In California water news this weekend, California rain welcome, but not enough to keep up with groundwater demand; Big unfinished business for Trump: Colorado River deals, Salton Sea; UCLA scientists mark Trump’s inauguration with a plan to protect climate change data; Roseville, Placer to join Sites Reservoir effort: what it means for water storage plan; California considers ending emergency drought rules; Conservationists embrace new environmental tool: Water leasing; and more …
In the news this weekend …
California rain welcome, but not enough to keep up with groundwater demand: “State and local agencies have different views when it comes to the drought in California. On a local scale, heavy rains are making an immediate impact, but across the state groundwater is being pumped faster than it can be replenished. Robert Swartz with the Sacramento Groundwater Authority walked through the bushes behind a giant water tank at the dead end of Northrop Ave. He lifted the metal cap on the well monitor and lowered the measuring tape into the earth. ... ” Read more from CBS Sacramento here: California rain welcome, but not enough to keep up with groundwater demand
Big unfinished business for Trump: Colorado River deals, Salton Sea: “Two days before President Donald Trump’s inauguration, outgoing Interior Secretary Sally Jewell laid out a game plan for averting serious water shortages along the Colorado River. Jewell’s 10-page directive underscored the importance of concluding deals this year between California, Arizona and Nevada, as well as between the U.S. and Mexican governments, to share in reduced water deliveries to prevent reservoirs from falling to critical lows. Her announcement accompanied a separate accord in which the Interior Department pledged to coordinate with California officials to manage the shrinking Salton Sea – where one agency’s demands for a detailed plan to keep the lake from turning into a dust bowl have become a sticking point in the talks toward a three-state Colorado River deal. … ” Read more from the Desert Sun here: Big unfinished business for Trump: Colorado River deals, Salton Sea
UCLA scientists mark Trump’s inauguration with a plan to protect climate change data: “On a rainy Inauguration Day morning, dozens of students, archivists, librarians, professors and other concerned citizens gathered in a UCLA classroom, poring over the Department of Energy website. They sifted through pages covering a broad spectrum of topics, from energy-efficient buildings and solar power to transportation and bioenergy. The goal of Friday’s workshop, which ran more than six hours: To protect publicly available climate data on government websites – data that some feared could be deleted or otherwise degraded by a new administration that has indicated its aversion to climate science. … ” Read more from the LA Times here: UCLA scientists mark Trump’s inauguration with a plan to protect climate change data
Roseville, Placer to join Sites Reservoir effort: what it means for water storage plan: “In a boost for the proposed Sites Reservoir northwest of Sacramento, the city of Roseville and the Placer County Water Agency have agreed to invest in the $4.4 billion project. The agreements earlier this week show that the Placer agencies, despite having some of the healthiest water supplies in the state, continue to work to augment their portfolios. The benefit to Placer and Roseville would be indirect. With a proposed capacity of up to 1.8 million acre-feet, Sites would provide another big reservoir that could feed water into the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to improve water quality and fish habitat. That would mean Folsom Lake – the primary water source for Placer and Roseville – wouldn’t have to release as much water into the Delta for environmental purposes. ... ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee here: Roseville, Placer to join Sites Reservoir effort: what it means for water storage plan
As California goes from drought to deluge, an old foe returns: Mudslides: “Through five years of severe drought, El Capitan Canyon above the Pacific Ocean near Goleta endured bone-dry conditions that at times seemed like they would never end. Then, on Friday, the skies opened up. Nearly 2 inches of rain dropped in a single hour in the Santa Ynez Mountains. So a creek that had once disappeared came roaring alive, full of mud, brush and broken trees pouring from the burned slopes of the Sherpa fire in the summer. … ” Read more from the LA Times here: As California goes from drought to deluge, an old foe returns: Mudslides
California considers ending emergency drought rules: “Defining drought in California can be a tricky business, especially when five years of severely dry conditions are abruptly followed by torrents of rain, flooding rivers and blankets of mountain snow — as residents have seen in the past few weeks. Amid the ongoing succession of storms, water managers up and down the state are urging regulators in Sacramento to permanently cancel historic, emergency drought rules that have been in place for 18 months. It’s an escalation of their ongoing opposition to these restrictions, which already have been eased considerably since homeowners and businesses were first forced to cut consumption by a statewide average of 25 percent. … ” Read more from San Diego Union Tribune here: California considers ending emergency drought rules
Conservationists embrace new environmental tool: Water leasing: “The US state of Nebraska irrigates more farmland than any other state in the country, and much of that water comes from underground sources. In 2015, the Central Platte Natural Resources District launched the Central Platte Groundwater Exchange Program, making it possible for farmers with certified groundwater rights to either lease them out for a year or buy more if they’re interested in higher crop yields. … But farmers aren’t the only ones bidding: a conservation group called the Platte River Recovery Implementation Program hopes to leave the water in the watershed to help endangered species. They leased the right to a small amount – roughly 40 acre feet (enough to cover 40 acres of land in one foot of water) – to do so. ... ” Read more from the Ecosystem Marketplace here: Conservationists embrace new environmental tool: Water leasing
In commentary this weekend …
A wet year won’t beat California’s never-ending drought, says Peter Gleick: He writes, “Storm after storm has pummeled California over the past few weeks as a series of so-called atmospheric rivers has come ashore. Given the massive amounts of rain and snow that have fallen, people want to know if California’s five-year-long intensive drought is finally over. The answer, of course, depends on what people mean by “drought” and “over,” and it depends on who you ask. There isn’t—and never has been—agreement about the meaning of either word. ... ” Read more from WIRED Magazine here: A wet year won’t beat California’s never-ending drought
State water regulations could flush recycled water projects, says Lisa M. Borba and Paul H. Causey: They write, “As state officials examine long-term water use efficiency regulations that propose major changes to the state’s authority over local water use, we are concerned that they are not giving proper recognition for investments in recycled water, and you, as a paying customer, should be too. State officials have recently released a new water use efficiency framework entitled, “Making Water Conservation a California Way of Life.” This framework outlines a new approach to the state’s regulatory oversight on residential water use and targets to which local water agencies will be held accountable. … ” Read more from the East Bay Times here: State water regulations could flush recycled water projects
In regional news and commentary this weekend …
Conservationists groups sue to get more water to Klamath refuges: “Three Oregon conservation groups say a new plan to manage National Wildlife Refuges in the Klamath Basin doesn’t do enough to protect habitat. The groups filed a lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Medford to force the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to consider additional options. The service finalized the Comprehensive Conservation Plan earlier this year. The 15-year plan covers Lower Klamath, Clear Lake, Tule Lake, Upper Klamath and Bear Valley National Wildlife Refuges, all located along the Oregon-California border. They comprise some of the most important migratory bird habitat on the West Coast. … ” Read more from OPB here: Conservationists groups sue to get more water to Klamath refuges
Geologists search for mercury in Cache Creek: “Scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey’s California Water Science Center tested water in the Cache Creek Settling Basin on a cold, windy and wet Friday looking for mercury. Wading waste-deep into the water, USGS hydrologic technicians collected samples from the flow to test the suspended particulates. Together with the Department of Water Resources, who manage the waterways, the USGS seeks to provide data that can be used to increase the basin’s mercury collection efficiency. … ” Read more from the Daily Democrat here: Geologists search for mercury in Cache Creek
Oakley: Endangered chinook salmon return to Marsh Creek after decades: “What started as a trickle of salmon sightings in recent years has now become a flood as the realization has set in: Salmon are returning to Marsh Creek in greater numbers and the future looks even brighter. The most recent count in December was 49 salmon on a mile-long portion of the creek. Diane Burgis, former executive director of the Friends of the Marsh Creek Watershed and current Contra Costa County Supervisor, was comfortable setting the total number in the hundreds. “Before the fish ladder was built, we would see one or two a year, but we never really documented it,” Burgis said. “(The Department of) Fish and Game has always said that there was no salmon in Marsh Creek.” ... ” Read more from the East Bay Times here: Endangered chinook salmon return to Marsh Creek after decades
New book tells story of Tulare Irrigation District in California farm country: “Richard Zack of Visalia has written a well-researched history of the Tulare Irrigation District, which has supplied water to farmers for 127 years. “Quest for Water: Tulare Irrigation District, Its History, People, and Progression,” was commissioned by the district. Zack brings a unique perspective to the task. Not only is he a civil engineer, but he literally grew up absorbing the ethos of the district – his father, David Zack, to whom the book is dedicated, was the district’s engineer-manager and worked there for 40 years. … ” Read more from the Fresno Bee here: New book tells story of Tulare Irrigation District in California farm country
Indian Wells Valley: Alternative water source proposal brews skepticism: ““I have good news for you. Apparently, you need to import water … We have a chunk of it. I don’t have it all, but we have a chunk of it,” said Gene McMurtrey, representing Kernco Home and Farm Water LLC. He spoke to the IWV Groundwater Authority board at its meeting held in City Hall on Thursday, Jan. 19. IWVGA needs to import water because it is preparing to become the Groundwater Sustainability Agency for IWV, and will then be tasked with forming a Groundwater Sustainability Plan by 2020, and achieving sustainability through that plan by 2040. The IWVGA, and hopeful future GSA, came together as the result of the California state mandated Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. After years of drought, Gov. Jerry Brown signed SGMA into law in September 2014. The bill calls for local agencies to form a GSP to sustain their groundwater basins. ... ” Read more from the Ridgecrest Independent here: Alternative water source proposal brews skepticism
Indian Wells Valley groundwater authority struggles to find its feet: ““Well, I’m confused enough to agree with that course of action,” IWVGA chairman of the board Mick Gleason said after a heated debate on how to begin the process of hammering out the financial policies of the new IWV Groundwater Sustainability Agency. Those in attendance laughed, thankful for a moment’s respite from slogging through the technicalities of forming the GSA for IWV, an unprecedented program for California. The IWV Groundwater Authority applied to become the official GSA for IWV after last month’s board meeting on Dec. 8, and that’s about all the progress that’s happened as of the board meeting on Thursday, Jan. 19. … ” Read more from the Ridgecrest Independent here: Indian Wells Valley groundwater authority struggles to find its feet
Along the Colorado River …
Early snowpack indicates ‘coin flip’ for Lake Mead shortage declaration: “Snow is piling up in the Rockies and Sierra Nevada, but this year’s first official water forecast for the Colorado River still predicts Lake Mead will shrink enough to trigger a federal shortage declaration in 2018. Federal forecasters expect the lake’s surface to drop by about 9 feet by the end of 2017, which would put it inches below the all-important shortage line of 1,075 feet above sea level. That would force Nevada and Arizona to cut their use of Colorado River water under rules adopted a decade ago. “We remain at more or less a coin flip” for a shortage declaration in 2018, said Greg Walch, general counsel for the Southern Nevada Water Authority, in a report to the agency’s board on Thursday. … ” Read more from the Las Vegas Review Journal here: Early snowpack indicates ‘coin flip’ for Lake Mead shortage declaration
Western drought watchers eye Lake Mead water level: “Arizona would be the first state to feel the effects of Colorado River cutbacks if the water level continues to fall at drought-stricken Lake Mead, an environmental advocacy group says in a new report. The Western Resource Advocates reached its conclusion as the vast reservoir behind Hoover Dam sits at 39 percent of capacity. The group concluded that farmers would be first to feel the pinch; that suburban growth in Phoenix and Tucson could be slowed by cutbacks; and the cities themselves could face water reductions by 2020. … ” Read more the San Luis Tribune here: Western drought watchers eye Lake Mead water level
Precipitation watch …
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About the Daily Digest: The Daily Digest is a collection of selected news articles, commentaries and editorials appearing in the mainstream press. Items are generally selected to follow the focus of the Notebook blog. The Daily Digest is published every weekday with a weekend edition posting on Sundays.
Maven’s Notebook
where California water news never goes home for the weekend
