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Poseidon Prevails In Desalination Lawsuit

A lawsuit seeking a new environmental report for the controversial Poseidon desalination plant proposed for Huntington Beach was rejected by a Sacramento Superior Court judge on Tuesday. Three environmental groups had filed the suit, arguing that the plant’s 2010 Environmental Impact Report needed to be entirely done over because of subsequent changes to the proposal. In its 2017 approval of the project, the State Lands Commission determined that Poseidon needed only to complete a supplemental report addressing the changes to the project, which proponents champion as a drought-proof source of local drinking water.

Rebates On Lawn Replacement In San Diego Increased For Limited Time

The San Diego County Water Authority is making local customers aware that lawn rebates are currently 175 percent higher than normal. The average rebate on participating lawns is usually $1 per sq. ft. in San Diego County. It is currently at $2.75 per sq. ft. There is no word on when the rebate will go back down to a buck, but it could happen in the coming weeks. Rebates are not just reserved for lawn to turf replacement. In fact, the Water Authority encourages people to have water-efficient shrubs and trees as part of their gardens.

Storm To Return Mudslide, Flood Danger In Southern California Friday, Saturday

A storm is forecast to dip far enough south to bring soaking rain to much of the California coast, including Southern California, from Friday afternoon to Saturday morning. A blockbuster storm with high winds, pounding surf and widespread torrential rainfall and severe flash flooding is not anticipated. However, the cumulative nature of the rainfall in central and northern areas from recent prior storms, as well as a thorough soaking in Southern California with this storm can lead to travel delays, disruptions to outdoor activities and other problems.

Otay Water District Logo

Otay Water District Board Elects New Officers

Spring Valley, Calif. – At its Jan. 2, 2019 meeting, the Otay Water District Board of Directors elected new Board officers to lead the District’s Board for 2019. The Board elected board member Mitch Thompson, who represents division 2, as president. The Board also elected board member Mark Robak, serving division 5, as vice president.

Thompson’s election as president follows one year of Board leadership under past president Tim Smith. In 2018, Thompson served as vice president of the Board. He has served on the District’s Board since May 2012. Thompson will serve as president through January 2020 when officer elections will again occur.

California Water Board Outlines $606M Bill Assistance Program

To subsidize drinking water bills for poor households, California regulators recommend new taxes on bottled water and incomes above $1 million a year, according to a draft proposal released by the State Water Resources Control Board. If the $606 million proposal, or an alternate version, is accepted by the Legislature, California would be the first state in the country to run a water bill assistance program. With the affordability of water and sewer service a hot topic nationally and utility aid programs either underfunded, non-existent, or handcuffed by state laws, other states will be watching the outcome.

 

OPINION: In California, The Demise Of The Grassy Lawn

On the first Saturday of December in a northeast neighborhood of Fresno, California, Jeff Collins and his neighbors were putting up their Christmas decorations: strings of lights along identical gable roofs, animated reindeer, and inflatable snowmen. But for Collins, the task involved an extra step — laying down tarps to help the inflatables stay upright in his grass-free yard. Collins had had the lawn ripped out in 2015, at the peak of one of the worst recorded droughts in state history.

Storm Poised To Slam Sierra, Dump Another 2 Feet Of Snow

Get ready for round two. After a fierce storm blasted the northern Sierra Nevada over the weekend, another system is slated to batter the mountain range straddling California and Nevada late Tuesday night into Wednesday. The National Weather Service reports, “This storm will not be as potent as the system that moved through Sunday,” but travelers should still be prepared for winter driving conditions with chain control in effect on Highways 80 and 5o. The NWS issued a winter weather advisory warning of slippery roads, reduced visibility and travel delays between midnight Tuesday and midnight Wednesday.

Newsom Inherits A ‘Whole Bunch Of Headaches’ Despite Last-Minute Water Deals By Brown

As his term as governor drew to a close last month, Jerry Brown brokered a historic agreement among farms and cities to surrender billions of gallons of water to help ailing fish species. He also made two big water deals with the Trump administration — one to shore up support for his struggling Delta tunnels project, the other to transfer some of urban California’s water to Central Valley farmers whom the White House supports. It added up to a dizzying display of deal-making over an issue that confounded Brown during much of his four terms in Sacramento.

These $2,000 Solar Panels Pull Clean Drinking Water Out Of The Air, And They Might Be A Solution To The Global Water Crisis

The global water crisis has wreaked havoc on communities around the world, from homes in Flint, Michigan, to megacities like Tokyo and São Paulo. The United Nations estimated that 2.1 billion people live without safe drinking water in their homes — a situation with severe health implications that can also limit economic prosperity. Citizens with access to clean water have a better chance of escaping poverty, fending off disease, and pursuing an education.

Women’s Future Careers In Water Topic Of Cuyamaca Event

Mount Helix resident Kathleen Coates Hedberg is a registered civil engineer, a grade 4 water treatment operator and cross connection specialist. On the board of directors of the Helix Water District and San Diego County Water Authority, Hedberg knows what it is like to be in a male-dominated field. “There’s only six of us on the county water board out of about 36 members,” Hedberg said. She’d like to see a shift in those numbers, and is an advocate for women seeking — and succeeding — in careers in the water and wastewater industries.