In California water news today, Friant water allocation offers good news for some Valley growers, bad news for others; California farms given good news as reservoirs fill and snowpack builds; Feds: Full water supply from New Melones; DWR takes on debris removal, fish rescue; Massive fish rescue plays out on Feather River after state closes damaged Oroville Dam spillway; Oroville Dam’s power plant may be operational by Thursday; Get out your pans: Oroville Dam erosion may yield tiny Gold Rush; California snowpack could bring 5-year drought to its knees; Farmers assess impact of flooded fields; Governor Brown prioritizes California’s water and transportation infrastructure spending; With climate change, California is likely to see more extreme flooding; Defining snow drought and why it matters; California by the numbers: A billion dollar winter; California water bills are starting to trickle out on Capitol Hill; and more …
On the calendar today …
- Sierra Nevada Conservancy Summit: Interest on a Past Due Bill: Funding Watershed Restoration and Forest Health at 10:00am: Members of the Sierra Nevada Conservancy (SNC) Board and staff, and leadership of the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) Region 5, will be joined for this year’s Summit by representatives of other state, federal, and local agencies, as well as a wide range of stakeholders to learn about innovative approaches to funding watershed restoration in the Sierra Nevada Region. Click here for more information. Click here to watch on webcast.
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- REACTIONS to Trump’s rollback of the clean water rule’
- CA WATER LAW SYMPOSIUM: Chuck Bonham on going big in the Delta
- NEWS WORTH NOTING: CA Water Fix: Significant progress and next steps; Women water leaders from around the state gather in Santa Barbara; Drinking fountains and public health
Friant water allocation offers good news for some Valley growers, bad news for others: “Central San Joaquin Valley farmers got a dose of good and bad news Tuesday as the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced a full supply of water for east-side farmers in the Friant Division, while telling west-side farmers they must wait a few more weeks to learn what they will get from the Central Valley Project. Officials with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation delayed the critical allocation announcement for water users north and south of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, saying the unusually wet year is requiring them to take more time to refine their estimate. Those farmers may not have an answer until mid- to late March. “No sooner had we received the February forecast that it became obsolete,” said Reclamation’s acting Mid-Pacific Regional Director Pablo Arroyave. “We also realized that the conditions on the ground have changed. And we want to be more prudent.” … ” Read more from the Fresno Bee here: Friant water allocation offers good news for some Valley growers, bad news for others
California farms given good news as reservoirs fill and snowpack builds: “The extraordinary turnaround in California’s water picture is becoming a windfall for farm country. Federal officials announced Tuesday that the 20 reservoirs that make up the Central Valley Project are so swollen with winter runoff that many growers will get all the water they requested this year — a remarkable change from the past few years when countless orchards and fields received no federal water at all. The projected bump, which comes alongside similar increases expected at state-run reservoirs, is certain to benefit California’s $47 billion agricultural sector, a normally booming breadbasket that has seen land dry up and crop yields slip as water turned scarce. … ” Read more from SF Gate here: California farms given good news as reservoirs fill and snowpack builds
Feds: Full water supply from New Melones: “The Stockton area will receive a full supply of water from resurgent New Melones Lake for the first time since 2013. But the federal government delayed issuing a formal allocation on Tuesday for farms south of the Delta, including areas that were hit hardest during the drought. That’s despite federal reservoir storage soaring from 4.9 million acre-feet of water last year to 8.7 million acre-feet today. … ” Read more from the Stockton Record here: Feds: Full water supply from New Melones
DWR takes on debris removal, fish rescue: “Formerly flooded to the tips of gazebos, Oroville’s Riverbend Park looked a bit like an oversized, drained aquarium Tuesday, since spillway flows to the Feather River were halted Monday afternoon. Trees were uprooted. Benches were overturned and covered in debris. Roadways turned into river bottoms. Dead fish could be seen at the city’s parks, as the drained river along with erosion spots around the spillway left fish stranded in pools. On Tuesday, the Department of Water Resources and the Department of Fish and Wildlife had crews of about 60 people and about eight boats on the Feather River rescuing fish, including the region’s critical fall and spring run Chinook salmon and steelhead trout, said Andrew Hughan, public information officer for the Department of Fish and Wildlife. … ” Read more from the Chico Enterprise-Record here: DWR takes on debris removal, fish rescue
Massive fish rescue plays out on Feather River after state closes damaged Oroville Dam spillway: “When California state biologists crested a sandbar along the Feather River on Tuesday morning, they expected to find at least some of the water that just a day before had raged through the channel, too deep to stand in – and plenty of fish needing to be rescued. Instead, to their chagrin, the flows powering down Oroville Dam’s badly damaged main spillway into the Feather River had been throttled back so quickly Monday that the whole sandbar was now dry. “Oh, no,” said biologist Alana Imrie. In one low spot, the sand-specked carcass of a suffocated 14-inch steelhead lay in the sun beside several smaller but equally dead baby fish. Some were Chinook salmon, a species central to California’s $1.4 billion commercial and recreational fishing industries. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee here: Massive fish rescue plays out on Feather River after state closes damaged Oroville Dam spillway
Oroville Dam’s power plant may be operational by Thursday: “After flows down Oroville Dam’s fractured main spillway were dialed back to nothing Monday afternoon, heavy equipment operators worked through the night to clear the massive debris pile that has formed at the base of the damaged concrete structure. The efforts to open the channel below the spillway, which will allow engineers to once again fire up the dam’s hydroelectric plant, appear to be paying off, said Nancy Vogel, a spokeswoman for the California Natural Resources Agency. The water in the channel below the spillway dropped 23 feet in less than a day, which should be enough to get at least one of the turbines up and running, perhaps as early as Thursday. Electrical crews are working to get transmission lines from the power plant reattached to the grid, Vogel said. ... ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee here: Oroville Dam’s power plant may be operational by Thursday
California snowpack could bring 5-year drought to its knees: “The massive snowdrifts in the Sierra Nevada could finally bring the California drought to its knees and keep skiers on the slopes long enough to celebrate the Fourth of July. Winter snowfall on California’s 400-mile mountain range provides roughly one-third of the water used in the nation’s most populous state as the snow melts over the spring and summer and fills reservoirs supplying farmers and city dwellers. The California Department of Water Resources will once again manually measure the snowpack on Wednesday, saying the state is on track for one of the wettest winters on record after five years of drought. … ” Read more from the Merced Sun-Star here: California snowpack could bring 5-year drought to its knees
Governor Brown prioritizes California’s water and transportation infrastructure spending: “In the following TPR excerpt of Governor Brown’s Feb 24th press conference, he outlines California’s $187 billion in unmet infrastructure needs and his plans to use a variety of sources to fund projects. The 2014 Water Bond, Proposition 84 funds, and a still-to-be-determined transportation legislative package will start to make dents in California’s crumbling roads and water storage projects. Governor Jerry Brown: “In response to the recent storms, there are a number of things we face and a number of things we must do. We have dams eroding, roads crumbling, and an aging infrastructure that cannot support us anymore. We are maxed out. What is required is to take immediate actions, which we are doing, and then invest billions of dollars over the long term. We used to call this public works, and there is a lot of public work to be done in California. … ” Read more from The Planning Report here: Governor Brown prioritizes California’s water and transportation infrastructure spending
With climate change, California is likely to see more extreme flooding: “Californians are in shock that after five years of too little water, the problem now is too much. All eyes in California have been on Oroville Dam, where a broken spillway forced major evacuations. But the damage from winter storms has gone beyond the dam in the northern part of the state. Downstream, rivers are running high and levees have been breaching. Some are calling this a wake-up call for California as climate change could bring similar damage. ...” Read more from NPR here: With climate change, California is likely to see more extreme flooding
Defining snow drought and why it matters: “On 12 February, water resource managers at the Oroville Dam issued an evacuation warning that forced some 180,000 Californians to relocate to higher ground. The story of how conditions got to this point involves several factors, but two clearly stand out: the need to prevent water shortages during a record drought, followed by one of the wettest October–February periods in California history. The situation at Oroville Dam highlights difficulties that many reservoir managers face in managing flood risks while simultaneously storing water to mitigate severe droughts and smaller snowpacks. Central to this difficulty is the idea of “snow drought,” a term that’s gaining traction in both scientific and lay literature. Snow drought refers to the combination of general drought and reduced snow storage. … ” Read more from EOS here: Defining snow drought and why it matters
California by the numbers: A billion dollar winter: “How many times have we heard the term “River of Moisture” or “Pineapple Express” during these past few months? Certainly more times than over the past 6 years, and very likely more than during some of the wettest years on record in the state of California. The rainy season in California normally extends from about December to March. During an average precipitation year, one would expect to see between 10 to 15 “Atmospheric River” fed storms moving into some portion of the state. But since the official start of the precipitation season on October 1, 2016, the persistent flow of moisture that crosses the Pacific from Hawaii and beyond to account for up to 50% of the state’s precipitation, has been tremendously enhanced. … ” Read more from The Weather Network here: California by the numbers: A billion dollar winter
California water bills are starting to trickle out on Capitol Hill: “With a Republican in the White House and the GOP controlling Congress, Rep. David Valadao, R-Hanford, said Tuesday that he is hoping to build on last year’s big and controversial California water bill that was loved by farmers and loathed by environmentalists. The bill scales back an ambitious San Joaquin River restoration program, speeds completion of California dam feasibility studies and locks in certain water deliveries to Sacramento Valley irrigation districts, among other things. Parts of the bill would not have been accepted by the Obama administration, but the Trump team is different. “When we would negotiate in the past, it was always, ‘Well, the president will never sign this,’ ” Valadao said in an interview. “And now, it will be the reverse. The president will sign this, or will want to sign something stronger.” … ” Read more from the Fresno Bee here: California water bills are starting to trickle out on Capitol Hill
Trump directs EPA to start dismantling clean water rule: “President Trump stepped up his attack on federal environmental protections Tuesday, issuing an order directing his administration to begin the long process of rolling back sweeping clean water rules that were enacted by his predecessor. The order directing the Environmental Protection Agency to set about dismantling the Waters of the United States rule takes aim at one of President Obama’s signature environmental legacies, a far-reaching anti-pollution effort that expanded the authority of regulators over the nation’s waterways and wetlands. ... ” Read more from the LA Times here: Trump directs EPA to start dismantling clean water rule See also: AP Explains: Trump executive order on clean water rule
In commentary today …
Trump should stop Reclamation from stealing farmers’ water, says Erik Hansen: He writes, “Valley farmers like Joe Del Bosque, whose situation was spotlighted recently in the Los Angeles Times, was begging for and buying water during last year’s drought at $1,000 to $1,300 per acre-foot after federal water officials failed to make good on water allocation contracts. These farmers thought themselves lucky to find willing sellers. But now it looks like their luck will run out courtesy of their perennial but faithless friend and occasional foe, the federal government. When water is plentiful, hundreds of farmers buy water from the Central Valley Project, a federal water supplier, at $220 per acre-foot. During the drought, though, thousands of California farmers had to shop from water districts up and down the state. It was a sellers’ market. … ” Read more from the Fresno Bee here: Trump should stop Reclamation from stealing farmers’ water
Oroville, San Jose are bright to focus on immediate work, says the San Jose Mercury News: They write, “Images of the crumbling flood-control spillway at Lake Oroville were dramatic, and the danger was real. Some 180,000 people had to evacuate quickly — so quickly that at rescue centers, many of the kids didn’t have shoes with them. Parents just packed them into the car as is and fled. Most are back home now, but danger remains, as a massive spring snowmelt looms to strain the dam anew. State, federal and water agency officials have much to answer for once the crisis has passed, but for now they’re doing the right thing: shutting off water flows from the lake so they can assess the full scope of the spillways’ instability. Fixes to get through this rainy season without a serious breach are the first priority. … ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News here: Oroville, San Jose are bright to focus on immediate work
In regional news and commentary today …
Klamath River dam removal plan on track as administration shifts: “The plan to remove four hydroelectric dams to improve fish passage and water quality on the Klamath River is proceeding on schedule for a 2020 demolition time, according to plan proponents. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission will ultimately have to approve or deny the plan, and the change in administration in Washington, D.C., has led to three of the five seats on the commission being vacated. President Donald Trump will be responsible for appointing the three new members, but plan proponents such as the dams’ owning company PacifiCorp, do not believe this will affect the project’s timeline. “We don’t know what we’re dealing with until the new commission is in place,” PacifiCorp spokesman Bob Gravely said Tuesday. “Our expectation is this will move as a regular administrative order that FERC takes up and deals with all the time. We have no reason to believe it won’t be treated like any other application of its kind.” … ” Read more from the Eureka Times-Standard here: Klamath River dam removal plan on track as administration shifts
Drought-busting snow pushes Tahoe to highest level since 2006: “The drought-busting snow and rain in the mountains around Lake Tahoe have pushed the lake to its highest level in more than a decade. After five years of drought, the alpine lake atop the Sierra Nevada now has enough water to fill downstream reservoirs and meet the Reno area’s needs for at least two years, hydrologists say. “We are basically going from one extreme to the other in two years,” said Bill Hauck, senior hydrologist for the Truckee Meadows Water Authority. … ” Read more from the San Luis Obispo Tribune here: Drought-busting snow pushes Tahoe to highest level since 2006
EBMUD proposes water bottle fill stations in public places: “The East Bay Municipal Utility District laid out plans Tuesday for a pilot program to open seven water fill stations to promote tap water use and reduce use of disposable plastic water bottles. If the stations prove popular, the water district would consider opening more of them within its territory in Contra Costa and Alameda counties. Unlike traditional water fountains that bubble water upward, the proposed hydration stations dispense water downward to quickly and conveniently fill up water bottles, which can be carried to work and school or on runs and hikes. Fountain angles often make it difficult to fill a bottle. ... ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News here: EBMUD proposes water bottle fill stations in public places
San Jose flood: Water district proposes $22 million in new flood control work for areas affected: “Hoping to reduce the risk of another flood like the one last week that caused at least $100 million damage and the evacuation of 14,000 people in San Jose, the Santa Clara Valley Water District is drawing up new flood control plans for Coyote Creek. Meanwhile, Santa Clara County and the San Jose City Council on Tuesday declared a “local emergency,” which allows them to apply for state and federal aid for cleanup efforts and the city to reassign its employees to work on flood issues. “We discovered during this emergency that we must do better,” said San Jose City Manager Norberto Dueñas. “We will not be back to regular business for a while. The water has now receded, but recovery for our residents in neighborhoods will take months.” ... ” Read more from the Mercury News here: San Jose flood: Water district proposes $22 million in new flood control work for areas affected
So much for drought: Turlock Irrigation District plans generous water deliveries: “Faced with a brimming reservoir, the Turlock Irrigation District urged its farmers Tuesday to use as much water as they can this year. The district expects to provide normal deliveries for the first time since 2011 — and even an extra amount to help recharge groundwater stressed by the five-year drought. “We can’t get rid of it quickly enough,” said Tou Her, assistant general manager for water resources, at an evening board meeting. … ” Read more from the Modesto Bee here: So much for drought: Turlock Irrigation District plans generous water deliveries
Western Fresno County: Flooding threat: Too much water filling a system with too little capacity: “The Kings River’s overflow system in western Fresno County cannot carry as much floodwater as it once did, so there is greater risk of flooding in this wet year, Fresno County supervisors were told on Tuesday. The problems led to approval of an emergency proclamation by supervisors that will allow officials to seek state help in an all-out effort to improve the county’s slough and levee system and any new problems that could arise from flooding over the next few months. Steven Haugen, Kings River Water Association watermaster, said water flowing through the Fresno Slough into the Tranquillity Irrigation District area is not hitting the flows that ran through the same area in 2011, the last time there were significant releases from Pine Flat Reservoir. … ” Read more from the Fresno Bee here: Flooding threat: Too much water filling a system with too little capacity
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- REACTIONS to Trump’s rollback of the clean water rule
- CA WATER LAW SYMPOSIUM: Chuck Bonham on going big in the Delta
- NEWS WORTH NOTING: CA Water Fix: Significant progress and next steps; Women water leaders from around the state gather in Santa Barbara; Drinking fountains and public health
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