You are now in California and the U.S. Home Headline Media Coverage category.

Despite Storms, State Reservoirs Aren’t Likely to Return to Normal Levels This Year

/in , , /by /Spectrum News 1by Susan Carpenter

Even with a sixth atmospheric river in two weeks dumping rain on California, water regulators said reservoirs are not likely to completely refill this year. As of Sunday, the state’s 17 reservoirs were at 78% of average, the Department of Water Resources announced Monday.

“We’re still below average,” said Jon Yarbrough, assistant deputy director for the State Water Project, the California agency that collects water from Northern California rivers and redistributes it to major cities. “We still have a lot of room in our reservoirs to take in the in-flows that we’re seeing on the horizon here.”

Full Story

California Storms Persist With Deluges, Mudslide Threats

/in , , /by /AP Newsby Christopher Weber and Stephanie Dazio

California saw no relief from drenching rains early Tuesday as the latest in a relentless string of storms continued to swamp roads and batter coastlines with high surf, turning rivers into gushing flood zones and forcing the evacuation of thousands in towns with histories of deadly mudslides. At least 14 people have died since the storms began last week.

Full Story

California Snowpack Soars to Nearly 200% of Normal

/in , , /by /KTLAby Marc Sternfield

While many areas of California are coping with the destructive impact of relentless rainfall, the news is nothing but good when it comes to the state’s snowpack. As of Monday, California’s snow water equivalent was 199% of normal for the date (January 9), according to the California Department of Water Resources.

Full Story

‘It’s a Marathon, Not a Race’ — What Utah’s Recent Snowstorms Mean for the Colorado River

/in , , /by /The Salt Lake Tribuneby Leia Larsen

The snow keeps falling across Utah, which will likely benefit beleaguered waters like the Great Salt Lake and Lake Powell. But it’s too soon to say how much of a difference it will make.

Snowpack is well above average in watersheds across the state, according to the latest data from the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service’s Snow Survey. The Southeastern Utah basin is an astounding 190% above normal for this time of year, and other drainages that feed the Colorado River are close behind. All that snow has done little to lift Lake Powell’s elevation to date, which currently sits at about a quarter of its capacity and around 30 feet above the point where it will no longer be able to generate hydropower.

Still, there are reasons to be optimistic.

Full Story

What Lake Mead Needs to Get Water Levels Back Up at Drought-Hit Reservoir

/in , , /by /Newsweekby Robyn White

Lake Mead will need more than just rainfall to replenish itself, an expert has told Newsweek.

Spread between Nevada and Arizona—Lake Mead, the largest man-made reservoir in the U.S.—is best known for its rapidly declining water levels due to the ongoing megadrought gripping the western states. The lake is integral to surrounding communities, as it is also formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River—which generates electricity for thousands of people. If the water levels continue to decline, the consequences could be catastrophic.

Full Story

‘The Worst of it Still in Front of Us’ as New Storms Set to Pound a Rain-Weary California

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Rong-Gong Lin II, Jessica Garrison, City Carcamo, and Anita Chabria

California is bracing for another week of destructive storms that will probably bring flooding and hazardous winds Monday to an already battered state.

A series of atmospheric rivers that pummeled coastal communities last week and left more than 400,000 without power in California on Sunday will be followed by particularly brutal weather as rivers reach flood levels and powerful winds wreak havoc, forecasters fear.

Full Story

California Reservoir Water Levels Before and After Rain

/in , , /by /Newsweekby Pandora Dewan

California’s major reservoirs have seen significant gains in water level in recent days after two weeks of exceptionally heavy rain across the state. It comes after months of severe drought in the region, leaving water levels in the state’s most important reservoirs well below their historical average.

Full Story

Heavy Snowpack and Recent Storms May Not Translate to More Farm Water

/in , , /by /KERO 23ABCby Veronica Morley

The California snowpack is starting off strong, raising hopes for water resources throughout the drought-stricken state. But for farmers, these high numbers may not translate into more water for their crops.

The amount of snow high up in the Sierra Nevada Mountains has a direct impact on the fields of crops below. Jason Giannelli, a fourth generation farmer in Kern County who grew up in the farm life, understands this.

Full Story

Colorado River in Crisis

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Times

The Colorado River can no longer withstand the thirst of the arid West. Water drawn from the river flows to more than 40 million people in cities from Denver to Los Angeles and irrigates more than 5 million acres of farmland.

For decades, the river has been entirely used up, leaving dusty stretches of desert where it once flowed to the sea in Mexico. Now, chronic overuse and the effects of climate change are pushing the river system toward potential collapse as reservoirs drop to dangerously low levels. A water reckoning is about to transform the landscape of the Southwest.

Colorado River in Crisis is a series of stories, videos and podcasts in which Los Angeles Times journalists travel throughout the river’s watershed, from the headwaters in the Rocky Mountains to the river’s dry delta in Mexico. These stories reveal the stark toll of the river’s decline, responses that have yet to match the scale of the crisis, and voices that are urging a fundamental rethinking of how water is managed and used to adapt to the reality of a river that is over-tapped and dwindling.

The Times podcast: Colorado River in Crisis, Part 1: A Dying River

 

Full Story

Marina, 3 Water Agencies Sue Coastal Commission

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

Elected officials in Marina have joined forces with three water agencies in a lawsuit against the California Coastal Commission over its tentative permitting in November of California American Water Co.’s desalination project.

Full Story