A string of early-season storms that drenched Californians last week lifted much of the state out of drought and significantly reduced the risk of wildfires, experts say.
It’s been the wettest November on record for Southland communities such as Van Nuys and San Luis Obispo. Santa Barbara has received an eye-popping 9.5 inches of rain since Oct. 1, marking the city’s wettest start to the water year on record.
California reservoir water levels are in “incredible shape,” with all of the state’s major reservoirs at or above 100 percent of historical average for this time of year, according to data from the state’s Department of Water Resources (DWR).
One of North America’s longest rivers, the Rio Grande — or Rio Bravo as it’s called in Mexico — has a history as deep as it is long. Indigenous people have tapped it for countless generations and it was a key artery for Spanish conquistadors centuries ago.
Today, the Rio Grande-Bravo water basin is in crisis.
Publicly owned systems deliver more than 80 percent of the water that is a survival necessity for homes and industry. Their general reliability masks long-term neglect.
Much of the country’s water infrastructure was built in the 1970s and ’80s. Years of deferred maintenance for many systems have created serious problems — the American Civil Society of Engineers this year gave the country’s water infrastructure grades ranging from a C- to a D. At the same time, states have become increasingly responsible for funding water systems. In 1981, the federal government provided more than $25 billion in capital investment for water infrastructure, almost half of the total for the year. By 2021, this had decreased to $4 billion, 7 percent of total funding.
Arizona will provide taxpayer money to help private companies develop plans for at least two and possibly three desalination plants in California or Mexico under proposals approved by a state agency’s board on Wednesday.
The Water Infrastructure Finance Authority board also approved initial development of several other projects from the two applicants that proposed new Arizona water supplies and made it past a lengthy review process. Those proposals would rely on treating wastewater, capturing storm water and storing it underground or making agricultural irrigation more efficient, with the projects located in California, Colorado, Utah or Mexico.
The Maui County Department of Water Supply is taking the first steps toward developing its first publicly owned desalination facility in West Maui. The project would extend the arid region’s water resources beyond current ground and surface water limitations that currently force the department to cope with a Stage 2 water shortage.
With a desalination plant, the department would have additional water resources to meet growing demand including direly needed housing developments, such as the 500-home Pulelehua project, which is currently stalled without available water.
California’s water year is off to a great start, thanks in large part to the past week’s stormy stretch for the state. The water year began on Oct. 1 and continues until Sept. 30 next year.
Since the start of the water year, Sacramento has seen nearly 5 inches of rain at Executive Airport. That is more than three times the normal amount of rain for this point in the season.
Feelings were running high—and interest was evident—as hundreds of people turned out for our fall conference last week in Sacramento. The lunchtime program featured a panel of five experts representing water interests from across the state.
The day opened with a short video celebrating the PPIC Water Policy Center’s first 10 years, followed by a welcome by center director Letitia Grenier, who thanked the audience for braving the rain to attend. “An atmospheric river decided to come to our water conference this year, which is very on-brand,” she said with a smile.
When Cornell University systems engineer Fengqi You started modeling the environmental footprint of data centers three years ago, the A.I. boom was just beginning. Even then, You and his colleagues noticed something missing from the conversation.
“When we started this, we saw that A.I. was growing very fast,” You said. “It was clear it would have to be aligned with power-grid planning, with water and other resource planning. There were no discussions about these topics — but we wanted to bring real numbers, rigorous analysis on A.I.’s physical footprints.”
Since Oct. 1, downtown L.A. has gotten 4.14 inches of rain, quite a bit more than the average 0.89 inches. For November, the average over the last 30 years is just 0.78 inches, but we’ve had 2.82 inches so far. This is currently the 19th wettest November since 1877, and given that there’s more rain to come, this could become one of the top 10 starts to a rainy season.
Another storm going to drop between a half-inch and 1 inch of rain across much of the area, and as much as 2 inches in the mountains. Several inches of snow could fall above 5,000 feet. Downed trees and minor debris flows are possible as strong winds and concentrated downpours pass through the area. We could see rain on Thursday and Friday as well, but the forecast is a bit uncertain. Next week things should dry out and warm up, with temperatures climbing into the 70s and 80s.
