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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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Opinion: Secure California’s Future Water Supply and Invest in Recycled Water

/in , /by /CalMattersby Jennifer West

Climate change is forcing our state to reimagine our water supply future. How do we do that? Easy — we reuse water.

Just like recycling a plastic bottle, we can safely use recycled water to drink, irrigate parks, support environmental uses, grow crops, produce energy, and much more. More than just a new source of water, water recycling projects provide a degree of local water independence.

Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Legislature are considering a drought funding package this summer that will use some of the budget surplus to mitigate drought effects and prepare our state for our new water-scarce future.  The governor and the Legislature need to continue their commitment to recycled water by making a significant investment of at least $500 million in the package.

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Dramatic Photos From NASA Highlight Severity of California’s Drought

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Hayley Smith

As the West descends deeper into drought, climate and water experts are growing increasingly alarmed by California’s severely shriveling reservoirs.

On Monday, Shasta Lake — the largest reservoir in the state — held a scant 1.57 million acre-feet of water, according to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, or about 35% of its capacity.

A series of satellite images captured by NASA show just how dramatically the water level has fallen.

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Extreme Actions Underway to Ensure Glen Canyon Dam Can Continue to Generate Power

/in , /by /The Salt Lake Tribuneby Brian Maffly

The growing crisis on the Colorado River came into sharper focus last week when the Bureau of Reclamation began emergency releases from Flaming Gorge Reservoir to shore up Lake Powell’s declining levels, now at historic lows.

The move will bolster Powell’s level by 3 feet in hopes of preventing it from dropping to a point where Glen Canyon Dam would not be able to generate electrical power, according to the agency’s Upper Colorado regional director Wayne Pullan.

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Thieves are Stealing California’s Scarce Water. Where’s It Going? Illegal Marijuana Farms

/in , /by /CalMattersby Julie Cart

One day last spring, water pressure in pipelines suddenly crashed In the Antelope Valley, setting off alarms. Demand had inexplicably spiked, swelling to three and half times normal. Water mains broke open, and storage tanks were drawn down to dangerous levels.

The emergency was so dire in the water-stressed desert area of Hi Vista, between Los Angeles and Mojave, that county health officials considered ordering residents to boil their tap water before drinking it.

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How to Reduce Home Water Use in an Age of Drought and Climate Change

/in , /by /The Washington Postby Sarah Fowler

Each day, it seems, a new climate-related catastrophe makes headlines.

Salmon are dying in California, because the water they inhabit has been heated to the point that it’s inhospitable to life. The Hoover Dam reservoir is at record-low levels, potentially affecting the water supply to the West Coast. And California is, once again, in a drought.

States and municipalities across the country are asking residents to conserve water as the precious resource is threatened with impending scarcity.

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