In California water news today, Why California’s most productive fish hatchery is millions of fish short; Where’s the rain? California could suffer an unusually dry winter from San Francisco to Los Angeles; Dead trees in California reach new record; Why Americans are using a lot less water; and more …
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- NEWS WORTH NOTING: DWR and Reclamation take steps toward improving salmon habitat restoration and fish passage on Yolo Bypass; CalEPA posts data for statewide regulated sites
- BLOG ROUND-UP: Nudging progress on funding safe drinking water; Modernizing water systems in disadvantaged communities; California’s rural water systems need leaders. Who will step up next?; and more …
- RESERVOIR AND WATER CONDITIONS for December 26
- DAILY DIGEST, weekend edition: The flood that could change everything; Ballot measure would ban water exports from SLO County groundwater basins; Preparing for a drier future along the Colorado River; and more …
Why California’s most productive fish hatchery is millions of fish short: “California’s most productive salmon hatchery has 6 million fewer fish this year, another sign the state’s drought woes linger despite last winter’s record rainfall. The federal Coleman National Fish Hatchery tries to produce about 12 million fall-run Chinook salmon for release each spring into Battle Creek, a Sacramento River tributary south of Redding. This spring, the Coleman hatchery will only have half as many young salmon to release. The reason harkens back to the abysmal river conditions in the heart of California’s historic five-year drought – and the choices fishery managers made those years to move the baby Chinook by tanker truck out to sea in a frantic effort to save the commercially important fish. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee here: Why California’s most productive fish hatchery is millions of fish short
Where’s the rain? California could suffer an unusually dry winter from San Francisco to Los Angeles: “
California’s dismally dry autumn paints a bleak outlook for the state’s rainy season, unless the weather this winter makes a big about-face.The situation is a major turnaround from last year, when Northern California was battered by a series of “atmospheric river” storms that helped end the state’s five-year drought. When it was over, California’s northern Sierra Nevada experienced the wettest winter on record, with some ski resorts staying open through the summer… ” Read more from the LA Times here: Where’s the rain? California could suffer an unusually dry winter from San Francisco to Los Angeles
Dead trees in California reach new record: “Just as Supervisors extended the local emergency proclamation of tree mortality, state officials announced there are 129 million dead trees in California because of drought and bark beetles. The dead trees are a hazard to residents and infrastructure, mainly in the central and southern Sierra Nevada. There are 25.2 million dead and dying trees in Tulare County, the location with the most. … ” Read more from the Visalia Times-Delta here: Dead trees in California reach new record
California lost 27 million trees in the last year, including many in the Tahoe Basin: “In the last year, 27 million trees have died across California due to drought and bark beetles, bringing the total number over the last 10 years to an unprecedented 129 million on 8.9 million acres, according to the U.S. Forest Service. “It is apparent from our survey flights this year that California’s trees have not yet recovered from the drought, and remain vulnerable to [bark] beetle attacks and increased wildfire threat,” said Randy Moore, regional forester for the U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Southwest region, in a Dec. 11 press release. ... ” Read more from the Tahoe Daily Tribune here: California lost 27 million trees in the last year, including many in the Tahoe Basin
Why Americans are using a lot less water: “The average American is using a lot less water on a daily basis. Six gallons less, to be exact. The US Geological Survey’s National Water Use Science Project has estimated water use in the United States every five years since 1950. In its most recent estimate published this fall, the USGS found that American daily water use per capita went from 88 gallons in 2010 to 82 gallons per capita in 2015. Conservation of fresh water is important because it is a limited resource: Less than 1 percent of all the water on Earth can by used by humans. With growing populations and changing climates, fresh water is becoming increasingly valuable, says Edward Osann, a senior policy analyst and water efficiency project director at the National Resources Defense Council. ... ” Read more from the Christian Science Monitor here: Why Americans are using a lot less water
In commentary today …
New reasons to have hope for the Salton Sea: Allison Harvey Turner and Barry Gold write, “California’s largest inland lake has rapidly receded, creating public health and environmental emergencies. In recent years, the Salton Sea has been aptly described as a “human health crisis” and an “ecological nightmare.” The desert region around the sea carries one of the highest asthma rates in the country, and its fish and migratory bird populations are crashing. The Salton Sea lakebed could become the largest source of particulate air pollution in North America, threatening the health of hundreds of thousands of people in California and the Mexican state of Baja. ... ” Read more from Water Deeply here: New reasons to have hope for the Salton Sea
More news and commentary in the weekend edition …
In regional news and commentary today …
Feds decline to provide info on decision to disband Trinity River restoration watchdog group: “President Donald Trump’s administration as of Friday has refused to provide more information behind its decision to disband a public watchdog group tasked with overseeing a multi-million dollar, publicly funded Trinity River restoration program. “I sent a letter to the [Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke’s] office and I haven’t heard anything back,” the group’s chairman Tom Stokely said this week. “I don’t expect to … I really don’t think they care.” ... ” Read more from the Eureka Times-Standard here: Feds decline to provide info on decision to disband Trinity River restoration watchdog group
Benbow Dam removal now completed: “California State Parks recently announced the completion of the removal of the Benbow Dam, which is the second largest concrete structure to be removed in California, according to a release from the state Department of Parks and Recreation. The dam, which was built in 1931 on the Eel River, will help the migration of salmon and restore the habitat for other species. “The removal of Benbow Dam moves us closer to reversing the alarming decline of West Coast fall-run Chinook, Coho salmon and summer-run steelhead by restoring access to an additional 96 miles of prime habitat along the Eel River,” said Pat Montanio, the director of the office of habitat conservation in NOAA Fisheries, in a news release. “This project benefits surrounding communities by removing a public safety hazard for boaters and park visitors.” ... ” Read more from the Eureka Times-Standard here: Benbow Dam removal now completed
Marin’s dry weather blunting coho migration: “The lack of rain is not doing Marin’s rare fish any favors. Marin’s federally endangered coho salmon are what biologists hope to see this time of year, but their numbers have not been strong. To date, biologists have counted only 46 coho, with only three of those fish seen on redds, or egg nests, according to the latest counts. “The rest of them appear to be waiting for rain before finding a spot to lay and fertilize their eggs,” said Eric Ettlinger, aquatic ecologist for the Marin Municipal Water District, who monitors the fish. … ” Read more from the Marin Independent Journal here: Marin’s dry weather blunting coho migration
Activists sue Coastal Commission and Monterey County over Rancho Los Robles: “In November, the California Coastal Commission narrowly approved the Rancho Los Robles subdivision in Las Lomas, not far from Elkhorn Slough. Las Lomas residents who lobbied heavily for the subdivision were happy, expecting that they will one day get a promised park and other community amenities from the developer, Heritage Western Communities. Environmentalists were baffled, however, calling the commissioners’ vote “strange” and “terrible.” Coastal Commission staff argued at a Nov. 8 meeting that the watershed under the proposed 54-unit development is severely overdrafted. … ” Read more from Monterey Weekly here: Activists sue Coastal Commission and Monterey County over Rancho Los Robles
With firestorms now past, Santa Barbara County faces new storm threat: “With the firestorms of the Thomas Fire now past, Santa Barbara County officials are now worried about another kind of storm. Although December thus far has been extremely dry, crews are in the field working to improve flood-control facilities that will be crucial if the area receives substantial rains later this winter. “Basically what we’re doing is we’re going to start working on debris basins,” Tom Fayram, the county’s water resources deputy director, told Noozhawk as flames were still burning in the hills above Carpinteria, Montecito and Santa Barbara earlier this month. ... ” Read more from Noozhawk here: With firestorms now past, Santa Barbara County faces new storm threat
What will the Thomas fire burn zone look like in the future? “What will the massive area burned by the Thomas Fire look like in the future? Scientists say it depends on two things: how much it rains, and how soon another wildfire sweeps through. Right now, much of the countryside in rural Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties is scorched. The soil is gray, tree trunks are black and rocks are covered in a film of white ash. But if the area receives close to a normal amount of rain this winter — approximately 17 inches — wildflowers will cover the hillsides this spring. ... ” Read more from KPCC here: What will the Thomas fire burn zone look like in the future?
Precipitation watch …
Strikingly dry conditions persist; Thomas fire now the largest California wildfire: “It has been an extraordinarily dry autumn and early winter across Southern California. Northern California had been faring better in the precipitation department so far this season, with near-average autumn rains in most areas. But in recent weeks, Southern California’s dryness has begun to expand northward along the Pacific Coast–now encompassing all of California, and even beginning to creep north of the state line into parts of the Pacific Northwest. Why has California been so dry? … ” Continue reading at the California Weather Blog here: Strikingly dry conditions persist; Thomas fire now the largest California wildfire
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- NEWS WORTH NOTING: DWR and Reclamation take steps toward improving salmon habitat restoration and fish passage on Yolo Bypass; CalEPA posts data for statewide regulated sites
- BLOG ROUND-UP: Nudging progress on funding safe drinking water; Modernizing water systems in disadvantaged communities; California’s rural water systems need leaders. Who will step up next?; and more …
- RESERVOIR AND WATER CONDITIONS for December 26
- DAILY DIGEST, weekend edition: The flood that could change everything; Ballot measure would ban water exports from SLO County groundwater basins; Preparing for a drier future along the Colorado River; and more …
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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.
