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On the calendar today …
- PUBLIC HEARING: Designation of Tule subbasin as a probationary basin beginning at 9am. The California State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board or Board) will hold a public hearing at which it will consider designating the Tule Subbasin as a probationary basin pursuant to the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). Click here for the full agenda.
- LEG HEARING: Joint Hearing Agriculture and Water, Parks, And Wildlife from 10am to 1pm. The Assembly Committees on Agriculture and Water, Parks, And Wildlife will hold an informational hearing on groundwater recharge. Click here for more information.
In California water news today …
Sites Reservoir project hits troubled waters in permitting process
“The California state water board on Monday formally announced that the Sites Reservoir project failed to get federal approval, a situation they say isn’t permanent and can be rectified. The rejection by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is the latest setback for the estimated $4 billion project in Northern California that would capture water during the rainy season. Officials have said the reservoir would hold up to 1.5 million acre-feet of water, or enough for 3 million homes a year. The denial stems from a back-and-forth over documents between governmental agencies, including the State Water Resources Control Board, Sites Project Authority and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The denial is effective Monday, the day the water board sent its letter to the Sites Authority. … ” Read more from Courthouse News Service.
RELATED: NOTICE: Sites Reservoir Project: Denial without prejudice of water quality certification
‘Unlawful regulation’: State suffers big setback in water lawsuit filed by growers
“In a scathing ruling, a Superior Court judge has lambasted state water officials for going too far and invoking “underground regulations” when they penalized Kings County water managers for failing to protect overpumped groundwater in the San Joaquin Valley. Kings County Superior Court Judge Kathy Ciuffini last week granted a preliminary injunction that bars the State Water Resources Control Board from requiring growers to pay fees and report how much water they pump from the county’s severely overdrawn aquifers. The injunction could last through a trial, which has not yet been scheduled. “Clearly the actions of this state agency have not been transparent, are only known to the (water board), and there has been no review, analysis, or ability to challenge their conduct,” Ciuffini wrote in her decision. She added that the agency failed to show how an injunction from the court “would cause specific, identifiable harm to the public.” … ” Read more from Cal Matters.
A decade after signing of California groundwater law, major challenges remain
“In 2014, Gov. Jerry Brown signed historic legislation establishing a framework for California to begin managing groundwater in an effort to curb widespread overpumping, which had sent aquifer levels into rapid decline, left hundreds of wells dry, and caused the ground to sink in parts of the Central Valley. The law was based on the idea that groundwater could best be managed at the local level, and it called for newly formed local agencies to gradually adopt measures to address chronic declines in groundwater levels. The legislation laid out an implementation timeline stretching more than a quarter-century, giving many areas until 2040 to address their depletion problems. Today, experts and state officials say implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, or SGMA, is unfolding largely as expected. But while California has made some preliminary progress toward safeguarding groundwater, the hardest tests loom ahead. … ” Read more from the LA Times. | Read via Yahoo News.
Improving the lives of Californians: DWR marks 10 years of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act and progress made to protect water supplies
“Today marks the 10th anniversary of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), a landmark law that is driving reductions in the overuse of groundwater, protecting drinking water supplies, and making communities, agriculture and ecosystems more resilient to the impacts of climate change. SGMA was signed into law on September 16, 2014, midway through the historic 2012-2016 drought. Driven by the need to address declining groundwater supplies, the law created a statewide framework to protect this critical resource in California, which provides 41 percent of the state’s total supply in a normal year and up to 60 percent during droughts. About 85 percent of Californians rely on groundwater for some portion of their water needs. … ” Read more from DWR.
California extreme weather shift: From record heat to cold, rain, even snow
“After a prolonged stretch of record-breaking heat that scorched Southern California and sparked wildfires, much of the state will experience below average temperatures, drizzle and even early-season snow this week. The National Weather Service issued its earliest snow advisory in the past 20 years over the weekend for portions of the Sierra Nevada. In Southern California, where three fires have scorched more than 115,000 acres and burned out of control for days, the rapid cooldown and higher humidity levels have already provided some relief for firefighters trying to get a handle on the blazes. The largest of the three, the Bridge fire in the Angeles National Forest, was 11% contained as of Monday morning, while the Line fire in San Bernardino County was 42% contained. The Airport fire, which ignited in Orange County last week and burned into Riverside County, was 31% contained as of Monday. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
Tackling cold-water droughts in a changing climate
Jeffrey Mount and Michael Dettinger with the PPIC write, “Drought comes in many forms. In California and the West, we focus on the scarcity of precipitation (meteorological drought) and the availability of water in rivers and reservoirs (hydrologic drought). These two translate into drought that impacts social and economic uses of water as well as the environment. But recently, the warming climate has revealed different dimensions of drought. The emergence of “snow droughts”—which are unusually low snowpack conditions—has become a major issue. And now the “cold-water drought”—which has always been part of California’s hydrology—is becoming more common throughout the West. We believe it’s time for regulators and researchers to invest in understanding cold-water droughts and to incorporate the concept into resource management and climate change adaptation strategies. … ” Read more from the PPIC.
‘Not that simple’: Trump drags Canadian river into California’s water problems
“Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump promised “more water than you ever saw” to Californians, partly by tapping resources from a Canadian river. “You have millions of gallons of water pouring down from the north with the snow caps and Canada, and all pouring down and they essentially have a very large faucet,” Trump said on Friday. Trump was holding a press conference at a golf club he owns near Los Angeles. “You turn the faucet and it takes one day to turn it, and it’s massive, it’s as big as the wall of that building right there behind you. You turn that, and all of that water aimlessly goes into the Pacific (Ocean), and if you turned that back, all of that water would come right down here and into Los Angeles,” he said. … ” Read more from CTV News.
SEE ALSO:
- Trump threatens to withhold wildfire funding unless California sends more water to farmers, from KRCR
- Trump Vows to Ship Northern California Water to Beverly Hills, Also to Reverse the Flow of Rivers Back Up Into the Hills to Soak the Ground and Thereby Prevent Forest Fire, from the Lost Coast Outpost
- Donald Trump’s threat to withhold firefighting aid to California is blasted by firefighters union, from the San Jose Mercury News
‘When the mud hits the fan’: Rep. John Duarte talks water
“John Duarte thinks the water troubles bedeviling California’s Central Valley are human-caused. But he doesn’t blame climate change. “No, I think the water strains in the West are completely tied to policy choices we’ve made,” says the farmer and freshman Republican. Riparian rights, water allocations and reservoir capacity are all big issues in the 13th District, home to some of the most productive agricultural land in the nation. And it’s personal for Duarte: Several years ago, he was ordered to pay a $2.8 million fine for violating the Clean Water Act by clearing some wetlands for wheat fields, which turned into a cause célèbre among conservatives. Duarte eventually settled for $1.1 million without admitting liability. Earlier this month, he brought other members of the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries to his district for a field hearing focused on California’s water challenges. … ” Read more from Roll Call.
Can agave help solve California’s agricultural dilemma? Some farmers are betting big
“California’s fertile farmland — much of it in the San Joaquin Valley — feeds the nation. But all that farming takes a lot of water, which continues to dwindle as the state faces the harsh realities of climate change. With less water to go around and hotter conditions threatening many legacy crops, farmers are fallowing more acres and losing hundreds of millions in revenue. In a study from UC Merced, researchers estimated the state lost 752,000 acres of irrigated farmland in 2022. Switching to less-thirsty crops could cut agricultural water consumption in the state by as much as 93%, researchers with UC Santa Barbara and the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory reported earlier this year. Now some farmers are betting big on what they believe could be part of the solution: agave. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
A look inside Sierra Nevada restoration
“During the Californian winter and spring, the Sierra Nevada’s mountain meadows are covered in snow and inaccessible, so when the season shifts and the snow melts, we jump into action alongside our partners, putting boots on the ground and shovels in the dirt. Mountain meadows are critical to the hydrology of the landscape and provide a unique home to native plant and animal species, anchoring soil and storing groundwater. While they may be comparatively small in area, covering 191,000 acres of the Sierra Nevada, mountain meadows are critical to the health of California’s headwaters, which provide clean drinking water to more than 75% of Californians. Beyond this, they provide essential habitat, recreational opportunities, and increase regional resilience to climate change. With around 50% of the Sierra Nevada’s mountain meadows significantly degraded, scaling mountain meadow restoration across the Sierra Nevada is more important than ever. … ” Read more from American Rivers.
Holding water: redefining reservoir rules to make room for environmental stability
“Water storage is vitally important in the arid West. Reservoirs hold water for irrigation, drinking, hydroelectricity and recreation. But nature needs access to water too, so operational instructions for dams require some of the incoming water to be sent downstream to keep ecosystems functional. This system has inefficiencies, and new research in the journal Nature from a team led by Sarah Null from the Quinney College of Natural Resources says that ecosystems could benefit from holding ecosystem-allotted water in dams for when the environment needs it most. Dams are hard on rivers. They change the flow and shape of riverbeds and the chemistry of the water. They also block fish from upstream habitat and limit floods critical for building downstream wetlands. But mandated releases from dams, intended to replicate aspects of natural flows, often don’t benefit coldwater-loving fish when summer temperatures warm the surface of the water. … ” Read more from Utah State University.
Do you know what chemicals are in your drinking water pipes?
“Vinyl chloride, which is used in the manufacturing of PVC pipes that are in many drinking water systems in the United States, has been a “chemical of concern” for decades. In fact, it was classified as a human carcinogen since 1974, and the federal government at that time banned the use of vinyl chloride in consumer products such as hair sprays, refrigerants, cosmetics, and drugs. The EPA has stated that vinyl chloride is still used to make PVC and vinyl products such as drinking water pipes and children’s toys. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has initiated a review of vinyl chloride and four other chemicals to determine if any should be subject to additional restrictions under the federal Toxic Substance Control Act. The agency recently announced that it has moved to the next step in this process, which in practical terms means opening a second public comment period to allow anyone concerned about this chemical to weigh in on the agency designating the chemical as a “High-Priority Substance.” Despite the dangers presented by vinyl chloride, most people are unaware of how prevalent this chemical is in their lives. … ” Read more from The Source.
The California Forever debate moves underground
“In 2018, Solano County, California, realized that a single company, known as Flannery Associates, was quietly buying up a large amount of land. Many of the parcels were zoned for agricultural use, making a purchase of this size unusual. The county reached out to Flannery and received assurances that the company would continue to do business as usual by “entering into long-term leases with farmers.” Five years later, though, its true intentions became clear. Today, the story of Flannery Associates, a subsidiary of California Forever, the real estate corporation behind those land purchases, is well-known in the region. Backed by powerful Silicon Valley billionaires, California Forever envisioned building a city from scratch on former farmland, until a formidable grassroots coalition called Solano Together rose up to block the development. From the start, California Forever faced a major obstacle: Before it could proceed with its plans, it had to undo Solano’s 40-year-old orderly growth ordinance, which prevents development on unincorporated land. … ” Read more from High Country News.
New California legislation on water issues
“The 2024 legislative session ended on August 31, meaning the legislature passed all bills for this year. All of the bills are currently with Governor Newsom. He has until September 30 to sign or veto any bills. Any bills not signed by September 30 will be vetoed through a ‘pocket veto.’ This session was a busy one for bills affecting the water sector with at least nine bills passed impacting water and sewer systems in California. The bills cover a wide range of topics, including fines for violating State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) orders, Proposition 26 and 218 requirements for water-related fees, Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) requirements, and the California Water Plan. … ” Read more from Nossaman’s California Water Views.
Newsom weighs legislation as Central Valley agriculture awaits key decisions
“Gov. Gavin Newsom has until Sept. 30 to veto or sign into law hundreds of bills passed by the California Legislature. Since Sept. 6, the governor has signed 46 bills into law and vetoed eight, with the last legislative update from Newsom’s office on Sept. 14. Several legislative pieces under consideration have far-reaching implications for Central Valley agriculture from employer rights to pesticide restrictions. … ” Read more from Valley Ag Voice.
Prop. 4 explained: What would California do with a $10B climate cash infusion?
“Approving Proposition 4 on Californians’ ballots would authorize $10 billion in debt for the state to spend on environmental and climate priorities. The money would be spent on drinking water improvements, flood and drought protection, wildfire and extreme heat projects and clean energy among other issues. Californians are no stranger to extreme weather brought by climate change. Before Californians saw storms and snowpacks of historic proportions in recent years, the state’s residents experienced a prolonged drought with extreme heat waves in between. Environmental groups and renewable energy advocates pushed hard for increased spending on climate and environment issues following recent budget cuts. … ” Continue reading from the Sacramento Bee.
Padilla applauds over $2 billion available for California dam safety
“Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Fisheries, Water, and Wildlife, applauded the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) invitations to seven California groups to apply for a combined $2.04 billion in low-cost, long-term flexible loans for borrowers to maintain, upgrade, and repair non-federal dams. The available funding comes through the Corps Water Infrastructure Financing Program (CWIFP), which was created by the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) of 2014 and authorizes USACE to provide credit assistance — direct loans or loan guarantees — to eligible borrowers for water resource projects. The CWIFP inaugural round is currently limited to dam safety projects that are non-federally owned, operated, and maintained. … ” Read more from Senator Padilla.
In commentary today …
Commentary: Water for the future
Assemblymember Marie Waldron writes, “San Diego County has made great strides to safeguard itself against California’s recurring drought cycle. For example, in 1991, 95% of our water was imported by the Metropolitan Water District (MWD). By 2023, only 14% of our water was imported by the MWD. Diversification efforts included building the Claude “Bud” Lewis Desalination plant in Carlsbad, increased conservation, an agreement to import water from the Imperial Irrigation District, and other measures. By 2045, it’s projected that only 8% of our water will be imported by the MWD. But it’s a different story statewide. Most of our largest dams and reservoirs were built between 1945 and 1968, when our population was less than half its current size. Voter approval of a $7.5 billion water bond in 2014 has resulted in few, if any new projects. For more than 50 years, California has failed to make necessary investments in water infrastructure. … ” Read more from the Patch.
In regional water news and commentary today …
NORTH COAST
Up to 55,000 birds have died in the Klamath Basin botulism outbreak
“The outbreak of avian botulism at the Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge has killed tens of thousands of migratory birds this summer. Conservation groups are waiting for cold weather to stop it. Biologists at the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex have been collecting around 1,000 dead birds each day in recent weeks, plucking them out of the marshy waterways of the Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge, and bringing them to refuge facilities where they’re disposed of in incinerators. Live birds are being captured and brought to a makeshift bird hospital run by the nonprofit Bird Ally X. There, wildlife rehabilitators provide supportive care to the birds until they can regain their strength and the botulism toxin dissipates from their bodies. … ” Read more from Jefferson Public Radio.
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES
Tahoe National Forest planning to reduce wildfire risk on 3,000 acres north of Truckee
“Tahoe National Forest is requesting public input on the proposed Russell Valley Fuels Reduction Project, located north of Truckee adjacent to the community of Russell Valley and the busy Highway 89 corridor. The project proposes a range of vegetation management actions on approximately 3,000 acres designed to address forest health, reduce hazardous fuels build up and provide additional protection from the potential impacts of high severity wildfire for the community of Russell Valley. … ” Read more from YubaNet.
SACRAMENTO VALLEY
Restoring salmon habitat and hope along the Sacramento River
“The Sacramento River, California’s largest waterway that supplies fresh water to over one-third of the state’s households, businesses, and farmland, once also supported millions of salmon. For thousands of years, the river sustained all four salmon runs—fall, late-fall, winter, and spring. When thriving, these fish were critical to California’s river ecosystems, from their main stems to its slow-water side channels to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta on their way to the ocean. … Today, however, salmon are in serious trouble. Looked upon as a reflection of overall river health, populations of all runs are significantly down. As an example, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, population trends for Fall-run Chinook salmon in Central Valley rivers have dropped from 872,669 in 2002 to just 79,985 in 2022—a 90% decline over just two decades. While causes of decline are myriad—human-made dams, as well as climate change, drought, and warming water temperatures are a few culprits—hydrologic alteration and habitat loss have major influence. And this emphasizes the importance of side channels for salmon. … ” Read more from River Partners.
BAY AREA
Landmark Bay Area regional plan to combat sea-level rise unveiled
“For the first time in history, the Bay Area now has a plan to protect the region from the havoc sea-level rise could unleash here — submerged neighborhoods, flooded freeways, skyscrapers surrounded by water, and so on. No one said this work would be inexpensive. Regulators estimate it will cost $110 billion to construct all the seawalls, levees, marshes and other adaptation projects to protect the 400 miles of bay shoreline. But they believe it would cost the region far more, $230 billion, if it did nothing. “It’s not just people on the front lines who live near the bay who will be affected by this; it’s people who live inland because the bay shoreline protects everybody,” said Larry Goldzband, executive director of the Bay Conservation and Development Commission, or BCDC. … ” Read more from KQED.
Bolinas Beach closed indefinitely after human waste found seeping from cliffs
“Community concern in the North Bay is growing following the closure of a popular beach after human waste was discovered leaking from a nearby cliff. “When I heard there was sewage coming down, it was a little terrifying,” said Craig Fagin. Fagin says it sounds as gross as it is. Human waste was recently discovered by Marin County crews seeping from the cliffs above Bolinas Beach. … ” Read more from ABC 7.
Parents raise concerns after excessive flooding threatens school access and student safety: ‘The kids are massively losing out’
“Officials in Mill Valley, California, hope to start rebuilding their outdated public middle school soon. But the extreme flood risk facing the build site has many parents concerned. NPR affiliate KQED reported on the story, explaining that Mill Valley is just one of 52 schools in the Bay Area already facing significant flooding risks. And with the planet continuing to heat up due to human activity, sea level rise will keep threatening these schools. Even moderate sea level rise could risk turning Mill Valley into an “island,” according to geoscience professor Kevin Befus via KQED. The area’s high tide has already risen by 8 inches in the past century, and even moderate predictions from California’s Office for Environmental Health Hazard Assessment predict it climbing 3 feet by 2100. Other schools in the area face similar risks; one floods so regularly that pumps were installed in the parking lot. … ” Read more from The Cool Down.
Bay Area flood control project first authorized 70 years ago finally to be finished
“Nearly every soaking wet winter, Llagas Creek around Morgan Hill has flooded. Its rising, muddy waters poured over the banks in 2017 and in 2009, and many times before that over generations, damaging downtown businesses, homes and farm fields. The federal government authorized a flood control project to fix it in 1954, when Dwight Eisenhower was president. Now finally, construction to bring the area up to modern flood standards is nearing the final stages. Officials at the Santa Clara Valley Water District, a government agency based in San Jose, are embarking on the third and final phase this month of a $241 million project to improve flood protection along 13 miles of Llagas Creek. The project recently received $80 million in federal funding, enough to finish the work. … ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News.
CENTRAL COAST
Monterey: Water district loses appellate court battle over fees
“A ruling by a state appellate court against the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District could have what is being described as a minor impact on the district’s water supply efforts. The California Sixth District Court of Appeals sided with the Monterey Peninsula Taxpayers Association late last week in a lawsuit that claimed a fee charged to ratepayers should have been halted years ago. The legal issues are complex and involve many moving parts, but basically the district is charging two separate fees – a “users fee” that was collected as a pass-through on California American Water Co.’s bills and a “water supply fee.” The taxpayers association sued, arguing that based on the water district’s own ordinance, the water supply fee should have been sun-setted when the user fee was also being charged. … ” Read more from the Monterey Herald.
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY
More lawyers: New legal team joins fight for the Kern River
“A prestigious, international law firm has joined the legal team representing local groups suing the City of Bakersfield over how it operates the Kern River. Morrison Foerster is well-known in environmental advocacy circles for, among other things, its work on the Mono Lake case that resulted in the “National Audubon Society v. Superior Court” decision. That ruling restricted how much water the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power could divert from streams flowing into Mono Lake based on the Public Trust doctrine, which holds that the state owns all natural resources and must put them to the highest public use, including the environment and public access. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Stormwater rules could cost $10.8 billion for San Bernardino County cities
“A Beacon Economics report revealed that proposed stormwater rules could generate a cost of $10.8 billion for San Bernardino County municipalities. The proposed regulations for San Bernardino, Riverside and Orange counties will be discussed by the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board at a Water Board workshop at Cypress City Hall at 9 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 13. The State Water Board is one of six environmental entities operating under the authority of the California Environmental Protection Agency. … ” Read more from the Victorville Daily Press.
IMPERIAL/COACHELLA VALLEYS
Coachella Valley Water District agrees to nearly $237K penalty for sewage spill
“The Coachella Valley Water District will pay a penalty of nearly $237,000 for its role in a 2020 sewage spill that discharged 128,000 gallons of raw wastewater into a Riverside County stormwater channel. The penalty was announced by the State Water Control Board on Monday. According to the agency, an investigation by the Colorado River Basin Regional Water Quality Control Board found that one of CVWD’s collection systems—Water Reclamation Plant No. 10—failed due to a power outage on Sept. 22, 2020. This caused it to release untreated wastewater from a manhole for about an hour. … ” Read more from KESQ.
Imperial Valley farmers turn to AI and tech in saving water and money
“The Colorado River’s two decades-long droughts have developed and pushed new incentives for Imperial County farmers to conserve water and seek out the latest and most effective technology. However, one obstacle County farmers face is weeds in their fields. Some weeds can use more water than crops, and under water stress, weeds can reduce crop yields by more than 50%. Weeds are not just aesthetically unpleasant, but they are also a nuisance to the problem of water conservation as they have the potential to absorb large amounts of water. According to Paul Mikesell, CEO and founder of Carbon Robotics, the early elimination of weeds is vital for water conservation, as it prevents “them from using water to grow and compete with crops.” One of the ways County farmers are tackling the problem of weeds is by availing themselves of the technology offered by Carbon Robotics. … ” Read more from The Desert Review.
SAN DIEGO
‘Biggest environmental victory’: After more than a decade in limbo, San Diego County has a new climate plan
“After more than a decade of challenges, local environmental groups are rejoicing after the Board of Supervisors approved a new climate action plan this week that they say will keep the county accountable in slashing emissions. The climate plan passed Wednesday along party lines will be used as a blueprint for reducing greenhouse gas emissions at county facilities and in unincorporated areas to reach net-zero emissions by 2045. Wednesday’s action marks a significant reversal in fortunes for the board, which spent nearly a decade defending previous versions of its climate plan against lawsuits from environmental organizations. “This was the biggest environmental victory in the last quarter-century at the county of San Diego,” said Peter Andersen, former chair of the local Sierra Club chapter and current vice chair of the club’s conservation committee. … ” Read more from the San Diego Union Tribune.
Lack of oxygen threatens fish in San Elijo Lagoon
“The San Elijo Lagoon is home to more than eight miles of hiking trails and one thousand plants and animals. Amber Kolpin looks forward to her weekly walks. “I love seeing the wildlife, the Great Blue Heron, the fish jumping, the peace and quiet,” said Kolpin. But recently, the fish have not been jumping. “I saw dead fish all over the place floating, and I thought it was just an algae bloom. I’m not sure what happened, but it was awful,” said Kolpin. … ” Read more from Channel 10.
Along the Colorado River …
Researchers create a new tool to inform about post-2026 Colorado River management
“Over 40 million people in seven states in the southwestern U.S. rely on the Colorado River. It provides water for crops that feed the entire country. A management plan helps govern how the water is used. “The Colorado River is managed by a set of agreements, treaties and compacts known as the law of the river,” said Homa Salehabadi, a research associate in the Utah Water Research Lab at Utah State University. “And some of these agreements will expire in 2026.” Salehabadi recently defended her PhD work, which focused on what happens after 2026. … ” Read more from Utah Public Radio.
Arizona water official asks for $1M to prep for potential Colorado River fight
“The state’s top water official is making contingency plans for a court fight if a deal can’t be worked out with other states for how to divide up Colorado River water in 2026 and beyond. Tom Buschatzke wants Gov. Katie Hobbs and state lawmakers to give him $1 million in what he is calling a “set-aside appropriation” in case there is no agreement — at least not to the state’s satisfaction — in the ongoing negotiations over the river. Ideally, he said, it won’t be necessary and the seven states, various tribes and federal agencies will work out a deal. But the director of the Department of Water Resources told Capitol Media Services that is far from a sure thing. “We don’t want war, we want peace,” he said of himself and water officials from the other six states that share in river water. “We want a collaborative solution.” … ” Read more from the Daily Independent. | Read via KAWC.
SEE ALSO: Water director wants $1M for potential lawsuit over sharing Colorado River, from the Arizona Capital Times
Why chip manufacturers choose Arizona’s desert environment
“The true measure of a product’s success lies in its journey, from development to the environmental impact it leaves behind. In today’s climate, manufacturers are more committed than ever to finding the delicate balance between innovation and sustainability. Semiconductor chip fabrication facilities, or fabs, are often called out for their high water consumption. At the same time, fabs are flocking to the arid Phoenix area. To address their water use, fabs are seeking to develop net-zero water manufacturing facilities. The research, industry and municipal sectors in Arizona are making significant strides to achieve a water treatment engineering approach known as zero liquid discharge. Using this approach, all water is recovered after manufacturing and the residual salts plus chemical contaminants that remain are reduced to solids that can be safely disposed of. … ” Read more from Arizona State University.
Radio show: Allhands: This down-ballot race could have big implications for future of Arizona’s water
“Election 2024 is getting nearer, and while all of the talk might seem to be about the top of the ticket, there are down-ballot races that will be influential in all of our lives here in Arizona. One of them is The Central Arizona Water Conservation District. Never heard of it? You’re probably not alone. There are five sets open on the little-known board this November, which is charged with overseeing the Central Arizona Project, that 336-mile canal that bring the Colorado River Water to all of us here in the Valley, as well as Pinal County and Tucson. Joanna Allhands, who covers water issues on the opinion pages of The Arizona Republic, joined The Show to discuss.” Listen at KJZZ.
Managing groundwater on the US-Mexico border is challenging—but vital
“Constellation Brands, a U.S.-based beverage company, announced in 2016 that they would begin construction on a new brewery in Mexicali, Baja California. Constellation already operated two factories in Mexico, producing beers like Corona and Modelo for American consumers. Almost immediately, the project met with opposition from local farmers and other residents, who feared that the brewery would deplete the region’s scarce water supply. The city of Mexicali depends not only on the Colorado River, but on the Mexicali Valley Aquifer, which Mexico’s National Water Commission has declared overexploited. The Mexicali Valley Aquifer is one of over two dozen aquifers that spans the U.S.-Mexico border. … ” Read more from APM Research Lab.
Down with more dams? A new book envisions Glen Canyon and Colorado River recovery
“A new book about water management on the Colorado River offers treasures for at least four semi-distinct groups of readers: avid outdoor adventurers (particularly dusty river runner types); students of hydrologic science, policy or infrastructure; social justice advocates; and those with a romantic penchant for western environmental history. It’s an ambitious target to aim for all these audiences at once, but Zak Podmore’s “Life After Dead Pool: Lake Powell’s Last Days and the Rebirth of the Colorado River” hits the mark, perhaps because he embodies all four. Published in late August by Torrey House Press, Podmore’s second book builds on his 2019 “Confluence: Navigating the Personal and Political on Rivers of the New West” to further establish his as a modern voice of western waterways. … ” Read more from Arizona Central.
In national water news today …
Microbes to the rescue? Companies probe PFAS cleanup solutions
“Tim Repas was tired of hauling dirt to landfills. As an environmental consultant in Canada’s oil fields, where the soil is often laden with health-harming petroleum hydrocarbon chemicals, Repas felt he spent too much time moving contaminated soil around and not enough time trying to eliminate the dangers posed by the compounds. In 2019, he left the fields and put his degree in biochemistry to work, founding Fixed Earth Innovations, a company aimed at employing biological systems to address environmental challenges. One of the company’s first targets: The persistent and pervasive class of chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). … Making PFAS even more problematic is the fact that they are considered virtually impossible to break down, earning the moniker “forever chemicals.” “We could spend 20 years trying to solve [the problem], but I don’t think we have 20 years to solve PFAS,” said Repas said. … ” Read more from The New Lede.
