You are now in California and the U.S. Home Headline Media Coverage category.

Drought Exposes Need to Upgrade Water Facilities

/in , , /by /AgAlert (California Farm Bureau)by Christine Souza

Severe drought highlights the need for greater investment to improve aging California water facilities, and increases calls for allocation of federal and state resources to tackle the problem.

A national coalition that includes the California Farm Bureau urged U.S. Senate leaders last week to take action to address the shortcomings of aging water infrastructure, and to include “a broad range of water uses” in any federal infrastructure legislation. At the same time, Gov. Gavin Newsom and state legislators plan to invest at least $5 billion to address critical water needs.

Full Story

Regional Recycled Water Project in Conflict; Arroyo Grande ‘Demanding’ Equal Share

/in , , /by /KCBXby Angel Russell

A long-planned water recycling project for the Five Cities area — Central Coast Blue — hangs in uncertainty after the City of Arroyo Grande unanimously voted on June 8th to withdraw from the project unless their demand for a shared operating agreement is met.

Central Coast Blue, spearheaded by the City of Pismo Beach, is a multi-million dollar project set to bring a reliable water source to the Five Cities area by using recycled water. But the City of Arroyo Grande is having second thoughts, after Mayor Caren Ray-Russom said their demand to have equal decision making governance over the project was ignored.

Full Story

Double Whammy: Heat, Toxic Algae Bedevil Water Sector

/in , /by /E&E Newsby Hannah Northey

One of the two rivers flowing into the heart of Iowa that provide 500,000 residents with drinking water is slowly being infiltrated by toxic algae as temperatures climb.

The other river is drying up and dipping to dangerously low levels as a historic drought grips the United States.

The Hawkeye State’s plight underscores why climate change is seen as a threat multiplier for the drinking water sector — from cratering water levels and drought to floods and extreme weather. And then there are toxic algal blooms that can kill fish, foul water, and threaten human and ecosystem health.

Full Story

EPA Puts Additional Delay On Trump Lead and Copper in Drinking Water Rule

/in , /by /The Hillby Rachel Frazin

The Environmental Protection Agency has put another delay on a Trump-era update to a rule governing lead and copper in drinking water, according to a new federal register notice.

The notice says that the rule, which was previously expected to take effect on Thursday, will now take effect on December 16. It also pushed back the date at which it requires compliance by one month until October 16, 2024.

Full Story

California Farmers Told Drought Could Cut Off Their Water

/in , , /by /AP News

Thousands of Central California farmers were warned Tuesday that they could face water cutoffs this summer as the state deals with a drought that already has curtailed federal and state irrigation supplies.

The State Water Resources Control Board notified about 6,600 farmers in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta watershed who have rights to use water from the Central Valley estuary of “impending water unavailability” that may continue until winter rains come.

Full Story

New MWD GM Adel Hagekhalil Commits To “One Water” Agenda

/in , , /by /The Planning Report

TPR is proud to share this timely interview with Metropolitan Water District’s newly confirmed General Manager, Adel Hagekhalil. Throughout his career, from his time as president of the National Association of Clean Water Agencies to overseeing LA City’s wastewater, stormwater, and watershed programs as Assistant Director of City of LA’s Bureau of Sanitation (LA SAN), and most recently by delivering integrated multibenefit infrastructure as General Manager of LA’s Bureau of Streets Services, (StreetsLA), Adel has championed a holistic approach to water and infrastructure. In this VX Interview, Hagekhalil shares his One Water agenda for securing water resilience through integration, innovation, and inclusion and emphasizes his commitment to bringing all of Met’s member agencies and stakeholders to the table to enhance local supplies and deliver on Met’s mission to provide reliable, affordable water to the region.

Full Story

As Drought Intensifies, State Warns Users to Stop Pumping Water From Major Rivers

/in , , /by /CalMattersby Rachel Becker

In a sign of worsening drought, the state on Tuesday warned about 4,300 users to stop diverting water from the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta watershed, stretching from Fresno to the Oregon border.

The notifications, which indicate that demand from farmers and cities is exceeding supply, are the widest-ranging move by state regulators since 2015 to restrict the use of water rights in a major watershed.

Full Story

Lower Russian River Flows to Be Halved Under State Order to Preserve Stored Supplies

/in , , /by /Argous Courierby Mary Callahan

The Sonoma County water agency received permission Monday to immediately cut stream flows in the lower Russian River by more than half in an effort to conserve water stored in Lake Sonoma.

Instream flows in the upper river, above Dry Creek, which is fed by releases from Lake Sonoma, already are being maintained at a very low threshold to keep as much water as possible in Lake Mendocino, the smaller of the two reservoirs.

The state decision means Sonoma Water, the county agency, and its contractors — the cities of Santa Rosa, Sonoma, Rohnert Park, Windsor, Petaluma and Cotati, and the Valley of the Moon, Marin Municipal and North Marin water districts — will have to use 20% less water from the Russian River, as well.

Full Story

Opinion: Grounded Leadership Needed in Region Brimming with Water Tensions

/in , /by /Las Vegas Sun

As the Southwest prepares for what’s forecast to be another mercilessly hot and dry summer, tensions over water scarcity are rising like the mercury.

Farmers are facing bleak growing seasons and the possibility of farm failures in several areas due to cutbacks in water allocations for irrigation, creating friction between the ag community and cities on the dwindling water supply in the region. Rural communities in Nevada and elsewhere, already wary of incursions by urban areas into their water supplies, are on high alert as the water crisis deepens.

 

Full Story

Colorado River at ‘Critical’ Levels, Water Deliveries to Mexico in Doubt

/in , , /by /BorderReport.com by Salvador Rivera Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

Water levels in the Colorado River are a lot lower than normal reducing the water coming into Lake Powell and Lake Mead, according to the Bureau of Reclamation. The level of water in the lake determines how much water will be delivered in the region.

“The reclamation who oversees the operation for the river is forecasting a shortage on the river for next year,” said Kelly Rodgers with the San Diego County Water Authority. “They are predicting a shortage in 2022.”

Rodgers said states such as Arizona and Nevada will see the difference, but not as much in California because agencies such as SDCWA have taken steps to diversify their water supply and have built storage reservoirs and other facilities.

 

Full Story