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Legal Rights For Lake Erie? Voters In Ohio City Will Decide

/in , /by /The New York Timesby Timothy Williams

The failing health of Lake Erie, the world’s 11th largest lake, is at the heart of one of the most unusual questions to appear on an American ballot: Should a body of water be given rights normally associated with those granted to a person? Voters in Toledo, Ohio, will be asked this month to decide whether Lake Erie, which supports the economies of four states, one Canadian province and the cities of Toledo, Cleveland and Buffalo, has the legal right “to exist, flourish, and naturally evolve.”

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Discussing Governor Newsom’s Plan To Downsize The Delta Tunnel Water Project

/in , /by /KUSI News Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

During his first State of the State Address, Governor Gavin Newsom stated that he wants to downsize the Delta Tunnel Water Project along with the California water fix. Jim Madaffer from the San Diego County Water Authority was here to tell us more.

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Atmospheric Rivers Are Pulling California Out Of Drought And Piling On The Snow

/in , /by /CNNby Paul P. Murphy

When 2019 started, California’s snowpack was at 67%. Now it’s at over 136% and rising. The atmospheric rivers that are dumping rain along coastal California are also dumping massive amounts of snow in the state’s Sierra Nevada. Newly released photos from NASA, taken four days and a year apart, show how much snow has fallen. In its news release, NASA singled out Mammoth Mountain, which is now the snowiest ski resort in the United States, having received more than 37 feet since winter began. On its website, Mammoth Mountain says all that snowfall will allow the resort to stay open until the Fourth of July.

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Metropolitan Water District Ready To Support Scaled-Down Delta Tunnel Plan

/in , /by /Ventura County Star

Ventura County’s main water supplier supports Gov. Gavin Newsom’s scaled-down Delta tunnel project, even though it’s been cut in half. Newsom said Tuesday in his State of the State address that he wants the twin-tunnel project — designed to re-engineer the troubled Northern California estuary that’s the hub of the state’s water-delivery system — reduced to a single tunnel. “I do not support the WaterFix as currently configured,” Newsom said. “Meaning, I do not support the twin tunnels. We can build, however, on the important work that’s already been done. That’s why I do support a single tunnel.”

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Olivenhain Municipal Water District Logo landscape design workshops

Water Districts Offer Discounted Rain Barrels to Save Water

/in , /by

Encinitas, Calif.—To encourage water conservation and reduce runoff that can carry pollutants into local waterways and beaches, Olivenhain Municipal Water District has partnered with Carlsbad Municipal Water District, San Dieguito Water District, and Santa Fe Irrigation District to offer discounted rain barrels to area residents. Rain barrels ordered by February 26 will be available for pick up at Solana Center for Environmental Innovation on March 2, between 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. The center is located at 137 North El Camino Real in Encinitas.

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Federal Legislators Announce $15Mil For Water Infrastructure Improvements At U.S.-Mexico Border

/in , /by /KUSI News

A group of federal legislators from San Diego announced the allocation of $15 million today for water infrastructure improvements along the U.S-Mexico border. Legislators included the funding in a spending bill approved earlier this week and signed today by President Donald Trump. The $15 million will go to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s U.S.-Mexico Border Water Infrastructure program. Reps. Juan Vargas, D-San Diego, Scott Peters, D-San Diego, and Susan Davis, D-San Diego, as well as congressional representatives from border regions of New Mexico and Texas have sought funding for the program since last March.

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Conserving Water Is Still A Priority For California. How About Other States?

/in , /by /San Gabriel Valley Tribuneby Steve Scauzillo

The Metropolitan Water District last week re-upped its turf-removal program, providing greater incentives for homeowners to replace thirsty lawns with drought-tolerant plants. In Utah, the state’s Division of Water Resources is encouraging residents to use more water so it can justify spending $3 billion on a pipeline that will take more water from Lake Powell, which is fed by the Colorado River, a source of water for Southern California residents. This tale of two states brings up an interesting question: Is water conservation de rigueur or passé?

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Sites Reservoir Is Sacramento Valley’s Water Project. But L.A. Is Taking A Huge Role

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

As water projects go, Sites Reservoir has always been the Sacramento Valley’s baby – a multibillion-dollar reservoir conceived by Valley farmers, carved out of a ghost town an hour north of the Capitol. Around the Valley, “Build Sites Reservoir” signs dot the roads along mile after mile of orchards and rice fields. But a funny thing has happened as the Sites project, designed as the largest reservoir built in California since the 1970s, pulls together its financing: It’s becoming much less of a Sacramento Valley venture. Over the past two years, scared off by the anticipated costs of storing water there, Valley agricultural irrigation districts have steadily reduced their ownership shares of Sites, giving way to water agencies from Southern California and the San Joaquin Valley.

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The Water Authority created a sustainable landscaping demonstration garden for the public at its Kearny Mesa headquarters. Photo: San Diego County Water Authority

National Report Highlights Success of San Diego Sustainable Landscapes Program

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San Diego’s Sustainable Landscapes Program ranked among the most effective landscape transformation programs in the nation in a study released today by the Chicago-based Alliance for Water Efficiency. The “Landscape Transformation Study: 2018 Analytics Report” compiled data from 14 similar landscape conservation programs in the U.S. and Canada.

The Alliance for Water Efficiency concluded that San Diego program participants reduced water use by an average of 114.8 gallons per day, or 34.8 percent. “The Water Authority has established a high benchmark for landscape transformation programs that include rigorous program requirements that result in the achievement of multiple benefits,” according to the report.

By saving about 42,000 gallons of water per project each year, Sustainable Landscapes Program participants who transformed their landscapes save enough water to supply the average four-person household in San Diego County for more than three months.

“This study highlights our success improving water-use efficiency across the San Diego region,” said Jim Madaffer, chair of the Water Authority’s Board of Directors. “We empower program participants to take a hands-on approach to WaterSmart living, and it’s gratifying to see their pride of ownership in these projects that are changing the way San Diegans think about landscapes. An enhanced environment and happy homeowners are part of the promise of sustainable landscaping.”

The national report was accompanied by a survey of more than 3,000 homeowners across North America, which emphasized that residents are ready to embrace new landscape ideals.

“Beautiful landscapes are a source of pride for homeowners, but the emotional connection we have with our outside spaces is not in conflict with a more sustainable approach. People also want to be smart water users,” said Mary Ann Dickinson, president and CEO of the Alliance for Water Efficiency, in a press release today. “Whether it’s installing a more efficient irrigation system, opting for drought-tolerant turf or re-landscaping with climate-appropriate plants, we need to communicate that a sustainable landscape can be beautiful and water-conscious.”

Empowering WaterSmart lifestyles

Efforts to develop the San Diego landscape program began in 2010 with a successful Proposition 84 grant application. Known as the SLP, the program was developed to help homeowners upgrade their yards with climate-appropriate plants, high-efficiency irrigation equipment, rainwater capture and detention features, and soil amendments. The sum of these measures results in multiple environmental benefits, including water use efficiency.

The SLP was a partnership by the San Diego County Water Authority, the City of San Diego, the County of San Diego, the Surfrider Foundation, the California American Water Co. and the Association of Compost Producers. Although the grant-funded SLP pilot has been completed, the Water Authority continues to offer and promote SLP-related programs and resources, such as classes and personalized advice from landscape design professionals, a comprehensive guidebook, financial incentives, a demonstration garden and SustainableLandscapesSD.org.

Water Authority Water Conservation Program Manager Carlos Michelon said the SLP sets high standards for efficient water use and other sustainable practices above and beyond standard turf removal programs. Participants achieve multiple benefits, including water efficiency, drought tolerance, stormwater management, water quality enhancement and aesthetically appealing designs.

“Using smart irrigation technology and climate-appropriate plants to increase water-use efficiency makes sense,” Michelon said. “Doing so while also tapping rain water as a resource, improving soil health, and creating other environmental benefits makes even more sense. That’s sustainable landscaping in a nutshell.”

Recognizing the variety of landscapes and microclimates in San Diego County, SLP resources helped to inform and empower participants each step of the way.

“When it comes to sustainable landscaping, planning and collaboration are as critical as soil amendments or detention basins, Michelon said. “The synergy resulting from our collaborative partnerships with other agencies and non-profit organizations has created even more value for participants and the region.”

Financial incentives help fund landscape projects

During a pilot period, the Water Authority and its partners provided more than 325 Sustainable Landscape Incentives to San Diego County homeowners to help transform their landscapes into beautiful, climate-appropriate mini-watersheds.

While this locally-administered program is no longer accepting applications, the Landscape Transformation Program administered by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is open to qualifying water customers in the Water Authority’s service area. Effective April 1, 2019, residential rebates will start at $2 per square foot, for up to $5,000 square feet. Added funding by local water agencies (where available) means total incentives may be as high as $3.25 per square foot. An online incentive calculator at SoCalWaterSmart.com identifies incentives for specific proposed projects.

The SLP was made possible by an Integrated Regional Water Management program grant funded by the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006, administered by the California Department of Water Resources.

Stanford Experts Discuss Impacts Of Downsizing The Delta Twin Tunnels Project

/in , /by /Stanford Newsby Michelle Horton

California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced this week his plan to downsize the Delta twin tunnels project, a controversial $17 billion water conveyance system aimed at diverting water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to the Central Valley and Southern California. The tunnels are intended in part to reduce the impacts that massive pumps at the south end of the Delta currently have on Delta hydrology and ecosystems.

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