A study published in October set out to answer a question of special importance to dry regions like Southern Arizona: How will climate change affect what happens to water recharge in Western states? The short answer, according to University of Arizona researchers, is that in the future there will be about the same or more recharge in the north, and states in the south will see less.
A heat wave that began on Tuesday will intensify today and last through Thanksgiving with temperatures rising into the 80s at the coast and into the 90s across inland valleys and foothills. The National Weather Service says the hot weather will peak today with temperatures reaching 88 in San Diego — about 20 degrees above average — and the low 90s in Poway and 92 in Escondido. A dome of high pressure is preventing cool, moist air from flowing into Southern California — a pattern that’s not unusual in late autumn.
Massive floods hit Houston and devastating hurricanes struck Puerto Rico and the Caribbean. Yet one of the more remarkable stories in the past year is the catastrophe that did not happen: massive flooding in California. California experienced its wettest water year on record in 2016-17. In previous decades, that huge volume of water would have caused lethal floods, particularly in the Central Valley. In part, we were lucky. Reservoirs were empty from drought so they had abundant capacity, and there was sufficient time between big storms so the rainfall didn’t stack up.
With the first phase of repairs to the Oroville Dam spillway completed, residents downstream can breathe a little easier. Hundreds of engineers and laborers worked around the clock to fortify the nation’s tallest dam before winter rains, and the Department of Water Resources should be congratulated for expediting this enormous task. But there is a key part of this repair that is still to be done to ensure that California’s water system is ready to withstand the challenges of extreme weather events predicted for the future.
The State Water Resources Control Board is considering a number of regulations that could impact how and when you use water. The Board may move to permanently prohibit practices that waste potable water, such as: Hosing off sidewalks, driveways and other hardscapes; Washing automobiles with hoses not equipped with a shut-off nozzle; Using non-recirculated water in a fountain or other decorative water feature; Watering lawns in a manner that causes runoff, or within 48 hours after measurable precipitation, and irrigating ornamental turf on public street medians.
Who owns the water pipes beneath your street? Increasingly, it is a private company, a shift from the mostly public ownership of the systems used to provide drinking water and remove waste that has prevailed in the U.S. since the early 1900s.
The South Coast Water District voted to take another step towards building a $100 million plant that converts ocean water into drinking water for its customers by 2021. The five-acre Doheny desalination plant is proposed for district-owned land alongside San Juan Creek in Dana Point. It could initially produce up to 5 million gallons of water per day, providing 75 percent of district needs within five years. Eventually, the plant could yield 15 million gallons of water per day.
A coalition of non-profits is asking a superior court to reverse a state agency’s decision to greenlight a long-proposed, controversial desalination plant in Huntington Beach. In a lawsuit filed in Sacramento Friday, Nov. 17, the three coastal advocacy groups allege an inadequate environmental review was conducted on the impacts of building a desalination plant and that the State Lands Commission failed to examine the plant’s impacts on the ocean in its entirety.
More rain is on the way. A lot more rain. “That’s really the theme now,” said National Weather Service Eureka meteorologist William Iwasko on Sunday. “… Nice sunny skies probably are not going to happen this week.” So much rain is expected, a flood watch was issued by the weather service for parts of Humboldt, Trinity and Del Norte counties on Sunday.
Angelenos can expect a hot Thanksgiving this year, with record-breaking temperatures forecast across the region. The mercury is expected to steadily rise throughout the week, with Wednesday and Thursday forecasted to be the hottest days. Forecasters predict a high of 89 degrees in downtown Los Angeles on Wednesday, which would tie a record set in 1950, and 87 degrees on Thursday, said Kathy Hoxsie, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. At Los Angeles International Airport, temperatures will reach 86 and 84 on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
