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Marin Water District Restricts New Landscaping for Development

/in , , /by /Marin Independent Journalby Will Houston

New development projects in most of Marin won’t have new landscaping irrigated with drinking water under drought restrictions imposed by Marin Municipal Water District this week.

The Board of Directors voted Tuesday to approve the ban aimed at preserving the district’s dwindling reservoir supplies in the Mount Tamalpais watershed amid severe drought conditions. The district estimates it could run out of reservoir supplies by next summer if the region experiences a similarly historic dry winter as last year and conservation efforts do not improve.

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As Drought Worsens, Central Coast Cities Rolling Out New Water Conservation Messaging, Programs

/in , /by /KEYTby Dave Alley

As the drought tightens its grip on California, several Central Coast cities are rolling out new water conservation messaging and programs for its residents.

“During a hot, dry summer, water supplies are reduced throughout the state due to the drought,” said Santa Maria Utilities Director Shad Springer. “We just want to encourage people to be cognizant of that and to conserve water where they can.”

 

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Southern Arizona Starts To Recover From Exceptional Drought Thanks To Strong Monsoon Start

/in , /by /News 4 Tuscon KVOAby Daniel McFarland

Southern Arizona has been under the strongest category of drought since early last year. With a strong start to monsoon, the area should soon show a bit of recovery.

It takes more than just a handful of good rainfalls to recover from such a bad drought.

“You really want to have a saturation process. You need to replenish the aquifers. You need to replenish the water tables,” Chief Meteorologist Matt Brode said. “Heavy steady rains work and basically all kinds of frames, but it has to happen over a long period of time.”

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As Drought Slams California and Oregon, Klamath Farmers Grow Fish to Quell a Water War

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Anita Chabria and Hailey Branson-Potts

It’s a strange place to find fish, deep in the high desert, where drought-baked earth butts against scrubby mountains.

But water spews from the hot springs on Ron Barnes’ land near the California-Oregon border, pure and perfect for rearing c’waam and koptu, two kinds of endangered suckerfish sacred to Native American tribes.

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The Western Drought is Worse Than You Think. Here’s Why

/in , , /by /E&E Newsby Thomas Frank

It has lasted longer than the Dust Bowl of the 1930s. It’s dropped water levels perilously low at two of the nation’s largest reservoirs, forced ranchers to sell off herds and helped propel scorching wildfires. And worst of all, the drought blanketing the western United States is not going away. A group of experts featuring federal and state officials and farmers and ranchers spent nearly three hours yesterday chronicling the devastation caused by drought conditions that now cover almost every inch of seven Western states. Half of the U.S. population lives in a drought-stricken area.

 

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S.F. Embraces Aggressive New Climate Change Goals as Drought, Heat and Wildfires Engulf California

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Mallory Moench

San Francisco set new, more ambitious climate change goals Tuesday, including getting to net zero greenhouse gas emissions produced in the city by 2040, as wildfires, drought and heat waves worsened by climate change plague California and floods in Europe grab headlines.

The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved an update to the environment code that pledges the city will cut its greenhouse gas emissions to at least 61% below 1990 levels by 2030. The city wants to reduce emissions generated outside city borders for products consumed in San Francisco – such as the carbon footprint of SFO air travel – by 40% by 2030 and 80% by 2050.

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What is La Niña? The Climate Pattern – and How it Affects Our Weather – Explained

/in , , /by /USA Todayby Doyle Rice

So what exactly is La Niña?

The La Niña climate pattern is a natural cycle marked by cooler-than-average ocean water in the central Pacific Ocean. It is one of the main drivers of weather in the United States and around the world, especially during the late fall, winter and early spring.

It’s the opposite to the more well-known El Niño, which occurs when Pacific ocean water is warmer than average.

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In California’s Agricultural Heartland, Thousands of Wells Could Soon Run Dry

/in , /by /PBSby Cresencio Rodriguez-Delgado

One day last month, water in the community of Teviston, about 66 miles south of Fresno, suddenly stopped flowing.

The town’s services office fielded calls from residents who said their taps ran dry, and when city leaders opened their own faucets, nothing came out. Soon, officials realized  that the town’s main well had stopped working.

Crews sent a video camera below the ground to investigate what might have happened. Frank Galaviz, 77, said dirt and debris was discovered in the pumps.

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Pumped Storage Project Gets Seed Money … Now the Work Begins

/in , , /by /pv magazineby David Wagman Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

A 500 MW pumped energy storage project proposed jointly by the City of San Diego and the San Diego County Water Authority received $18 million in the California state budget. The support will help fund the San Vicente Energy Storage Facility through initial design, environmental reviews, and the federal licensing process.

The project would provide long-duration stored energy and is seen by backers as an asset that will help avoid rolling blackouts through on-demand energy production. It also could generate revenue to help offset the cost of water purchases, storage, and treatment.

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Nothing Icky About ‘Toilet-to-Tap’: Water Recycling Explained

/in , , /by /Bloomberg Lawby Bobby Magill Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Wastewater that recently swirled down a toilet bowl may be coming to your tap, in purified form, especially if you’re in a drought-stricken area where drinking water is increasingly scarce.

More municipal water systems in the West are considering water recycling, known in some places as “toilet-to-tap.” And Congress may begin supporting the idea as water systems scramble to find secure water supplies amid a decades-long drought driven by climate change, which may be the worst the region has experienced in more than a millennium.

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