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

State Water Officials say First Snow Survey Set for December 30th

/in , /by /KSRO Santa Rosa

State water officials say the first manual snow survey of the new season is set for December 30th. The Department of Water Resources is hoping for a wet December after seeing practically no rain in the first two months of the new water year. California recorded zero rain in October, and only 53% of the average rainfall in November.

Most of the state’s largest reservoirs are running well below their historic averages for December 1st. Lake Shasta at 75% capacity was 119% of its average this time last year. Lake Oroville at 61% capacity is down from 90% one year ago.

Full Story

Opinion: California Must Bypass Water Politics and Work Toward Solutions For Our Thirsty State

/in , /by /The Sacramento Beeby Robbie Hunter

California’s water wars are epic. They’ve inspired Hollywood productions and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism. Water has been the source of both great wealth and great poverty in California. A fellow Irishman, James Mulholland, who was born around the corner from where I was and even baptized in the same church, delivered water to the City of Los Angeles with what was described as “chicanery, subterfuge … and a strategy of lies.”

Full Story

California’s Oil and Gas Regulator Approved Hundreds of New Wells Without Required Oversight

/in , /by /KQEDby Nina Sparling

The agency responsible for regulating California’s oil and natural gas industry violated state rules by approving hundreds of new wells in 2019 without proper review, according to a recent audit. The state Department of Finance’s review of California’s Geologic Energy Management Division found numerous violations, including inadequate environmental and safety reviews and a failure to follow current guidelines.

Full Story

Winter’s Dry Start Prompts Low California Water Allocation

/in , , /by /AP News

California’s water managers on Tuesday preliminarily allocated just 10% of requested water supplies to agencies that together serve more than 27 million Californians and 750,000 acres of farmland.

The state Department of Water Resources cited the dry start to the winter rainy season in California’s Mediterranean climate, along with low reservoir levels remaining from last year’s relatively dry winter. Winter snow typically supplies about 30% of the state’s water as it melts.

Full Story

US EPA Recommends Testing Wastewater for PFAS

/in , /by /Chemical & Engineering Newsby Cheryl Hogue

Some facilities may have to test for the presence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in their wastewater, under a new strategy from the US Environmental Protection Agency. The effort could eventually help reduce the level of environmentally persistent and toxic PFAS in drinking water drawn downstream of such facilities as well as in fish and river sediment.

Full Story

Dry Weather Mitigated by Monterey County Groundwater

/in , , /by /The Californianby Kate Cimini

The Central Coast and parts south are unusually dry, according to the University of Nebraska – Lincoln’s national drought monitor. That could lead to dry soil, increased irrigation, stunted germination of dryland crops and increased risk of fire, the report says.

Full Story

Opinion: After COVID-19 Ends, Will Californians Go Thirsty?

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby The Times Editorial Board

In the midst of drought yet again, and two decades into the 21st century, California continues to operate with a water infrastructure engineered and constructed for 20th century climate conditions and populations. That’s true not only of the state’s physical network of dams and aqueducts, but of its legal and financial infrastructure as well — the pricing rules that allocate the state’s precious liquid resources among its 40 million thirsty people. The coronavirus emergency has highlighted some of the most serious stresses in the system.

Full Story

Funding for the Proposed Delta Tunnel Could Be Slipping

/in , /by /SJV Waterby Lois Henry

The Metropolitan Water District likely won’t pick up the slack to cover planning costs for the proposed Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta tunnel That’s a huge shift from MWD’s “all in” support of the previous tunnel project. And MWD’s pull back could create a ripple of iffyness among other State Water Contractors about how much of their own money they want to invest down the line without the giant southern California water purveyor in its usual position as a financial backstop.

Full Story

Delta Farmers Express Doubts on ‘Carbon Farming’

/in , /by /AgAlertby Kevin Hecteman

Plans to convert nearly 200,000 acres of Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta farmland into rice production or tule-based carbon farms are being greeted with skepticism among representatives of delta farmers. The Delta Conservancy, a state agency, has partnered with environmental organizations and universities on pilot projects aimed at stopping or slowing ongoing land subsidence in the delta under a California Wetland Protocol.

Full Story

La Nina Contributes to Dry Weather in Northern California

/in , /by /Fox40by Dennis Shanahan

The days are dry, the Sierra snowpack is thin and the forecast is unfavorable for a wet season in Northern California. Welcome to La Nina. “It might be best just to hope that we get somewhere close to normal,” said meteorologist Craig Shoemaker with the National Weather Service in Sacramento.

Full Story