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North Park Business Suffers As City Fails To Fix Leak

/in , /by /San Diego Community News Groupby J.M. Garcia

When Carol Shamon noticed water from city pipes had leaked into the basement of her North Park neighborhood business, she thought the problem would be easily fixed: Call the city and file a report. Repairs would be made, problem solved. But after two years of municipal inaction, the water remains and Shamon, who is now suing the city of San Diego’s pipe contractor, worries the foundation of her 100-year-old building may be affected. “I contacted all the departments,” said Shamon, 61, owner of Shamon Freitas Agency at 3916 Oregon St. “Everyone individually has been nice but their hands are tied, they can’t do anything because they can’t coordinate with any other department and no one does anything.”

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California Snowpack 202% Of Average For This Time Of Year

/in , , /by /AP News

The amount of snow blanketing the Sierra Nevada is even larger than the 2017 snowpack that pulled the state out of a five-year drought, California water officials said. As of Thursday, the snowpack measured 202% of average after a barrage of storms throughout winter and spring, according to the Department of Water Resources. The wet weather has slowed but not stopped, with thunderstorms prompting flash flood warnings Sunday in the central and southern parts of the state. At this time last year, the snowpack measured 6% of average — making this year 33 times bigger than 2018, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

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OPINION: Wetlands Restoration On Mission Bay Is More Important Than Ever

/in , /by /Times of San Diegoby Jim Peugh

The last several years have seen a deluge of news about infrastructure in San Diego. Whether it’s the future of the stadium site in Mission Valley, the extension of the Blue Line trolley to UCSD, or the push among urbanists to revolutionize housing in our city, refining our development footprint has taken up a sizable volume of bandwidth in our civic conversation.

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County’s Wet, Weird May Was Wonderful Out On The Farm

/in , , /by /San Diego Union-Tribuneby Robert Krier

It was wet, but it wasn’t San Diego’s wettest May. In fact, it didn’t crack the city’s top 10. It was cool, but many other Mays have been cooler, including last year. But May 2019 was certainly among the city’s all-time weirdest. And to San Diego County’s $1.77 billion agricultural industry, it was nothing short of wonderful. “We haven’t had a recent May where we’ve had something like this,” National Weather Service forecaster Miguel Miller said. “In the 20 years I’ve been here, I cannot think of another May that was inclement the entire month.”

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Two Agencies Want To Secede From The San Diego County Water Authority

/in , , /by /Voice of San Diegoby Ry Rivard Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Water rates in San Diego are some of the highest in the country. So, two rural San Diego water agencies just came up with a novel way to save money: Buy water from Riverside County instead. Leaders of two water agencies that serve about 50,000 people in and around Fallbrook are fed up with rising costs at the San Diego County Water Authority. Local water agencies from across the region formed the Water Authority in 1944 to import water into the county from rivers hundreds of miles away. But, just in time for the Water Authority’s 75th anniversary, its future as the region’s main water supplier is in question.

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Bill To Help Eagle Mountain Hydroelectric Storage Project Outside Joshua Tree Derailed

/in , /by /The Desert Sun (Palm Springs)by Evan Wyloge

Despite the efforts of a handful of Riverside County lawmakers, a controversial bill that would pave the way for a massive hydroelectric energy storage project on the edge of Joshua Tree National Park has been shelved for now, leaving the Eagle Mountain project still without a clear path forward.  The project would use abandoned iron mining pits to store billions of gallons of groundwater, pumped from the Chuckwalla Valley aquifer. Once operational, the facility would use abundant daytime solar power to pump water from a lower retention area to a higher elevation.

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OPINION: Enjoy Our Agricultural Bounty

/in , /by /Village News (Fallbrook)by Marie Waldron

The northern San Diego County region plays a big part in making California the nation’s leading agricultural state. Locally grown crops that include avocados, citrus, strawberries, grapes and cut flowers have put San Diego in the top tier of the nation’s agricultural counties. According to the San Diego County Farm Bureau, San Diego is the 10th largest farm economy out of more than 3,000 counties nationwide.

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Naturalists Say Changing Water Levels At Lake Hodges Are Disrupting Nesting

/in , /by /San Diego Union-Tribuneby Ernie Cowan Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

A coalition of wildlife and conservation groups has contacted the City of San Diego with concerns about sudden changes in water levels at Lake Hodges that are destroying spring nesting sites for Western and Clark’s grebes. Lake Hodges is a city-owned water storage facility that has become a prime nesting location for the large aquatic birds. Spring nesting season attracts birders from all over to monitor and observe the courting, nesting and rearing of chicks. Grebes build their nests on partially submerged sticks and branches at water level. Brian Caldwell is a resident of Del Dios, a neighborhood adjacent to the lake and operator of Lake Hodges Photo Tours.

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Feds Dodge Claims Of Violating California Water Law

/in , , /by /Courthouse News Service (Pasadena, Calif.)by Nicholas Iovino

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation on Friday successfully dodged claims its management of a California dam violates state law and threatens the survival of endangered steelhead trout, but the legal battle is far from over. U.S. District Judge Edward Chen rejected a move by conservationists to add the United States as a “necessary party” to a state court action involving disputed rights to water from the Twitchell Dam and Reservoir in San Luis Obispo County.

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A colorful landscape full of native blooms is the 2019 Helix Water District Landscape Contest winner. Photo: Helix Water District Helix 2019 Landscape Contest

California Native Garden Wins Helix’s 2019 Landscape Contest

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Matt and Lauren Kirkpatrick of La Mesa are this year’s winner of the Helix Water District’s ‘WaterSmart Landscape Contest,’ an annual competition recognizing outstanding water-wise residential landscapes based on overall attractiveness, design, efficient irrigation and appropriate plant selection and maintenance.

Compared to the previous landscaping with thirsty turf, the new landscaping uses much less water. Photo: Helix Water District

Compared to the previous landscaping with thirsty turf, the new landscaping uses much less water. Photo: Helix Water District

Compared to the thirsty turf in the Kirkpatricks’ previous landscaping, the growing, colorful and entirely native new landscaping requires much less water and creates a place of inspiration and peace for these outdoor enthusiasts. Over the two-month billing period ending this April, the home used just 13 units of water, which is almost 40 percent less than the average water use of other Helix customers. One unit is 748 gallons.

The Kirkpatricks purchased the home in 2014 with a front yard full of grass that required frequent watering and mowing to maintain a modest appearance. In the end, the lawn’s appearance was lackluster, costly, and time consuming for the couple. Taking advantage of SoCal WaterSmart’s turf removal rebate program, the Kirkpatricks tossed their turf for a beautiful native landscape with less maintenance and less water consumption.

The couple chose a native plant pallet so they could enjoy the look, feel and smell of what they love – the California outdoors.

“California natives were an obvious choice,” said Matt Kirkpatrick. “They are a reflection of our love for the plants we know closely from our experiences outdoors. Native plants make us feel at home and give us an appreciation for the beauty of our state.”

Colorful new landscaping already in full spring bloom

Even though the new landscaping is only four months old, it is already in full bloom with California native plants. Photo: Helix Water District

Even though the new landscaping is only four months old, it is already in full bloom with California native plants. Photo: Helix Water District

Although only a few months old, the yard already displays a wonderful spring bloom with a wide variety of colors that native landscapes can offer. There are vibrant oranges from hundreds of California poppies, reds from sticky monkey flower, blues from ceanothus, purples from lupine, yellows from yarrow and plenty of green and golds from various shrubs and grasses. At the center of the landscape is a young but promising Engelmann Oak, a signature Southern California tree among wild and urban landscapes.

Plants receive water from rainwater catchment and through an efficient irrigation system, which the couple installed. The landscape captures rainwater from the roof and diverts it into two separate swales designed to absorb the water and allow it time to soak into the soil. The two swales provide water for half of the yard and prevent rainwater from running off into the street. The remaining plants receive water through high-efficiency spray nozzles that were retrofitted onto the existing irrigation system and use less water than the previous sprinklers. The Kirkpatricks only run the system once per month during the warm season.

Native gardens are just one of many different designs of landscapes available to homeowners looking to redesign their thirsty and traditional landscapes. In addition to requiring minimal irrigation beyond rainfall, native gardens are colorful, low maintenance and provide a natural habitat for local wildlife.

Free WaterSmart Landscape Makeover classes provide blueprint for success

The Kirkpatricks took advantage of the Water Authority's WaterSmart Landscaping classes. Photo: Helix Water District Helix 2019 Landscape Contest

The Kirkpatricks took advantage of the Water Authority’s WaterSmart Landscaping classes. Photo: Helix Water District

Like the 2018 Helix landscape contest winners, the Kirkpatricks took advantage of the San Diego County Water Authority’s free WaterSmart Landscape Makeover Program four course series to educate themselves about their options. They then chose a landscaping contractor familiar with native plants which thrive in a residential landscape to bring their plan to life.

The Kirkpatricks will receive their prizes including gift cards totaling $250 and an award certificate at the Helix Water District’s June board of directors meeting The family will also receive a ‘WaterSmart Contest Winner’ sign to display in the yard.

The annual landscape contest runs from January through April each year. Visit the Helix Water District’s website, Facebook page or Twitter for more information.

Helix Water District treats and delivers water to over 276,000 people in La Mesa, El Cajon, Lemon Grove and parts of Spring Valley, Lakeside and unincorporated San Diego County.