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Guest view: ‘No twin tunnels,’ but legislation would help temper many concerns

I want to be absolutely clear that whatever it takes, we cannot allow the twin tunnels to ever be built. Sized for a capacity of 15,000 cubic feet per second, they are capable of taking all the water that flows down the Sacramento River for half of every year. The tunnels are the ultimate vampire capable of sucking the Delta dry.

We must stop the tunnels, but that is not enough. We must conserve water on farms and in cities. We must replenish our aquifers and build new off-stream reservoirs like Sites north of Sacramento and Los Vaqueros near Brentwood.

Stormwater Collection in Tahoe Keeps Evolving

Those tasked with keeping gritty stormwater from reaching Lake Tahoe are looking into whether the roads are actually a problem.

“Pavement wear” is what Russ Wigart, with El Dorado County, called it. “We completely annihilate our roads on an annual basis,” Wigart said. “Fifteen to 25 percent of fine sediment is from pavement. Maybe we could resurface our roads and call them water quality projects.”

 

New study: Sierra Nevada Forests Shifting to Higher Elevations as Temperatures Warm

In another sign of the warming climate, key species of trees in California’s Sierra Nevada mountain range — including lodge pole pine, red fir and western white pine — are shifting to higher elevations in search of cooler temperatures, a broad new study by state biologists has found.

From south of Lake Tahoe to the northern Sierra, the areas where the trees are growing has moved on average nearly 500 feet higher over the past 80 years, as new saplings are taking root farther up mountainsides, according to researchers from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

L.A. River Rehab Included in Water Infrastructure Funding Bill

Los Angeles-based members of Congress today applauded a House committee’s inclusion of a Los Angeles River restoration project in an annual water infrastructure funding bill.

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee opted to include the Los Angeles River Ecosystem project — which would restore natural habitats to the portions of the 51-mile river — into the Water Resources and Development Act of 2016.

BLOG: Study: Urbanization to Boost Water Demand

Think the current California drought has been tough? It will get worse in the future, because the state is always growing. But quantifying that effect has largely been guesswork. Until now.

A new study in Environmental Research Letters by scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Nature Conservancy estimates how water demand will change in 2062 by projecting the present rate of land-use change. This includes urban growth and farmland conversion – both conversion of farms into urban areas and conversion of annual crops to permanent crops, like orchards and vineyards.

BLOG: Central Valley Project Users Can’t Get a Break

Water supplies are better than normal in Northern California, so why is it that Central Valley Project (CVP) water users can’t get a break? The water users in question are the farms and ranches in the San Joaquin Valley that rely on the federal Central Valley Project water conveyance system. They are set to receive a meager 5 percent of their water supply this year.

It’s the middle of May and rainfall in the northern Sierra is currently 111 percent of normal. Lake Shasta is 93 percent full and 108 percent of its year-to-date average.

Largest U.S. Water Reservoir at Record Low Due to Drought

The water in the largest U.S. reservoir has sunk to a record low, due to the severe drought in the American Southwest.

Lake Mead, in Nevada, had dropped 10 feet in three months. With an average depth of 1,084 feet in February, last week the reservoir measured only 1,074 feet deep, or only 37 percent of capacity, according to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The manmade lake — formed during the Great Depression by the blocking of the Colorado River with Hoover Dam — has endured despite the drought that has dried up the mountain snowpacks that feed the river.

OPINION: ‘No Twin Tunnels,’ But Legislation Would Help Temper Many Concerns

I want to be absolutely clear that whatever it takes, we cannot allow the twin tunnels to ever be built. Sized for a capacity of 15,000 cubic feet per second, they are capable of taking all the water that flows down the Sacramento River for half of every year. The tunnels are the ultimate vampire capable of sucking the Delta dry.We must stop the tunnels, but that is not enough. We must conserve water on farms and in cities.

OPINION: Water, Freedom and Elections

I see the relaxed drought-required conservation measures being responded to in varying degrees, depending on the municipality, geographic location and local water supplies. Readers may recall when I wrote in this column that there was no rational reason for Red Bluff residents, and Red Bluff officials, to implement—or even consider—the mandates from the water wizards in our Emerald City to the south.

 

Meet the Newest Soldiers in California’s Drought Battles

My fellow Americans, it’s time we stop worrying and learn to love the bug. Not only are they imperative to our life here on this planet, but these squirmy little heroes are always finding new ways to help us out of our jams. The most recent case-in-point is California, where worms are being used to tackle a massive wine industry issue: wastewater disposal.

It’s common knowledge among vintners that creating a single glass of wine in California can use up to 14 gallons of water—and then you have to clean it.