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

Concerns Raised Over California’s Plan To Provide More Water For Fish

Farmers and rural residents told California regulators they’re concerned about a proposal to increase water flows in the San Joaquin River and its tributaries to protect threatened fish. Native fish populations in the system have been declining for decades.The river system is part of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, which provides water to Central Valley farms and millions of Californians. Regulators say currently up to 70 percent of the water is diverted. J.D. Richey, a Delta fishing guide, says his industry is collapsing.

BLOG: California Case Could Set National Precedent on Indian Water Rights

In Palm Springs, one of the hottest regions in California, precious groundwater has been depleted for decades to build lush golf courses, swimming pools and tract homes. Now the local American Indian tribe is pressing for a right to help manage that water.The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, which owns two casinos in the popular desert tourism region, has been buying water for decades from the two government water agencies that manage local groundwater, the Desert Water Agency and the Coachella Valley Water District.

Marin County Reservoirs Filling Rapidly, Two Already Spilling Over

Marin Country reservoirs are rising with multiple storms arriving early in the rainy season. Two are already spilling over and funneling water into creeks and streams. “So far this year we have received more than 17 inches of rainfall at Lake Lagunitas – we’re off to a great start with 78 percent of capacity at our seven reservoirs,” Lon Peterson, a spokesperson for the Marin Municipal Water District said.  At this time last year, the reservoirs were at 65 percent, the average storage for late November.

Who Likes State’s Plan To Keep More Water For Fish In California Rivers? Practically Nobody

California regulators say their sweeping proposal to devote more flows from the state’s major rivers to fish and wildlife is an attempt to balance competing interests for a scarce resource. So far, all they’ve done is get practically everyone mad at them. Opponents of the plan came out in force Tuesday, in the first of a series of hearings before the State Water Resources Control Board on the future of the San Joaquin River and its tributaries.

 

BLOG: California Case Could Set National Precedent on Indian Water Rights

In Palm Springs, one of the hottest regions in California, precious groundwater has been depleted for decades to build lush golf courses, swimming pools and tract homes. Now the local American Indian tribe is pressing for a right to help manage that water. The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, which owns two casinos in the popular desert tourism region, has been buying water for decades from the two government water agencies that manage local groundwater, the Desert Water Agency and the Coachella Valley Water District.

California Tallies Snow, Rain From Weekend Storms

California had vital snow on Sierra Nevada peaks Monday and positive rainfall totals registered for many areas after a stormy autumn weekend up and down the state that hopes to avoid a sixth consecutive year of drought conditions. In the Sierra, where the annual snowpack functions as a reservoir for much of the state’s water supply, storms over Kings Canyon and Sequoia national parks dumped 19 inches of snow at Lodgepole and 16 inches at Grant Grove, the National Weather Service said.

After Soaking October, November Is Quite A Bit Drier In Sacramento

It looks like November will be about an inch short of normal rainfall in Sacramento as the region dries out for the remainder of the month. Scattered showers on Monday are expected to clear away as a fast-moving system exits to the southeast. A high pressure system is expected to build along the west coast, leading to an absence of rain in Northern California through Sunday. If the rainfall stays away through the end of the month, Sacramento will end up with about 1.4 inches of rain, which is about an inch short of the 2.43 the city normally gets in November.

 

California Must Pick Up Stormwater Check

Local public agencies realized an important victory in a more-than-decade-long, who-should-foot-the-stormwater-bill battle — a battle focused on a permit issued by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board to the County of Los Angeles and more than 80 local agencies, or “co-permittees.” The lengthy battle was not over the requirements themselves or whether state agencies had the authority to issue them. At the crux of the conflict was the question: Who’s picking up the check? The answer from the California Supreme Court — California — is welcome news to local agencies.

BLOG: Desalination: Is the US Navy the Solution to the World’s Droughts?

Since 2000, California has suffered some of its worst droughts since state climate record keeping began in the late 1800s. The 2001-2002 rainy season in Southern California was the driest on record. The drought of 2011-2014 was the worst in state history. As of May 2015, the drought has worsened and continued. Current Water Conservation Efforts Are Not Sufficient California implemented numerous water conservation efforts to counteract the lack of fresh water. Eventually, those efforts will not be enough if the drought continues. So what is Plan B in case of emergencies?

Mark Arax: Desert Irrigation And A New Deal For Westlands

The helicopter landed in the western hills above the San Joaquin Valley and out of the dust walked President John F. Kennedy. It was Aug. 18, 1962, and the sun would not let go. In the hollow of the mountain, where California was about to build its newest reservoir, the air felt like a blast furnace. Summer had baked the earth to a tan and shrunken form. The hills turned to hide. Though not a drop of rain had fallen from the sky since spring, no one in the assembled crowd, certainly not the cotton kings, thought of this as drought.