State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson said Thursday that California public schools built before 2010 must test for lead in drinking water. The requirement comes several months after Gov. Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 746, which requires community water systems statewide, beginning Jan. 1, to complete lead testing in these older schools by July 1, 2019.
Nine individuals or entities from Yuba-Sutter are suing the California Department of Water Resources for more than $27 million in damages suffered as a consequence of the Lake Oroville spillway crisis last February. The action is part of a larger lawsuit involving more than 40 individuals or groups from around the North State that reportedly suffered more than $100 million in damages from the ordeal.
The City of Antioch’s plan to build a brackish water desalination plant on the San Joaquin River received a boost from the State Department of Water Resources, which is recommending a grant of $10 million in Proposition 1 Water Bond funds to the city for construction of the project. “I am pleased to see the hard work we put into passing the Water Bond paying off on a local project that will improve the quality and reliability of fresh water for Antioch residents,” said Assemblymember Jim Frazier, D-Discovery Bay.
The dry winter stemmed back to much of the last six or more months, weather that is more typical of spring than mid-winter, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. Temperatures have been well above average, which tends to dry out vegetation, soils, and water resources, tying in to the growing risk of wildfires, according to the report. The National Weather Service noted that temperatures in the Santa Clarita Valley for this weekend will be in the mid 80’s with wind speeds of up to 20 miles per hour.
This winter in the southern Rocky Mountains is shaping up to be one for the record books. And not in a good way. Parts of the West are currently experiencing one of the driest and warmest winters on record. Snowpack is far below normal levels in southern Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and California, leaving some to worry about this year’s water supply.
The latest reckoning of the tab for the Oroville spillway crisis — the first update in many months — revealed an astonishing figure and proved how much the state has been trying to downplay the preventable disaster from the start. It almost provides a “we-told-you-so” moment. Lake Oroville’s regular spillway started falling apart almost a year ago, on Feb. 7. By Feb. 11, the lake was spilling over the top and running down a never-used emergency spillway.
Under a baking sun, Russell Neches peeled off his long-sleeved base layer to hit the ski slopes at Royal Gorge Cross Country Resort near Lake Tahoe. Early February should be the the dead of California’s winter, yet Neches was skiing in — and sweating through — his T-shirt. “As soon as there was sun, it was unbearably hot,” said the 37-year-old Oakland resident. Unseasonably warm and dry temperatures blanketed California over the weekend, shattering records across the state and bringing clear blue skies that were expected to linger through next weekend.
Many Western reservoirs are full, and downpours have triggered floods and deadly mudslides in parts of California. But all that water isn’t enough to save the West from another drought. Most of the region has slipped back into the drought conditions that have plagued it on and off for the past two decades—alarming water managers across several states. The dry conditions are fueling wildfires, threatening agriculture and hurting ski resorts.
Dozens of San Diegans are howling over soaring water bills, complaining on social media and to the city. In response, Mayor Kevin Faulconer has promised every complaint will be reviewed and independent City Auditor Eduardo Luna has promised to conclude that review by June. City utilities officials have a range of explanations for the spikes, starting with meter-reading errors, higher usage because of warmer weather, leaks in water systems and homes, a 6.9 percent rate increase that took effect Aug. 1, and a change that led to one bill covering more days.
It sounds like something out of a Kafka novel. You get an inexplicable bill from a government agency for thousands of dollars and no manner of protest or pleading will reverse it. Instead, you’re told by the bureaucracy to pony up the money or face losing access to an essential resource — water. That’s the situation being described by residents across the city of San Diego who say the Public Utilities Department is charging them for water they didn’t use.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
