You are now in California and the U.S. Media Coverage category.

Commentary: California Must Embrace Groundwater Management, And Expand It

/in , /by /Napa Valley Register by Sandi Matsumoto

We all walk on water. Not literally, but most Californians do walk over the water stored in the aquifers beneath our feet.

This unseen resource is groundwater, which provides 40% of our water supply in normal years, and up to 60% of our supply in times of drought.

With dry periods expected to increase in frequency and duration, groundwater is key to creating a more resilient water supply for drinking water, producing food, and sustaining our precious natural resources. Yet despite its importance, groundwater use in California has been largely unregulated.

Full Story

Will Cal Fire’s Plan to Rip Out Vegetation in San Diego Lead to an Explosion in Flammable Invasive Grasses?

/in , /by /San Diego Union-Tribuneby Joshua Emerson Smith

Highly flammable nonnative plants have increasingly played a major role in Southern California’s struggles with wildfire — providing kindling along roadsides and around homes that turn sparks into menacing backcountry blazes.

San Diego firefighting officials plan to dramatically ramp up efforts to rip out vegetation, both native and invasive, surrounding remote communities as part of a statewide campaign to prevent tragedies such as the Camp Fire in Paradise.

Full Story

The Interior Secretary Wants to Enlarge a Dam. An Old Lobbying Client Would Benefit.

/in , , /by /New York Timesby Coral Davenport

For years, the Interior Department resisted proposals to raise the height of its towering Shasta Dam in Northern California. The department’s own scientists and researchers concluded that doing so would endanger rare plants and animals in the area, as well as the bald eagle, and devastate the West Coast’s salmon industry downstream.

Full Story

Templeton Community Services District Celebrates New Drought-Resistant Water Supply Project

/in , , /by /Paso Robles Dailyby News Staff

The Templeton Community Services District celebrated the completion of its new drought-resistant water supply project at a ribbon-cutting held on Wednesday, Sept. 25.

The project, called the Upper Salinas River Basin Conjunctive Use Project (US-CUP) captures existing wastewater flows generated within the eastside of the District and will return these flows back to the Meadowbrook Wastewater Treatment Plant (MWWTP). The wastewater undergoes treatment and is then discharged into the river alluvium that contains the Salinas River underflow providing subsequent conveyance to District wells that divert from the underflow downstream.

Full Story

‘Historic’ Winter Storm Dumps 3 Feet of Snow, Smashes Records in West

/in , , /by /USA Todayby John Bacon

One week after summer’s end, a “winter” storm began blasting parts of the West with up to 3 feet of snow, smashing records with low temperatures, heavy snow, strong winds and blizzard conditions forecast into Monday.

Snow was piling up across parts of California, Oregon, Washington, Montana, Idaho, Nevada and Utah. The National Weather Service, calling the storm “historic,” said temperatures in some areas would drop as much as 30 degrees below normal.

Full Story

Proposed Clairemont Dr Restriping for Bike Lane & Potential Southbound Vehicle Lane Removal

/in , /by /The Clairemont Timesby Chris O'Connell

On Thursday 9/26 the Parking, Transportation & Mobility sub-committee of the Clairemont Community Planning Group met with one item Action/Review item on the Agenda:

  1. Clairemont Dr. Bike Lane Striping (Everett Hauser, City of San Diego)

In conjunction with the City’s Pure Water Project, Mr Hauser will present 3 different options to remove between 5 to 31 street parking spaces along Clairemont Dr. to add striping for a Bike Lane in each direction of travel.

Full Story
Olivenhain Municipal Water District Logo landscape design workshops

OMWD Honored for Government Transparency and Sound Financial Practices

/in , /by

Encinitas, Calif. —The Special District Leadership Foundation recognized Olivenhain Municipal Water District today at California Special Districts Association’s annual conference in Anaheim for a sixth “District of Distinction” biennial accreditation. This recognition celebrates OMWD’s sound fiscal management and commitment to transparency in all areas of its operations.

Download File
There are many things we can do during fall to keep our landscapes healthy and ready to collect as much water as they can during the winter. Photo: David Mark/Pixabay

Fall for a New Landscape

/in , /by

Many people forget about fall when it comes to landscape care, especially in Southern California. When we don’t see the leaves change colors, it can be easy to overlook this important season. There are many things we can do during fall to keep our landscapes healthy and ready to collect as much water as they can during the winter.

Plants grow deep roots in the fall

Fall is often the best time to introduce new plants. With the cooler temperatures and rain on the way, it is the perfect time to let plants settle in and grow deep roots.

Pruning existing plants and trees can be beneficial to their health during the fall as well. When the temperatures go down, plants and trees turn their energy away from growing leaves, flowers or fruit. They start to grow roots and develop a stronger system to prepare for next season.

Fall landscape maintenance

Don’t forget the mulch. Mulching is always helpful to prevent water loss, but during the fall it also gives a layer of protection to insulate your landscape during the winter. Even though most areas in Southern California rarely see below-freezing temperatures, there are some areas that would benefit from this layer of protection. When first applying mulch, remember to keep it one to six inches away from plant stems to avoid rot.

Pulling weeds and clearing out debris are also important tasks to perform during the fall. If you pull weeds out now, there will be fewer weeds next season. Getting rid of landscape debris will also help protect your water quality in the long run.

The Water Authority and its partners also offer other great resources for landscaping upgrades, including tips for sustainable landscaping best practices at SustainableLandscapesSD.org and free WaterSmart classes at WaterSmartSD.org.

$100 million desalination project to be led by Lawrence Berkeley National Lab

/in , , /by /Bay Area News Group by Paul Rogers

In a effort to widen the use of a nearly limitless — but expensive — source of water for California and other places worldwide that are prone to shortages, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has been selected to lead a $100 million project aimed at bringing down the cost of desalination.

The money, announced this week and awarded by the U.S. Department of Energy, will fund a research consortium of 19 universities around that the country that include Stanford, UC-Berkeley, UCLA and others, along with 10 private industry partners and other Department of Energy institutions, like Oak Ridge National Lab in Tennessee.

The goal, organizers say, is to reduce the cost of removing salt from ocean water to make it a more viable drinking water source for California and other areas. Closely related, planners also hope to clean up other types of water that are being largely wasted or underused so they can be a source for cities, farms and wildlife.

Full Story

Erosion threatens scenery and real estate along iconic California coastline

/in , /by /CBS Newsby Jonathan Vigliotti

This is supposed to be a beautiful beach, but instead it looks like a disaster area because a sea wall built about a decade ago to protect homes has failed. Now property owners are spending millions to fix it.

From Mexico to Oregon, the iconic California coastline runs more than 3,400 miles. “CBS This Morning” correspondent Jonathan Vigliotti drove just over 600 of those miles to see how the state is getting ready for what scientists say is the inevitable future.

Full Story