After years marked by a historic statewide drought and devastating floods around downtown San Jose, Santa Clara County’s largest water provider has decided to ask voters to approve a parcel tax to pay for a wide variety of projects, from flood control to creek restoration, along with some costs of rebuilding the county’s largest dam at Anderson Reservoir.
The Senate and House will negotiate soon on robust legislation for water infrastructure projects, which is especially critical for water and wastewater facilities during the coronavirus pandemic.
In a letter sent to Republican and Democratic congressional infrastructure leadership on Monday, the National Association of Clean Water Agencies urged that the Water Resources Development Act of 2020 authorize strong funding for the public water sector.
Californians have grown used to the idea that water is a precious commodity, one that we risk running out of without conservation.
A new report by the Pacific Institute suggests Californians have learned to conserve so well that water forecasters need to rethink their approach to estimating future water demand.
By the 2070s, global warming will increase extreme rainfall and reduce snowfall in the Sierra Nevada, delivering a double whammy that will likely overwhelm California’s reservoirs and heighten the risk of flooding in much of the state, according to a new study by UCLA climate scientists.
Word to the wise: Brace yourself before opening this month’s electric bill.
With Californians spending more time at home and working remotely during the pandemic, household appliances are sucking up way more energy than usual. Couple that with a few wicked heat waves, and you’ve got a recipe for some shocking electric bills.
A government assessment recently obtained by an environmental group appears to link a well the group says is used in U.S.-Mexico border wall construction to low water levels in wildlife habitats at an Arizona refuge with endangered species.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued $6,137,000 in grants to assist the California Department of Social Services with identifying sources of lead in drinking water in childcare centers.
“Testing for lead in drinking water is critical for the protection of our children,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator John Busterud. “EPA is pleased to support California in its efforts to detect and reduce lead in drinking water, thereby protecting children’s health at childcare centers and elsewhere.”
Recent conditions across California over the past 3-5 weeks have been pretty typical by mid-summer standards. It has been pretty hot across inland valleys and deserts, relatively cool (and even occasionally chilly) along the immediate coast, with a few instances of afternoon thunderstorms activity the interior mountains. There have not been any major heatwaves recently, which is likely a welcome development for many folks.
The U.S. EPA’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act Loan Program was enacted in 2014 and became operational in 2017. WIFIA has now completed three solicitation rounds over the period 2017-2019, generating 90 competitively selected applications totaling $13.6 billion of loan volume, of which more than $5 billion has been closed.
In his Aug. 2 Herald commentary, Grant Leonard claimed that Cal Am’s proposed Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project would be a win-win for both Castroville, a disadvantaged community, and Carmel, which is on the other side of the economic spectrum. Some things challenge that claim.
