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The California Water Model: Resilience Through Failure

/in , /by /California Water Blogby Nicholas Pinter, Jay Lund, Peter Moyle

A review of 170 years of water-related successes in California suggests that most successes can be traced directly to past mistakes.  California’s highly variable climate has made it a crucible for innovations in water technology and policy.  Similar water imperatives have led to advances in water management in other parts of the world.  A close look at California’s water model suggests that “far-sighted incrementalism” is a path to progress. Given the complexity of water management systems, better scientific information and new policy tools must be developed coherently and collaboratively over time.

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California Toxics Law: Few Water Cases, But Millions for Lawyers

/in , /by /Bloomberg Lawby Emily C. Dooley

Thirty-five years ago, California voters approved a landmark law meant to halt exposure to dangerous chemicals in drinking water and everyday products like food, flip-flops, and face shields.

Decades later, the water cases are few and far between—while hundreds of product lawsuits bring in millions of dollars annually for plaintiffs’ attorneys, some of whom represent environmental groups focused only on this law.

The Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986—commonly known as Proposition 65— came into being during Ronald Reagan’s time as president, when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was slashing regulations and loosened enforcement of pollution standards.

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California Drought: Dozens of Communities are at Risk of Running Out of Water

/in , , /by /The Mercury News (Bay Area)by Paul Rogers

In Fort Bragg on the Mendocino Coast, city leaders are rushing to install an emergency desalination system. In Healdsburg, lawn watering is banned with fines of up to $1,000. In Hornbrook, a small town in Siskiyou County, faucets have gone completely dry, and the chairman of the water district is driving 15 miles each way to take showers and wash clothes.

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Projection: Lake Oroville Could Reach Record Low by November

/in , , /by /Enterprise-Recordby Justin Couchot

As drought conditions continue throughout Butte County, the Department of Water Resources is currently projecting that the surface water level of Lake Oroville could reach an all-time low of 640 feet above sea level by October or November.

As of Thursday, Lake Oroville’s surface water level was 648.47 feet above sea level. When full Lake Oroville’s surface water level is 900 feet above sea level.

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A Major Drought Is Gripping the West. Still, There’s Reason to Be Hopeful the Water Situation Will Improve

/in , , /by /KUER Utahby Pamela McCall

Concerning news about Utah’s extreme drought keeps coming. On Wednesday, Utah’s Department of Natural Resources said the drought continues to have “a stranglehold on the state,” despite wild weather swings that dumped rain in some areas. Washington Post Columnist David Von Drehle recently wrote an opinion piece about the drought gripping the West. He spoke with KUER’s Pamela McCall about the situation.

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Report: Valley Could See 6-9 Degree Temperature Increase By 2100

/in , , /by /The Sentinelby Ravyn Cullor

Climate change projections show the Central Valley will see more hot, dry years like 2021, but also some dangerously wet years as well.

This year has already seen high temperatures, drought and high fire risk for Central Valley residents, and Jordi Vasquez, environmental scientist for the California Department of Water Resources, said climate models show the Central Valley heating up 6 to 9 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century.

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San Jose Relies on Water from the Sierra Nevada. Climate Change is Challenging that System

/in , , /by /KQEDby Ezra David Romero

In Santa Clara County, lawns are dry, a reservoir is nearly empty, and water restrictions are mandated. After two winters with very little rain — and San Jose’s driest year in 128 years of record keeping — the county is marked by one of the worst droughts in modern history.

Santa Clara County’s experience of drought is set apart from the rest of the state by a myriad of issues — less water from the Sierra Nevada, the effect of human-caused climate change on water supplies, and a case of incredibly bad luck.

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Drought Depleting Bay Area Reservoirs, Driving Urgent Need For Conservation

/in , , /by /CBS SF Bay Areaby Devin Fehely

The state’s severe drought is transforming the landscape of our streams, lakes and reservoirs as the supply of water is depleted day by day.

The changes at Uvas Reservoir in the hills above Morgan are readily apparent. The waterline has receded significantly as the footprint of the reservoir shrinks.

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As Climate Changes, Alternative Energy Systems Get Close Look

/in , , /by /Capitol Weeklyby Eric Furth

Officials with jurisdiction over about 80% of California’s power grid say the state faces a grim outlook as summer heat, wildfires and a severe drought intensify.

“When you step back, I think many of us are really recognizing now that climate change and these extreme heat waves happening in the earlier parts of the summer now have forced all of us to do things that we really never imagined just a few years ago,” Elliot Mainzer, president and CEO of California’s Independent System Operator, said recently.

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Water Shortages and Drought Are California’s Biggest Environmental Concern, New Poll Shows

/in , , /by /The Mercury Newsby Paul Rogers

After the two driest consecutive years in much of California in nearly half a century, reservoir levels are dropping. Lawns are brown. Water restrictions are increasing. And Californians are getting worried.

Asked to name the environmental issue they are most concerned about, more California residents cited water shortages and drought than any other, according to a new poll released Wednesday by the Public Policy Institute of California, a non-partisan research organization in San Francisco.

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