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California’s Record Winter Storms Could Spawn Disastrous Floods

/in , /by /CalMattersby Dan Walters

The winter of 2022-23 will go into the meteorological record books for one of the heaviest – if not, the heaviest – precipitation ever experienced in California.

California has been buffeted for more than two months by a seemingly nonstop series of storms rolling in from the Pacific, soaking virtually every corner of the state. Their most unusual aspect has been the huge snowfall in Southern California mountains, where hundreds of people remain trapped in resort communities.

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Rockies’ Snowy Winter May Not Mean Enough Runoff to Replenish the Colorado

/in , /by /Cronkite Newsby Alex Hager

Recent data show a snowy start to 2023 for the Colorado River basin, with heavy winter precipitation in the Rocky Mountains projected to boost spring spring runoff into Lake Powell to 117% of an average year’s flows.

But scientists say that while this winter’s snow may provide a temporary boost to major reservoirs, it will not provide enough water to fix the Southwest’s long-term supply-demand imbalance, as the beleaguered river continues to grapple with climate change and steady demand.

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California’s Snowpack Shows Huge Gains from Recent Storms

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

The snow water equivalent of California’s snowpack is 190% of average for March 3, 2023. After three years of drought, the bountiful winter is good news, but a drier future demands more conservation and innovative solutions for water supply in the Southwestern U.S.

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California Could Get Hit With New Atmospheric River This Week, and Consequences Could Be Concerning

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Jessica Flores

Northern California could be in for a new atmospheric river storm by the end of the week, potentially blasting the Bay Area with substantial rain, and the Sierra with even more heavy snow, but likely not as fierce as the wet storms that wreaked damage across the region at the start of the year, forecasters say.

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Opinion: Review-Journal’s Feb. 15 Editorial on Federal Intervention to Solve Colorado River Crisis Contains Many Inaccuracies

/in , , /by /Las Vegas Review-Journalby Henry Martinez

The Review-Journal’s Feb. 15 editorial promoting federal intervention to solve the Colorado River crisis contains many inaccuracies.

Let’s start with the inference that a six-state proposal is an actual “accord,” lacking only California’s acquiescence. It is not. A “consensus” solution based primarily on reducing the entitlements of water users not involved in the discussions, or in concurrence with the final proposal — and namely the most senior water right priority tribes, lower Colorado River agricultural water users, California contractors and Mexico — is not consensus or an implementable solution to the crisis.

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The Search for Solutions to Colorado’s Water Crisis

/in , , /by /5280by Nicholas Hunt

In January, the same series of storms that left Denver’s streets covered in deep drifts also pushed Colorado’s snowpack north of 120 percent of its average for that point in the year. If your gauge was the number of ski runs open, it was great news. If your gauge was the state’s water supply, it was likely barely enough to maintain the status quo.

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Lake Mead Keeps Shrinking as States Struggle to Find Colorado River Cuts

/in , , /by /Las Vegas Review-Journalby Colton Lochhead

Getting states to agree to use less water is hard. Doing so in a matter of months is near impossible.

The last time the Colorado River Basin agreed to a set of reductions to address drought conditions and dropping levels at Lake Mead was in 2019. Those reductions took five years to iron out and amounted to a fraction of what the federal government now says needs to be cut in order to keep the system from crashing.

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In Dry West, Farmers Balk at Idling Land to Save Water

/in , /by /AP Newsby Suman Naishadham

Tom Brundy, an alfalfa grower in California’s Imperial Valley, thinks farmers reliant on the shrinking Colorado River can do more to save water and use it more efficiently. That’s why he’s installed water sensors and monitors to prevent waste on nearly two-thirds of his 3,000 acres.

But one practice that’s off-limits for Brundy is fallowing — leaving fields unplanted to spare the water that would otherwise irrigate crops. It would save plenty of water, Brundy said, but threatens both farmers and rural communities economically.

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‘A Foundation of Racism’: California’s Antiquated Water Rights System Faces New Scrutiny

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Ian James

It’s an arcane system of water law that dates back to the birth of California — an era when 49ers used sluice boxes and water cannons to scour gold from Sierra Nevada foothills and when the state government promoted the extermination of Native people to make way for white settlers.

Today, this antiquated system of water rights still governs the use of the state’s supplies, but it is now drawing scrutiny like never before.

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California’s Storms Aren’t Letting Up. Here’s What the First Half of March Looks Like

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Claire Hao

Storm-lashed California may not get much relief soon: The cold and rain could be here to stay for at least the next two weeks, according to weather experts.

The weather outlook for Northern California for March 8 through March 14 leans toward colder and rainier (or snowier) conditions than usual, per an outlook issued Tuesday from the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center — though mid-range forecasts are notoriously finicky.

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