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State Launches Salton Sea Restoration Effort

/in , , /by /KPBSby Erik Anderson

California is poised to begin the first major restoration project at the Salton Sea. The state is investing more than $200 million in a project that will create flooded ponds and other habitats on the exposed lakebed at the southern edge of the lake. “We’ll complete the work over the next two-and-a-half years, I believe completing the project in 2023,” said Wade Crowfoot, secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency. The Salton Sea has been shrinking rapidly and exposing a dusty lakebed since the Imperial Irrigation District stopped feeding the state’s largest lake mitigation water in 2018.

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New Reservoir to Protect Local Drinking Water Deliveries

/in , , /by /Valley Roadrunner Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

A major construction project to improve drinking water supply reliability in North County will start in February after the San Diego County Water Authority’s Board of Directors January 28 approved an $11.4 million contract for the work to Pacific Hydrotech Corporation of Perris, California.

The Hauck Mesa Storage Reservoir project includes demolition of an abandoned steel tank, building a 2.1 million-gallon storage reservoir connected to the Valley Center Pipeline, and construction of an isolation vault and an underground flow control facility. The project is expected to be completed by winter 2022.

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‘This is Outrageous’: Residents Protest Big Rate Increases from San Jose Water

/in , /by /The Mercury Newsby Maggie Angst

Customers of Silicon Valley’s largest water company are in an uproar after receiving yet another proposal to substantially hike up their monthly water bills. Under a new proposal from San Jose Water, the monthly bill of a typical customer would increase nearly 30% over the next four years — and that’s on top of an about 60% rise in rates since 2015.

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Water Plant’s Missteps Illustrate Need for Critical Infrastructure Security Controls

/in , /by /SC Mediaby Bradley Barth

A new advisory offering details on a remote hacker’s attempted sabotage of an Oldsmar, Florida city water treatment plant has revealed a disregard for certain basic cyber hygiene best practices among employees. Experts say it’s an indicator that operators of critical infrastructure could use a serious infusion of security controls. However, due to budget restrictions, these controls may first require a thorough risk assessment and prioritization exercise.

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Adaptation Can Compound Climate Change Impacts on Energy and Water

/in , /by /EOSby Kate Wheeling

In 2014, as California was in the midst of one of the worst droughts in its recorded history, Julia Szinai was working for an electric utility. The worst years of the drought were still ahead, but the impacts of the dry spell on California’s energy system were already clear to Szinai. As water levels dropped, so too did hydropower generation—an energy gap that was filled by fossil fuels.

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San Diego County Water Authority Adds Tish Berge To Leadership Team

/in , /by /Patch.comby Times of San Diego Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Tish Berge is joining the San Diego County Water Authority as assistant general manager, bringing experience from every aspect of water utility management to serve the region, it was announced Thursday. Berge is general manager of the Sweetwater Authority, one of the water authority’s 24 member agencies. Berge starts her new role Feb. 22 alongside Deputy General Manager Dan Denham and General Manager Sandra L. Kerl.

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Regulators on Poseidon Desalination Plant Received Calls that are Likely Prohibited

/in , /by /The Orange County Registerby Martin Wisckol

Three members of the regulatory board considering approval of the controversial Poseidon desalination plant were called by the state’s environmental protection secretary at the time of last summer’s deliberations, an apparent violation of a rule that in serious cases can disqualify members from voting on the issue.

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San Diego County Water Authority Adds Tish Berge to Leadership Team

/in , , /by /The Coast News Group Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

Tish Berge is joining the San Diego County Water Authority as assistant general manager, bringing experience from every aspect of water utility management to serve the region, it was announced today.

Berge is general manager of the Sweetwater Authority, one of the water authority’s 24 member agencies. Berge starts her new role Feb. 22 alongside Deputy General Manager Dan Denham and General Manager Sandra L. Kerl.

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Opinion: An Independent Colorado River Aqueduct Could Be a Money Saver for San Diego

/in , , /by /Times of San Diego by Gary Croucher Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

There’s an old saying that those who don’t remember history are destined to repeat it.

And that certainly holds true when it comes to securing water for this semi-arid place we call home. Those who have been around here since the early 1990s remember when we relied on a single Los Angeles-based water agency to meet almost all of our water needs — and we paid for it with traumatic supply cuts that crippled our economy.

Thankfully, three decades of regional investments have changed San Diego’s story for the better. Planning and investments by the San Diego County Water Authority and our 24 local retail member agencies have produced and will continue to ensure one of the most reliable water supplies in California.

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Water Agencies Disagree on How Much Water San Diego Needs

/in , /by /Voice of San Diegoby MacKenzie Elmer Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

The San Diego Water Authority thinks the region is going to need way more water over the next few decades, but the smaller agencies that buy water from them aren’t so sure.

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