In California water news today, In the Sierra Nevada, putting the trees to work; DWR could have lost control of Oroville spillway gates during crisis; A ‘floating fillet’: Rice farmers grow bugs to help restore salmon; Dryer, warmer Golden state: Stanford professor provides look into California’s climate future; Wildfires affect water test requirements; Court challenge seeks to block cast California pot farms; Could a major California city run dry like drought-stricken Cape Town?; Biggest storm of the season promises killer ski conditions; Webcams show stark difference in California snowpack, 2017 vs. 2018; and more …
On the calendar today …
- The Delta Conservancy meets from 9am to 1pm. The agenda includes a request for approval of the Responsible Agency findings for the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area Habitat and Drainage Improvement Project and a request for approval to enter into an agreement for the Central Delta Corridor Partnership regional planning process. Click here for agenda.
- Public meeting on efforts to maximize Central Valley Project deliveries from 6pm to 8pm in Los Banos. Click here for more information.
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
In the Sierra Nevada, putting the trees to work: “This is going to be a big year for one of the state’s smallest agencies. As California redoubles its efforts to reduce greenhouse gases, officials are rooting around for new ways to meet the state’s goals. Included in their plan: recruiting billions of redwood, oak and pine trees to help diminish planet-warming gases by pulling carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. It’s a major pivot, from regulating harmful emissions solely from factories and cars to calling on nature to pitch in. Officials say 2018 is the moment for the state to harness, and fully measure, the role forests can play in addressing the pressing problems of wildfires and the dangerous releases of carbon that occur when millions of forested acres burn. Both issues are accelerating in alarming, parallel lines. … ” Read more from Cal Matters here: In the Sierra Nevada, putting the trees to work
DWR could have lost control of Oroville spillway gates during crisis: “The state Department of Water Resources could have lost control of the spillway radial gates for days during the Oroville Dam crisis if crucial power lines had gone down, according to department officials. DWR leaders Cindy Messer and Joel Ledesma stated this Jan. 10 during a legislative oversight hearing on the dam at the State Capitol. This has since led some local groups to wonder why there was no backup power supply. … ” Read more from the Chico Enterprise-Record here: DWR could have lost control of Oroville spillway gates during crisis
A ‘floating fillet’: Rice farmers grow bugs to help restore salmon: “Jacob Katz is on the hunt — but not for geese or ducks. On a farm about 40 minutes north of Sacramento, he wades through a rice paddy with an aquarium net in hand. But he’s not fishing. “We’re going bug hunting,” Katz says. The senior scientist for California Trout, a conservation group with a focus on protecting wild fish, is at River Garden Farms. Founded in 1913, they typically grow things like corn, wheat, and around 5,000 acres of rice — the kind local sushi rice restaurants use. … ” Read more from Capital Public Radio here: A ‘floating fillet’: Rice farmers grow bugs to help restore salmon
Dryer, warmer Golden state: Stanford professor provides look into California’s climate future: “From record rainfall and flooding in winter to record heat and major wildfires burning into winter, 2017 hit a new benchmark for weather extremes in California. But do a series of extreme weather events have a direct link to climate change, or just part of natural swings in daily weather? “Its been an extreme year in California, and not only the rest of the U.S. but other parts of the world,” said Dr. Noah Diffenbaugh, an Earth System Science professor at Stanford University. … ” Read more from NBC Bay Area here: Dryer, warmer Golden state: Stanford professor provides look into California’s climate future
Wildfires affect water test requirements: “In response to a request from agricultural and trade associations, state water officials have given partial regulatory relief to wineries and breweries in areas hit by Northern California wildfires. The action involves required stormwater sampling, which may be affected by ash and debris resulting from the fires. Wineries and breweries are among the California businesses required to have stormwater samples tested during certain weather events. Ash and debris left behind by the October fires could show up in the samples and skew the results. … ” Read more from Ag Alert here: Wildfires affect water test requirements
Court challenge seeks to block cast California pot farms: “An alliance of California marijuana growers filed a lawsuit Tuesday to block state rules that they fear could open the way for vast farms that would drive smaller cultivators out of business or send them into the black market. The lawsuit, filed in Sacramento County Superior Court by the California Growers Association, comes just weeks after the nation’s most populous state began allowing legal pot sales. It argues that state regulations would allow businesses to acquire an unlimited number of certain growing licenses, creating the potential for large operations that would have a “devastating effect” on smaller operations. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee here: Court challenge seeks to block cast California pot farms
Could a major California city run dry like drought-stricken Cape Town? “A dystopian drama is unfolding in Cape Town, a popular tourist destination of nearly 4 million on the coast of South Africa that in April is expected to become the modern world’s first major city to run out of water after three years of drought. For Californians, who panted through five years of record drought before last winter and have seen a fairly dry winter so far this year, it raises the worrisome question: Could it happen here? State officials and water experts think not, or at least that things would have to get a whole lot worse than they did in the last drought. ... ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News here: Could a major California city run dry like drought-stricken Cape Town?
Biggest storm of the season promises killer ski conditions: “It started, as these things often do, with a light dusting of snow. But as this week unfolds, so will the skies over the Sierra Nevada, dumping a fresh round of snowfall to warm the hearts of every ski bum for miles. The bigger weather event could come Wednesday when a fast moving storm is expected to reach the Tahoe region. Along with heavy snow, the storm is expected to bring windy conditions to the Sierra. As winds increase during the day Wednesday, peak gusts at lower elevations could range from 45 to 55 mph, the Tahoe Daily Tribune is reporting. And wind prone areas in eastern California and western Nevada could see gusts up to 70 mph. ... ” Read more from the Mercury News here: Biggest storm of the season promises killer ski conditions
Webcams show stark difference in California snowpack, 2017 vs. 2018: “After a blockbuster snowpack winter for 2016-2017, California is once again in a snow drought and these National Park Service webcams, comparing this week to the same week in 2017, show the shocking difference. … ” Read more from the Accu-Weather here: Webcams show stark difference in California snowpack, 2017 vs. 2018
In commentary today …
California faces a cascade of catastrophes as sea level rises, says Jacques Leslie. He writes, “The first thing to go will be California’s calling card: its beaches. Between a third and two-thirds of Southern California beaches will succumb to sea-level rise by the end of this century unless global fossil fuel emissions are dramatically reined in, according to a 2017 U.S. Geological Survey report. They will be “completely eroded (up to existing coastal infrastructure or sea-cliffs).” Zuma, Redondo and Del Mar, among many others, could all but disappear. … ” Read more from the LA Times here: California faces a cascade of catastrophes as sea level rises
Legal cases seek due process under Clean Water Act, says Tony Francois: He writes, “Due process is a principle of government that protects individual liberties and constrains how the executive conducts itself when enforcing the law. But what exactly is due process? Why is it important? What is it supposed to prevent government agencies from doing to us? Farmers know the answers to these questions perhaps better than most, because due process protections first arose centuries ago in England, when farmland was still the most universal type of property and the only source of income and subsistence for most people. … ” Read more from Ag Alert here: Legal cases seek due process under Clean Water Act, says Tony Francois
We must fix the broken water cycle before it dooms civilization – again, says Sandra Postel. She writes: “Managing water—making sure there’s enough while keeping inundation at bay—is a central function of civilization. History is littered with impressive cultures that didn’t get it right, sealing their doom—from the Sumerians of ancient Mesopotamia to the Hohokam of the American Southwest. It might seem that such lessons don’t apply to modern-day Americans, with our reservoirs and dams and water treatment plants. Certainly, our water-management systems are a marvel. They re-route rivers and make the desert bloom; they enable most of us to shower, flush, eat and drink while barely giving water a thought. But, increasingly, these systems are failing to deliver. … ” Read more from Quartz here: We must fix the broken water cycle before it dooms civilization
In regional news and commentary today …
Grant Davis reinstated as head of Sonoma County Water Agency after brief tenure in Sacramento: “After a 5-month stint running California’s Department of Water Resources, Grant Davis was reappointed Tuesday to his prior job as general manager of the Sonoma County Water Agency. The Board of Supervisors, acting as directors of the Water Agency, unanimously agreed to reinstate Davis, commending him as a trusted leader with a proven track record in the area. “There’s an absolute understanding of your ability and what you were able to do as a conductor, not as a dictator, at the Water Agency,” said Supervisor James Gore, the board chairman. … ” Read more from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat here: Grant Davis reinstated as head of Sonoma County Water Agency after brief tenure in Sacramento
Napa County will have to wait for relocated Delta pumps to improve water quality: “Local water officials say they think the estimated $600 million cost for a new Delta water pumping location serving communities in Napa and Solano counties is too steep for ratepayers to bear. But water officials aren’t giving up on a new North Bay Aqueduct pump site. Rather, they want to create a modified project that serves nature as well as residents in such cities as Napa, Calistoga and American Canyon. “In order to attract state and federal money, this thing has to have more benefits than simply benefiting municipal water users,” Solano County Water Agency General Manager Roland Sanford said. ... ” Read more from the Napa Register here: Napa County will have to wait for relocated Delta pumps to improve water quality
Tahoe conference helps TV meteorologists make sense of climate chaos: “As an earth system scientist Noah Diffenbaugh sifts through mountains of evidence to unravel complex processes behind disasters like droughts and hurricanes. But when someone asks Diffenbaugh if he believes in global warming he turns to a simple scientific tool most people use every day. “If you believe in thermometers you have no choice but to believe in global warming,” Diffenbaugh said during a presentation Tuesday in Stateline. “Global warming is a measurement, it is not a matter of politics, it is not a matter of belief.” … ” Read more from the Reno Gazette Journal here: Tahoe conference helps TV meteorologists make sense of climate chaos
El Dorado: Body found in water supply pipeline: “A man’s body has been recovered from a reservoir pipeline supplying drinking water to several Northern California communities, though authorities say the water quality is not affected. ... ” Read more from Capital Public Radio here: El Dorado: Body found in water supply pipeline
Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority discusses grant funding and plan of action: “The IWV Groundwater Authority’s monthly board meeting on Thursday, Jan. 18 had a lot of important discussions. In the Daily Independent’s Jan. 19 edition, an article titled “USGS finds IWV groundwater basin’s recharge rate consistent with previous studies” focused entirely on the update from the United States Geological Survey’s ongoing study of the IWV groundwater basin’s recharge rate. Other major discussion points from the meeting included an update on IWVGA grants, talks of how to avoid redundancy, and a discussion on the IWVGA’s overall plan of action. ... ” Read more from the Daily Independent here: Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority discusses grant funding and plan of action
Isabella Dam: A long dam history: “Local residents have been involved for a decade with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ planning process to modify Isabella Dam, but much bigger battles were waged in 1936-44 to get it built in the first place. Kern River Valley-raised Kathleen Freeland, now a history lecturer at CSUB, discussed the years before the dam was built in presenting her award-winning master’s thesis on “Reclamation, Flood Control, and Farming: The Battle Over Isabella Dam” to the Kern River Valley Historical Society at its monthly lecture series at the Museum Annex on January 13. … ” Read more from the Kern Valley Sun here: Isabella Dam: A long dam history
San Diego OKs landmark environmental deal that could spur development: “The San Diego City Council approved this week a long-awaited compromise between environmentalists and developers that is expected to accelerate construction of housing tracts and shopping plazas. The compromise better protects biologically-rich ponds called vernal pools with a new rulebook, which also aims to ease project approvals by clarifying how developers can build on land containing such ponds ... ” Read more from the San Diego Union Tribune here: San Diego OKs landmark environmental deal that could spur development
Along the Colorado River …
Utah is headed into a water battle it can’t win, says Eric Balken. He writes, “While states along the Colorado River plan for future shortages, Utah is betting on a big new diversion of water stored behind Glen Canyon Dam. It’s called the Lake Powell Pipeline, and last month the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission accepted Utah’s licensing application to drain water from the reservoir. The federal agency’s acceptance triggers a new environmental analysis and public comment process for what would become the largest new diversion of the Colorado River. Costing billions of dollars, this would also be one of the state’s most expensive infrastructure projects. … ” Read more from High Country News here: Utah is headed into a water battle it can’t win
Dust on snow controls springtime river rise on the Colorado River: “A new study has found that dust, not spring warmth, controls the pace of spring snowmelt that feeds the headwaters of the Colorado River. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the amount of dust on the mountain snowpack controls how fast the Colorado Basin’s rivers rise in the spring regardless of air temperature, with more dust correlated with faster spring runoff and higher peak flows. The finding is valuable for western water managers and advances our understanding of how freshwater resources, in the form of snow and ice, will respond to warming temperatures in the future. … ” Read more from NASA here: Dust on snow controls springtime river rise on the Colorado River
Precipitation watch …
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.
