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On the calendar today …
- MEETING: State Water Resources Control Board beginning at 9am. Agenda items include an informational update on the Groundwater Ambient Monitoring and Assessment Program and an update on the Underground Storage Tank Cleanup Program and GeoTracker. Click here for the agenda.
In California water news today …
State appeals Kings County judge’s groundwater injunction
“The state Water Resources Control Board announced Monday it is appealing a Kings County judge’s preliminary injunction that has forced the state to hold off on measures intended to corral excessive groundwater pumping in the region. The Water Board filed a notice to appeal Kings County Superior Court Judge Kathy Cuiffini’s Sept. 13 ruling. The appeal will be considered at the Fifth District Court of Appeal in Fresno. According to a Water Board statement, the appeal “…seeks to rectify a broad injunction that prevents it from taking action stemming from the probationary designation of the critically overdrafted Tulare Lake Subbasin – delaying state oversight and exacerbating the harmful impacts experienced by local communities, California Native American tribes, farmers and the environment due to excessive groundwater pumping.” “I don’t know if we expected it. We knew it was a possibility,” said Dusty Ference, executive director of the Kings County Farm Bureau, which sued the Water Board and sought the injunction after the state placed the Tulare Lake subbasin, which covers most of Kings County, on probation April 16. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
PRESS RELEASE: State Water Contractors applaud California’s use of adaptive management of Fall X2 in the Bay-Delta for 2024
“Today, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) adapted State Water Project operations in the Bay-Delta to protect both fish and water quality while preserving essential water storage in reservoirs as we begin a new water year. The change was made following a decade of scientific investigations and recent peer-reviewed life-cycle model results which clearly demonstrated that what’s known as “Fall X2″ water releases following wet and above normal water year types are not providing the benefits to Delta smelt that were originally hypothesized in 2008. Considering Delta monitoring data from earlier this year and the recent scientific findings, DWR and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) have adjusted the Fall X2 flow requirement in the 2020 Incidental Take Permit (ITP) for the State Water Project, as well as the 2019 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Biological Opinion (2019 BiOp) for the Central Valley Project and State Water Project, while remaining in compliance with environmental rules. In addition to operating Fall X2 requirements in September, DWR and Reclamation operated the Suisun Marsh Salinity Control Gate in September and will continue to meet Bay-Delta water quality objectives in October. … ” Continue reading from the State Water Contractors.
PRESS RELEASE: State and federal agencies cancel action to protect Delta smelt
In California, today marks the start of the new “water year,” the date water managers use to mark the end of the dry season and the beginning of the wet. The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) are kicking off this new water year by cancelling the fall flow protection for Delta Smelt — once one of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta’s most common fish — and now its rarest. According to the current state and federal Endangered Species Act permits, DWR and Reclamation are required to release a pulse of water through the Delta to the San Francisco Bay in September and October to improve habitat conditions for the listed Delta Smelt. This fall outflow requirement is only triggered in years when it is wetter than normal and is often referred to as “Fall X2.” Some of the state’s largest Delta water exporters wrote to the agencies in August, requesting the suspension of Fall X2, despite Delta Smelt populations having sunk to record low levels in recent years. … ” Read more from Restore the Delta.
U.S. reservoirs are facing reliability issues. This expert says it may be due to climate change
“Reservoirs across the country are dealing with some of the same problems those in the west have been facing. According to a new study, there are longer periods of unusually low storage in many of the nation’s reservoirs, and that storage has become less reliable. With me to explain what’s happening is Caelan Simeone, a hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey, worked on the study and joined The Show to explain what is happening. … ” Read more or listen to radio show from KJZZ.
Could Helene-type flooding happen in California? Scientists say yes
“While the cleanup effort gets underway in the southeast region of the United States after Hurricane Helene, West Coast disaster preparedness experts say something similar could happen here. It’s highly unlikely that California could see a Category 4 storm like Helene park itself well inland and dump water at record breaking rates. But we’re still vulnerable to flooding, especially during a Pineapple Express. Letitia Grenier directs the Water Policy Center at the Public Policy Institute of California and says climate change takes it up a notch. “Now with the heating in the atmosphere, we are getting these really intense stormburst in certain places, in particular storms,” Grenier stated. “And that may be more like a hurricane in terms of those moments.” … ” Read more from KCBS.
Major autumn heatwave to continue streak of record heat in interior Southwest; Warm to hot in California for foreseeable future
Dr. Danial Swain writes, “September was a bit of a roller coaster month in California (especially SoCal). In the southern half of the state, a record-breaking early Sep heatwave kickstarted a major wildfire outbreak that coincided with a major late monsoonal surge–leading to a dramatic mix of extreme heat, severe thunderstorms, flash flooding, destructive wildfires, and pyrocumulonimbus plumes. Then, not quite as dramatically but quite consequentially, a remarkably deep and cold early-season trough and associated low pressure system brought much cooler weather and even some localized precipitation and and near the SoCal fire zones (as well as in some other spots). A period of pleasantly near to slightly below average temperatures persisted thereafter–before anomalous heat returned at the very end of the month across most of the state. … ” Continue reading at Weather West.
SEE ALSO: October ushers in blistering heat, power shutoffs and the chance of ‘plume’ fires, from the LA Times
Harvesting water from air, UNLV engineer’s device could have global appeal
“Drip, drip, drip. That’s the sound of Jeremy Cho’s atmospheric water harvesting device extracting humidity from the air to make usable water in Da Kine Lab at UNLV. The device, in its smaller state, looks like a box. One side has a small black fan and another has nuts and bolts with red caps sticking out of a translucent container. There are a few screws and clear wires coming from the center. It creates water by extracting humidity from the air. Cho’s device can produce up to 17 liters per square meter per day in the lab. “Just by being a civilized community, we’re going to take some of that water,” said Cho, an assistant professor at the UNLV department of mechanical engineering. “It’s up to us to make sure that we use that water responsibly.” … ” Read more from the Las Vegas Sun.
In commentary today …
An inadequate analysis of long-term operations of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project
The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance writes, “On September 9, 2024 a coalition of nonprofits submitted comments to the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) in response to its 2024 Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on the Long-Term Operations of the Central Valley Project (CVP) and State Water Project (SWP). The coalition consists of California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA), California Water Impact Network, Friends of the River, Golden State Salmon Association, Institute for Fisheries Resources, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Restore the Delta, San Francisco Baykeeper, Save California Salmon, and Water Climate Trust. In its comment letter, the coalition contests the paradigm that underpins the DEIS: that delivery of water should come before protecting endangered species. The DEIS falls short in safeguarding endangered species and water quality, and instead prioritizes water deliveries that will exacerbate the ecological decline of California’s rivers and estuaries. … ” Read more from the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance.
California can invest in climate resilience now, or Bay Area can pay price later
Jim Wunderman, president and CEO of the Bay Area Council, writes, ““And it never failed that during the dry years the people forgot about the rich years, and during the wet years they lost all memory of the dry years. It was always that way,” John Steinbeck wrote in “The Grapes of Wrath.” California’s climate is enjoying a rich spell. We’ve been blessed with two consecutive wet years. Our reservoirs are mostly full and the horrors of the 2017-2021 drought-fueled wildfire seasons are fading. Yet we can’t let this brief good fortune lull us into complacency. A changing climate means drought and wildfire are always lurking. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Examiner.
San Joaquin Valley: Uniting for our shared future
“We, the growers of the state of California, find ourselves in an extremely difficult position. SGMA has brought new challenges and responsibilities to growers in many parts of California. As we have all seen, there is a balance that must be reached between farmers, urban water users, and the environment. The State Water Resources Control Board, appointed by Governor Newsom, is charged with enforcing SGMA for those groundwater basins not approved by the Department of Water Resources. Because of this, it is in our best interest to unite and represent the San Joaquin Valley with one voice. The Water Blueprint is uniquely positioned to lead a united group of stakeholders to work towards successful implementation of SGMA and seek support for projects that will help farmers adjust to the changing availability of groundwater when surface supplies are reduced or unavailable. … ” Read more from the Water Blueprint for the San Joaquin Valley.
In regional water news and commentary today …
NORTH COAST
Klamath River Update – September 2024
Tom Cannon writes, “In an August 1, 2024 post, I updated the status of water quality in the Klamath River during the 4-dam removal project. I had several concerns: sporadic turbidity events, dropping flow rates, and higher water temperatures; all of these concerns had been acknowledged in the project’s planning documents. Final steps to remove dams on the Klamath River in summer 2024, including dumping additional sediment from exposed reservoir reaches, has again raised concerns about water quality in the Klamath River. The problem is that, this time, fall-run Chinook salmon runs to tributary streams like the Scott and Shasta Rivers are at their peaks. Such water quality degradation events, especially during the late summer fall-run Chinook migration season, would normally be considered violations of state and federal water quality standards. However, these events were expected in the monumental 4-dam removal project on the lower Klamath River. … ” Read more from the California Fisheries blog.
Against all odds, the dams fell. Now it’s time to study the salmon
“The day before we spoke, Brook Thompson had driven 350 miles to pick up a new fishing boat – hers had broken from years of disuse. Thompson, a PhD student at University of California Santa Cruz, is a member of the Yurok Tribe, whose reservation borders the tail end of the mighty 250-mile Klamath River in Northern California. Thompson grew up on the reservation, and learned to fish as soon as she could stand. “Before that I was watching my dad fish. I got my commercial fishing license when I was 12 – so it’s not just a pastime, it’s a way of life.” The Yuroks are known as the salmon people. Salmon is a primary food source for the tribe, who believe the Klamath is their lifeforce – and if the river is sick, so are they. And for almost as long as Thompson has been alive, the river has been sick. Three hydroelectric dams that were installed more than a century ago have contributed to low water flows, high levels of bacteria, and mass salmon die-offs. … ” Read more from The Story Exchange.
Protecting California’s Medicine Lake Highlands
“The first time I saw a spring was the first time I fished with my friend Erick Johnson. He brought me to his favorite bend on a famous northern Michigan river, where he showed me a muddy depression covered in pine needles. He swept them aside to reveal a small dark pool of cold, clear water, watercress-framed, into which he sank a pair of stubby Coors bottles. Later, after a decent spinnerfall and a few good trout at last light, we drank those numbingly-cold beers on the bank, listening to the fish, still rising in the dark. Later I got to know spring creeks in Minnesota’s Driftless region. On my first trip there, I remember seeing a three-inch brook trout in a stream I could step across, seemingly hovering in the air-clear water. Next to it, a small plume of sand percolated. Mineral-rich groundwater, filtered through the ancient limestone hills all around me, was bubbling into the stream right there. The trout finned around and through it. Fontinalis — of a spring — indeed. … ” Continue reading from Hatch Magazine.
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES
Nevada Irrigation District plans to raise Rollins Dam to meet future water supply needs
“The Nevada Irrigation District (NID) in California has decided to move forward with a plan to increase water storage at its Rollins Reservoir and abandon a long-standing plan to build the new Centennial Reservoir Project. Citing the fundamental responsibility to provide a reliable future water supply to the community, NID is moving forward with the storage alternatives evaluated in the Plan for Water process. Since November 2021, the Plan for Water process has involved community participation and input at monthly public workshops. The Board of Directors approved a resolution in support of increasing storage at Rollins Reservoir and withdraw NID’s state-filed application to build the proposed Centennial Reservoir Project. The district will discontinue all feasibility, environmental and other analyses in support of a Centennial project. … ” Read more from Hydro Review.
SACRAMENTO VALLEY
Union Creek water treatment project continues
“A team of engineers from SAK Construction, managed by Cape Environmental INC., and overseen by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and Air Force Civil Engineer Center (AFCEC), worked together to install a stormwater conveyance system liner at Travis Air Force Base July 2024. The team recently completed site restoration associated with the project. Over the course of the 10-day installation, teams worked together to install a 2,300 linear foot, 45,139 pound liner around the conveyance system utilizing forklifts, a conveyor system, and a squeeze roller. This effort is part of a larger three-year environmental remediation project. The conveyance system serves as a drainage conduit by which stormwater run-off is collected on base and conveyed to a drainage ditch known as Union Creek. Union Creek is a seasonal creek consisting primarily of this stormwater and treated groundwater from the installation’s environmental restoration activities. … ” Read more from Travis Air Force Base.
NAPA/SONOMA
State grant renews invasive quagga mussel prevention program at Lake Mendocino
“The Sonoma County Water Agency’s watercraft inspection program at Lake Mendocino will continue for another two years, thanks to $400,000 in state grant funding that went into effect on Sept. 16. The California State Parks Division of Boating and Waterways grant will fund the program to keep invasive quagga and zebra mussels from being introduced to Lake Mendocino until Sept. 15, 2026. Quagga and zebra mussels are an invasive mussel which, if introduced into a waterway, can devastate the natural environment, clog water and flood protection infrastructure, and cost millions of dollars in maintenance. Mussels are transported between waterways by watercraft, primarily recreational boats. Sonoma Water self-funded infestation prevention efforts at both Lake Mendocino and Lake Sonoma beginning in 2012, and in 2020 was first able to successfully obtain funds from the Division of Boating and Waterways to support these efforts. In 2024 the Division of Boating and Waterways awarded Sonoma Water a $400,000 grant supporting two more years of the program at Lake Mendocino. “This grant is crucial for protecting Lake Mendocino’s ecosystem and water supply infrastructure,” said David Rabbitt, Chair of Sonoma Water’s Board of Directors. … ” Read more from the County of Sonoma.
BAY AREA
Valley Water evaluating desalination project through its Water Supply Master Plan process
“One of Valley Water’s missions is to provide Santa Clara County with a reliable water supply. Valley Water identifies and plans for new water supply and infrastructure investments through its Water Supply Master Plan. Our agency updates the plan every five years by assessing how much water we’ll need in the future and what projects are needed to meet that demand. We are updating the plan now. As part of the process, we are evaluating 18 water supply and infrastructure projects, including taking a closer look at a proposed desalination plant located within Santa Clara County. Desalination is the process of removing salts from seawater or bay water through distillation or filtration to produce fresh, drinkable water. At a desalination plant, ocean or bay water is filtered to remove salts and other impurities. The materials removed from the salt water is referred to as brine and must be properly disposed of to protect the environment. Parts of California and other dry regions worldwide, such as the Middle East and Australia, use desalination. … ” Read more from Valley Water News.
CENTRAL COAST
SLO Beaver Brigade receives grant for Salinas River restoration
” The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has awarded $41 million in grants to support 20 restoration and protection projects across the state. Among the recipients is the San Luis Obispo Beaver Brigade, which received funding for their ongoing work on the Salinas River.The grant will support the Beaver Brigade’s efforts to protect and map beaver-managed wetlands in the upper Salinas River, a key area for biodiversity and watershed health. The funding aligns with CDFW’s Beaver Restoration Program, which aims to restore ecosystems by leveraging beaver activity to enhance natural habitats. … ” Read more from the Paso Robles Daily News.
SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY
Tehachapi Basin water rights are part of Santa Barbara probate case
“Two local agencies have formally objected to an effort to confirm title to Tehachapi Basin water rights in Santa Barbara Superior Court. The Bozenich Family Trust, with Nathaniel D. Carey as trustee, has petitioned Santa Barbara Superior Court to confirm title to 55 acre-feet of water rights that Tehachapi-Cummings County Water District records show transferred to Golden Hills Community Services District around 1998. The matter is set for hearing in Santa Barbara on Oct. 3. … ” Read more from the Tehachapi News.
EASTERN SIERRA
Look & listen: Get to know the ‘fiesty’ Owens pupfish
“The Owens pupfish once inhabited the network of rivers, streams and springs that meander through California’s Owens Valley at the base of the Eastern Sierra. They were found from just north of Bishop south to Lone Pine. The small but mighty fish’s habitat began to shrink in the early 1900s as water in the Owens Valley was diverted for other uses. Coupled with competition from, and predation by, nonnative introduced amphibians and fish like large mouth bass, Owens pupfish populations declined and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed them as an endangered species in 1967. Owens pupfish are small, rarely larger than two and a half inches long. The females are a dusky, olive-green color and the males are bright blue, particularly during their spring and summer spawning season. The pupfish continue to be threatened by habitat loss and nonnative fish and amphibians as well as climate change. Join Service fish and wildlife biologist Menemsha Zotstein, and the Bishop Paiute Tribe’s Environmental Director Brian Adkins, as they share the history of Owens pupfish, what makes them unique, and why they’re hopeful for the fish’s future in a recent episode of our Fish of the Week Podcast. … ” Read more from the US Fish & Wildlife Service.
Groundwater in the Indian Wells Valley: Replenishment fee — here are the FAQ
“In our continuing series on groundwater in the Indian Wells Valley, here are some frequently asked questions about the upcoming Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority basin replenishment fee public hearing. What is the hearing? The Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority is holding a virtual public hearing at 10 a.m. Aug. 21 at City Hall on whether or not to assess a basin replenishment fee. As with other public meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic, the public will not be allowed to attend in person. The hearing will be a Proposition 218 public hearing, which means that only protest votes will be counted. In other words, not voting essentially counts as a “yes” vote. If protest votes are submitted by the majority of property owners, the fee will fail. Otherwise the basin replenishment fee will pass. … ” Read more from the Ridgecrest Independent.
SAN DIEGO
San Dieguito Lagoon project restores wetland habitat and adds trail
“More than 80 acres of wetlands and salt marsh have been restored at the San Dieguito Lagoon. Much of the area, which sits between Del Mar and Solana Beach near Interstate 5, had been used for agriculture. Restoring the wetlands involved removing enough soil to fill 333 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Invasive plants were also removed and replaced with native ones. The project restored habitat for several endangered bird species. “What was here before was rows and rows of always — it seemed to be — dried out tomato plants,” said Solana Beach Mayor Lesa Heebner. “To see it go from that to this, is a stunning transformation.” … ” Read more from KPBS.
San Diego officials lock in on first step for fixing Tijuana River sewage pollution
“Elected officials across San Diego said Monday they hope that $5.7 million for the renovation of a key piece of infrastructure at a wastewater treatment plant that straddles the U.S.-Mexico border in San Diego will be the first step in solving a decades long sewage-pollution problem that fouls the air and makes people sick. “Junction Box-1 is the front door of this treatment plant,” said David Gibson, the executive director of the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board, at a groundbreaking ceremony announcing the start of the renovation project on Monday. The South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant — under a joint U.S.-Mexican body called the International Boundary and Water Commission — treats sewage from Tijuana, but hasn’t been doing that since 2021 following the failure of a piece of the plant’s infrastructure. … ” Read more from the Courthouse News Service.
USIBWC breaks ground on critical repair project to South Bay Wastewater Plant
“The International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC) held a groundbreaking ceremony on Monday at the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant. It marks the start of a critical repair project for a part of the plant called Junction Box 1 (JB-1), which hasn’t functioned properly since 2021. Local, state, and federal officials attended the ceremony, highlighting the urgency of the problem. “You will get a headache…if you stay here long enough. I promise you, you will have trouble breathing,” said U.S. Rep. Juan Vargas. … ” Read more from Channel 10.
Along the Colorado River …
Glen Canyon Dam faces dead pool
Zak Podmore, contributor to Writers on the Range, writes, “In 1998, when I was in fourth grade, I joined a class field trip to Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado. But when we got to Cortez, the road was barricaded. Hours earlier, three men had stolen a water-tanker truck and killed a police officer before fleeing into the desert. In his book “Dead Run,” writer Dan Schultz makes the case that the criminals were inspired by Edward Abbey’s 1975 novel, “The Monkey Wrench Gang.” The men were survivalists planning to turn the water truck into a mobile bomb, Schultz says. Their probable goal: To pack the tanker truck with explosives and blowup Glen Canyon Dam. Back then, the idea of draining Lake Powell was a fringe idea, attractive to anti-government extremists and radical environmentalists. Those who advocated a legal decommissioning of the Glen Canyon Dam, including supporters of the Glen Canyon Institute in Salt Lake City, were often laughed out of the room. In those years, the dam was working as intended. Lake Powell was nearly full in the late ‘90s. Hydropower production was going full tilt, and millions of people were visiting the reservoir annually to fish, houseboat, and water ski. But since the year 2000, Lake Powell has been in decline. … ” Read more from The Daily Sentinel.
Women and water changes in Colorado
“Women will be among the attendees at the Colorado Water Congress annual summer conference this week, and relatively speaking, lots of them. It wasn’t always so, said Doug Kemper, the executive director for the organization, Colorado’s largest group dedicated to convening discussions about water issues. Kemper, who is moving on in September after 20 years managing the Water Congress, recalls that when he got involved in Colorado water matters about 40 years ago, water meetings were very different. Young people were expected to sit in the back and listen, to pay their dues. “It wasn’t 100%, but the feeling was that you sit in the back and go along for the ride.” Water Congress — and by extension all water matters in Colorado — have become more intergenerational. And more diverse in gender. … ” Read more from the Fence Post.
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
NOTICE of lifting of curtailments under standard water right Term 91
