In California water news today, New spillway design said to pass muster; Turlock Irrigation District endorses plan to avoid State Water Board proposal; Fishing for answers on what high flows of 2017 do for salmon on Modesto-area rivers; Funding for damaged levee repairs denied; What did California learn from the drought?; When sea rises, Santa Cruz’s wastewater treatment plant will face big questions; Isabella Lake brimming with water, highlighting dam risks; Water experts push back on alarming Isabella Dam social media posts; and more …
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
New spillway design said to pass muster: “The Board of Consultants determined the forensic teams’ list of potential Oroville Dam spillway failures are being addressed in the new design, according to a new memorandum published last week. The board’s report said the spillway design is ready for final review, with major redesigns including heightening walls beside of the main spillway. ... ” Read more from the Oroville Mercury News here: New spillway design said to pass muster
Funding for damaged levee repairs denied: “Governor Jerry Brown and democratic lawmakers are getting closer to a finalized budget, with a deadline next Thursday. One thing missing from the budget is a proposal from Northstate lawmakers to add $100 million to repair levees damaged this winter. which includes the Oroville Dam spillway. Instead, Democratic lawmakers decided to include $111 million for flood control projects and $6 million for dam safety. However, none of that money is for repair work. During the budget conference committee Thursday night, Senator Jim Nielsen in alliance with Assemblyman James Gallagher stressed the importance of funding the repair of damaged levees. … ” Read more from KRCR here: Funding for damaged levee repairs denied
Turlock Irrigation District endorses plan to avoid State Water Board proposal: “Stream-bed gravel restoration, predator control and the strategic placement of rocks and trees are just a few projects that the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission believe can be tackled along the lower Tuolumne River to aid the area’s native fish, rather than the increased flows that the State Water Resources Control Board has proposed. On Tuesday, the Turlock Irrigation District Board of Trustees voted unanimously to endorse San Francisco’s plan. “San Francisco has been a great partner to us, and they share our vision of a restored Tuolumne River that our science says can happen with much less water than the state board’s proposal,” said TID Director Michael Frantz. ... ” Read more from the Turlock Journal here: Turlock Irrigation District endorses plan to avoid State Water Board proposal
Fishing for answers on what high flows of 2017 do for salmon on Modesto-area rivers: “This year has brought the mighty river flows that environmental and fishing groups say are vital to salmon. A farmer or city water user might disagree: Yes, the fish need high water at times, but not at the 2017 volume. And we should be adding reservoir space to carry over the excess for dry years ahead. The Stanislaus, Tuolumne and Merced rivers have near-record runoff from their mountain watersheds after five years of drought. It started in fall, when above-average storms provided more water for salmon returning to spawn after a few years in the Pacific Ocean. The skies truly let loose in January and February, forcing reservoir operators to ramp up releases to prepare for the spring snowmelt. … ” Read more from the Modesto Bee here: Fishing for answers on what high flows of 2017 do for salmon on Modesto-area rivers
What did California learn from the drought? “A report from the Public Policy Institute of California says the state’s cities and suburbs responded well to the unprecedented mandate to cut water use by 25-percent during the drought. The PPIC says by some measures, the state’s water conservation requirement was a success. Californians cut water use 24 percent on average while the economy grew. But report authors call the mandate a “blunt instrument” that increased tension between the state and local water agencies. … ” Read more from Capital Public Radio here: What did California learn from the drought?
June storm brings rain and snow to parts of Northern California: “Well so much for summer!” That was the tweet sent by the California Highway Patrol as a June storm makes its way across Northern California, bringing rain, thunder, lightning and even snow. Snow began falling in parts of the Sierra Nevada on Sunday and several lighting strikes were reported in Plumas and Tehama counties. ... ” Read more from Capital Public Radio here: June storm brings rain and snow to parts of Northern California
In regional news and commentary today …
Oregon carves a path for water transfers in the West: “Since 1971, Cris Converse and her family have relied on water from Oregon’s Whychus Creek to raise cattle and grow hay. Their Pine Meadow Ranch thrives, in part, because the family’s water rights date back to 1850, assuring access to water virtually without limit. By the 2000s, however, concern for Oregon’s salmon populations had become a powerful movement. And salmon that had spawned in Whychus Creek for millennia couldn’t get past the Converse family dam. ... ” Read more Water Deeply here: Oregon carves a path for water transfers in the West
Sacramento Valley: Flooded rice fields offer good place to grow native salmon: “A new study offers a beacon of hope for a cease-fire in the Golden State’s persistent water wars. “Floodplain Farm Fields Provide Novel Rearing Habitat for Chinook Salmon,” published in the journal PLOS-ONE, is based on the work by scientists from nonprofit group California Trout, UC Davis, and the California Department of Water Resources. The study reaffirms what has been a growing body of evidence that Central Valley farm fields that remain in active agricultural production can have environmental benefits for the state’s salmon populations. ... ” Read more from the Woodland Daily Democrat here: Flooded rice fields offer good place to grow native salmon
Sacramento Valley: Rains restore and distress flora and fauna: “We heard the grunts and groans from the commuters stuck behind mudslides. We read about the wails from desperate strawberry farmers pumping water out of their flooded fields or of tomato farmers who couldn’t get into their fields. And we listened to the joy from Californians who had more than enough water to take guilt-free showers after enduring the conservation mandates from the historic drought. But how did one of the wettest winters in California history affect all the other living things in Northern California, particularly after early June’s sudden spritz of 0.08 inches, which raised Woodland’s total rainfall since July 1, 2016, to a very healthy 36.44 inches. ... ” Read more from the Daily Democrat here: Rains restore and distress flora and fauna
Lathrop: 200-year flood effort generates lots of questions: “To say that compliance with SB5 – the state mandate that requires an urban level of flood protection capable of withstanding a 200-year flood – is complex would be an understatement. But one thing was clear Monday night when the Lathrop City Council okayed the push for an annual progress check with the agencies who oversee the push towards flood protection – it’s confusing for just about everybody. Manteca rancher and businessman Marty Harris, representing the Terra Land Group, spoke to the council to try and get questions answered that have evaded him for some time – things like who is the agency in charge of the effort, and who is spearheading the push at the local level. ... ” Read more from the Manteca Bulletin here: Lathrop: 200-year flood effort generates lots of questions
Menlo Park: Levee changes, ecosystem restoration project imminent along Bayfront: “While Menlo Park continues to work on formulating plans for the future of Bedwell Bayfront Park, changes along the Bayfront in the near future – as soon as June – are expected to start as the result of ongoing efforts to bolster flood protection and restore salt evaporation ponds to their former state as tidal marshes. … ” Read more from the Almanac here: Menlo Park: Levee changes, ecosystem restoration project imminent along Bayfront
When sea rises, Santa Cruz’s wastewater treatment plant will face big questions: “The Santa Cruz Wastewater Treatment Facility, which disposes the sewage of Santa Cruz, Live Oak, Capitola, Soquel, Aptos, Watsonville and Scotts Valley, is stuck in a difficult spot. It sits near the coast next to Neary Lagoon, on the floodplain of the San Lorenzo River, at one of the lowest elevations in Santa Cruz. … ” Read more from the Santa Cruz Sentinel here: When sea rises, Santa Cruz’s wastewater treatment plant will face big questions
Santa Cruz engineer pushes ‘lochquifer’ water supply solutions: “When it comes to the future water supply locally, Jerry Paul’s claims are big and bold. The Santa Cruz engineer has been pitching an idea for the past six years, a concept he refers to as “The Lochquifer Alternative.” Paul’s idea, he says, could shave a combined $300 million off water supply projects under consideration by Soquel Creek Water District and Santa Cruz Water Department and recharge large underground water supplies within three years. … ” Read more from the Santa Cruz Sentinel here: Santa Cruz engineer pushes ‘lochquifer’ water supply solutions
Isabella Lake brimming with water, highlighting dam risks: “This weekend the water level in Isabella Lake is expected to reach — and maybe even exceed — the restricted pool allowed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. And that means it might be time for residents who reside below the lake’s troubled dam to review their risks. County emergency officials even recommend developing a plan for how to get out of town in the unlikely event that the dam fails due to something like a massive earthquake. … ” Read more from the Bakersfield Californian here: Isabella Lake brimming with water, highlighting dam risks
Water experts push back on alarming Isabella Dam social media posts: “While city and county water experts say Isabella Dam could exceed its recommended water limit in the coming week, they assured us there is no reason to panic. They say the dam is not at risk of failing and they laid out what the reality of the dam’s situation is. A circulating Facebook post leads to a medium article that says the Isabella Dam will pose an “unacceptably high risk of failure as soon as next week.” Kern River Watermaster Dana Munn told 17 News this is “altogether wrong,” adding the only thing that could cause the dam to fail at this point would be a “super earthquake.” ... ” Read more from Kern Golden Empire here: Water experts push back on alarming Isabella Dam social media posts
Why Fontana is working to expand sewer system to boot out septic tanks: “An Inland Valley utility company is studying how to convert nearly 22,000 property parcels from Fontana to Upland — representing about 80,000 people — from septic tank systems to a sewer system connection for their wastewater. Fontana is ground zero of this challenge with nearly 12,000 parcels, representing about 40,000 people, that are not connected to sewer service. Those parcels are either within Fontana’s city limits or in its broader sphere of influence, officials say. ... ” Read more from the San Bernardino Sun here: Why Fontana is working to expand sewer system to boot out septic tanks
San Diego: Water panel says its long-held private meetings are necessary, legal: “The San Diego County Water Authority fears it could harm ratepayers by opening up meetings that have been held out of the public’s view for decades. A letter this week by the authority’s top lawyer said it’s legal and necessary to hold private, unnoticed and unrecorded gatherings with the agency’s appointed delegates to the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, or MWD, a regional agency based in Los Angeles. … ” Read more from the San Diego Union Tribune here: San Diego: Water panel says its long-held private meetings are necessary, legal
The dying Salton Sea: “California’s largest lake is drying up. The Salton Sea has been shrinking for years, and fish and birds have been dying. The dry lakebed already spews toxic dust into the air, threatening a region with hundreds of thousands of people. And the crisis is about to get much worse. The water flowing into the Salton Sea will be cut dramatically at the end of this year, causing the lake to shrink faster than ever and sending more dust blowing through low-income, largely Latino farming communities. … ” Read more from the Desert Sun here: The dying Salton Sea
More news and commentary in the weekend edition …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
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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.
