A wrap-up of posts published on Maven’s Notebook this week …
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In California water news this week …
Major storm could drench California — or miss much of the state. Here are the odds
“A multi-day rainstorm from San Francisco to Los Angeles, or quick-hitting showers that only brush California. Those are just two possible outcomes for next week’s weather across the Golden State as a complex atmospheric pattern over North America throws a giant wrench in the forecast. Despite the uncertainty, there is growing confidence that a storm will impact much of California by Thursday, potentially the rainiest of any storm so far this season. At a minimum, a “prolonged rain session,” is possible in the Bay Area, lasting through next weekend, said National Weather Service meteorologist Brayden Murdock. Here’s what to know about the weather pattern shaping up over California next week … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
Groundwater agencies squabble as state announces restart of sanctions against Tulare Lake subbasin
“Two neighboring groundwater agencies in Kings County are preparing for a showdown over how much farmers can pump even as the state Water Resources Control Board restarted probationary sanctions for farmers in the Tulare Lake subbasin. Farmers will be required to report how much they pumped from July 14, 2024 through Sept. 25, 2025 by May 1, 2026, according to a Water Board press release issued Friday evening. Fees of $20-per-acre-foot pumped won’t be far behind. “Following the extraction reporting deadline, the (Water Board) will send fee invoices. Fees for first reports will be due 30 days after the invoice date,” the release states. This comes after the Fifth District Court of Appeal on Wednesday tossed out a preliminary injunction issued by a Kings County judge that had held those, and other, probationary sanctions at bay for the past year. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
SEE ALSO: State Water Board extends groundwater extraction reporting deadlines for Tulare Lake Subbasin, press release from the State Water Board
Open-source tools, shared success: White paper highlights groundwater innovation in action
“The California Water Data Consortium, Environmental Defense Fund, Environmental Science Associates, and Olsson have released a new white paper documenting how the California Department of Water Resources’ (DWR) investment in open-source groundwater tools is accelerating implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) across diverse basins in the state. As GSAs transition from SGMA planning to implementation, they face several common challenges: how to make complex water data accessible to growers, how to build trust while introducing new policies, and how to avoid reinventing tools that other agencies have already developed. “Groundwater Accounting Platform — Real-World Impact from DWR Investment in Open, Scalable SGMA Tools” provides concrete solutions drawn from six diverse pilot deployments spanning different basin types, governance structures, and management priorities. … ” Continue reading this press release.
Stuck in the mud: Groundwater markets struggle to gain traction under SGMA
“Across critically overdrafted groundwater basins, groundwater market development has faced significant hurdles. These include challenges with determining allocations and resistance to trade due to fears of consolidation and the loss of small-scale farming. As a result, we find that there has been minimal progress, despite the fact that trading could substantially reduce the costs of SGMA compliance and maintain more land in agriculture.” Read the article from the Giannini Foundation for Agricultural Economics.
‘Emerging threat’: An invasive species is upending life in the Delta, with no help on the way
“Spurts of goo oozed between Jeff Wingfield’s fingers as he methodically crushed a handful of golden mussels, popping the shells of the tiny invaders like bubblewrap. “You can just push your way right through them,” said Wingfield from the dock where he stood at the Port of Stockton, looking down at the thimble-sized debris in his palm. Last October, a couple of miles down the Stockton Deepwater Shipping Channel, state water managers first discovered that golden mussels had invaded North America. Seeing how fast they’ve multiplied in the last year “was like a gut punch,” said Wingfield, a deputy director at the port. The mussels are infamous for voracious appetites that fuel their rapid growth. Now, state and local water managers are battling to keep golden mussels from reaching uninfested lakes and reservoirs. They’re racing to keep them from damaging the pumping facilities that send Delta water to farms and cities in Central and Southern California. But here, in the web of waterways where the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers meet, a new reality is setting in. Thick colonies of the mussels already coat boats and piers and threaten water supplies for cities and farms. … ” Read more from Cal Matters.
With the rise of AI, California’s data centers require more water, energy. But by how much?
“California legislators considered dozens of bills related to artificial intelligence this year. That’s a number that’s climbed quickly over the last couple years as lawmakers grapple with the technology’s increasing presence — and possible negative impacts. And one growing point of concern involves generative AI’s relationship with state resources as the technology becomes everyday life for Californians. Experts say generative AI is driving up energy and water demands at data centers. But the question is: By how much? … ” Read more from Capital Public Radio.
Cal WATRS: A new era of transparency and efficiency in water rights
“The launch of Cal WATRS—California Water Accounting, Tracking, and Reporting System—marks a new era in water rights management in California. Replacing the outdated eWRIMS platform, this state-of-the-art system delivers faster, more transparent, and more efficient tools for both water rights holders and the State Water Board. For the first time, water rights holders will file their annual reports through Cal WATRS this year, marking a significant milestone in the system’s rollout. … ” Read more from Maven’s Notebook.
Senate Bill 72 Bolsters California Water Plan and advances long-term water supply goals
Nick Shockey / California Department of Water Resources
“In 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom released California’s Water Supply Strategy, outlining necessary actions for the state to adapt to a hotter, drier future where the changing climate leaves less water to meet California’s needs. Since then, California water managers have been looking at ways to address the fact that the warming climate means that when storms do come, a greater share of that rain and snow will be absorbed by dry soils, consumed by thirsty plants, or evaporate into the air. As a result, the state will see less water going into our streams, rivers, and reservoirs, creating a new strain on our water supply, especially during the dry summer months. In October, Governor Newsom and the legislature gave the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) an important opportunity to tackle this problem. … ” Read moire from DWR.
10 U.S. Cities quietly rewilding their rivers – salmon and sturgeon return
“While most Americans focus on flashy infrastructure projects like highways and airports, something remarkable is quietly happening beneath the surface of our cities. Across the United States, urban communities are embracing an unexpected mission: restoring their forgotten waterways to their wild origins. From the bustling streets of Portland to the industrial heartland of Chicago, cities are demolishing outdated dams, removing concrete barriers, and watching in amazement as native fish species return home after decades of exile. Fish can return to newly accessible habitat within days or weeks once rivers regain their freedom, according to restoration experts. These aren’t just feel-good environmental projects either. The return of salmon and sturgeon represents millions of years of evolutionary wisdom finding its way back to urban landscapes, creating vibrant ecosystems that benefit both wildlife and communities. So let’s dive into the stories of ten cities that are proving urban rewilding isn’t just a dream – it’s happening right now. … ” Read more from Newsbreak.
Of Pistachios and Water Features: What might be included in the SB 131’s CEQA exemption for advanced manufacturing may surprise you
Eric Biber, a specialist in conservation biology, land-use planning and public lands law, writes, “One of the most controversial provisions of SB 131, which created a range of new CEQA exemptions, was an exemption for “a facility for advanced manufacturing, as defined in Section 26003, if the project is located on a site zoned exclusively for industrial uses.” But what on earth might that cover? Is this a broad or narrow exemption? What kinds of projects are we exempting from environmental review? With a term like advanced manufacturing, you might suspect projects relating to semiconductors, maybe batteries and electric vehicles, or robotics. And the definition of “advanced manufacturing” in Section 26003 (both as amended in legislation this year, and the text in place before that amendment, the relevant definition was enacted in 2012 in SB 1128) seems to invoke those kind of projects, but is also fairly vague and broad … ” Read more from the Legal Planet.
The future of data centers
“Artificial intelligence is the transformative technology of our time. As argued in the Brookings Press book, “Turning Point: Policymaking in the Era of Artificial Intelligence,” it is powering applications in finance, health care, education, transportation, defense, and e-commerce, among other sectors. AI’s ability to process large amounts of information and act independently on that basis is altering communications, service delivery, financial transactions, administrative processing, and a host of other areas. Undergirding this growing use of AI is the need for state-of-the-art data centers. This paper examines the future of these entities. It examines what they are, their numbers and distribution, the different types of centers, financial investments, barriers to development, workforce impacts, economic implications, and considerations for guiding their future growth. Briefly, we argue for a framework for data centers that addresses challenges such as access to critical minerals, workforce shortages, community benefits, permitting reforms, energy and water needs, electric grid investment, national security considerations, and geographical placement. Improvements in these areas will be crucial to ensuring a smooth transition to a digital economy. … ” Read more from the Brookings Institution.
UV light holds promise for energy-efficient desalination
“A team of UC Riverside researchers has uncovered a potential breakthrough in solar desalination that could reduce the need for energy-intensive saltwater treatment. Led by Luat Vuong, an associate professor of mechanical engineering in UCR’s Marlan and Rosemary Bourns College of Engineering, the team has demonstrated for the first time how the highest frequencies of sunlight—specifically invisible ultraviolet (UV) light—can break the stubborn bonds between salt and water. “To our knowledge, nobody else has yet articulated this deep UV channel for salt-water separation,” Vuong said. “UV light in the wavelength range of 300-400 nanometers is used for disinfection, but this deep UV channel around 200 nanometers is not well known. We may be the first to really think about how you can leverage it for desalination.” … ” Read more from UC Riverside.
Fix Our Forests Act divides environmental community
“A new bill poised to pass the Senate after clearing the House will govern how the federal government thins, burns and otherwise manages nearly 200 million acres of the nation’s forests. The Fix Our Forests Act, sponsored by U.S. Sens. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., John Curtis, R-Utah, Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., and Alex Padilla, D-Calif., passed out of Senate committee recently in a rare show of bipartisan support, with 18 senators in favor and only five opposed. “There is a wildfire crisis across much of the country — our communities need action now,” said Hickenlooper in a news release. “Wildfires won’t wait.” The proposed legislation — the first major congressional effort to fight wildfires in recent history — includes provisions that promote prescribed burning and forest thinning in fire-prone areas along with working with communities to create defensible space around vulnerable homes. The bill formally recognizes wetlands as buffers against wildfires and encourages cross-boundary programs among counties, states and tribes. It also reauthorizes the 2009 Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program, which provides money for groups working together on fire mitigation and forest health, said Michael O’Casey, public-lands director for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. … ” Read more from High Country News.
Thinning, burning forests provide multiple benefits, some of them surprising
“Wildfires are growing more frequent and severe across the western United States, and California’s Sierra Nevada is ground zero. Decades of fire suppression have left these forests overstocked and vulnerable to catastrophic fires, drought and pest outbreaks. Beyond destroying homes and infrastructure, high-severity wildfires release massive amounts of carbon, degrade water quality, erode soils, reduce timber supply and fill the air with hazardous smoke that threatens public health. A team of researchers from UC Merced and collaborating institutions has published a study showing that fuels treatment such as mechanical thinning and prescribed burning can dramatically reduce wildfire risks and produce measurable economic benefits across four major ecosystem services: carbon storage, timber provisioning, erosion regulation and air-quality protection. The paper was published in Science of the Total Environment, an international multidisciplinary science journal. … ” Read more from UC Merced.
In commentary this week …
New California law will set valley water targets. Can we meet the goal?
Tom Holyoke, professor of political science at Fresno State; and Laura Ramos, director of the California Water Institute at Fresno State, write, “Earlier this month, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 72 into law: a piece of legislation that may be of particular importance for both our region and the state. If predictions by stakeholders about SB 72, authored by Sen. Anna Caballero, D-Merced, turn out to be true, this new law might amount to a minor revolution in state water planning. The way California currently handles its contentious water policy feels like little more than quick — and seemingly ill-thought out — reactions to whatever the latest crisis may be. This new law, however, will require the Department of Water Resources to set specific targets for the amount of water to be provided for urban and agricultural use by 2050, as well as the needs of the state’s tribes and its environment. Notably, what appears revolutionary about this new law is that by setting long-range targets for the major sectors of water use, policymakers can track the state’s progress toward attaining goals and make adjustments and improvements along the way as needed to reach them. … ” Continue reading this commentary.
California salmon die in a place most don’t know exists. That’s a problem
Opinion writer Tom Philp writes, “In California’s dry years, it’s common for most young salmon to die in a place that few of us know exists. This is a vast region roughly the size of Rhode Island. It is where the rivers of the western Sierra Nevada merge in the heart of the state before heading to San Francisco Bay. It was once a safe haven for salmon, nature’s perfect rest stop. Its marshlands offered endless places to hide and feast. Now it’s too often a death trap. Reconfigured to be almost unrecognizable from its original form, the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is now a channeled landscape devoid of nearly all its marshes. Now, salmon can get eaten by larger non-native fish that don’t belong there, or are drawn toward massive pumping facilities, or face starvation or rising spring water temperatures thanks to climate change. Two-thirds of California residents depend on the Delta for water. Yet one survey found that 78 percent didn’t know that the Delta even exists. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
Salmon’s comeback pits nature against Trump administration
Jacques Leslie writes, “For the first time in more than a century, migrating salmon have climbed close to the headwaters of the Klamath River’s most far-flung tributaries, as much as 360 miles from the Pacific Ocean in south-central Oregon. The achievement is the clearest indication yet that the world’s largest dam removal project, completed on the river a year ago, will yield major benefits for salmon, the river ecosystem, and the tribes and commercial fishers whose lives revolve around the fish. … Unfortunately, every positive development in the embattled Klamath basin seems to come with a catch, and the catch this time is ominous: The Trump administration has shown disregard for the salmons’ well-being, cutting already allocated funding for needed ongoing river restoration, fish-monitoring and fire-prevention projects, and firing the federal officials who helped facilitate them. Even worse, in the event of drought — which has plagued the basin for most of this century — the administration has signaled that it intends to drastically reduce the river flows that salmon need so that upper-basin farmers get full water allocations. If that happens, the fish would be more vulnerable to disease, such as the one in 2002 that left tens of thousands of salmon carcasses on the shores on the lower Klamath River in the biggest fish die-off in the history of the American West. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
C-WIN: Follow the Money: A commentary series on California’s corrupt water politics and policies
Carolee Krieger, President and Executive Director of the California Water Impact Network, writes, “California’s water policy history is a skewed obverse of the Robin Hood story. The State has taken from the poor – low-income ratepayers, small farmers, tribal and underserved communities, the fishing sector – and given to the rich: wealthy Central Valley corporate growers and Southern California developers. As California’s population and agricultural production grew in the early 20th Century, state officials developed plans to divert most of the water from Northern California to the Central Valley and Southern California’s burgeoning cities. With support from the federal government, the Central Valley Project (CVP) was completed in the 1930s to supply water to the valley’s agricultural dynasties. Spurred by Southern California’s explosive growth following World War II, state officials subsequently hatched plans for a sister project to the CVP: the State Water Project (SWP). … ” Read more from the California Water Impact Network.
Biggest illusion in California is what water use and development does and doesn’t do
Dennis Wyatt, editor of the Manteca Bulletin, writes, “Water is a mirage in California. We tend to see what we want to see. In my case, the biggest illusion was Auburn Dam. If you were a resident of Placer County in the 1960s to 1980s, you viewed it as almost as a birthright that the American River be dammed in the canyon below Auburn. The fact that a previously unknown earthquake fault was detected running right beneath where work had started on the dam’s foundation wouldn’t shake your faith that the dam thing needed to be built. The proposed 2.3 million acre feet of water storage — just 100,000 acre feet less than New Melones on the Stanislaus River — was the last big dam envisioned for the Central Valley Water Project. It was supposed to do wonderful things, such as combine water captured behind Auburn Dam to allow deep plowing in the valley floor west of Roseville and Lincoln to turn it into a productive farming area rivaling segments of the San Joaquin Valley. … ” Read more from the Manteca Bulletin.
California can’t afford to go backward on wildfire prevention
Bob Dean, Business Manager, IBEW Local 1245, writes, “Wildfires in California are no longer a seasonal threat; they have become a year-round crisis. Over the past decade, they’ve destroyed tens of thousands of homes, claimed hundreds of lives, and burned more than 7 million acres. Today, one in eight Californians lives in a high or very high fire-hazard zone, and insurance companies are pulling out of the state, leaving families and businesses unable to protect what they’ve built. That’s the reality that led lawmakers to pass SB 884 in 2022, a landmark law requiring utilities to submit 10-year undergrounding plans to permanently reduce wildfire risk. The goal was to move from reactive, project-by-project fixes to a coordinated statewide plan that hardens the grid, improves reliability, and keeps communities safe. … ” Read more from Capitol Weekly.
Why we need environmental regulations
Nicholas Crane Moore writes, “Throughout the 2024 campaign, Donald Trump and his conservative colleagues told audiences that, if elected, they would fight with all their power to free voters from the tyranny of environmental regulations. In other words, they promised to make their constituents’ water less safe and their air less clean. In the wake of the election, they’re proceeding to make good on those promises. A lot has changed since a largely bipartisan effort spearheaded passage of modern environmental regulations in the 1960s and 1970s. Laws like the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act were once widely applauded as necessary solutions to a problem affecting all Americans. Now they’re derided as pet projects of special interests. Even some progressives seem scared of the word “regulation.” How did we get here? … ” Read more from The Revelator.
In regional water news this week …
California county must face claims it deprived Asian residents of water
“Northern California’s Siskiyou County took another hit Tuesday when a federal judge denied its summary judgment motion in a case over residents’ claims they’re not getting the water they need. The putative class — many of whom are Asian American and live in a part of the rural county called Shasta Vista — sued in 2022, claiming Siskiyou County and Sheriff Jeremiah LaRue have used discriminatory traffic stops and improper search and seizure methods. They also claim officials have used water ordinances to deprive them in an area with no public water system. County officials have said the local ordinances that prevent the transfer of water to the Shasta Vista residents are needed to combat illegal cannabis grows. But the plaintiffs contend they’re used against a minority population that needs water. Under a preliminary injunction, the county is currently blocked from enforcing the water ordinances. However, that order doesn’t require inaction by the county if people use groundwater to grow cannabis illegally. … ” Read more from the Courthouse News Service.
Sacramento water agencies invest in future with major groundwater recharge effort
“In a major stride toward water sustainability, the Regional Water Authority (RWA) has announced that Sacramento-area water providers banked 35,231 acre-feet — nearly 11.5 billion gallons — of water in the Sacramento Regional Water Bank during 2024. This reserve could supply approximately 105,700 households for a year. The Water Bank is a vital network of wells, pumps, and pipelines that allows local agencies to store surplus surface water in underground aquifers. These aquifers are key to adapting the region’s water system to climate change impacts, including shrinking snowpack and more frequent droughts and floods. “Once again, water banking has proven to be an effective solution for storing water that will be available when it’s needed most,” said Jim Peifer, RWA Executive Director. “In a year with near-average conditions in the American River watershed, local water providers were still able to bank a significant amount of water to support both our communities and the environment during dry periods.” … ” Read more from Smart Water Magazine.
Marin reservoirs plentiful ahead of La Niña winter
“Thanks to three consecutive wet years, Marin’s reservoirs are above average levels headed into a brewing La Niña winter, officials said. Last month, federal forecasters said La Niña has arrived and is expected to continue through the winter. The phenomenon, which happens when Pacific Ocean waters off South America are cooler than normal, has been thought to signal a drier season, but experts say the impact in Northern California is less severe — and maybe even inconsequential — compared to southern parts of the state. “We are observing La Niña conditions, but at this point it’s quite uncertain what that means for us,” Lucy Croy, water resources manager at the Marin Municipal Water District, said Tuesday while providing a water supply outlook to the district board. “It could mean wet, it could mean slightly dry, but we’ll hopefully get a few atmospheric rivers to keep things wet.” … ” Read more from the Marin Independent Journal.
Livermore: Water board orders a closer look at possible airport PFAS contamination
“The San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board last week required the City of Livermore to look deeper into possible releases of PFAS, or forever chemicals, at Livermore Municipal Airport. The order came after an investigation report prepared on behalf of the city suggested that the airport contributed little PFAS to the area’s groundwater contamination. PFAS are a class of several thousand synthetic chemicals previously used in a wide range of applications. They have since been linked to adverse health effects in humans, such as decreased fertility, immune-system damage and some cancers. According to an Oct. 13 report prepared by Geosyntec Consultants, Inc. for the city, testing conducted between July 15 and Aug. 7 found PFAS only “within typical background ranges” in airport soil samples. Those results suggested that the contamination in the area’s aquifer did not originate from the use of the PFAS-containing firefighting foam known as aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), a common PFAS source at airports and firefighting facilities. … ” Read more from the Livermore Independent.
Stanislaus County reconsiders sale of tax-delinquent parcels at Diablo Grande
“Stanislaus County supervisors postponed a decision Tuesday on holding a sale of tax-delinquent properties. The decision came at the urging of Diablo Grande community leaders who said the auction would dash hopes of resolving a water crisis. Mark Kovich, president of the Western Hills Water District, said the property sale would eliminate any chances for future development at the resort community on the county’s West Side. The district is in the middle of negotiations to secure an affordable water source for the 600 homes at Diablo Grande, as well as water for developing 1,600 additional homes there. More than 90 of the 173 parcels scheduled for a county tax sale Feb. 23 are under the name of Western Hills Water District, which is responsible for water, sewer and other services at Diablo Grande. The total tax debt on the 173 parcels is $5.1 million. … ” Read more from the Modesto Bee.
New Tulare County groundwater agency picks through rubble of the past for what might work in the future
“Board members of the nascent Tule East groundwater agency spent their second meeting setting up basics but with an eye on the clock and a sensitive ear to what didn’t work in the past. The Tule East Joint Powers Authority Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA), will take over governance of so-called “white lands” from the embattled Eastern Tule GSA. White lands are parcels outside of water district boundaries and rely almost exclusively on groundwater. As Tule East board members discussed establishing the GSA’s bank account, setting regular meeting dates and refining its boundaries at their Oct. 30 meeting, farmer Julie Inestroza reminded them of a larger obligation. “I’m just cautioning you to not try to do the same thing that had already been done and has not worked because the state is not happy, growers are not happy and only a few people benefitted from it,” Inestroza said. “The biggest challenge has been the forgotten grower.” … ” Read more from SJV Water.
DWP Commission links local water supply expansion to Mono Lake protection
“The October 28 Los Angeles Department of Water & Power (DWP) Board of Commissioners meeting was a watershed moment for the future of Los Angeles—and Mono Lake. To applause from the packed audience, Commissioners approved a major expansion of the Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant in Van Nuys to recycle 40 million gallons of water per day. That volume is significantly more than what DWP diverts from Mono Lake and DWP Commission President Richard Katz underscored that this “new” local water means the city will have the capacity to raise Mono Lake to the healthy, mandated 6,392-foot level by reducing water diversions from Mono Lake and in the Owens Valley. Katz declared “This is a solution with a lot of winners.” Once the recycled water starts flowing, he said “we won’t need Mono Lake water to meet the supplies in LA.” … ” Read more from LA DWP.
Metropolitan and Yorba Linda Water District dedicate new helicopter hydrant to strengthen regional wildfire response
“The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and the Yorba Linda Water District celebrated today the dedication of a new helicopter hydrant at the Robert B. Diemer Water Treatment Plant – providing firefighters a new, strategically located water source for aerial fire suppression. More than 100 community stakeholders and dignitaries attended the dedication ceremony, highlighting a shared appreciation and commitment to wildfire preparedness, regional collaboration, and public safety. The new helicopter hydrant represents a milestone in interagency cooperation, bringing together Metropolitan and YLWD to bolster Southern California’s wildfire response capabilities. Two existing helicopter hydrants within YLWD’s service area have already proven invaluable to the Orange County Fire Authority and CAL FIRE, supporting aerial firefighting operations that help protect nearby communities and fire-prone areas such as Chino Hills State Park. “As Southern California faces increasingly severe wildfires, this project reflects Metropolitan’s commitment to protecting public safety in communities across the region through innovation, and partnership,” Metropolitan Assistant General Manager John Bednarski said. “We’re working together to ensure critical, life-saving resources are in place to help first responders act swiftly when every second counts.” … ” Read more from the Metropolitan Water District.
LA County awards $24 million for stormwater capture projects in six cities
“Six cities in Los Angeles County’s Fourth District will receive a combined $24 million in grants to advance local stormwater capture and water quality improvement projects, Supervisor Janice Hahn announced this week. The funding, awarded through the Safe, Clean Water Program, will support new stormwater infrastructure in Downey, Long Beach, Lynwood, Norwalk, Paramount and Signal Hill. The program is funded by revenue from Measure W, a parcel tax approved by voters in 2018 that generates about $285 million annually for projects improving local water supply and resilience. “These projects are investments in the future of LA County,” said Hahn in a press release. “Not only will they allow us to capture, treat, and reuse millions more gallons of water, but they also give us an opportunity to improve our parks and make our green spaces more resilient for generations to come.” … ” Read more from Stormwater Solutions.
Long Beach begins process to implement a new trash capture system along LA River
“Long Beach is beginning the process of implementing a new trash capture system along the lower Los Angeles River, city officials said on Wednesday, Oct. 29, one of several efforts the city is making to prevent trash and debris from reaching the Long Beach coastline. City leaders say they are looking at local, regional and statewide solutions that combine innovation, collaboration, and environmental stewardship to tackle the issue and keep local beaches and waterways clean. The new trash capture system is a major step toward reducing the amount of debris that reaches Long Beach’s beaches during storm events, Mayor Rex Richardson said during a Wednesday morning press conference on Belmont Shore Beach. “The people of Long Beach are tired of seeing the region’s trash end up on our beaches,” Richardson said. “Today’s action is a major step toward lasting change.” … ” Read more from the Long Beach Press Telegram.
Volunteers beautify New River corridor with native trees and shrubs
“Volunteers gathered Saturday morning, Nov. 1, at the New River Wetlands just west of Calexico for a Community Action Day, spending the morning planting trees and improving habitat areas to help enhance the long-polluted river corridor. “We’re planting 1,600 trees, both mesquite trees as well as iodine bushes,” said Liliana Falomir, Calexico’s public works manager. Falomir said the tree planting is part of the city’s broader New River Improvement Project, which includes three main components: construction of a diversion structure, installation of a pump-back system and placement of a new sewer line to help reduce pollution flowing through the river. Falomir said the tree planting also serves to replace vegetation that was lost during construction. About 30% of the area’s native plants were removed to make way for the river improvement project, she said, and Saturday’s effort focused on replanting those trees and shrubs to restore the site’s natural landscape. … ” Read more from the Desert Review.
Trump EPA slashes 12 years off sewage cleanup crisis that has rocked California for decades
“The Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Thursday that it has shaved off additional months from construction efforts to resolve a chronic sewage crisis seeping into the San Diego area from Mexico. “The Trump Administration is doing everything in its power to urgently and permanently deliver the 100% solution to the Tijuana River Sewage Crisis that the residents of Southern California have demanded for decades,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said Thursday in a press release provided to Fox News Digital. Sewage has been flowing into San Diego from across the border in Tijuana, Mexico, going back decades. The situation has been described as a crisis by local leaders and residents, as the sewage impacts the city’s tourism and Naval Amphibious Base Coronado, where Navy SEALs train. … ” Continue reading from Fox News.
California projected to achieve lowest Colorado River use since 1949
“The Colorado River Board of California (CRB) announced today that California’s 2025 use of Colorado River water is projected to hit the lowest level since 1949, marking a historic milestone for the state and the Basin. The achievement reflects decades of investment, innovation, and collaboration by California’s water agencies, farmers, cities, and tribes to use less water while doing more. “California is showing what can be done through collaboration and a commitment to action,” said JB Hamby, Chairman of the Colorado River Board of California and California’s chief negotiator in Colorado River talks. “We’ve proven that net reductions do not preclude growth. Every state that shares this resource must take steps to reduce its use. The sustainability of the Colorado River is a shared responsibility,” said Hamby. California’s population has nearly quadrupled since the 1940s—from roughly 10 million to almost 40 million residents—while the state’s economy has expanded into a $4-trillion powerhouse, now the fifth largest in the world. California has also been the number one agricultural state in the Nation since 1947. Yet the Golden State’s Colorado River use is projected to fall to 3.76 million-acre feet, its lowest level in more than seven decades. … ” Read more from the Colorado River Board of California.
Navigating the future of the California and the Colorado River: Key challenges and negotiations
“At last week’s meeting of Metropolitan’s Imported Water Subcommittee, Metropolitan staff provided an overview of some of the key sticking points in the ongoing negotiations to establish operational rules for the Colorado River system when the current guidelines expire next year. The presentation covered the Colorado River’s structural deficit, the Lower Basin states proposal, and the Colorado River Compact. The presentations began with a high-level overview of the Lower Basin’s supply and demand imbalance, commonly referred to as the structural deficit. Laura Lamdin, Senior Engineer at Metropolitan, gave the presentation. … ” Continue reading this article from Maven’s Notebook.
Announcements, notices, and funding opportunities …
NOTICE: Draft 2025 UWMP Guidebook Release Public Meeting and Public Comment Period
STATE WATER BOARD: Completed Wastewater Needs Assessment (WWNA) Phase 1 Report Completed
