On the calendar today …
- JOINT LEG HEARING: Water is Life: Addressing California Tribal Water Issues beginning at 9:30am. A joint hearing of the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks, And Wildlife And Select Committee On Native American Affairs. Click here for more information.
- PUBLIC MEETING: California Environmental Flows Workgroup from 10am to 11:30am. Agenda items include the drought flows tool, and drought updates on water rights regulations and more. Click here to join the meeting
- MEETING: California Water Data Consortium August Steering Committee Meeting from 2pm to 4pm. Agenda includes an overview of Consortium programs and projects. While the meeting is not geared toward gathering input from the public, Steering Committee meetings are open to the public and the public is welcome to attend and observe. Members of the public may register to receive Zoom meeting access information. Click here to register.
In California water news today …
Will Kings County be the first region sent to state’s groundwater “cop”?
“The prospect of being sent to California’s “groundwater cop” strikes dread in the hearts of most water managers. But for John Vidovich, having the Tulare Lake subbasin come under the glare of the State Water Resources Control Board may be the only way to end an irrigation practice by the J.G. Boswell Company that he says is wasteful, abusive and contributing to the sinking of an entire town. Boswell, which has not responded to requests for comment, pumps large amounts of groundwater into massive shallow ponds for later irrigation, something Vidovich, who runs Sandridge Partners, has complained about for years. “I think this practice is going to be referred to the state Water Board,” Vidovich said in a recent interview. “I’m assuming this practice will be the focus of the state water board. … ” Read more from SJV Water here: Will Kings County be the first region sent to state’s groundwater “cop”?
Congressman Valadao leads request for water documents from Interior
“Today, Congressman David G. Valadao (CA-21), Congresswoman Connie Conway (CA-22), and House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA-23) led the entire California Republican delegation and Western Caucus Chairman Dan Newhouse (WA-04) in a letter to Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland expressing grave concerns with the Department of the Interior’s reconsultation process on the 2019 Biological Opinions for water deliveries from the Central Valley Project and State Water Project. The California Republican delegation has received no substantive response to multiple requests asking the Department of the Interior to explain why it began reconsultation, a process expected to cost more than $15 million of taxpayer money. … ” Continue reading from Congressman Valadao’s office here: Congressman Valadao leads request for water documents from Interior
California’s water chief steps up to fight historic drought
“As a native of the Coachella Valley near Palm Springs where it hardly ever rains, Joaquin Esquivel has always known that water is precious. His uncle often took him to the Salton Sea, and he had family served by a well. He carries that respect for the resource as chair of California’s State Water Resources Control Board. “Growing up in the desert, you are very aware of water,” he said. At the request of Gov. Gavin Newsom, who declared a drought last year, the board has adopted emergency regulations requiring residents to cut back water use, such as turning off fountains and not watering decorative grass at commercial sites. … ” Read more from Capitol Weekly here: California’s water chief steps up to fight historic drought
Drought increases microbe-laden dust landing in Sierras
“Dust from all over the world is landing in the Sierra Nevada mountains carrying microbes that are toxic to both plants and humans. Research from UC Riverside shows higher concentrations of the dust are landing at lower elevations, where people are more likely to be hiking. “Pathogenic dust is becoming more of a threat as the Earth gets drier and more parched. As it turns out, you can’t go climb a mountain to get away from it all,” said UCR microbial ecologist Mia Maltz, who led the study. … ” Read more from the UC Riverside here: Drought increases microbe-laden dust landing in Sierras
Droughts in California are a historic certainty
“California’s status as the most populous state in the U.S., and as a major supplier of the country’s agricultural products draws national and worldwide attention when a drought affects the region. A look back at the earliest days of record-keeping in California shows the Golden State is often the parched state, with residents suffering through prolonged periods of drought, that are often followed by record-breaking rain, snow, and flooding. Droughts and their severity don’t have a universal definition, but the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration provides a general definition as “a deficiency of precipitation over an extended period of time (usually a season or more), resulting in a water shortage.” … ” Read more from the OC Register here: Droughts in California are a historic certainty
Californians want the government to do more about drought, wildfires, and climate change
“A third year of punishing drought has kept water top of mind for many Californians, according to a new PPIC survey on Californians and the Environment. This marks the third year in a row that Californians named drought and water supply their highest concern among environmental issues. Wildfire and climate change also made the top three. Strong majorities want state and local governments to do more to address drought and climate resilience, and they support ambitious climate action from the state. A near-record high 68% of Californians say water supply is a big problem in their part of the state, and solid majorities agree regardless of political affiliation or region. … ” Read more from PPIC here: Californians want the government to do more about drought, wildfires, and climate change
How climate change spurs megadroughts
“Depending on how you look at it, California — and most of the American West — has either entered its third catastrophic drought of the past 10 years, or has been in a constant, unyielding “megadrought” since 2000. Reservoirs are emptying; lawns are turning brown; swaths of farmland that have coaxed lettuce, almonds, and alfalfa out of the dry ground for decades are going fallow. … In one sense, the climate change link seems obvious. Since 1850, global temperatures have climbed 1.2 degrees Celsius (2.2 degrees Fahrenheit); in areas of the U.S. hit hardest by drought, the increase is even higher. Temperatures in California have risen about 3 degrees F since 1896; in Arizona, they have gone up by 2.5 degrees. … But the connection between climate change and drought is not as straightforward as it seems. … ” Read more from Grist here: How climate change spurs megadroughts
Undecided future of California’s water supply
“The San Francisco Bay’s river valley and its formation as a tidal estuary relates to rising sea levels since the last ice age, 20,000 years ago. It’s just one part of the largest estuary on the Pacific coast of the Americas known as the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. Fueled by runoff from the northern Sierra Nevada and southern Cascade Mountains, the delta begins at the western edge of the Central Valley. The joining of California’s two largest rivers forms the heart of the state’s water system. … On July 27, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Department of Water Resources (DWR) outlined California’s largest water project in half a century: the Delta Conveyance Project. The goal is to ecologically transport more water from the state’s wet, rural north to the arid and densely populated south. … ” Read more from the Daily Californian here: Undecided future of California’s water supply
Climate adaptation: match crops to climate
“The megadrought in the West is a time of reckoning for farmers. In an August 5, 2022 Op Ed in the Arizona Republic, Joanna Allhands wrote, “The West must rethink farming to save it. That means we’re going to have to rethink how we farm if we want to maintain even a scaled-back presence in the West. And, no, there will be no silver bullet for how we do that.” California is in a better position than western desert states, because some areas of the state have adequate rainfall. For California, the problem is not so much growing water-intensive crops, but growing them in the driest areas in the state. … ” Read more from the California Water Research blog here: Climate adaptation: match crops to climate
Gubernatorial candidate Dahle pledges action on water storage, fire prevention issues stuck in Sacramento
“With California’s largest wildfire of the year so far burning in Siskiyou County, and drought conditions upping enforcement of water restrictions throughout the state, questions persist about why generous water storage plans and fire prevention policies haven’t come to fruition in Sacramento.But the longer the wait, the more environmentally vulnerable California becomes, State Sen. Brian Dahle, R-Bieber, who is challenging Gavin Newsom in the governor’s race, told the Northern California Record. “We’re in this cycle of constant emergency, and we don’t have to be there,” Dahle said. “There are opportunities for places to put water storage in the Sierras, they’re smaller projects but they are available, we just have to get them permitted.” … ” Read more from the Northern California Record here: Gubernatorial candidate Dahle pledges action on water storage, fire prevention issues stuck in Sacramento
State Water Board to consider adoption of proposed statewide construction stormwater general permit at September 8, 2022 meeting
“The State Water Resources Control Board (“State Water Board”) is in the final stages of developing a revised Statewide Construction Stormwater General Permit (“Construction Stormwater General Permit” or “Permit”). The State Water Board is currently accepting public comments on a limited set of revisions to the draft Construction Stormwater General Permit, has noticed one last public workshop to discuss the contents of the proposed Permit, and has scheduled a hearing to consider adoption of the proposed Permit. … ” Read more from Stoel Rives here: State Water Board to consider adoption of proposed statewide construction stormwater general permit at September 8, 2022 meeting
Ninth Circuit vacates FERC orders against California agency
“On Thursday, the Ninth Circuit issued its opinion for California State Water Resources Control Board v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission vacating the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) orders concluding the California State Water Resources Control Board (California Board) had waived its authority to ensure that certain hydroelectric projects complied with state water quality standards. According to the opinion, the Clean Air Act gives states the right to impose state water quality standards on federal hydroelectric projects. The state imposes these standards through a water quality certification and any standard or limitation of the certification becomes a condition of the licenses for the federal hydroelectric project. … ” Read more from Law Street Media here: Ninth Circuit vacates FERC orders against California agency
Scientists say dry lightning could happen more often in California
“Dry lightning has ignited some of the most destructive and costly wildfires in California history, a new study shows. Researchers found that over the past few decades, nearly half of the lightning strikes that hit the ground during spring and summer had been dry — there was no rain falling nearby. Dry lightning tends to happen in storms over areas of extreme drought, like the one California has been in for the past several years. The air is so dry that the rain evaporates before it hits the ground. ... ” Read more from CBS News here: Scientists say dry lightning could happen more often in California
A Burning Issue: California has lost 7% of its forest cover to climate change over the past 25 years
“Natural climate solutions (NCS), the uptake of carbon from the atmosphere by ecological processes to mitigate climate change, are a topic of intense interest. They are, for the most part, “no regrets” solutions that have additional benefits, particularly when ecosystem’s natural biodiversity and function is protected. The State of California has ambitious plans for NCS (https://resources.ca.gov/Initiatives/Expanding-Nature-Based-Solutions) but Wang et al. [2022] show that patterns of land use, drought and wildfire put these plans at risk. The team demonstrates that California lost ~7% of its forest cover with losses due to fire exceeding gains and more than balancing regrowth after fire. ... ” Read more from EOS here: A Burning Issue: California has lost 7% of its forest cover to climate change over the past 25 years
NASA image: Scarred land and smoky skies
“More than a week after it ignited, the McKinney Fire continues to burn through the Klamath National Forest in Northern California. It is the state’s largest and deadliest wildland fire so far in 2022. The scarred landscape and smoke from actively burning fires are visible in the images above. The images were acquired on August 6, 2022, by the Operational Land Imager (OLI) on Landsat 8. ... ” Check it out at NASA’s Earth Observatory here: NASA image: Scarred land and smoky skies
In commentary today …
Drought requires new strategies for managing cropland
Andrew Ayres, a research fellow of the Public Policy Institute of California Water Policy Center, and Caitlin Peterson, the associate director of the Public Policy Institute of California Water Policy Center, writes, “The San Joaquin Valley is California’s largest agricultural region, but it’s facing an uncertain future. A combination of persistent drought and the rollout of California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act will increase regional water scarcity in the coming decades. Water scarcity will have a major effect on land use: At least half a million acres are projected to come out of irrigated production in the San Joaquin Valley by 2040. This raises a thorny question: What happens to all this newly fallowed land? With careful planning, research and development, and incentive programs, San Joaquin Valley residents can avoid the worst consequences of land fallowing — and perhaps even improve some environmental and economic conditions. … ” Read more from Cal Matters here: Drought requires new strategies for managing cropland
AB 2201: Do we need it?
Don Wright of Water Wrights writes, “There is a saying about laws and sausages and how you really don’t want to see either being made. Looking at legislating in California makes that clear. The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act was passed in 2014. It is actually three bills; AB 1739 by then Assemblyman Roger Dickinson of Sacramento (who lost his bid to become a state senator and ended up a lobbyist), SB 1168 and SB 1319 both by then State Senator Fran Pavley of Santa Barbara. Dickinson’s Assembly District Seven is metropolitan Sacramento. Pavley’s Senate District 27 covers Simi Valley, Van Nuys and Malibu. Neither area has much in common with the San Joaquin Valley economically or hydrologically. You’ll see a trend develop as we discuss Assembly Bill 2201 by Assemblyman Steve Bennett -D, District 37, Ventura. ... ” Continue reading at Water Wrights here: AB 2201: Do we need it?
Today’s featured article …
GUEST COMMENTARY: Groundwater beneath Sacramento Valley offers hope in dry times
Commentary by Jim Peifer, Executive Director of the Regional Water Authority, and David Guy, President of the Northern California Water Association
As another serious drought grips California, we are again confronted with hard truths. One is this: California needs more water storage during these challenging years. This simple fact becomes clearer each year with more extreme weather—both droughts and floods. Prolonged dry periods like this are expected to become more frequent with climate change. So, we must tackle a difficult question: How to store more water in a 21st-century way with 21st-conditions?
In regional water news and commentary today …
NORTH COAST
Officers in this Northern California county stop Asian drivers at 12 times the rate of other drivers, lawsuit claims
“Officers in rural Siskiyou County, fueled by racial prejudice and drug fear-mongering, are stopping the county’s small population of Asian American drivers at 12 times the rate of other drivers, according to a new lawsuit in federal court. County supervisors are also restricting Asian American residents’ access to water and illegally placing liens on their property, in a policy “designed to drive a disfavored racial minority from the county,” the suit said. It was filed Wednesday in Sacramento by the American Civil Liberties Union and Asian Americans Advancing Justice as a proposed class action on behalf of the county’s 1,200 Asian American residents. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle here: Officers in this Northern California county stop Asian drivers at 12 times the rate of other drivers, lawsuit claims
MOUNTAIN COUNTIES
Salmon set new record in Auburn Ravine
“Fall 2021 was a great season for adult salmon swimming up Auburn Ravine to spawn in Lincoln and in the foothills to the east. Friends of Auburn Ravine has been using video cameras to count salmon as they swim through Lincoln since the fall of 2016. This has been a great team effort. … Our cameras captured video of 358 adult fall run chinook salmon swimming up Auburn Ravine through Lincoln. That is the most in one season since serious counting efforts began 10 years ago. ... ” Read more from Gold Coast Media here: Salmon set new record in Auburn Ravine
NAPA/SONOMA
Sonoma County Board of Supervisors to weigh well regulations, campaign finance changes
“The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors is set to weigh policy changes in two complex and often controversial issues: groundwater use and political spending. Before the board Tuesday are proposed updates to the county’s well regulations and changes to how it oversees max contributions to political campaigns. … As in much of California, regulation of groundwater is a contentious issue in Sonoma County, exacerbated by the ongoing drought. The board on Tuesday will consider a series of staff-proposed changes to the county’s permitting process for wells. … ” Read more from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat here: Sonoma County Board of Supervisors to weigh well regulations, campaign finance changes
BAY AREA
Water tests show what’s causing the Oakland Estuary to be muddy brown and slimy green
“People and pets are urged to stay out of the Oakland Estuary and away from Alameda’s shoreline after potentially harmful algae blooms were discovered, following several water tests. For weeks, the water has looked muddy and murky, prompting those who live on or near the water to question the unusual, dark brown color. “It’s so thick, it looks like just when you’re stirring up your hot chocolate or something,” said Michael West who lives on the Oakland Estuary. “Whatever it is, you wouldn’t want to find it in your refrigerator.” … ” Read more from KTVU here: Water tests show what’s causing the Oakland Estuary to be muddy brown and slimy green
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Tainted groundwater from old Rocketdyne site has inched toward homes and LA River
“The empty 47-acre former Rocketdyne site in Warner Center, across the street from bustling Westfield Topanga mall, might be one of the largest undeveloped parcels in L.A. For years, Triple Five Group, owner of the massive Mall of America in Minnesota, tried to buy it. And L.A. City Councilman Bob Blumenfield, who represents the area, once pitched it as a home for Amazon’s headquarters. And now, with the Los Angeles Rams owners acquiring the empty Promenade mall and empty Anthem Blue Cross building, both nearby, the site may not only be one of the biggest open parcels around, but one of the most desirable pieces of land in the region. If only the property wasn’t contaminated with dangerous chemicals left by Rocketdyne that have slowly crept off the site in groundwater beneath the land. … ” Read more from the Daily News here: Tainted groundwater from old Rocketdyne site has inched toward homes and LA River
State refuses request for more water in communities with high wildfire risk
“State officials have denied a request by Southern California municipal water districts for more water to mitigate wildfire risk. The agencies had worked with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California to ask the California Department of Water Resources to allocate 26,300 more acre-feet of water under the health-and-safety exception to drought rules, using the rationale that the exception should include supplies to reduce wildfire hazards by irrigating vegetation in high-risk areas. “Irrigation of landscaping within defensible space, as described in your request, can play a role in reducing wildfire risk,” read the July 29 response from DWR and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. “However, alternative approaches for fire prevention are available that will be equally effective as supplemental deliveries, and therefore DWR is denying your request.” … ” Read more from the LA Times here: State refuses request for more water in communities with high wildfire risk
Thinking in terms of tomorrow: IEUA and partners discuss innovative program to tackle drought challenges and bring water resiliency to the region
“Yesterday, at an Inland Empire Utilities Agency (IEUA/Agency) Special Board Workshop, IEUA provided an update on the Chino Basin Program (CBP/Program) to CBP partners and stakeholders. During this Workshop, IEUA staff provided an overview of the Program’s next steps and an in-depth look into the many benefits that this Program will bring in offering resource resiliency to the region. The CBP is a water banking program that will support local resiliency while addressing challenges caused by climate change. Through this program, investments in new infrastructure, such as an Advanced Water Purification Facility (AWPF), will create 15,000 acre-feet (AF) of purified water annually from local recycled water supplies to increase local recycled water use and improve resiliency. The CBP also includes injection wells, new pipeline interconnections, extraction wells, potable water pipelines, and reservoirs to store and withdraw the newly purified water in local groundwater basins. ... ” Continue reading from the Inland Empire Utilities Agency here: Thinking in terms of tomorrow: IEUA and partners discuss innovative program to tackle drought challenges and bring water resiliency to the region
Drought means Adventure Playground won’t reopen in 2022 as planned
“The newly built staircase stands ready for the pitter-patter of feet. The hillside awaits transformation into a slippery slope. The hollowed mud pit languishes mud-less. The just-constructed forts remain vacant. After a two-year COVID hiatus, Adventure Playground was slated to reopen this summer at Central Park in Huntington Beach. Although perhaps not better than ever — with its heyday, arguably, five decades ago — the renovated, summertime playground promised to be its best in years. But now Adventure Playground will have to cool its heels for at least another year. Due to California’s drought crisis, the city decided this was not the time to unveil a park featuring water, water everywhere. … ” Read more from the OC Register here: Drought means Adventure Playground won’t reopen in 2022 as planned
IMPERIAL/COACHELLA VALLEYS
Lake that predated Salton Sea came and went as the Colorado River changed course
“Before the Colorado River was tamed by dams and dikes it was a free flowing, flooding river that often changed course, sometimes dramatically. Though it typically flowed south to the Gulf of California, in years of powerful floods it would flow into the Salton Sea Basin, and fill it up to form what we call Lake Cahuilla. Since about 612 B.C. Lake Cahuilla has filled up seven times, the last time in 1733. The flooding Colorado would create a huge lake that stretched from what’s now Palm Springs, California in the north to well beyond Mexicali, Mexico in the south. Thomas Rockwell is a geology professor at San Diego State who examined charcoal and other organic matter to determine when the lake filled and receded. … ” Read more from KPBS here: Lake that predated Salton Sea came and went as the Colorado River changed course
Digging in the dirt: California mining firms seek to clean up lithium’s production footprint
“About 200 miles (321 kilometers) east of Los Angeles lies the Salton Sea, California’s largest lake by area. It was once a recreation destination and home to a highly productive fishery, but in recent decades the lake has begun to dry up. Now the region has become famous for its most valuable mineral resource — lithium. Until a decade ago, lithium was mainly used for glass and ceramic production. Now, roughly 70% of lithium is used for batteries. As electric vehicles continue to gain popularity, global lithium demand is skyrocketing. … Access to a steady supply of lithium is pivotal for the US’s and Europe’s e-mobility transition, which is why the Salton Sea’s mineral resources have suddenly gained attention. … ” Read more from DW here: Digging in the dirt: California mining firms seek to clean up lithium’s production footprint
SAN DIEGO
Poseidon failed to start wetlands restoration on time, says Coastal Commission
“Poseidon Resources, the company that built and operates the Carlsbad seawater desalination plant, is in violation of its California Coastal Commission permit for the restoration of wetlands habitat at the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge in South San Diego Bay. A permit the commission approved April 30, 2021, required Poseidon to start the restoration work by Oct. 30, 2021, according to a staff report prepared for next week’s Coastal Commission meeting. The work has not started, although it is on track to begin this fall. “We are hopeful that we can resolve this matter without resorting to formal action,” states a letter the commission sent to the company earlier this year. … ” Read more from the San Diego Union-Tribune here: Poseidon failed to start wetlands restoration on time, says Coastal Commission
Snag may delay San Diego Pure Water sewage-recycling project
“A major hiccup during the early construction stages of San Diego’s Pure Water sewage recycling system will cost the city at least $20 million — and potentially much more if it delays completion of the interdependent system’s other key components. Constant flooding of a site off Morena Boulevard where a contractor is trying to build a large sewage-pump station has forced the contractor to halt work while city officials make plans to build a large dam-like structure around the area being flooded. The need to build the dam not only will delay construction of the pump station and swell its cost from $110 million to $130 million. It could also delay other key parts of Pure Water, such as $200 million in pipelines and a $350 million sewage-purification facility in western Miramar. … ” Read more from the San Diego Union-Tribune here: Snag may delay San Diego Pure Water sewage-recycling project
Along the Colorado River …
Hard choices for the Colorado River
“The seven Colorado River states – Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah and Wyoming – face a daunting mid-August deadline. The federal government has asked them to come up with a plan to reduce their combined water usage from the Colorado River by up to 4 million acre-feet in 2023. … In a recent letter to BuRec, the Upper Colorado River Commission, speaking for the four Upper Basin states, proposed a plan that adopts a business-as-usual, “drought-reduction” approach. They argue that their options are limited because “previous drought response actions are depleting upstream storage by 661,000 feet.” The Commission complains that water users “already suffer chronic shortages under current conditions resulting in uncompensated priority administration, which includes cuts to numerous present perfected rights in each of our states.” This leads the Commission to conclude that any future reductions must come largely from Mexico and the Lower Basin states of Arizona, California and Nevada, because they use most of the water. … ” Read more from Writers on the Range here: Hard choices for the Colorado River
Column: Major cuts loom for Colorado River users
Columnist Brian McNeece writes, “If you pay any attention to the news cycle, you have been bathed in the bad news on the Colorado River. A twenty-year drought and the prospect of permanently lower precipitation brought on by climate change have drawn down both Lake Mead and Lake Powell to dangerously low levels. … Is it possible for the stakeholders on the River to agree on a plan by then? It’s not likely, as previous negotiations for water cuts have taken years, not two months. The stipulations about how water gets distributed from the hardest working river in the world run to thousands of pages. Teams of experts are needed just to understand all these details, much less come up with a plan to satisfy all the varied interests that span the gamut from tribes to farmers to cities to power generators to environmentalists. There is a simple way to do it, of course, and that is to cut every user’s allocation by some factor to balance the amount of water that’s available with the amount of water used. Right now, it’s way out of balance. … ” Read more from the Imperial Valley Press here: Column: Major cuts loom for Colorado River users
Commentary: If states agree to Colorado River water cuts (which is iffy), they may not be big enough
Opinion columnist Joanna Allhands writes, “Only a few days remain for the seven Colorado River basin states to agree on a plan to use drastically less water. Bureau of Reclamation Director Camille Touton has directed all seven states to trim 2 million to 4 million acre-feet of water next year – a cut that likely would have to be sustained through 2026. Maybe longer. And if they don’t agree on a plan to do so by mid-August, the bureau has made it clear that it will step in to make the cut for them. Because Lake Mead and Lake Powell are tanking in a hurry, putting the infrastructure it oversees at risk. But the states still seem far from a deal. … ” Read more from the Arizona Republic here: Commentary: If states agree to Colorado River water cuts (which is iffy), they may not be big enough | Read via Yahoo News
Sinema meets with regional water officials to talk about $4B in Colorado River drought aid
“Sen. Kyrsten Sinema introduced a new water advisory council at Hoover Dam on Monday to discuss how to spend $4 billion in water and drought aid included in the Inflation Reduction Act. The $4 billion is meant to stave off the worst effects of drought across the Colorado River system, which is suffering from overuse and two decades of drought exacerbated by climate change. The effects of the drought were clear Monday as Sinema and regional water officials met at Lake Mead, which sits at just over one-quarter capacity, the same as the upstream Lake Powell. Federal water officials are expected to release projections next week that could lead to new restrictions on water use among the seven states that rely on the river. … ” Read more from the Desert Sun here: Sinema meets with regional water officials to talk about $4B in Colorado River drought aid
Inflation/climate bill includes $4 billion for buying water to save the Colorado River Basin
“The climate change and health care bill nearing final approval in Congress includes $4 billion to rent, buy or save water that could go a long way to help restore the beleaguered Colorado River Basin amid a historic megadrought, Senate supporters and water advocates say. The money can be used by states and local agencies to temporarily buy farmers’ water rights, fund permanent conservation programs like city lawn buy-ups, or negotiate with tribes to keep their water rights in the basin, said Colorado Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet, who with two other Western senators negotiated to keep the $4 billion alive. … ” Read more from the Colorado Sun here: Inflation/climate bill includes $4 billion for buying water to save the Colorado River Basin
In national water news today …
Relocated beavers helped mitigate some effects of climate change
“In the upper reaches of the Skykomish River in Washington state, a pioneering team of civil engineers is keeping things cool. Relocated beavers boosted water storage and lowered stream temperatures, indicating such schemes could be an effective tool to mitigate some of the effects of climate change. In just one year after their arrival, the new recruits brought average water temperatures down by about 2 degrees Celsius and raised water tables as much as about 30 centimeters, researchers report in the July Ecosphere. While researchers have discussed beaver dams as a means to restore streams and bulk up groundwater, the effects following a large, targeted relocation had been relatively unknown. … ” Read more from Science News here: Relocated beavers helped mitigate some effects of climate change
USGA spends millions to tackle sustainability issues, especially concerning water
“The U.S. Golf Association doesn’t just run championships and make rules. The governing body of golf in the U.S. and Mexico also has invested nearly $47 million dollars in the past four decades to promote turfgrass and environmental research. It’s money well spent, as the USGA says its recently renamed Mike Davis Program for Advancing Golf Course Management and its related research saves the golf industry an estimated $1.92 billion annually. Much of that comes in the areas of water savings and more efficient use of fertilizer and pesticide. … ” Read more from Golf Week here: USGA spends millions to tackle sustainability issues, especially concerning water
Do chemicals in sunscreens threaten aquatic life? A new report says a thorough assessment is ‘urgently needed,’ while also calling sunscreens essential protection against skin cancer
“Studies have shown that the same active ingredients in sunscreens that protect people from cancer-causing ultraviolet rays can be toxic to a range of species in oceans, rivers and lakes. With both of these risks in mind, a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine finds an urgent need for more information about whether these chemicals threaten aquatic life on a broad scale. The report calls on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to conduct a detailed review called an environmental risk assessment of the likelihood that exposure to one or more of these chemicals, called UV filters, may harm organisms in saltwater and freshwater ecosystems. The study recommends focusing on two types of settings – coral reefs in shallow waters near shore, and slow-moving freshwater bodies like ponds and marshes – that are heavily used for recreation and/or exposed to wastewater or urban runoff. … “ Read more from The Conversation here: Do chemicals in sunscreens threaten aquatic life?
Senate passes historic climate bill—here’s what comes next
“Three decades after ratifying the world’s first climate treaty, the Senate passed a sweeping budget bill Sunday that pours hundreds of billions of dollars into the clean energy projects needed to decarbonize the economy. The vote represents a breakthrough for U.S. climate policy. In clearing the Senate, Democrats overcame a hurdle that has tripped up past climate bills. And with $369 billion in climate and energy spending, the legislation has the potential to turbocharge U.S. decarbonization efforts. Even so, the so-called Inflation Reduction Act doesn’t look like the climate bill that many lawmakers and advocates had long imagined. … ” Read more from Scientific American here: Senate passes historic climate bill—here’s what comes next
Billions pour into bioplastics as markets begin ramping up
“In a world increasingly troubled by the persistent harm that plastic — manufactured in petrochemical plants — has had on the environment, companies are investing billions of dollars to ramp up production of plastics made from natural, renewable materials that can be safely composted or can biodegrade under the right conditions. Bioplastics have long been used in medical applications. The stitches you got after cutting your hand slicing onions were likely made of a bioplastic thread that harmlessly dissolved into your body. But the nascent bioplastics industry envisions a far bigger role for materials made from corn, sugar, vegetable oils and other renewable materials in the hope of grabbing a larger share of a nearly $600 billion global plastic market. … ” Read more from the Courthouse News Service here: Billions pour into bioplastics as markets begin ramping up
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
NOTICE: Revised Notice of Preparation and CEQA Scoping Meeting – Proposed Regulation to Implement the Bay-Delta Plan
