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How Las Vegas Declared War on Thirsty Grass and Set an Example for the Desert Southwest

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Molly Hennessy-Fiske and Ian James

Fountains still shimmer opulently at casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, but lush carpets of grass are gradually disappearing along the streets of Sin City.

Despite its reputation for excess, the Mojave Desert metropolis has been factoring climate change into its water plans for years, declaring war on thirsty lawns, patrolling the streets for water wasters and preparing for worst-case scenarios on the Colorado River, which supplies 90% of the area’s water.

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Why Forecasts for La Niña Turned Out to Be All Wet

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Gerry Diaz

The new year started off with a parade of storms, leading to San Francisco and the wider Bay Area seeing one of its rainiest time frames since the Gold Rush era. This onslaught of storms seemed a bit out of place with the trend of La Niña, an outlook that traditionally brings warm, dry conditions to most of California. Instead, the first half of the 2022-23 winter season was marked by atmospheric river-enhanced storms and notable reductions in drought conditions across the state. And chances persist for some rain showers to hit California in the coming days to weeks.

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Opinion: California’s Climate is the First to Suffer in Newsom’s Proposed Budget Cuts | Opinion

/in , /by /The Sacramento Bee

Just six months ago, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and his administration were boasting a budget surplus of $97.5 billion. Today, thanks to a falling stock market and a weakened tech sector, California has an apparently unforeseen budget deficit of $22.5 billion. Cuts must be made.

But Newsom’s proposed cuts seemingly come at the expense of climate-related projects, a curious decision from a governor who often speaks about how confronting climate change is one of his key priorities. Unsurprisingly, his actions do not meet the weight of his words.

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Why Desalination Won’t Save States Dependent on Colorado River Water

/in , /by /CNBCby Emma Newburger

States dependent on the drought-stricken Colorado River are increasingly looking toward desalination as a way to fix the river’s deficit and boost water supplies across the western U.S.

The search for alternative ways to source water comes as federal officials continue to impose mandatory water cuts for states that draw from the Colorado River, which supplies water and power for more than 40 million people.

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Colorado River Water Managers Optimistic About Drought Plan as Deadline Looms

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

Western water managers are optimistic that a deal to buoy the drought-stricken Colorado River can be pieced together in the waning days before a deadline set by the federal government rolls around next week.

The Bureau of Reclamation has given the seven states in the basin until the end of January to propose their own plan for voluntary reductions needed to prevent the river’s two main reservoirs from crashing, or risk the federal government moving forward with its own measures that would most likely result in mandated cuts.

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Storms Dumped Snow on California. Will It Bring a Reprieve From the Drought?

/in , , /by /The Guardianby Gabrielle Canon

Extreme weather hammered California through the first weeks of the year – but also offered a badly needed reprieve. The deep snow dumped on the Sierra Nevada during a series of strong storms left the state with a robust water savings account of sorts.

As the weather warms over the spring and summer months, the melting snow fills rivers, streams and reservoirs long after California’s rainy season has ended. Considered one of its most important reservoirs, the snowpack provides roughly a third of California’s water supply.

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Agencies Fast-Track Project to Capture Flood Waters

/in , /by /Merced County Times

The Department of Water Resources (DWR) is partnering with the State Water Resources Control Board to fast-track efforts to capture flood waters to recharge groundwater basins. Water captured during extreme wet periods such as the one California is now experiencing will be stored in groundwater basins for use during dry periods.

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California Winter Storms Boost Water Allocations for Cities

/in , /by /AP Newsby Adam Beam

Weeks of historic rainfall in California won’t be enough to end a severe drought, but it will provide public water agencies serving 27 million people with much more water than the suppliers had been told to expect a month ago, state officials announced Thursday.

The Department of Water Resources said public water agencies will now get 30% of what they had asked for, up from the 5% officials had previously announced in December.

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Colorado River States Attempt To Reach Water-Use Plan — Again

/in , /by /Roll Callby Valerie Yurk

The seven states most affected by dwindling Colorado River levels are meeting over the next few days to draft proposals for managing the basin’s water levels, potentially preventing the Interior Department from imposing its own water cuts.

The seven Colorado River Basin states — Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and California — have been sparring over who receives the biggest reductions in allocations after Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Camille Touton announced a 2019 deal with the states that hinged on them saving 2 million to 4 million acre-feet of water, as much as a third of the river’s flows, or the federal government would intervene.

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The Colorado River is Overused and Shrinking. Inside the Crisis Transforming the Southwest

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Ian James and Molly Hennessy-Fiske

The Colorado River begins as melting snow, trickling from forested peaks and coursing in streams that gather in the meadows and valleys of the Rocky Mountains.

Like arteries, its major tributaries take shape across Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and New Mexico, coming together in a great river like no other — a river that travels more than 1,400 miles and has defined the rise of the American Southwest over the last century.

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