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Worries Over This Summer’s Water Supply Prompt a Request to Temporarily Change How Much is Sent to the Delta

/in , , /by /KCRAby Heather Waldman

California’s reservoir system serves many important functions. Reservoirs allow for water storage throughout the summer and provide recreational space. Releases from reservoirs also help to keep drinking water free of salt and other contaminants. Water is also regularly released into the Delta to help maintain the stability of the region’s ecosystem

But with 2022 off to a record dry start, water managers are concerned that there won’t be enough water in reservoirs to keep meeting all of those needs through the summer months.

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State Deepens Water Supply Cuts as Drought Continues

/in , , /by /AgAlertby Christine Souza

The California Department of Water Resources is cutting its water allocation for the State Water Project to 5%—down from its earlier promised allotment of 15%.

The agency cited dropping reservoir levels and reduced snowpack amid California’s continuing drought.

The March 18 announcement marked another setback for farmers and others who rely on state surface-water supplies.

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Calif. Awards $180M for Drought Relief Projects

/in , , /by /WaterWorld

The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) has announced its second phase of funding through the Urban and Multibenefit Drought Relief Grant program.

The program will provide financial assistance to 62 projects throughout the state to tackle drought impacts on human health and safety, protect fish and wildlife resources, and support other public benefits, such as ecosystem improvements.

Of the $180 million in funding, half will support various types of water supply projects including groundwater, surface water, recycled water, and supply reliability.

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Monterey Officials Ask, Again, for More Water

/in , , /by /Monterey Heraldby Dennis L. Taylor

Monterey city officials are again lobbying state water overseers to open taps that have been blocked for years because of illegal diversions from the Carmel River, arguing that those diversions are no longer occurring. State water officials disagree.

In a March 17 letter to the chairman and other members of the state Water Resources Control Board, Monterey Mayor Clyde Roberson and other City Council members argued that California American Water Co. is, more or less, no longer making illegal diversions since the amount of acre-feet that is being consumed is now down to the limit set by the water board.

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WaterSmart Drought-Tolerant Plant Giveaway in Encinitas

/in , , /by /Water News Network Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

The San Diego County Water Authority and three member agencies are partnering with Altman Plants for an Adopt-A-Plant event Saturday in Encinitas.

Vista-based Altman Plants, the largest nursery plant grower in the nation, has led efforts to increase water-efficiency and sustainability. The first 500 guests will receive free Smart Planet-brand drought-tolerant succulents to spur more residents to adopt water-efficient landscaping.

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Pure Water Oceanside-Recycling-Local Supply

Pure Water Oceanside Provides New Local Supply of Drinking Water

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Pure Water Oceanside is the first operating advanced water purification facility in San Diego County, providing a new local supply. The facility was officially dedicated with a celebration Tuesday in Oceanside. Elected officials and water leaders throughout Southern California commemorated the milestone which coincided with World Water Day.

Pure Water Oceanside purifies recycled water to create a new local source of high-quality drinking water that is clean, safe, drought-proof and environmentally sound.

“On this World Water Day, we celebrate the City of Oceanside’s contribution to managing our invaluable water resources with the opening of Pure Water Oceanside,” said Cari Dale, City of Oceanside water utilities director. “Today we made history by moving one step closer to achieving the goal of greater water independence for not only our city, residents and businesses, but also the region as a whole.”

20% of Oceanside’s drinking water supply

The $70 million project uses advanced technology, including ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis and advanced oxidation to provide 3 million gallons per day or more than 20% of the City of Oceanside’s drinking water supply. The source of the recycled water to create the purified water is from the city’s own San Luis Rey Water Reclamation Facility.

Drought-proof water supply

“Pure Water Oceanside exemplifies our commitment to innovative projects that improve the lives of the citizens who call our great city home,” said City of Oceanside Mayor Esther Sanchez. “Not only will the project safeguard against ongoing drought concerns, but it will also improve the quality and quantity of our local aquifer and reduce our reliance on imported water, ensuring clean and reliable water is available for future generations.”

Pure Water Oceanside-Recycling-Potable Reuse-Water Supply

The $70 million project uses advanced technology, including ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis and advanced oxidation to provide 3 million gallons per day or more than 20% of the City of Oceanside’s drinking water supply. Photo: San Diego County Water Authority

Pure Water Oceanside addresses a variety of challenges faced by the city. Before the project went online, Oceanside imported most of its water from the Sacramento Bay Delta and the Colorado River, hundreds of miles away. This imported water is subject to rising costs out of the city’s control, requires an enormous amount of energy to transport and is vulnerable to natural disasters and earthquakes. Pure Water Oceanside addresses these challenges by diversifying the city’s water supply and reducing its reliance on imported water.

The launching of Pure Water Oceanside coincides with a larger movement for the region as a whole to create sustainable water supplies in San Diego County. In addition to Pure Water Oceanside, two other water reuse projects are planned for the region: the East County Advanced Water Purification Program and Pure Water San Diego.

(Editor’s note: The City of Oceanside, City of San Diego, Padre Dam Municipal Water District, and the Helix Water District are four of the San Diego County Water Authority’s 24 member agencies that deliver water across the metropolitan San Diego region.)

How Low Can the Colorado River Go? Drought Forces States to Face Tough Choices About Water

/in , , /by /AZ Centralby Brandon Loomis

Water managers from across the Colorado River Basin are preparing to negotiate new rules for allocating the river’s dwindling flow and sharing the pain of a deepening shortage.

They’re adapting the 100-year-old Colorado River Compact to a river that little resembles the bountiful gusher that negotiators from seven states and the federal government in 1922 thought — or hoped — would bless the Southwest forever. The stakes rise with every foot that Lake Mead and Lake Powell fall, as the states and the water users within them recognize they’re due for a tighter squeeze.

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Why Groundwater Is One of Our Most Precious Resources

/in , , /by /phys.org

From the Murray-Darling system to Great Artesian Basin, “invisible” underground groundwater is often the only water supply available across the vast majority of Australia—and its annual contribution to GDP is estimated at more than $6.8 billion a year.

However, overuse of groundwater during droughts and aquifer depletion has led to water crises, including in Australia’s “food bowl” the Murray-Darling Basin (MDB), California and Cape Town in South Africa, with more likely to follow as groundwater management is largely reactive and unlikely to avert more crises as climate change and population pressures grow.

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Poway Secures $1M in Federal Funding for Water Project

/in , , /by /NBC 7

NBC 7’s Joe Little talks to business owners who were shut down by a major leak in the water system in 2019 to see why this multi-million dollar project is so important.

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State Unveils Long-Awaited Standard for Drinking Water Contaminant

/in , , /by /CalMattersby Rachel Becker

California today proposed a long-awaited standard for a cancer-causing contaminant in drinking water that would require costly treatment in many cities throughout the state.

Traces of hexavalent chromium are widely found in the drinking water of millions of Californians, with some of the contamination naturally occurring and some from industries that work with the heavy metal.

The proposed standard is a major step in a decades-long effort to curtail the water contaminant made infamous by the movie Erin Brockovich, based on residents of rural Hinkley, California who won more than $300 million from Pacific Gas & Electric for contamination of their drinking water.

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