The California Independent System Operator is bracing for rolling outages through Wednesday, after a record-breaking heatwave in the Western U.S. strained energy supplies and necessitated power shut-offs that affected hundreds of thousands of customers over the weekend.
Arizona, Nevada and Mexico will again receive less water from the Colorado River next year under a set of agreements intended to help boost the level of Lake Mead, which now stands at just 40% of its full capacity.
The federal Bureau of Reclamation released projections on Friday showing that Lake Mead, the nation’s largest reservoir, will be at levels next year that continue to trigger moderate cutbacks in the two U.S. states and Mexico.
Every year, nearly 40% of California’s water used for drinking, agriculture, and irrigation comes from groundwater sources located in Northern California. During droughts, as much as 60% of water in California is sourced from groundwater. In addition, large quantities of California’s surface water (water found in lakes, rivers, stream, and reservoirs) provides a resource to citizens and farms in the state. However, since the 1922 Colorado River Compact, California is also able to draw up to 4.4 million acre feet per year from the Colorado River.
In 1930, while the Great Depression was worsening and the impacts of it were starting to be felt nationwide, the city of Banning received some good news. A major construction project was about to unfold in its backyard, and the city would benefit greatly. The project was the Colorado River Aqueduct of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. Starting in the mid-1920s, there had been a series of studies done for bringing water from the Colorado River west to be used in the greater Los Angeles region. In December 1930, the district made the final decision to go with a route that included the San Gorgonio Pass and construction of a major tunnel under Mount San Jacinto.
The white rings that wrap around two massive lakes in the U.S. West are a stark reminder of how water levels are dropping and a warning that the 40 million people who rely on the Colorado River face a much drier future.
Amid prolonged drought and climate change in a region that’s only getting thirstier, when that reckoning will arrive — and how much time remains to prepare for it — is still a guess.
A 2007 campaign that urged homeowners unhappy with their washing machines to “send your underwear to the Under Secretary” may yet notch a win under the Trump administration.
The Department of Energy published a proposed rule this week that would create a product class to allow for speedier washing machines and dryers.
Environmental and consumer groups charged that the move would lead to washers and dryers that waste water and energy and increase utility bills and carbon emissions.
It’s been a helluva year, and we’re barely halfway throught it. The arrival of coronavirus and COVID-19 required so much of our focus and energy that it overshadowed a stockpile of existing problems. AWWA CEO David LaFrance shares insight and optimism for these turbulent times in the water industry.
Encouraged by three years of experimentation, scientists at Lake Tahoe plan to expand the use of ultraviolet light to kill algae and other invasive plants that eat away at the clarity of the mountain water.
Researchers at the University of Nevada, Reno are monitoring the project and collecting data to study the effects of the ultraviolet-C light treatments. It’s the newest tool in a two-decade effort to restore the once-pristine waters in the lake straddling the California-Nevada line.
Federal weather forecasters on Thursday predicted the development of drought-producing La Niña pattern that could to last through the winter.
There is a 60% chance that La Niña will develop during the Northern Hemisphere fall, with a 55% chance the pattern will continue through the winter of 2020-21, the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center said in its monthly forecast.
A new report warns Kern County agriculture will face tough challenges in the decades ahead as climate change makes irrigation water scarcer and weather conditions more variable and intense.
The study concludes these hurdles “ultimately challenge the ability to maximize production while ensuring profitability.” But it also predicts impacts will vary by crop, with almond production benefiting somewhat while growers of pistachios, grapes, oranges and carrots face overall difficult conditions.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
