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Bill Would Provide Relief to Farmworkers in Drought-Stricken California

/in , /by /Yale Climate Connections

About a quarter of the nation’s food is produced in California’s Central Valley. And for decades, people have come to the region to find jobs in agriculture.

State senator Melissa Hurtado says her parents immigrated there from Mexico.

“They came to the Central Valley in search of the American dream. What they had heard is that the Central Valley was the place where you can make that happen,” she says. “And this region provided that to them.”

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Amid Drought, Some California Communities Are Forced to Rely on Hauled-in or Bottled Water. This Map Shows Where

/in , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Yoohyun Jung

Many small and rural communities across California are vulnerable to drought and water shortages as they lack the diverse water sources and infrastructure of big cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles. In some cases, these communities are forced to rely on bottled water or water hauled in from elsewhere, which experts say is costly and unsustainable.

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Water Usage in Bakersfield Drops 5.5%

/in , /by /KGETby Jacqueline Gutierrez

The California Waterboards showed a state-wide drop in water usage and some regions of the state exhibited a drop of up to 17%.

The waterboard said at a statewide level in June of 2014 California residents used 131 gallons per capita daily (GPCD) compared to June of 2022 residents used 101 GPCD. In June of 2021 California residents used 112 GPCD.

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Urban Water Suppliers Report Water Savings Progress Statewide

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

Following Governor Gavin Newsom’s recent executive order and a State Water Board emergency regulation, members of the California Urban Water Agencies, or CUWA, including the San Diego County Water Authority continue to advance water-saving efforts, yielding measurable results. These efforts come on the back of the driest first quarter in California’s history, which prompted the Governor to call for local water conservation steps rather than a one-size-fits-all approach.

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Californians See Drought as Top Priority, Demand More Action: Survey

/in , , /by /The Hillby Sharon Udasin

Californians in a new statewide survey cite drought and water supply issues as their chief environmental concern for the third year in a row.

Thirty percent of respondents ranked water as the most pressing issue — topping wildfires and climate change, which garnered 13 percent and 11 percent, respectively, in the poll, released by the Public Policy Institute of California.

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Desalination Plant Construction Underway in Antioch as Drought Worsens

/in , , /by /CBS Bay Areaby John Ramos

The city of Antioch sits right next to the largest source of fresh water in Northern California. But it’s facing a water supply crisis because of changes to the Delta, both natural and man-made.

As a result, the city is taking extraordinary measures to increase supply in a way that has the rest of the state watching.

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‘Towns Built on Agriculture’ Plead for Federal Drought Relief

/in , , /by /Agri Pulseby Brad Hooker
California agriculture is eyeing a massive spending package in Congress and pressing for emergency relief funding to ensure local economies survive the drought.
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Lake That Predated Salton Sea Came and Went as the Colorado River Changed Course

/in , /by /KPBSby Thomas Fudge

Before the Colorado River was tamed by dams and dikes it was a free flowing, flooding river that often changed course, sometimes dramatically. Though it typically flowed south to the Gulf of California, in years of powerful floods it would flow into the Salton Sea Basin, and fill it up to form what we call Lake Cahuilla.

Since about 612 B.C. Lake Cahuilla has filled up seven times, the last time in 1733.

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California’s Water Chief Steps Up to Fight Historic Drought

/in , , /by /Capitol Weeklyby Lisa Renner

As a native of the Coachella Valley near Palm Springs where it hardly ever rains, Joaquin Esquivel has always known that water is precious.

His uncle often took him to the Salton Sea, and he had family served by a well.

He carries that respect for the resource as chair of California’s State Water Resources Control Board.   “Growing up in the desert, you are very aware of water,” he said.

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Sinema Meets With Regional Water Officials to Talk About $4B in Colorado River Drought Aid

/in , , /by /AZ Centralby Zayna Syed

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema introduced a new water advisory council at Hoover Dam on Monday to discuss how to spend $4 billion in water and drought aid included in the Inflation Reduction Act.

The $4 billion is meant to stave off the worst effects of drought across the Colorado River system, which is suffering from overuse and two decades of drought exacerbated by climate change.

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