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OPINION: As Elsewhere, Here In The Coachella Valley Economies Grow Where Water Flows

/in , /by /The Desert Sun (Palm Springs)by Ben Olson

A century ago, the Coachella Valley looked nothing like it does today. But the foundation for its future growth and success was set in place those many years ago by forward-thinking pioneers who knew that economies grow where water flows. Without water, growth in the valley would stop. The Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD) was formed as a flood control Special District in 1918. Those early Coachella Valley farmers realized natural recharge of the basin was not going to provide sufficient water for the agricultural development our forefathers envisioned.

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Column: Ellen DeGeneres Picks on the Wrong Guy to do the Dad Dab

/in , /by /San Diego Union-Tribuneby Diane Bell

“You with the purple shirt,” said Ellen DeGeneres, pointing at Jim Madaffer in her studio audience on Tuesday’s show. “We’re going to give you some music.” His assignment, as one of only a handful of “dads” in the talk host’s audience that day, was to do the “Dad Dab” dance. Thus, the chairman of the San Diego County Water Authority Board and California Transportation Commission member squeezed out to the center aisle and gamely gyrated to the music, earning a thumb’s down from the show host.

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Farmers Threaten Legal Action Over DCP

/in , /by /Imperial Valley Pressby Richard Montenegro Brown

A group of farmers could be threatening a new lawsuit against the Imperial Irrigation District over its participation in the drought contingency plan meant to bolster water supplies at Lake Mead and help restore the Colorado River, according to IID officials. At the core of the threat, district officials said Wednesday night, is what IID General Manager Kevin Kelley termed the “elephant in the room” — who holds the water in trust for all water users: the IID or the farmers/landowners? This threat, Kelley said, addresses similar points with the lawsuit grower Mike Abatti filed against the district over its Equitable Distribution Plan. That case is now being appealed by the IID.

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OPINION: With Disasters Rocking The State, California Needs To Remember The St. Francis Dam Failure

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Erik Altenbernd and William Deverell

There is a quiet campaign underway in northern L.A. County that deserves the support of people across California. lThe Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society is pushing for the site of the St. Francis Dam to be declared a national memorial. The designation would commemorate both the dam and the more than 400 lives that were lost when it collapsed, the worst man-made disaster in California history.

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Project to Turn Wastewater Into Drinking Water To Begin Construction in Spring 2019

/in , /by /NBC7 San Diegoby Christina Bravo and Artie Ojeda

The San Diego City Council voted Thursday to move forward with the Pure Water San Diego project, which intends to provide one-third of San Diego’s water supply by 2035. The vote allows the city to award contracts for the first phase of the project, which will involve pipeline construction to move wastewater from a planned pump station in the Morena area to the North City Pure Water Facility in Miramar. The water will then be stored at the Lake Miramar Reservoir before it’s sent to the nearby treatment plant. Next, the water will be blended with other imported water before making its way to taps.

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Robert Kephart Selected To Fill Division 4 Vacancy On OMWD Board Of Directors

/in , /by /The Del Mar Times

Olivenhain Municipal Water District’s Board of Directors selected Robert Kephart at its Nov. 7 meeting as the new director representing Division 4 of OMWD’s service area. Kephart fills the seat left vacant by the resignation of Jerry Varty. Kephart has 20 years of service on the County of San Diego Service Area 107 Fire Advisory Board and currently serves on the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Foundation board. A volunteer firefighter for the Elfin Forest/Harmony Grove Fire Department for 19 years, he achieved the rank of captain and chaired the department’s facilities committee.

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City To Begin Construction Of Revolutionary Drinking Water Recycling Plant In Spring

/in , /by /Times of San Diegoby Chris Jennewein

San Diego’s revolutionary project to ensure an adequate supply of drinking water by recycling it received the final go-ahead on Thursday. The City Council authorized Mayor Kevin Faulconer to award construction contracts for the $614 million first phase of the project, which will produce 30 million gallons a day beginning in 2021. “This will be one of the most important infrastructure projects in city history and puts San Diego on the path to water independence for the first time,” Faulconer said. “Pure Water will deliver a safe, reliable and sustainable source of water for all San Diegans for generations to come. It’s just the latest example of how we’re leaving a cleaner San Diego than the one we inherited.”

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City, SDG&E In $120 million Disagreement

/in , /by /10 Newsby Jonathan Horn

San Diego Gas and Electric and the city of San Diego are in a disagreement that could be worth up to $120 million. The controversy is over San Diego’s Pure Water project, which would turn sewage into high treated drinking water. The city’s goal is to have a third of its water supply be reclaimed water by 2035.  To accomplish that, the city plans to build a $1 billion pipeline to pump sewage from the Morena area to the North City Water Reclamation Plant on the edge of Miramar.

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Water In California

/in , /by /The Economist

The federal government and the state of California seem to love suing each other, and have done so dozens of times in the past two years without causing anyone much damage. But President Donald Trump is now threatening to sue the state over control of water. This could harm a lot of people, because water is the source of the most contentious and enduring battles in America’s largest state.

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Major Colorado River Water User Floats Arizona Drought Plan

/in , /by /Associated Pressby Felicia Fonseca

A major Colorado River water user has proposed an interim plan for Arizona as the state faces looming a looming deadline to manage expected shortages. The Central Arizona Project board said its proposal could jumpstart talks after previous ones failed to gain consensus among water users. The agency wants to draw up to 400,000 acre-feet of water it stored in Lake Mead and 50,000 acre-feet in Lake Pleasant, and implement a $60 million conservation program to lessen the burden of shortages on mainly farmers and developers. Another program would help improve groundwater systems but doesn’t have a price tag.

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