taxpayers nor a good use of their resources. Instead, we invite the city to approach water supply issues collaboratively with a goal of maximizing the beneficial use of this limited resource without harm to the basin or other water users.” … ” Read more from the Tehachapi News.
IMPERIAL/COACHELLA VALLEYS
How California can rewrite the extraction business model and boost Salton Sea communities
Silvia Paz, the executive director of Alianza Coachella Valley, writes, “California is at a policy and fiscal crossroads. It must decide whether to rewrite the extraction business model to benefit impacted communities, or to continue with the traditional model that causes unmitigated environmental and economic injustices. The Salton Sea region is facing economic pressure to become a substantial domestic supplier of lithium, placing greater challenges on lower-income communities that already face significant disparities – yet contribute so much to the prosperity and quality-of-life of others. Without meaningful investment, these communities will fall further behind as their needs are sidelined in the rush for lithium development. This is a story all too real to the farm laborers and low-wage tourism workers who call this region home. … ” Read more from the Desert Sun.
Along the Colorado River …
Texas v. New Mexico and Colorado: US Supreme Court weighs in on federal interstate river management
“Ripping a 10-year-old case back from the brink of resolution, the US Supreme Court sided in June with the federal government and rejected a settlement among Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado over the management of the Rio Grande, which flows southeast from Colorado’s San Juan Mountains, through New Mexico, and along the Texas/Mexico border. The Court found that the litigation, initiated by Texas in 2013, could not be resolved without the federal government’s approval. The case now returns to the Special Master and an uncertain future. What began as a dispute over whether groundwater pumping in New Mexico violated the Rio Grande Compact has morphed into a battle over the federal government’s role in enforcing interstate compacts to which the US is not a signatory. States generally exercise jurisdiction over waters within their boundaries, but rivers that travel between states like the Rio Grande give rise to special management issues. … ” Continue reading at O’Melveny.
A report says this Grand Canyon uranium mine has pumped toxic water. The operator says it’s normal
“A new report shows that the uranium mine near Grand Canyon National Park has pumped millions of gallons of toxic water since it opened last year. The uranium mine’s operator and the state of Arizona say it’s a normal part of the mining process. The Grand Canyon Trust used publicly available water data compiled by the state’s Department of Environmental Quality to show that not only were there millions of gallons of water pumped over the course of 2023 but also a spike in heavy metals measured in that water since the mine started operating last December. Energy Fuels operates the mine. It and ADEQ deny there’s a problem and instead say that what the study’s scientists called flood problems are actually anticipated and were factored into the state permit for the mine. … ” Read more from KJZZ.
In national water news today …
National Academies unveils strategy to modernize probable maximum precipitation estimates
“For more than 75 years, high-hazard structures in the United States, including dams and nuclear power plants, have been engineered to withstand floods resulting from the most unlikely but possible precipitation, termed Probable Maximum Precipitation or PMP. More than 16,000 high-hazard dams and 50 nuclear power plants are located in the United States, many of which are approaching or exceeding their design lifetime. Failure of any one of these structures will likely result in loss of life and could impose significant economic losses and widespread environmental damage. While engineers continue to rely on PMP estimates when designing these large, critical facilities, the estimates themselves and the science behind them are based on outdated work. As climate change continues to supercharge storms, including rainfall amounts, that threaten existing infrastructure, there’s an urgent need to modernize PMP estimates and improve the science behind them, according to a new report by the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. … ” Read more from NOAA Research.
