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In Letter To Congress, Water Agencies Call For Drinking Water Relief Funding

/in , , /by /Valley Public Radio - Central Valleyby Kerry Klein

In March, the COVID-19 relief bill known as the CARES Act set aside $900 million to help Americans pay their utility bills. Earlier this week, a broad coalition of water agencies delivered a letter to Congress advocating for more funding. The letter, submitted Monday to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and other California Congressional delegates, argues that billions of federal dollars are still needed for water infrastructure maintenance and assistance with water bills.

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Hundreds of U.S. Cities Testing Sewage for Early Signs of Coronavirus Hotspots

/in , , /by /Forbesby Alexandra Sternlicht

Local officials in Oregon, California, New York, Utah, Florida and many other places are collecting sewage samples to test for coronavirus, which experts say could allow for detection of hotspots for the disease before the diagnosis of clinical cases.

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California Cities: Monsanto Settlement to Fund Water Cleanup

/in , , /by /AP Newsby John Rogers

Major California cities say they’ll use their share of a $650 million settlement to clean up the now-banned chemical PCB from bays, lakes and other waterways polluted for decades. The giant chemical company Monsanto announced a tentative agreement Wednesday with government entities that had filed suit since 2015 over waterways and estuaries they say were polluted.

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As Potential Mega-Drought Looms, Stanford Researchers Explore Desalination System

/in , , /by /ABC 7 Newsby Dan Ashley & Tim Didion

Researchers at Stanford are working on a technology that may be needed more than ever over the next decade, especially if new predictions are accurate. Researchers have recently warned of a potential mega-drought in the western United States – conditions so dry that our drinking water supplies could be facing historic pressures. Experts say keeping the taps flowing could require a patchwork of solutions, including potentially increasing the use of desalination, turning saltwater into drinking water.

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Lake Powell Reached Capacity 40 Years Ago. What Do the Coming Decades Hold?

/in , , /by /KUNC Coloradoby Lexi Peery & KUER

The water has made development possible and is used for farms, homes and businesses. Meanwhile, recreation has risen to over 4 million annual visitors in Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, with tourists bringing in over $420 million to local communities.

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Water Recycling Project Promises Supply for Farms

/in , /by /Ag Alertby Christine Souza

Planning efforts with farmers and preliminary designs are underway for what is expected to be one of the largest water recycling projects in California.

The Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District is constructing the $375 million South Sacramento County Agriculture & Habitat Lands Recycled Water Program, or the South County Ag Program. As part of the wastewater provider’s $2 billion treatment plant upgrade, the district—known as Regional San—will construct new transmission and distribution pipelines to deliver recycled water from its treatment facility in Elk Grove to irrigation systems in southern Sacramento County.

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Who’s Suing Over Trump’s WOTUS Rule?

/in , /by /E&E Newsby Pamela King and Hannah Northey

Opponents of the Trump administration’s new definition of which waterways and wetlands are protected under the Clean Water Act have lined up in court to make their grievances known.

Don’t expect clarity on the rules anytime soon.

The Trump administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule is already on hold in one state — Colorado — and could still be frozen by any one of the various federal judges who are now examining the regulation. Unlike lawsuits over Clean Air Act rules, which land in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Clean Water Act challenges can be heard in any of the nation’s nearly 100 federal district courts.

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Proposals to Watch in Democrats’ Infrastructure Behemoth

/in , , /by /E&E Newsby Jeremy Dillon and Geof Koss

House Democrats yesterday unveiled the details of a massive $1.5 trillion infrastructure package that has several sections focused on energy and environmental priorities. H.R. 2 and its 2,309 pages of provisions may become the most significant action taken by the House to promote a clean energy and climate-focused economic transformation this Congress.

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Tribes, Environmentalists Sue to Stop Rollback of Clean Water Act Protections

/in , , /by /AZ Centralby Debra Utacia Krol and Ian James

A coalition of tribal governments, environmentalists and labor advocates has sued to stop implementation of a new federal rule that weakens protections for streams and wetlands. The Environmental Protection Agency’s new Navigable Waters Protection Rule, which which took effect on Monday, rolls back clean-water regulation of intermittent waterways, arroyos and washes.

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Judge: California Can’t Require Cancer Label for Weed Killer

/in , /by /AP News

California can’t require a cancer warning label on Roundup, the world’s most widely used weed-killer, a federal judge ruled Monday. U.S. District Judge William Shubb issued a permanent injunction against the labeling, saying the state couldn’t meet a legal standard for such a requirement, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

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