In California water news today, Cal Water Fix project picking up speed; Why atmospheric rivers can be a blessing and a curse; Forecast shows California fishermen in for another year of sharp limits; Feds consider listing spring Klamath River salmon as endangered; Water for federal districts again in short supply; Temperance Flat proponents appeal Water Commission decision; NASA launches advanced weather satellite for the Western US; and more …
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
Cal Water Fix project picking up speed: “The pace of activity related to the California WaterFix project has stepped up considerably in the last few weeks, and several major developments have arisen. Those developments included the resumption of the Part 2 hearings, the issuance of a major ruling by the State Water Resources Control Board, the revelation that the Metropolitan Water District is examining the option of funding a majority of the cost of a two-tunnel solution and the release of an long-awaited economic analysis of the project. … ” Read more from the Brentwood Press here: Cal Water Fix project picking up speed
Why atmospheric rivers can be a blessing and a curse: “The storm currently hitting Southern California is the second this week, but it’s far different than its predecessor. The earlier storm originated near Alaska, like many of California’s winter storms do, but it packed little rain because it tracked over land instead of the Pacific Ocean. The second storm, the one that began drenching the region Thursday, is what’s known as an atmospheric river. It’s a type of storm that begins far out at sea, allowing it to gather abundant moisture as it barrels toward land driven by high winds. … ” Read more from KPCC here: Why atmospheric rivers can be a blessing and a curse
Forecast shows California fishermen in for another year of sharp limits: “A third straight year of low king salmon runs is expected to deliver another blow to one of the North Coast’s most iconic and lucrative fisheries, wildlife managers indicated Thursday, as both regulators and fishermen faced the prospect of a federally mandated plan to reverse the trend and rebuild key stocks. The grim news comes amid a dramatic, yearslong decline in the state’s commercial salmon landings, which are down 97 percent last year from their most recent peak, in 2013, when they hit 12.7 million pounds. ... ” Read more from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat here: Forecast shows California fishermen in for another year of sharp limits
Feds consider listing spring Klamath River salmon as endangered: “A once thriving population of spring-run Chinook salmon on the Klamath and Trinity rivers is heading toward extinction in the next century, according to a recent study, but the federal government may soon intervene. After reviewing the Karuk Tribe’s November petition to recognize the spring-run salmon as a separate species from its fall-run counterparts and to list them as an endangered species, the National Marine Fisheries Service this week found the tribe’s request “may be warranted.” The federal agency will now begin a 12-month review before making a final decision on the tribe’s requests. ... ” Read more from the Times-Standard here: Feds consider listing spring Klamath River salmon as endangered
Water for federal districts again in short supply: “Farmers in a West Side water district once again face a curtailed water supply in 2018. The respite of 2017, when growers in federal agencies such as the Del Puerto Water District enjoyed a full water allocation after several years of receiving little to no deliveries through the Central Valley Project, was short-lived. The federal Bureau of Reclamation announced last week that south-of-the-delta users such as Del Puerto will receive 20 percent of their full contract allocation this year. That allocation could be revised upward if conditions improve. … ” Read more from Westside Connect here: Water for federal districts again in short supply
Temperance Flat proponents appeal Water Commission decision: “Temperance Flat proponents have not given up on their $2.8 billion project that would dam the upper San Joaquin River above Millerton Lake near Fresno, creating an additional 1.26 million acre feet of water storage. Though the California Water Commission recently denied their request for a little over $1 billion in water bond money for the project, saying it provides no public benefit, proponents recently submitted a 19-page appeal letter and about 1,500 pages of explanations to the original proposal in hopes of winning a positive decision from the commission. ... ” Read more from the Western Farm Press here: Temperance Flat proponents appeal Water Commission decision
NASA launches advanced weather satellite for the Western US: “NASA launched another of the world’s most advanced weather satellites on Thursday, this time to safeguard the western U.S. The GOES-S satellite thundered toward orbit aboard an Atlas V rocket, slicing through a hazy late afternoon sky. Dozens of meteorologists gathered for the launch, including TV crews from the Weather Channel and WeatherNation. ... ” Read more from KQED here: NASA launches advanced weather satellite for the Western US
Hotspots and Trends in Water Quality Violations Emerge All Over the United States: “After the United States—and the world—learned about the water quality crisis in Flint, Michigan, water economist and former Michigan resident Maura Allaire started to wonder just how unique the problem was to Flint. Certainly specific incidents in which a water contaminant crops up somewhere happen in any given year. Just how widespread is the problem? … ” Continue reading at the Environmental Monitor here: Hotspots and Trends in Water Quality Violations Emerge All Over the United States
Trump might release more sewage; warming could make it worse: “President Trump wants to loosen the rules for monitoring pollution discharges from sewers and industrial facilities as part of his infrastructure push. That could affect areas seeing more rain because of climate change, experts say. When the Clean Water Act was enacted in 1972, regulators limited phosphorus pollution into Lake Erie to 11,000 metric tons. Before then, about 29,000 metric tons had entered the lake every year, mostly from sewage treatment plants. Then the hog farmers came. Agriculture began dotting the Maumee River watershed in Indiana, Ohio and Michigan. Phosphorus from those facilities followed. It poured into Lake Erie, giving rise to blooms of algae as excess nutrients reduced oxygen and, in turn, aquatic biodiversity. Fishermen dependent on walleye and other fish suffered. … ” Continue reading at E&E News here: Trump might release more sewage; warming could make it worse
In commentary today …
Don’t let the rain fool you, the drought is back, says the Santa Rosa Press Democrat: They write, “This week’s rainstorms belie a simple truth — the drought is back. A few days of storms cannot undo months of dryness. Like it or not, Californians need to get back into a drought mindset. Three months ago, things didn’t look so bad. Less than one-third of the state was critically dry at the end of November, and winter storms promised saturation and snow pack in the mountains. But the storms didn’t come. Now 92 percent of the state is in some level of warning from abnormally dry to severe drought. Most of Sonoma County and the North Coast are the lucky areas not yet in danger, but that’s likely to change as summer approaches. … ” Read more from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat here: Don’t let the rain fool you, the drought is back, says the Santa Rosa Press Democrat
In regional news and commentary today …
Lodi: Groundwater district explores options: “After local landowners voted down a proposed irrigation project on Monday, the North San Joaquin Water Conservation District began exploring other options during a meeting on Wednesday. The proposed South System Groundwater Improvement Project, an $18.75 million plan that would have pumped pressurized surface water from the Mokelumne River along seven miles of new pipeline to Bear Creek and Pixley Slough, allowing farmers to irrigate their crops with surface water instead of depleting groundwater, according to NSJWCD President Joe Valente. ... ” Read more from the Lodi News-Sentinel here: Lodi: Groundwater district explores options
Stockton: Critic’s ‘hobby’ is getting expensive, flood agency says: “Flood control officials are asking a judge to impose sanctions against an outspoken critic who they say has forced them to waste hundreds of thousands of dollars of public money on litigation the critic referred to as his “hobby.” Dominick Gulli says his battle against a proposed flood control gate near the mouth of Smith Canal in central Stockton is legitimate, and that when he used the word “hobby” in conversation with an opposing attorney, he simply meant he wasn’t getting paid for his work to defeat the project. … ” Read more from the Stockton Record here: Critic’s ‘hobby’ is getting expensive, flood agency says
Water now flowing to 750+ homes in Porterville: “During the recent multi-year drought, the wells of some 300 homes and properties in East Porterville went dry. Last month saw the completion of Phase 2 of a county, state and city project connecting more than 750 homes from the area, east of Porterville city limits, along with some others in and around the city, to the city’s water supply. With wells drying up, county residents began running out of water. Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency, allowing the state’s Department of Water Resources (DWR) to allocate much needed funding to help with the situation. With the aid of Self Help Enterprises, temporary non-potable water tanks were set up and filled on a regular basis, and drinking water was delivered to the residents. … ” Read more from the Valley Voice here: Water now flowing to 750+ homes in Porterville
As the push for development continues on Fort Ord, concerns about water supply go unheeded: “While Cal Am’s proposed slant wells in Marina continue to face resistance in the city, not nearly as much attention is being paid to an existential, less ambiguous threat – the potential exhaustion, or contamination, of Marina’s primary water supply: the deep aquifer. It is on the grounds of water supply concerns that land-use watchdogs Landwatch and Keep Fort Ord Wild submitted letters to Marina Coast Water District in February, arguing that the district’s proposed annexation of parts of the former Fort Ord required an environmental review. ... ” Read more from Monterey Weekly here: As the push for development continues on Fort Ord, concerns about water supply go unheeded
San Luis Obispo County: Adelaida area residents call for groundwater protections amid development and drought: “The 515-acre property neighboring David Leader’s in rural Adelaida has been dry-farmed by one family for decades—a practice that was the historical norm for the agricultural region between Atascadero and Paso Robles, west of Highway 101. But as has become more and more common recently, when the land was sold a few years back, the out-of-state buyer arrived with more ambitious plans. Since 2016, at least three groundwater wells 500 feet or deeper—with casings as wide as 10 inches—were drilled and dropped around the perimeter of the property to serve an incoming vineyard and new residence, according to county permits. … ” Read more from New Times SLO here: San Luis Obispo County: Adelaida area residents call for groundwater protections amid development and drought
Without more rain, Santa Barbara faces water shortage by 2020: “Without substantial amounts of rainfall, Santa Barbara faces a water shortage by 2020. To contend with the potential ordeal, the city plans to present several options, including desalinating more water, at a meeting in May. “It has been a very dismal rainfall year,” said Joshua Haggmark, the city’s water resources manager, at Tuesday’s City Council meeting. … ” Read more from Noozhawk here: Without more rain, Santa Barbara faces water shortage by 2020
Malibu City Council asks to delay Rindge Dam removal talks: “Malibu is not ready to lose the Rindge Dam. On Monday, city council asked City Manager Reva Feldman to send a letter to the California Coastal Commission urging that more time be spent on researching a dam removal project and its potential consequences. Right now, the statewide body is looking at a plan to remove the 92-year-old structure, which sits at the bottom of Malibu Canyon in front of a massive pile of 780,000 cubic yards of dirt, rocks and debris that has collected behind it. ... ” Read more from the Malibu Times here: Malibu City Council asks to delay Rindge Dam removal talks
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
Sign up for daily email service and you’ll never miss a post …
Sign up for free daily email service and you’ll get all the Notebook’s aggregated and original water news content delivered to your email box by 9AM. And with breaking news alerts, you’ll always be one of the first to know …
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.
