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The Central Valley Is Sinking As Farmers Drill For Water. But It Can Be Saved, Study Says

/in , , /by /Sacramento Beeby Andrew Sheeler

A team of Stanford University researchers believe they have identified the best way to replenish the shrinking aquifers beneath California’s Central Valley. The groundwater beneath the Central Valley has been steadily depleting, particularly as the state’s $50 billion agricultural industry relied on it during a series of droughts. Each year, more water exits the aquifer than goes into it. The study from Stanford’s School of Earth, Energy and Environmental Sciences, published in the journal Water Resources Research, found that unless action is taken, the ground in that region will sink more than 13 feet over the next 20 years.

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America’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2019

/in , , /by /American Rivers

Water scarcity due to global warming could displace 700 million people worldwide by 2030. In the same time frame, 54 million lives globally could be impacted by river floods. In the United States, our climate has warmed by 1.8 degrees in the past century. It’s time to get real about what this means: Forest fires are growing more destructive, cities are struggling to do more with less water, fish and wildlife are struggling to survive and storms are triggering more life-threatening floods.

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‘There’s So Much Here That’s Still Alive’: Young Filmmakers Document A Dying Salton Sea

/in , , /by /KQED (San Francisco)by Sasha Khokha

Massive fish-die offs. Dead birds. A toxic stench. Bryan Mendez and Olivia Rodriguez are dissatisfied that those sad facts are the only things most Californians ever hear about the Salton Sea, one of the largest inland seas in the world. “We’ve heard on and on about the birds, the fish, they’re dying. We know that,” says Rodriguez. “How do we transform this narrative, to show there’s also a community of people here?”

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New Invasive Species Found In Carlsbad, Threatens To Spread Across Southwest

/in , , /by /San Diego Union-Tribuneby Phil Diehl

A new invasive weed that can grow into a dense mat, choking off most other plants, has gained its first North American foothold in Carlsbad and is threatening to spread across the Southwest with seeds that can travel on clothes, boots and tires. Ward’s weed, a native of the Mediterranean region and Western Asia, has already conquered Australia. It arrived on the small continent in 1915 and now can be found in every Australian state, with the most extensive concentrations on the country’s arid southern coast.

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As Two Big Ventura Projects Make Their Way Up, The City Council Will Get A CEQA Primer

/in , /by /Ventura County Starby Arlene Martinez

Ventura policymakers on Monday will get a primer on a law that requires local agencies to consider a project’s environmental impact.  The California Environmental Quality Act — or CEQA, as it’s commonly called — was enacted in 1970. It mandates that a project not be approved if there are ways to lessen the environment effects of a development.  Currently, the city has two significant environmental impact reports, which CEQA requires, making their way through the development process. One is for a plan to build a 7-mile pipeline to tap into Ventura’s long-held investment in state water. The water would wheel through the Calleguas Municipal Water District, which gets water via the Metropolitan Water District in Los Angeles.

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Photographers Capture ‘Water in Everyday Life’

/in , /by /Water News Network

The Helix Water District honored student photographers for their award-winning photos in the agency’s annual high school photo competition. Winners were recognized during a special board meeting on March 20, 2019. Seventy-four students from four schools entered the competition with photos depicting the theme ‘Water in Everyday Life,’ illustrating the importance and beauty of water. Ten winning photos in two categories (color or black & white) will be on display through mid-May at the Helix Water District’s administration office located at 7811 University Avenue in La Mesa.

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Turf Removal Funding Increased To $2 Per Square Foot

/in , /by /Valley News (Fallbrook, Calif.)

Eastern Municipal Water District customers are eligible to receive $2 per square foot when they remove grass at their homes and businesses after regional funding opportunities were recently doubled. The popular turf removal program funded by The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California – of which EMWD is a member agency – began providing funding of $2 per square foot as of April 1. In addition to the increased funding, the program has undergone administrative changes to assist customers.

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Olivenhain Municipal Water District’s 4S Ranch Water Reclamation Facility Named Recycled Water Plant of the Year in Statewide Competition

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Encinitas, Calif. — Olivenhain Municipal Water District’s 4S Ranch Water Reclamation Facility was recognized today by California Water Environment Association as its 2019 Plant of the Year (Small). The award was presented during CWEA’s Annual Conference in Palm Springs and acknowledges OMWD’s efforts to increase water supply reliability by reducing imported water demand.

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What The Latest Eastern Sierra Snowpack Measurement Means For The LA Aqueduct

/in , /by /NBC 4 Los Angelesby Jonathan Lloyd

The final snowpack measurement in the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains showed levels well above average after winter’s unrelenting storms in California. The snowpack is an important measurement for water managers who determine how much water Southern California can expect to received from the Los Angeles Aqueduct, a system of channels and tunnels that stretches hundreds of miles from the eastern side of the 400-mile long Sierra Nevada Mountain range to Los Angeles. Snow in the mountains melts in spring, running off into the aqueduct and other water delivery systems around the state.  Based on the snowpack survey, the Los Angeles Aqueduct will flow at or near full capacity for much of the year.

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DWP Measures Snowpack At 171 Percent Of Normal

/in , /by /Sierra Wave (Bishop, Calif.)

On April 5, Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) hydropgraphers performed the final snowpack survey for the season, which helps determine the amount of water available for Los Angeles’ water supply. This year, the snowpack measured at 171 percent of normal, which translates to a well above average year. In comparison, the snowpack registered at 66 percent of normal in 2018, a dry year, and 203 percent in 2017, the second wettest year on record. Snowpack measurements help determine how much water supply LADWP can expect from the LA Aqueduct and how much it will need to purchase from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD).

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