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On the calendar today …
- PUBLIC HEARING: Delta Conveyance Project change of water right beginning at 9am. The State Water Resources Control Board Administrative Hearings Office will hold a Public Hearing on the pending Petitions for Change of Water Right Permits for the Delta Conveyance Project. Interested members of the public who would like to watch this hearing without participating may do so through the Administrative Hearings Office YouTube channel at: bit.ly/aho-youtube. Click here for the meeting notice.
- WEBINAR: California-Nevada Drought & Climate Outlook Webinar from 11am to 12pm. The California-Nevada Drought Early Warning System January 2025 Drought & Climate Outlook Webinar is part of a series of regular drought and climate outlook webinars designed to provide stakeholders and other interested parties in the region with timely information on current drought status and impacts, as well as a preview of current and developing climatic events (i.e., El Niño and La Niña). Click here to register.
- WEBINAR: Rain, snow, and fog in California agriculture from 12pm to 1pm. Speaker is Michael Loik, Ph.D, professor, Department of Environmental Studies at UC Santa Cruz. Join at https://tinyurl.com/anrwaterwebinar25. Pre-registration is not required.
In California water news today …
Drier and wetter in 21st century California: Managing increasing hydroclimate whiplash in a warming world
“The Los Angeles fires have become a stark example of the devastating effects of hydroclimate whiplash, as extreme weather patterns fuel increasingly destructive wildfires. After enduring years of punishing drought, California was inundated by atmospheric rivers during the winter of 2022-2023, bringing record-breaking precipitation, snow-covered mountain towns, and landslides. Yet, this fleeting relief came with a catch. Another wet winter spurred rampant vegetation growth, which, by the scorching summer of 2024 and a bone-dry start to 2025, became tinder for wildfires. The rapid shifts between soaking rains and intense heat highlight the growing unpredictability of hydroclimate extremes and their dangerous consequences for communities and ecosystems. At the 2025 California Irrigation Institute, Dr. Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with UCLA and UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, gave a presentation on hydroclimate whiplash and what it means for California. … ” Continue reading this article.
From deluges to drought: Climate change speeds up water cycle, triggers more extreme weather
“Prolonged droughts, wildfires and water shortages. Torrential downpours that overwhelm dams and cause catastrophic flooding. Around the globe, rising temperatures stoked by climate change are increasing the odds of both severe drought and heavier precipitation that wreak havoc on people and the environment. Rainfall can disappear for years only to return with a vengeance, as it did in California in 2023, with record-setting rain and snowfall. That led to heavy vegetation growth that provided fuel for the devastating January wildfires in Los Angeles after drought returned. But how can global warming cause both drier and wetter extremes? Here’s what experts say. … ” Read more from the Associated Press.
Experts say US weather forecasts will worsen as DOGE cuts mean fewer balloon launches
“With massive job cuts, the National Weather Service is eliminating or reducing vital weather balloon launches in eight northern locations, which meteorologists and former agency leaders said will degrade the accuracy of forecasts just as severe weather season kicks in. The normally twice-daily launches of weather balloons in about 100 locations provide information that forecasters and computer models use to figure out what the weather will be and how dangerous it can get, so cutting back is a mistake, said eight different scientists, meteorologists and former top officials at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration — the weather service’s parent agency. … ” Read more from the Associated Press.
California’s giant, troubled lake is running out of time
“After decades of trial and error, a new plan is taking shape around the Salton Sea, California’s largest — and endlessly troubled — lake. The accidental inland sea, some 35 miles long, sprung to life 120 years ago when the Colorado River breached an irrigation canal east of Palm Springs. The sudden, shimmering water briefly created a tourist boom that lasted into the 1960s, though for much of the half-century, the lake could more aptly be described as an environmental disaster zone. Now a new wave of conservation efforts, sparked by millions of dollars in recent federal funding, has washed ashore at the ultra-briny sea, and there’s cautious hope from some that incoming industry will bring an economic boom. That is, if it doesn’t all fall apart first. … ” Read more from SF Gate.
Trump and Newsom find common ground attacking California’s coastal agency
“In a hotel meeting room two blocks from the beach, the California Coastal Commission might as well have written “S.O.S.” in the sand. “We are under complete assault,” said Susan Lowenberg, a member of the coastal-preservation commission, which was born in the 1970s from the same movement that gave rise to Earth Day and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. “We need help.” President Trump has publicly castigated the state commission, vowing not to “let them get away with their antics.” Elon Musk has said it “should not even exist as an organization.” Mr. Trump’s administration has threatened to withhold federal aid for the Los Angeles wildfires unless the state defunds the agency. The attacks are surprisingly bipartisan: Democratic state lawmakers are trying to weaken the commission’s authority over housing development. And Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, has said the commission has too much power, and delivered a stinging rebuke in January. … ” Read more from the New York Times (gift article).
Underwater whistleblowers: The role of mollusks in pollution biomonitoring
“Mollusks are often associated with ecologically harmful invasions and damaged boat engines. A laundry list of mollusks like the infamous Zebra mussel, Asian clam, and New Zealand mud snail can wreak havoc in water bodies they are not native to. However, species of the Mollusca phylum aren’t purely malevolent – in fact, some of these pocket-sized filter feeders are used by scientists as biological instruments to indicate water quality. From long-term monitoring of drinking water to studying bioremediation methods, clams, mussels, slugs, and snails can be critical research and monitoring tools. The Mollusca phylum has been used in biomonitoring for decades and has peppered publications in the field of ecotoxicology since the 1960s. Mollusks are generally sessile, meaning they are nonmoving, and are found in a wide range of freshwater and marine environments, where they often account for the majority of aquatic biomass and occupy important ecological roles. As such wide-spread organisms with well-characterized biologies and low-maintenance lifestyles, mollusks are considered ideal for both laboratory and field studies. … ” Read more from FishBio.
Overlooked choices shape research outcomes: what do “researcher degrees of freedom” mean for how science informs policy?
“Research results can depend not only on the data itself, but on how they are analyzed.1 This is importantly different from how stakeholders with different interests may interpret results differently, perhaps (consciously or subconsciously) motivated by their interest in the outcome. A recent study “Same data, different analysts: variation in effect sizes due to analytical decisions in ecology and evolutionary biology” highlights concerns for how we draw conclusions from scientific study and how science can inform policy. “Many-analyst” studies, like this one, are done with the aim to investigate whether scientific results are reproducible, and what factors influence their reproducibility. … ” Read more from the California Water Blog.
In regional water news and commentary today …
NORTH COAST
Lake Pillsbury’s fate sparks heated debate at Cloverdale town hall
“A packed town hall in Cloverdale, led by Mayor Todd Lands, addressed PG&E’s controversial plans to decommission two dams on the Eel River—Scott and Cape Horn Dams. The meeting, which featured a panel of speakers, focused on the potential impacts of PG&E’s decision to abandon the Potter Valley Project (PVP) and its consequences for water supply, environmental concerns, and local communities. … Mayor Lands said, “Cloverdale did not have a seat at the negotiating table, even though they are severely affected.” The City Council and Fire Department of Cloverdale are “extremely worried” about a safe and reliable water supply for the future. Land continued “This is not a partisan issue. . . . This isn’t an attack on those that have been working to find solutions, and we thank them for all of their hard work they put in over the years.” … ” Read more from Mendo Fever.
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES
California Tahoe Conservancy acquires Van Sickle entrance parcel, approves beach grants, and water main at Meeks Bay
“At the California Tahoe Conservancy Board meeting on Thursday, the board acquired a parcel of land at the entrance of Van Sickle Bi-State Park, approved the Senate Bill 630 public access grants for Regan and Secline Beach, and approved Tahoe City Public Utility District’s water main extension into Meeks Bay. The board also received their annual report on the Conservancy’s work.According to Jason Vasques, executive director, the Conservancy has been hard at work with fuels reduction in the area, especially for the North Tahoe Fire Protection District to assist in home hardening and defensible space and South Shore schools, which will have projects starting this summer. … ” Read more from the Tahoe Daily Tribune.
Commentary: A health check for Tahoe: Where we stand and what’s next
Julie Regan, TRPA Executive Director, writes, “Lake Tahoe’s geological history underscores the ecological and cultural significance of this incredible place. Recent research shows that Lake Tahoe first took shape more than 2.3 million years ago, making it the oldest lake in North America and the third oldest waterbody in the world. We also recognize the importance of the native Washoe people, who have served as the original and current stewards for 10,000 years. Today, we continue this legacy of stewardship through science-based environmental protections. Last month, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) released a comprehensive, four-year report on Lake Tahoe’s environmental health. The peer-reviewed report highlights significant progress throughout the Lake Tahoe Region in preserving this national treasure and outlines critical challenges where continued collaboration and action are needed. … ” Read more from the Tahoe Daily Tribune.
Eagle Lake levels rise: ‘Definitely nice to see’
“Eagle Lake, a picturesque body of water located in Lassen County in Northern California, showed an encouraging increase in water levels in March 2025. Over the course of a month, the lake rose an impressive .75 feet. Don Willis, the County Surveyor for the Lassen County Department of Planning and Business Services wrote on SierraDailyNews.com that “this puts the lake level at an elevation of 5094.53 ft. as measured at the low water ramp at Gallatin, which is currently 0.53 ft. (6.36 in.) above where it was one year ago at this time.” He added, “Definitely nice to see!!” He included an eye-catching photo of a boat ramp on the edge of the lake surrounded by snow-covered rocks and pine trees. … ” Read more from The Cool Down.
SACRAMENTO VALLEY
Live Oak loans itself $3.5 million to bolster water fund and begins process for rate hike
“The Live Oak City Council Wednesday voted to begin the formal process for implementing a 60 percent water rate hike and approved a 10-year loan of $3.5 million from other city accounts to stabilize the floundering water fund. Essentially, this 10-year interfund advance is a loan from the city’s connection fees, including storm drainage, water connection and waste water connection, Finance Director James Ramsey said. The advance would carry an interest rate at the city’s average rate of return, which is currently 2.5% and is adjusted on an annual basis. Interest to be paid back the accounts for the 10 years would be approximately $562,000, Ramsey said. … ” Read more from the Appeal Democrat.
Sacramento’s homeless community braces for a hot summer, looking for shade and water
“When Sacramento temperatures start to hit triple digits, Shawna Chapman finds a little relief by placing silver emergency blankets over her blue tent for shade. But recently she lost those blankets when the city cleared her encampment along X Street, she said. With temperatures set to hit 80 degrees Monday, she’s bracing for her seventh Sacramento summer on the streets. This one could be extra dangerous for her as she was recently diagnosed with congestive heart failure and suffered a stroke. Heat can exacerbate cardiac conditions like Chapman’s. In September 2022, Michael Hooper, 49, was homeless and died in his vehicle at a Sacramento park from cardiac arrest and heat stroke after “temperatures were elevated for multiple days,” according to coroner records. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
BAY AREA
Marin Municipal Water District considers outlay for watershed study
“The Marin Municipal Water District is moving toward a possible study of its watershed infrastructure and visitor areas. The district board reviewed a proposal Thursday to allot $200,000 from the Mount Tamalpais Watershed Fund for the study. The district might partner with the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy to do the study and conceptual plan. The assessment would include a list of potential projects that could improve the facilities, the estimated costs and the potential funding avenues. “I’m very excited about this,” said Matt Samson, a member of the district board. “I think this is a really logical next step as we look to modernize the district. We keep talking about our most precious asset as the watershed. We need to make sure we have the ability to maintain it and go forward, and I think this is a really good start to do that.” … ” Read more from the Marin Independent Journal.
Bay Area to see record-breaking temps ahead of ‘rare’ mid-spring atmospheric river
“The Bay Area is in for another weather whiplash, with some cities likely to break record-high temperatures for the first time in nearly a century before an unsettled pattern takes hold, delivering scattered showers and the potential for an atmospheric river by the end of the month.The warming trend kicking off this week is fairly typical for the Bay Area’s shoulder season months, and would likely be a much more “pronounced heat event” if the region was in the throes of summertime, said Brayden Murdock, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service’s Bay Area office. Cooling sea surface temperatures are expected to cap daytime highs around the lower 80s in inland portions of the Bay Area, which tend to see the most intense heat, but even that’s significant: They’re the hottest temperatures the region has experienced so far this year. … ” Read more from SF Gate.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Metropolitan Water District allocation rises to 35%, ensuring sufficient water supply for 2025
“The Metropolitan Water District (MWD) of Southern California will receive an increased allocation of 35 percent from the California Department of Water Resources this year, according to a report by Cynthia Kurtz, Pasadena’s representative on the MWD Board. The City of Pasadena imports about 60% of its water from the MWD. Kurtz will present detailed information about the water supply outlook during a meeting of the Pasadena Municipal Services Committee on Tuesday, where she will deliver her first quarterly update to the Committee. “With the current demand, a 35% allocation will mean MWD has sufficient supply to meet all member agency demands in 2025 and can add to the existing 3.4 million acre feet of water already in storage,” Kurtz said in a preliminary memorandum for the Committee. … ” Read more from Pasadena Now.
IMPERIAL/COACHELLA VALLEYS
Imperial County unveils Lithium Valley Specific Plan to transform the region into Clean Energy Hub
“Imperial County has taken a bold step toward establishing itself as a cornerstone of California’s clean energy future with the release of the Lithium Valley Specific Plan. Spanning 51,662 acres adjacent to the Salton Sea, this comprehensive framework aims to transform the Imperial Valley into a thriving hub for renewable energy, mineral recovery, manufacturing, and logistics. The plan, detailed in an Executive Summary, replaces existing county land use and zoning regulations with a forward-thinking blueprint designed to harness the region’s geothermal resources and meet the rising global demand for lithium. … ” Read more from the Desert Review.
SAN DIEGO
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin will “ramp up” federal efforts to tackle the Tijuana River sewage crisis
“The smell of sewage from the Tijuana River isn’t just unpleasant, it is making people sick. Recent studies link it to high rates of respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses. Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre has long fought for the health and safety of nearby residents. She calls the sewage crisis a “ticking time bomb.” “There’s solvents, benzenes, volatile and organic and inorganic compounds, heavy metals,” Aguirre said. “Not to mention all the pathogens that are being aerosolized.” Currently, Aguirre is pushing to designate the Tijuana River Valley as a Superfund Site, which would allow the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, to clean up hazardous waste and unlock federal funds. The request was denied under the Biden Administration, but President Trump’s EPA Administrator, Lee Zeldin, said he would reconsider. … ” Read more from CBS 8.
Residents protest smell of sewage at Tijuana River Valley
“A handful of residents who live near the Tijuana River Valley protested the smell of sewage coming from the river. Signs with messages: “We want clean air to breathe,” “Enough,” and “Another Year, when will it stop.” This was for a protest organized by San Ysidro Resident Olga Espinoza. It’s the third protest she’s put together about the Tijuana River crisis and the smells from the river that’s impacting her and her community. “It’s the beginning of the rainy season and the little heat wave, I can’t do it no more,” said Espinoza. “It smells really bad. And we were outside, and it was in the evening. And my dog was doing weird things, and my son was like, what’s that smell? It’s the sewer. It’s about to start again.” … ” Read more from Channel 10.
Along the Colorado River …
Stability of well water levels in Las Vegas may be cause for optimism
“Groundwater wells in Southern Nevada have maintained stable water levels over the past two years, officials said, defying a trend of decline observed in other basins across the state. The Nevada Division of Water Resources is measuring groundwater depth in wells this month as part of the Nevada Water Initiative. These measurements will help ensure a sustainable water future for the drought-prone state. “It’s very important for us to get a sense of what the status and health is of our basins,” said Kip Allander, a hydrogeologist for the Nevada Division of Water Resources. … ” Read more from the Las Vegas Sun.
A Navajo Nation community has running water after waiting nearly 25 years
“It took nearly 25 years to figure out how to supply running water to homes in Westwater, a small Navajo community in southeastern Utah. At Thomas Chee’s house, the final waterline connection took 8 minutes. The construction crew needed just seconds Tuesday to clip a pipe — formerly the connection between a cistern and the house — and reconnect it to brand-new plumbing tied to the nearby city of Blanding. Within 6 minutes, Chee and the crew turned on and checked the faucets. “There you go,” Chee, the community’s president, said as the kitchen faucet ran. “It’s beautiful.” … ” Read more from the Colorado Sun.
In national water news today …
For decades the Columbia River has benefited both the U.S. and Canada with little worry. Then Trump took office
“A river that runs between the U.S. and Canada has now run itself right into the middle of the fight between the two allies. President Donald Trump’s administration has now stopped negotiations to re-up a decades-old U.S.-Canada treaty that controls the flow of the Columbia River between British Columbia after claiming it could play a role in solving California water shortages. Last year, Biden’s administration reached a tentative three-year agreement with Canadian officials to renew the Columbia River Treaty, which governs flood control and hydropower sharing between the two countries. It was up to Trump’s administration to finalize the agreement, which could now be in jeopardy — but either nation must give ten years notice before abandoning the agreement`, The Guardian reported. The pause comes as Trump wages a trade war against Canada, levying high tariffs against the country as Canadian officials respond in kind. … ” Read more from The Independent.
Trump threatens Great Lakes agreements between U.S. and Canada
“In 2024 when Donald Trump as a presidential candidate proposed piping water from British Columbia, Canada to California, his statement was largely dismissed as campaign rhetoric. Once he was elected, Canadians started paying attention but the potential water grab was seen as logistically and politically problematic and unlikely to gain traction. And the issue received scant attention in the water-rich Great Lakes regions of the U.S. and Canada. But now, Great Lakes water and related agreements between the U.S. and Canada are clearly on President Trump’s radar according to a recent New York Times story. The Times reported that Trump told Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in February that he wanted to abandon various border agreements including those concerning water. “He wanted to tear up the Great Lakes agreements and conventions between the two nations that lay out how they share and manage Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario,” according to the Times. … ” Read more from the Circle of Blue.
How Trump’s regulatory freeze is disrupting the US fishing industry
“President Donald Trump’s regulatory freeze has injected chaos and uncertainty into a number of lucrative American fisheries, raising the risk of a delayed start to the fishing season for some East Coast cod and haddock fleets and leading to overfishing of Atlantic bluefin tuna, according to Reuters interviews with industry groups and federal government employees. America’s $320 billion fishing industry relies on a branch of the federal government, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, to manage coastal fisheries. Under a 1976 law, NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service develops management plans for 45 fisheries, setting quotas and determining the start and close of fishing seasons, in consultation with federal government scientists and local fishermen. … ” Read more from Reuters.
