At first blush, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s latest action on water seems fanciful and naive. But it has logic and conceivably could work. Newsom wants to reexamine practically everything the state has been working on meaning what former Gov. Jerry Brown was doing and piece together a grand plan for California’s future that can draw the support of longtime water warriors.
Federal regulations won’t necessarily protect you from cancer-causing water in California. In a new Environmental Working Group study published on Tuesday, researchers determined that toxic drinking water could lead to more than 15,000 lifetime cancer cases throughout the state. The report included first-time research on how the presence of multiple carcinogens in drinking water increases cancer risks. Regulators currently assess individual hazards instead of evaluating combinations of multiple pollutants found in drinking water.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration officially pulled the plug Thursday on the twin Delta tunnels, fulfilling Newsom’s pledge to downsize the project to a single pipe as he attempts to chart a new course for California’s troubled water-delivery system.
A blueprint outlining how San Francisco Bay communities should combat sea level rise was released early Thursday by ecosystem scientists and urban planners who envision a ring of man made reefs, rocky beaches and graded marshlands around the largest estuary on the Pacific coast. The carefully designed features, outlined in the 255-page San Francisco Bay Shoreline Adaptation Atlas, would in many cases replace or bury seawalls, rip rap, culverts and other crude fortifications that experts say won’t hold up as the climate warms and water rises.
Robin Giusti expects to live through wildfires. It’s something that comes with living in a heavily forested area like Paradise, Calif. What she did not expect is the conditions in which she would be living six months after her house was left untouched by the Camp Fire. Giusti and the hundreds of people still living in Paradise (around 26,000 people lived there before the Camp Fire, according to census data), are now dealing with a clean water issue after contaminants were found in testing.
Zombie trees” sound straight out of science fiction, but don’t worry: Your trees aren’t going to bite you. They’re just thirsty. Although seven years of drought in California finally relented this March, high heat and lack of water have caused a severe decline in the health of some trees, with many now essentially suspended between life and death, Sacramento-area arborist Matt Morgan said. “The whole zombie tree issue came about after years of drought stress,” Morgan, assistant district manager with The Davey Tree Expert Co., said. “They structurally declined and the health decreased to a point where the trees are just there right now.”
Cooler weather and spotty showers will move into California while the Pacific Northwest has sunny, warm days ahead. An upper-level low moving into California this weekend will not bring much rain, but it will cool things off a little bit, especially heading into Sunday and Monday. The marine layer this morning does not appear to be as solid as some recent days. As this upper-level low approaches, it will likely beef up the marine layer some across Southern California Thursday and Friday nights.
Imperial Irrigation District Board President Erik Ortega proposed withdrawing electricity services from the Coachella Valley at a Tuesday board meeting following debates over how the region’s ratepayers are represented on the district’s board. The proposal could potentially force residents of La Quinta, Indio, Coachella and the unincorporated eastern Coachella Valley to seek coverage from Southern California Edison. IID charges its ratepayers a base rate of 11.69 cents per kilowatt-hour, while Southern California
The project at Lindo Lake Park is designed to improve the health of the lake, deepening it to 10 feet and improving the aquatic ecosystem, county officials said. The project will also add a fishing pier, birdwatching stations, picnic tables and landscaping, while also restoring wetland and native habitats and improving trails. “This project will restore the health and beauty to Lindo Lake, the heart of the Lakeside community,” said Jill Bankston, county chief of development.
A new state program gives Californians a way to fight climate change, one restaurant meal at a time. “Restore California” is a public-private partnership between the California Department of Food and Agriculture, the California Air Resources Board, and farms, ranches and restaurants across the state, according to a news release from the government agencies. Participating restaurants will add a 1 percent surcharge to their bills, with that money going into a fund aimed at helping farmers remove carbon from the atmosphere and adopt climate-friendly practices.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
