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High Tech, High Stakes: How Vulnerable to Cyberattacks is U.S. Water Infrastructure?

/in , /by /Water Finance & Managementby Andrew Farr

According to government officials, security experts and persistent media reports, all signs indicate that cybersecurity is an issue that is here to stay and puts U.S. infrastructure squarely in the crosshairs of hackers and foreign governments. Recently the issue has been heightened by the war in Ukraine and has increased concerns about a potential Russian retaliation to U.S. sanctions that may come in the form of a cyberattack.

But whether it’s Russia, China, another foreign government or an independent hacker, concerns about how cyberattacks could impact infrastructure in the United States have been elevated – and a look at how they could affect the water industry is fascinating.

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California, Utah and Other Western States Face Scary Wildfire Season

/in , , /by /Desert Newsby Amy Joi O'Donoghue

Northern California is suffering when it comes to extreme drought conditions, very little snow and a wildfire season predicted to start much earlier.

Last year, more than 2.5 million acres burned in that state, and officials fear it could be as bad this year, if not worse.

An Axios report noted that already this year, the Sacramento office of the National Weather Service issued a red flag warning for wildfires.
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Farms, Fish on Dry California-Oregon Border See Scant Water

/in , , /by /AP Newsby Gillian Flaccus

Farms that rely on irrigation from a depleted, federally managed lake on the California-Oregon border, along with a Native American tribe fighting to protect fragile salmon, will both receive extremely limited amounts of water this summer as a historic drought and record-low reservoir levels drag on in the U.S. West.

More than 1,000 farmers and ranchers who draw water from a 257-mile-long (407-kilometer) river that flows from the Upper Klamath Lake to the Pacific Ocean will have access to roughly one-seventh the amount they could get in a wetter year, a federal agency announced Monday. Downstream salmon will receive about half the water they’d get if the reservoir was full.

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As Drought Persists, Government Says Klamath Farmers Will Be Allocated Limited Water

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Ian James

As severe drought persists in Northern California and southern Oregon, the federal Bureau of Reclamation announced Monday that farmers and ranchers will be allocated a limited amount of water in the Klamath River Basin this summer.

Water is at the center of bitter disputes between growers, the federal government and tribes over how much should be allocated for food production, flows in the Klamath River and the health of threatened fish.

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California’s Driest Start to the Year Sparks Water, Wildfire Concerns

/in , , /by /Axiosby Andrew Freedman

California is entering the dry season with its water resources in a precarious position, having seen its driest start to the year on record. A heat wave last week sent temperatures soaring into the 90s and even triple-digits in some locations, as the paltry Sierra Nevada snowpack shrunk even further.

Why it matters: Water and wildfire woes lie ahead for the nation’s most populous state, as spring runoff into reservoirs slows to a trickle, and forests dry out unusually early in the year.

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Snowstorm and Rain Showers Fall on Northern California, Days After Spring Heat Wave

/in , /by /The Sacramento Beeby Michael McGough

Just days after parts of the valley reached 90 degrees, and less than a day removed from the earliest fire weather warning ever issued in spring, rain and snow fell Monday across Northern California amid a 30-degree cooldown expected to last most of this week.

Chain controls were in place on several mountain highways Monday morning, Caltrans said, as the National Weather Service predicts about a foot of snow could fall at the pass level in the central Sierra Nevada range by the end of the day. Snow will fall as low as about 4,000 feet.

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Powell’s Looming Power Problem

/in , , /by /High Country Newsby Jonathan Thompson

Thirty-nine years ago, due to record-breaking snowfall in the Upper Colorado River Basin, Lake Powell rose substantially, catching river managers off-guard. By late June, the reservoir was nearly overflowing, forcing operators — for the first time ever — to rely on the spillways. Instead of giving relief, that precipitated a new crisis, as a phenomenon called cavitation sent shockwaves through the spillways’ innards, tearing through the concrete and then the sandstone, putting the colossal Glen Canyon Dam in peril.

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Klamath National Forest Snowpack at 16% of Historic Average as Drought Conditions Persist

/in , , /by /KDRVby Brett Taylor

Record low snowpack levels continue to plaque the state of California as dry and unseasonably warm temperatures continue to persist.

According to measurements taken by the U.S. Forest Service for the April survey, in the Klamath National Forest, the snowpack is at 16% of the historic average snow height (snow depth) and at 18% of the historic Snow Water Equivalent (“SWE”, measure of water content) across all survey points.

Weather continued to be relatively dry through March and although several small storms did pop up across the area during the month, unseasonably warm temperatures kept the local snowpack below normal level.

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Newsom’s Drought Order Poses a Big Question on Water Well Permits for Valley Farmers

/in , , /by /The Sunby Don Wright

California’s Governor Gavin Newsom released Executive Order N-7-22 on March 28, 2022 in response to the state’s ongoing drought conditions. It is effective immediately and covers the entire state.

The entire order could perhaps be viewed as part five of his four previous drought related executive orders from 2021.

 

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Few Strong Landfalling Atmospheric Rivers Reach California

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

Few landfalling atmospheric rivers in the current water year have reached California, now in the third year of a statewide drought.

The latest update from the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes, Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, shows that Water Year 2022 started strong in October, but weaker storms did not ease dry conditions.