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Desalination Is No Longer A Pipe Dream In Southern California

/in /by /Press-Telegram (Long Beach)by Lauren Williams Mentioned: Carlsbad Desalination Plant

Here’s an idea: Let’s use the ocean to create an endless supply of pure water, no matter how much rain and snow falls (or doesn’t) on California. If it sounds like something out of the future, consider: As of today, seven ocean desalination plants are under consideration along the coasts from Dana Point through Monterey Bay. By the mid-2020s, those plants could be using the Pacific to produce about 10 percent of the fresh water needed in parts of Los Angeles and Orange counties.

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BLOG: How California Can Make the Most of Its Rainfalls

/in /by /Water Deeply (New York)by Michael Levitin

The deluge that hit California this month may have eased some people’s concerns about the drought. But it also raised a new question: Is the state doing enough to capture all that excess stormwater for later use? According to Annalisa Kihara, chief planner at the State Water Board’s Strategy to Optimize Resource Management of Storm Water unit (STORMS), the strategies for capturing and conserving rainwater are abundant, and numerous projects are underway.

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After Years Of Drought, Sacramento Confronts An Old Foe: Flood Risk

/in /by /The Sacramento Beeby Dale Kasler, Phillip Reese and Ryan Sabalow

In the years before California’s drought, it wasn’t unusual for Sacramentans to spend winters worrying about floods. After more than five years with little rain, the past two weeks delivered a bracing reminder that the region remains vulnerable to rising waters and overtopped levees. The recent rainstorms flooded scattered sections of greater Sacramento, from the Garden Highway north of downtown to the rural communities south of Elk Grove. Three small levee breaches added to the havoc caused by the wayward Cosumnes River.

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Department Of Water Resources To Begin Closing Sacramento Weir Gates

/in /by /Capital Public Radio (Sacramento)by Bob Moffitt

The Sacramento Weir opened its gates Jan. 10 to reduce water levels in the Sacramento River, but now those gates may begin closing as early as Monday. Thirty-five of the 48 gates are open. The weir acts as a bridge between West Sacramento and Interstate 5 on Old River Road. Most bridges are over water, but this one is blocked with 1,824 wooden planks — each six feet long, one foot wide and four inches thick.

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California Water Managers Want Emergency Drought Rules To End

/in /by /KPBSby Maureen Cavanaugh Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

The San Diego County Water Authority and other water managers across California are calling for regulators to end emergency drought rules. “It’s clear here in San Diego County that we are not in a drought emergency. We have adequate supplies to meet demand this year and actually for the next three years if it’s dry,” said Dana Friehauf, the water authority’s water resources manager. Friehauf added that despite this, water users in the county still need to use water wisely, but we need to move to more long-term changes, such as upgrading to a low-water garden.

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Gov. Brown Declares State Of Emergency After Storms Cause Flooding, Erosion, Highway Damage

/in /by /Los Angeles Timesby Hailey Branson-Potts and Matt Hamilton

After another round of heavy rains soaked parts of California, Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency late Monday for several counties dealing with an estimated tens of million dollars in damage from flooding, erosion, and mud flows. The governor’s order cited the destruction to roads and highways from the so-called atmospheric river that has pummeled Southern California, the Central Coast, the San Joaquin Valley and the Bay Area since early January. A second emergency declaration was also issued for a spate of Northern California counties battered by rainstorms.

 

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Ventura Moves To Join State Water

/in /by /Ventura County Starby Arlene Martinez

Since 1971, the city of Ventura has been paying to help maintain the water system that delivers imported state water. On Monday night, Ventura took a step toward obtaining some of that product after the City Council voted 7-0 to authorize a comprehensive study that considers design, water flow, the environmental impacts and costs. The up to $653,000 is being partially offset by payments from the Calleguas Municipal Water District and the United Water Conservation District, which along with the Casitas Municipal Water District hope to be part of the regional effort.

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Widespread Flooding, Mudslides, Evacuations As Biggest Storm In Years Batters California

/in /by /Los Angeles Timesby Matt Hamilton, Frank Shyong, Adam Elmahrek and Howard Blume

The third in a series of powerful winter storms unleashed a deluge in Southern California on Sunday, flooding numerous roads and freeways, setting new rainfall records and stranding some in dangerously rising waters. Forecasters had predicted this storm would be the strongest and several years, and it didn’t disappoint. While earlier storms produced periods of heavy showers, this one delivered several hours of sustained pounding rain, with damaging results.

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Southern California Pounded by Intense Storm and Flooding

/in /by /AP News

The third and most powerful in a series of storms pounded Southern California on Sunday, dropping nearly 4 inches of rain south of Los Angeles, flooding freeways and raising concerns about damaging mudslides. Commuters could expect a messy drive to work Monday in several areas, with rainfall expected to ease slightly but not taper off until Tuesday. Flash flood watches and warnings were in effect for swaths of greater Los Angeles and across Southern California where multiple roads were closed Sunday or blocked by fallen trees.

 

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OPINION: SF Needs To Plan For Drier Future

/in /by /San Francisco Chronicle

California’s five-year drought has brought new urgency to balancing our water use — and, even in wet years, water issues always hover close to the political boiling point. Thus the state’s proposal that San Francisco significantly reduce water imports from the Sierra has the water world bubbling. Cutbacks will require political will, creative thinking and sacrifice. Yet the Bay Area must commit to do more to prepare for a drier future.

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