A wrap-up of posts published on Maven’s Notebook this week …
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In California water news this week …
A closer look at how predation and flow impact salmon survival
“As California’s Chinook salmon fishing season sits on pause for the third consecutive year, the future of the species dangles in the balance. The fish, historically abundant, now hover near record lows, with the adult population in coastal waters and Central Valley rivers representing about one tenth of late 20th century averages. The precipitous crash has stakeholders on edge, and how to turn it around is an urgent matter of discussion among scientists, officials and the fishing community. Many experts say that reviving the state’s Chinook salmon runs is, in principle, a simple task: Restore the river and riparian habitat vital for migration and spawning, and the fish will return. But there is another element in the mix: nonnative predators. Fishes including largemouth bass and striped bass, introduced to California decades ago, eat many young salmon born in the Central Valley. It’s a problem that some farmers, lawmakers and scientists want to tackle with targeted predator removal programs. This approach, they have argued, could be the best unused tool in the salmon recovery toolbox. “We’ve been trying the same things, regulating flows and habitat restoration … for 20 or 30 years, and here we are in the third season of a salmon fishery closure,” said biologist Dana Lee, who works for the private research firm FishBio and has been studying nonnative predator impacts on salmon in the Stanislaus River, a San Joaquin tributary. “These things don’t seem to be working, so what other options do we have?” … ” Read more from Maven’s Notebook.
Reclamation says it’s time for a new Delta strategy
“During a Water Association of Kern County meeting on July 11, acting Regional Director for the California-Great Basin region of the Bureau of Reclamation, Adam Nickels, explained that the Bureau’s current initiatives include improving water supply reliability from the Central Valley and State Water Projects and updating regulations like D-1641. “We actually know today that D-1641 and the regulations that are locked into D-1641 that touch on our water rights and limit us from pumping; we know those aren’t working,” Nickels said. “We know those aren’t helping fish, but it is built into regulation.” As a brief overview, Water Decision 1641 was adopted by the State Water Resources Control Board in 1999 and revised in 2000 as the implementation plan for the 1995 Bay-Delta Plan, with respect to the operation of projects within the Delta watershed. … ” Read more from Valley Ag Voice.
Cost to build largest new reservoir in California in 50 years increases by $2 billion to at least $6.2 billion
“Construction costs to build the largest new reservoir in California in 50 years, a vast 13-mile-long off-stream lake that would provide water to 500,000 acres of Central Valley farmlands and 24 million people, including residents of Santa Clara County, parts of the East Bay and Los Angeles, have risen sharply. The price tag for Sites Reservoir, proposed to be located in the rural ranchlands of Colusa County 70 miles northwest of Sacramento, have increased from $4.5 billion to at least $6.2 billion, and potentially as much as $6.8 billion, the project’s planners confirmed Wednesday. The increase is due to inflation for concrete, steel and other construction materials since 2021, when the original estimate was generated, planners said. Factory shutdowns during the COVID pandemic caused many construction materials to increase in price, and tariffs imposed by President Trump have led to more cost increases in recent months. … ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News.
These programs have monitored our waters for decades. Trump could destroy them.
“On a sunny evening on Rodeo Beach in the Marin Headlands, dogs gambol, couples canoodle, and Jan Roletto veers toward a dead cormorant she has spied amid the driftwood. With the ease of one who’s handled thousands of such birds, Roletto slips on gloves, measures the cormorant’s wingspan, snaps photographs, and records its condition. What the cormorant’s wild and brilliant life meant to it, we do not know. But for the humans, the bird now begins a second existence: memorialized and distilled, as a data point in an ecological monitoring program called Beach Watch. … Beach Watch volunteers have now documented what birds died—and lived—along 30,000 cumulative miles of beaches. In the process, they have created a dataset that underpins our understanding of Bay Area shores, and informs how we use and manage them. It is one of many such datasets produced by decades-old monitoring programs, largely funded by the federal government, that amount to our society’s collective eyes and ears on what is happening in the natural world. … ” Read more from Bay Nature.
Trump cuts to California National Weather Service leave ‘critical’ holes: ‘It’s unheard of’
“Some National Weather Service offices in California are among those hit hardest by meteorologist vacancies, according to new data from an employee union — heightening concerns as the state contends with another potentially devastating fire season and the ongoing threat of extreme weather. The staffing shortages have forced some offices to outsource overnight operations to neighboring offices or reduce how often they issue forecast products that help keep decision-makers and first responders abreast of potentially hazardous weather conditions. Trump administration officials have rejected the idea that recent cuts have imperiled the weather service’s operations — even as those decisions have come under increased scrutiny following disastrous flooding in Texas that left at least 132 people dead. With fire season intensifying, California will be a key test case to determine the impact of the cuts. … ” Read more from the LA Times. | Read via Yahoo News.
DWR: Securing Statewide Water Supplies Part 1: California’s Water Future is in Jeopardy
“California is expected to lose 10% of its water supply by 2040 due to climate change, and the State Water Project could lose up to 23% of its delivery capability. Our precipitation patterns and hydrology are becoming increasingly extreme and unpredictable, meaning a future of longer and more severe dry periods mixed with big but infrequent storms that produce high flows. These changing conditions are problematic as current State Water Project (SWP) infrastructure and operations are unable to capture high flows moving through the system, leading to decreased supplies. Continued declines in supplies will have dire consequences for the 27 million people and 750,000 acres of farmland across California who receive clean and affordable water from the SWP. This water is an irreplaceable component of regional supply portfolios for communities and farmland in the Bay Area, Central Coast, Central Valley and Southern California. While this future is alarming, it is preventable. If we modernize the water conveyance infrastructure in the Delta, we can help offset these projected water supply losses due to climate change and maintain the SWP as a critical water source for two-thirds of the state. … ” Read more from DWR.
RESTORE THE DELTA: Tribal leaders and environmental advocates demand lawmakers reject Delta tunnel fast-tracking legislation in day of action for water justice
“Tribal leaders and environmental justice advocates met with legislators today for the 2025 Day of Action for Water Justice, urging lawmakers to reject Governor Newsom’s proposed trailer bills that would fast-track the Delta Conveyance Project and bypass critical environmental protections. The day-long event began with power meetings between Tribal members, environmental advocates and legislators to urge support for equitable, science-based water solutions that protect the Bay-Delta and to reject the financially reckless Delta Conveyance Project that threatens ecosystems, Tribal sovereignty, and public health. Advocates cited a recent report published by the California Water Impact Network prepared by ECOnorthwest that estimates the project could in reality cost anywhere from $60 to over $100 billion – three to five times higher than the approximately $20 billion that the Department of Water Resources is claiming. These skyrocketing costs would largely fall to ratepayers across California. … ” Read more from Restore the Delta.
SEE ALSO: Tribal Leaders, Enviros Urge Legislature to Reject Bills Fast-Tracking Delta Conveyance Project, from the Daily Kos
VIDEO: Water Blueprint leaders headline AgCenter Water Roundtable Discussion
“California’s water policies are evolving—fast. From sweeping statewide laws like SGMA to new federal orders prioritizing California water, the pressure is on for growers to adapt, and quickly. At a recent roundtable hosted by The Ag Center, two Water Blueprint leaders, Austin Ewell and Geoff Vanden Heuvel, shared key perspectives navigating the changing landscape. One panelist described it plainly: “You go through the stages of grief… you can’t sustain what you thought you could. So you adapt.” SGMA continues to drive change, requiring major cutbacks in groundwater pumping, which has hit some crops harder than others. Tree nut growers face long-term water commitments, while dairies—though also at risk—may have more flexibility. Vanden Heuvel, the Water Blueprint Board Vice Chair, noted, “You take the trees out, you can grow a winter forage crop. And you know who can eat that? Dairy cows.” … ” Read more and watch video from the Water Blueprint for the San Joaquin Valley.
California farmers identify a hot new cash crop: Solar power
“Imagine that you own a small, 20-acre farm in California’s Central Valley. You and your family have cultivated this land for decades, but drought, increasing costs and decreasing water availability are making each year more difficult. Now imagine that a solar-electricity developer approaches you and presents three options: You can lease the developer 10 acres of otherwise productive cropland, on which the developer will build an array of solar panels and sell electricity to the local power company; You can select 1 or 2 acres of your land on which to build and operate your own solar array, using some electricity for your farm and selling the rest to the utility; or you can keep going as you have been, hoping your farm can somehow survive. Thousands of farmers across the country, including in the Central Valley, are choosing one of the first two options. A 2022 survey by the U.S. Department of Agriculture found that roughly 117,000 U.S. farm operations have some type of solar device. Our own work has identified over 6,500 solar arrays currently located on U.S. farmland. … ” Read more from The Conversation.
Abandoned crops bring pest plague to adjacent farms
“California farmers, agricultural commissioners and lawmakers have in recent months sounded an alarm about a troubling symptom of the state’s struggling farm economy. “Everywhere you turn there’s an abandoned vineyard,” said Randy Baranek, project manager for the Stanislaus County-based agricultural service provider Fowler Brothers. He estimated there are twice as many untended grapevines in the Central Valley this year than he has ever seen. “It’s a mess.” It isn’t only vineyards. Tens of thousands of acres of almond orchards have been left unmanaged, according to a 2024 report by Land IQ. “I don’t remember a year when there were this many abandoned orchards,” said Michael Naito, who grows winegrapes, almonds and pistachios in Fresno and Madera counties. “Guys just don’t have the money to take them out.” Historically, when an orchard or vineyard neared the end of its productive life, farmers wasted little time replacing it with new trees or vines that would bring them a higher return, Naito said. But with low crop prices plaguing farmers, he said, “that urgency to take out an orchard or vineyard and replant is not there.” … ” Read more from Ag Alert.
The impact of climate change on stormwater management
“Climate change is affecting all parameters of the environmental spectrum and thus, all aspects of life. Regarding water resilience, the lingering effects of climate change play a significant role in limiting access to water whilst also increasing demand for water supplies across the nation and most especially in Southern California. Climate change’s acceleration of the hydrological cycle has also increased risks of extreme storm and drought events for most regions, especially semi-arid regions. Nature-based solutions (NBS), when designed in response to projected climate change impacts, can offer practical and cost-effective adaptive strategies for stormwater management to confront and mitigate the ecological damage caused by climate change. This post will explore how climate change affects stormwater management in Southern California, explain how NBS can help adapt to climate change, and list recommended strategies for climate change-resilient stormwater management practices. … ” Continue reading from UCANR.
A living shoreline, built one oyster at a time
“From the eelgrass-lined shallows of Southern California to the tide-sloshed inlets of Puget Sound, scientists and restoration teams are betting on a humble bivalve to do more than just survive. Placed in the right context, oysters and their habitat partners, like eelgrass and cordgrass, can buffer waves, trap sediment, increase biodiversity, and create living, shifting edges that grow with the coast. But success is far from guaranteed. Restoration teams are grappling with climate stress, crab invasions, and a coastline crowded with human activity. They’re also experimenting with just how much grey infrastructure this local species needs to stand taller in the path of waves and sea level rise. Can these tiny creatures — and the scientists who study them — hold the line? … ” Read more at Knee Deep Times.
Solving the puzzle: How synthesis informs Delta ecosystem management
“Synthesis is central to the Delta Science Program’s mission, as outlined in the Delta Reform Act, which mandates providing unbiased science to guide water and environmental decisions in the Delta. To advance this, the program partnered with the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS) in 2021, offering training in reproducible research and open-source tools. These efforts reflect the program’s dedication to open science and informed decision-making. At the June meeting of the Delta Stewardship Council, Henry DeBey, Deputy Executive Officer for Science at the Delta Stewardship Council, and Maggie Chrisman, Program Manager for the Science Communication and Synthesis Unit, highlighted the importance of synthesis in addressing complex ecological challenges and shared updates on the program’s ongoing efforts to integrate data, foster collaboration, and advance open science principles in the Delta. … ” Continue reading from Maven’s Notebook.
CEQA Reform: AB 130 and SB 131 create series of exemptions for wide range of projects
“On June 30, 2025, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law budget trailer bills AB 130 and SB 131, which take effect immediately. Together, these bills create multiple new California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) exemptions to streamline the approval of a variety of projects. SB 131 creates a wide range of new, statutory CEQA exemptions, which differ from categorical CEQA exemptions in that the many exceptions that apply to categorical exemptions––such as the “unusual circumstances” exception––do not apply. These new statutory exemptions are summarized in the table, below. … ” Read more from Brownstein & Hyatt.
In commentary this week …
Why California’s agricultural industry is at odds over converting land to solar farms
Columnist Dan Walters writes, “The Imperial Irrigation District, which provides water to farmers in the southeastern corner of California, drew a figurative line in the sand earlier this month, calling for a halt to the conversion of agricultural fields into solar panel farms. Noting that more than 13,000 acres of fertile land had already been converted, the water district asked the Imperial County Board of Supervisors to protect productive farmland. “Our identity and economy in the Imperial Valley are rooted in agriculture,” Gina Dockstader, who chairs the district board, said in a statement. “Solar energy has a role in our region’s future, but it cannot come at the cost of our farmland, food supply, or the families who depend on agriculture. This resolution is about protecting our way of life.” … ” Read more from Cal Matters.
Stay hopeful, my friends
Geoff Vanden Heuvel, Director of Regulatory and Economic Affairs for the Milk Producers Council, writes, “Tucked away in the Big Beautiful Bill is a billion dollars of grant money to pay for “construction and associated activities that restore or increase the capacity or use of existing conveyance facilities constructed by the Bureau of Reclamation or for construction and associated activities that increase the capacity of existing Bureau of Reclamation surface water storage facilities.” Interestingly the final sentence of the section states: “None of the funds provided under this section shall be reimbursable or subject to matching or cost-sharing requirements.” This is a very significant federal investment in western water infrastructure. The need is much larger than this, but this money will help to leverage further investment by state and local participants. … ” Read more from the Milk Producers Council.
Protecting the Delta can help our aquifer
The Desert Sun editorial board writes, “The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is nearly 500 miles away from the Coachella Valley. And there is no direct connection between the valley and the State Water Project. But state and local water officials tell us the Bay Delta Conservation Plan is critical to the future of our valley and the campaign to replenish our aquifer. The Coachella Valley Water District and the Desert Water Agency held a workshop this week to discuss the plan, which has been in development for seven years. Some participants made a pitch to The Desert Sun editorial board. Although it’s an expensive proposition — the preliminary estimate is $24.54 billion — and would take at least a decade to complete, they make a convincing case. … ” Read more from the Desert Sun.
Policymakers must protect CA waters from federal deregulation
Martha Guzman, former US Environmental Protection Agency Region 9 Administrator, writes, “If there is one thing the new Trump Administration has proven it’s that our precious democracy can go through great fluctuations depending on who resides in the White House. … The Supreme Court’s now-infamous Sackett v. EPA decision dramatically reduced the reach of the Clean Water Act, leaving many formerly protected waterways and wetlands much harder to protect from pollution, especially in the West. Fortunately, we have leadership in California to ensure this seismic disruption in policy is muted by a response that could expedite how state law will capture the same protections that federal clean water permits once did. SB 601 (Allen), also known as The Right to Clean Water Act, attempts to piece back together the regulatory system established under the federal Clean Water Act over the past five decades. … ” Read more from Capitol Weekly.
Can Clear Lake be saved? New hope for Northern California’s vital resource
Eric Sklar, chair of the Blue Ribbon Committee for the Rehabilitation of Clear Lake, and Sarah Ryan, environmental director of the Big Valley Band of Pomo Indians, write, “Clear Lake remains in crisis, but there is new reason for hope. Once a jewel of Northern California, this ancient lake has been choking on past pollution and toxic blooms for decades. Thanks to new state investment, there’s finally momentum toward action. What’s at stake isn’t just the lake’s beauty, but the health, heritage and water security of an entire region. For nearly 50 years, harmful algal blooms have plagued Clear Lake due to nutrient pollution and warming temperatures. These blooms are more than just unsightly and exceedingly malodorous. They pose real and growing risks to the people who live around the lake and depend on it every day. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
Do you want Sacramento to look like Orange County? It could happen
Opinion writer Tom Philp writes, “Descending in a jet that is about to land at Sacramento International Airport offers a reminder of why the state capital is a special place. There is the downtown skyline, then a bucolic stretch of the Sacramento River, vast swaths of farmland, and then suddenly the runway. The descent years from now may feel more like landing in suburban Orange County because Sacramento County has given the green light to consider thousands of acres of farmland for growth. The Natomas Basin isn’t some barren, lifeless landscape. The 50,000-some acres of land surrounding this airport are home to 22 different protected species, some of them endangered. Recognizing this land’s importance to both the valley environment and the economy, an existing growth/habitat plan for the last two decades has sought to carefully balance both values. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
Using floodwaters to combat groundwater loss in Fresno and the Central Valley
Tom Holyoke, professor of political science at CSU Fresno, and Laura Ramos, director of the California Water Institute at CSU Fresno, write, “A recent story published in The Fresno Bee raised eyebrows: It claimed that climate change trends are going to make the San Joaquin Valley increasingly dangerous to live in, which means homeowners insurance will become difficult and expensive to get. While there have been some skeptical reactions to this report, from the organization First Street, over the way its models predict long-term devastation for Fresno, it does make a few important points. The report argues that climate change is exacerbating three dangerous trends: fire, wind and flooding, with flooding being the most destructive. Even if the magnitude of these threats is uncertain, we largely agree with the assessment that these are the biggest challenges the Central Valley faces (not just the city of Fresno). But if flooding is the biggest threat, it may also be our greatest opportunity. … ” Read more from the Fresno Bee.
In regional water news this week …
Sonoma County officials try to assuage water-shortage fears sparked by Potter Valley Project decommissioning plan
“When it comes to the planned decommissioning of PG&E’s Potter Valley Project ― the hydroelectric power plant and two related dams in Northern California ― there seem to be two schools of thought in Sonoma County. One: Save the dams, at all costs. Protest! Reach out to President Donald Trump! Try anything. Two: Accept the inevitable, at all costs. Prepare! Plan for storage! Try anything. Now, as Pacific Gas & Electric Co. prepares to file its plans by July 29 to the federal government to decommission the project, the rift between those two schools is widening. The chasm was on display during a July 1 town hall hosted by the Sonoma County Farm Bureau at the Finley Community Center in Santa Rosa.“Dams should not be removed,” said Dayna Ghirardelli, executive director of the Sonoma County Farm Bureau. “There are still many unanswered questions and concerns.” … ” Read more from the Press Democrat.
Suisun Marsh, a zone of potential in sinking ecosystem
“Every few years, it seems, we remember Suisun Marsh. Not that this unique middle chamber of the San Francisco Estuary is ever forgotten; it’s just that, like a relatively quiet child in a troubled family, it can slip into the background. Suisun is a bit downstream from the Delta tunnel battles, a bit upstream from the worst urban sea-level rise concerns. The managed wetlands at the heart of the 107,000 acres legally defined as Suisun, though different from the tidal marshes of the past, support thousands of waterfowl and also pump out food for fish. Suisun is part of what biologists call the North Delta Habitat Arc, a sweep of relatively healthy waters and wetlands running from the marsh eastward past Sherman Island and on up the Sacramento to the Cache-Lindsey Complex and the southern Yolo Bypass. In a stubbornly declining Delta ecosystem, it is a zone of potential, even hope. But two things are moving Suisun back into the news: a fresh report from the San Francisco Estuary Institute, and the prospect of major development along the marsh’s borders. … ” Read more from Maven’s Notebook.
Levee project could transform Sacramento stretch of the American River. Some community members want it stopped
“It’s a sunny weekday morning and Joshua Thomas is walking down a trail along the American River in Sacramento. Massive oak trees shade this trail on the south bank of the river near Watt Avenue. He points to one that is hundreds of years old and named Odin. Thomas said it’s the largest tree on this stretch of the river. “That tree is marked for removal,” Thomas said. “That’s where they’re going to put the access ramp.” The Army Corps of Engineers is planning to remove that tree, he said, along with hundreds of others as part of a levee reinforcement project, called the American River Common Features Project. This section of the project—upstream from Sacramento State’s campus—still needs approval from the Central Valley Flood Protection Board, which is voting on it Friday. … ” Read more from Capital Public Radio.
Esparto fireworks blast spewed toxic fumes on Yolo County crops. What’s next?
“The Yolo County Environmental Health Division and state agencies will analyze soil in valuable agricultural fields after a fireworks explosion earlier this month at an Esparto warehouse spewed toxic fumes on nearby crops. The July 1 explosion killed seven people and leveled structures as fireworks burst into the air, sending black plumes across land that has grown almonds, mulberries, tomatoes and peppers. Work to identify and remove hazardous materials began by clearing solid debris before testing the soil for contaminants, Yolo County spokesperson Laura Galindo said this week. “At this time, evaluations are ongoing and no final determinations have been made,” Galindo wrote in an email. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
Lead cable removal project’s final phase planned for fall
“Project partners are returning to Baldwin Beach this upcoming fall to tackle the final phase of lead cable removal, pulling out the last 75 feet of the nearly 100 year old cable system. It’s the final leg of removal after a barge crew pulled around eight miles of cable from Lake Tahoe’s depths in November. The remaining length of cable runs from the sand on Baldwin Beach, and into the land. Depending on the water level, the capped and enclosed end can be underwater. It marks where the project’s first phase stopped and the second phase will begin. The project required two different permits, which necessitated the two-part removal. The USDA Forest Service is the lead permitting agency on this final phase at Baldwin Beach. Removal is currently scheduled for September or October. It was originally announced for spring 2025. … ” Read more from the Tahoe Daily Tribune.
Mono Lake has seen a shocking change. Experts trace it to a wet California winter
“Every spring, tens of thousands of California gulls, some from the Bay Area, leave their home on the coast for a lengthy flight over the Sierra Nevada to summer at Mono Lake. There, the next generation of birds is born. Last year, however, long-simmering problems with the gull population exploded into view. The number of chicks that hatched at Mono Lake dropped to its lowest level on record: just 324 birds, down from about 11,000 chicks the prior year, according to a new report by the research group Point Blue Conservation Science. The dramatic decline is not only raising questions about the future of the gulls, but it’s rekindling concern about how the iconic lake 200 miles from San Francisco is being managed. … “We kind of thought, oh, the gull (numbers) are up and down, but now we know they’re really slipping,” said Bartshé Miller, Eastern Sierra policy director for the Mono Lake Committee, a longtime advocacy for the lake. “This is one of the reasons for getting the lake level higher, sooner.” Miller added, “The assumption has been that the lake is saved. That’s what a lot of people think. That’s clearly not the case.” … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
Fresno County irrigation district proposes large fee hike to help it capture more Kings River flood water
“Growers in southern Fresno County are facing a possible 137% increase in land assessment fees that the Consolidated Irrigation District hopes will help it nearly double its recharge capacity and capture more Kings River flood water. Consolidated, which covers about 141,000 acres in central southern Fresno County, is holding a Proposition 218 election, which is required before increasing land assessment or pumping fees, Aug. 5 to raise its assessment fees from $55 per acre to a maximum of $126 per acre for growers who get surface water. Those fees will fund new projects to gather more flood water off the Kings River during wet years and repair aging canals. Consolidated also acts as the Central Kings Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA) and is tasked with managing the area’s groundwater to bring aquifers into balance by 2040, per the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
California’s highest court to hear Kern River case
“For the first time in more than 100 years, the Kern River is headed back to the California Supreme Court where justices may overturn or uphold an order mandating flows be kept in the riverbed through Bakersfield. The high court announced Wednesday that it would grant review of a 5th District Court of Appeal’s ruling that overturned a Kern County Superior Court judge’s order mandating water be kept in the river for fish. The 5th District’s ruling was also “published,” meaning it can be used as legal precedent in other, similar cases. The Kern River plaintiffs asked the Supreme Court to review the 5th District’s ruling and have it depublished. Justices granted review but declined to depublish the ruling. Instead, justices said the 5th District’s Kern River ruling could stand, pending their review. And that the ruling could be cited as both an authoritative precedent as well as to show there is a conflict of authorities and that it was up to trial courts to then “choose between sides of any such conflict.” The end result, observers said, may be to essentially to defang the 5th District’s ruling without actually having it depublished. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
Inside the ‘revolutionary’ new Colorado River proposal
“In the contentious talks over how states will split the shrinking Colorado River, negotiators are reaching consensus on one point: Just go with the “natural flow.” The concept is a somewhat simple one. Instead of negotiating future cuts across the entire seven-state region, the process would rely on recent water records — the amount of water flowing from the Colorado River headwaters in the Upper Basin to a point in Arizona marking the boundary of the Lower Basin states. Negotiators recently heralded the move as a potential breakthrough in the long-stalled talks: It could help end a stalemate over how to share the pain of future water reductions and at the same time respond to the impacts of climate change. But that belies a set of lingering questions. For one, just determining the water in the river will require complex calculations relying on evolving research. Even more critically, there’s no indication negotiators are close on the particularly difficult issue of deciding how big a share of water each group of states can claim. Still, observers say it could mark an important change. … ” Read more from E&E News.
The Colorado River’s top climate expert is worried
“President Donald Trump may be erasing the words “climate change” from federal websites and moving to shut down climate science programs, but he can’t ignore the problems climate change is causing along the Colorado River. With current rules governing how states split the river’s water for farming and drinking set to expire at the end of next year and states at loggerheads over new ones, the West’s most important waterway is handing the Trump administration its first climate crisis as its levels have reached critical lows. No one knows that better than Brad Udall, a senior water and climate research scientist at Colorado State University’s Colorado Water Institute. Udall has studied the Colorado River for three decades and made it his mission to explain the science in a way that works for policymakers. “It’s hard to describe just how bad this is,” Udall said of the trajectory for the Colorado River, which supplies 40 million people, including nearly half of Californians and the agricultural engine of the Imperial Valley. Already the river has shrunk 20 percent since 2000 as temperatures have risen. … ” Read more from Politico.
Announcements, notices, and funding opportunities …
MAKING CONSERVATION A CA WAY OF LIFE: Variance and temporary provision materials and webinar announcement
NOTICE of Document Availability – Proposed Adoption of Water Measurement and Reporting Regulation Revisions
