In California water news today, Desalination of salty aquifers offers drought-weary California new hope; California ag organizations hopeful for WIIN; New atmospheric river heading towards Northern California; San Joaquin’s clogged river; Fresno OKs deal to buy flood-release water from Millerton Lake; Recent rains help Catalina’s reservoir, but is it enough to ease rationing?; Did someone say food fight? U.S. farmers – especially in California – fret over a possible trade war; Shhh, scientists hope Trump overlooks major climate report; and more …
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- RESERVOIR AND WATER CONDITIONS for February 6, 2017
- NEWS WORTH NOTING: Draft enviro docs for Fremont Weir adult fish passage modification project; $20.46M contract award set to kick off Natomas Basin levee improvements; New water supply planning laws affecting CEQA projects now in effect
- CALENDAR NOTES: Legislative hearings on Cal Water Fix; Metropolitan’s water tech conference; The new Trump administration – A view from the top; Kern County Water Summit
Desalination of salty aquifers offers drought-weary California new hope: “California’s historic drought may be winding down. But water officials across the Golden State are increasingly exploring a hidden but promising way to add to the state’s water supply: removing salt from the billions of gallons of brackish — or distastefully salty — water that lies deep below the Earth’s surface. A new report by the Pacific Institute that explores the cost of potential water sources in California is spurring hopes that the desalination of brackish water could quickly become a vital tap in the state. “There are places in California where there may be groundwater available, but it may not be fresh,” said Heather Cooley, director of the water program at the Oakland-based think tank. “Those are places where it’s possible to use brackish desalination at a much lower cost and with fewer social and environmental impacts than ocean desalination.” ... ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News here: Desalination of salty aquifers offers drought-weary California new hope
California ag organizations hopeful for WIIN: “As of Friday, the Sierra Nevada had an average of 32.9 inches of snow. That’s 174 percent more than normal for this time of year. California agriculture organizations are hopeful this season’s snowfall will help with the water supplies for Valley farmers and ranchers. Their hope won’t come without reservation. “You would think that a snowpack in the range of 175 percent of average would assure plentiful water supplies, but that link has long ago been severed,” said Tom Nassif, president of the Western Growers Association. “Wildlife agencies often hold the key to determining how much water is available, because endangered-species laws reserve water for protected fish.” ... ” Read more from the Visalia Times-Delta here: California ag organizations hopeful for WIIN
New atmospheric river heading towards Northern California: “On the heels of a storm-tossed January, another atmospheric river is taking aim at Northern California, but there’s a chance it might miss the Bay Area, according to the National Weather Service. The steady flow of moisture from the Pacific is expected to set up Tuesday morning above the North Bay and Northern Sierra Nevada; however, there’s a possibility it could shift south to the Santa Cruz Mountains, according to Steve Anderson, a forecaster with the weather service. Forecasters will have a better idea of its path in the coming days. … ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News here: New atmospheric river heading towards Northern California
San Joaquin’s clogged river: “The swollen San Joaquin River finally began receding last week, but its brief surge above flood monitor stage rekindled concerns that a far more serious flood is becoming more likely each year. Why? Tens of thousands of dump truck loads worth of dirt wash down the San Joaquin toward the Delta each year. Scientists have found that much of that dirt, or sediment, is deposited on the bottom of the river as it flattens out between Vernalis and Stockton. … ” Read more from the Stockton Record here: San Joaquin’s clogged river
Fresno OKs deal to buy flood-release water from Millerton Lake: “A plentiful winter of rain and snowfall in the mountains east of Fresno is creating the potential for generating more water than the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation can store behind Friant Dam. So the city of Fresno is poised to take advantage of flood-control releases at a deep discount, compared to the city’s normal allocation of Millerton Lake water this spring. The Fresno City Council on Thursday approved an agreement with the Bureau of Reclamation to buy flood flow releases from Millerton Lake starting March 1. The city’s current one-year contract with the bureau ends Feb. 28, said Thomas Esqueda, the city’s director of public utilities. … ” Read more from the Fresno Bee here: Fresno OKs deal to buy flood-release water from Millerton Lake
Recent rains help Catalina’s reservoir, but is it enough to ease rationing? “Thanks to recent rainstorms, the water level in Catalina Island’s main reservoir is now above the critically-low level that triggered extreme rationing requirements last summer. The island is unique in that Southern California Edison controls the water supply. Executives there have yet to decide if the rationing mandate can be eased. Nonetheless, residents, city officials and business managers who have endured the rationing want things to change. “It would be so nice to have a vegetable garden,” island resident Janice Hall said. … ” Read more from the Long Beach Press Telegram here: Recent rains help Catalina’s reservoir, but is it enough to ease rationing?
Did someone say food fight? U.S. farmers – especially in California – fret over a possible trade war: “It took Donald Trump 71 days to settle on an Agriculture secretary after winning the presidency. It took him 72 hours after that to unsettle much of the agriculture industry. First, the freshly inaugurated president withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership treaty, a 12-nation pact that was expected to boost U.S. agricultural exports by more than $7 billion annually over the coming decades, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Then, Press Secretary Sean Spicer said the president was thinking about financing his long-promised southern border wall with a 20% tax on “imports from deficit countries, like Mexico.” ... ” Read more from the LA Times here: Did someone say food fight? U.S. farmers – especially in California – fret over a possible trade war
Shhh, scientists hope Trump overlooks major climate report: “Its acronym is just obscure enough to be benign, so little-known that even people in the know stumble over the name of the federal program that guides much of the country’s climate research. That’s exactly what the U.S. Global Change Research Program appears to want right now, as Congress and the Trump administration go on the prowl for places to cut federal money for climate research. No one with the program itself will discuss its status. Many former employees also declined to speak on the record about the USGCRP, saying they fear that bringing attention to the agency would threaten its existence and its main work product, the National Climate Assessment. … ” Read more from E&E News here: Shhh, scientists hope Trump overlooks major climate report
In commentary today …
Why California’s cannabis industry will lead water innovation, says Jim Lauria: He writes, “For years, I’ve been standing on my deck in San Francisco, looking south to Silicon Valley for innovation in water efficiency. But I’m starting to realize that I might have been gazing in the wrong direction. Maybe I need to turn around and look north, over the spires of the Golden Gate Bridge, toward the Emerald Triangle in Humboldt, Mendocino and Trinity counties, the hotbed of California’s newly legalized commercial cannabis production. Of course, though California voters legalized recreational marijuana – and its production – last year, many growers in the Emerald Triangle and other parts of the state are not rank beginners. Eager to build their reputations for quality and just as anxious to maximize yields of a crop that’s sold by the gram, cannabis cultivators have been among the most driven and exacting farmers in agriculture. So now we have highly motivated growers, under regulatory scrutiny, in a state that’s been gripped in an epic drought for the past six years. If you ask me, those are the people who will be leading agriculture toward sustainable water management. … ” Read more from Water Deeply here: Why California’s cannabis industry will lead water innovation
More news and commentary in the weekend edition …
Precipitation watch …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- RESERVOIR AND WATER CONDITIONS for February 6, 2017
- NEWS WORTH NOTING: Draft enviro docs for Fremont Weir adult fish passage modification project; $20.46M contract award set to kick off Natomas Basin levee improvements; New water supply planning laws affecting CEQA projects now in effect
- CALENDAR NOTES: Legislative hearings on Cal Water Fix; Metropolitan’s water tech conference; The new Trump administration – A view from the top; Kern County Water Summit
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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.
