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Opinion: Beyond COVID and Social Unrest, Valley’s Big Problem Remains Declining Groundwater

/in , , /by /The Fresno Beeby Ellen Hanak and Jelena Jezdimirovic

In these extraordinary times, managing groundwater for long-term sustainability may not seem like a top priority. But in the San Joaquin Valley — where groundwater supplies have been declining for decades — excess pumping is a critical problem, with major implications for public health, jobs, the environment and local economies.

The state’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) requires groundwater planning and actions to sustain this vital resource. Agencies from California’s 21 “critically overdrafted” basins — including 11 large basins that span most of the San Joaquin Valley floor — submitted their first groundwater plans in January.

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Arizona Housing Growth Tees Up Opportunity For Water Investors

/in , /by /KUNC Coloradoby Bret Jaspers

Central Arizona has been booming — more people, more houses, more need for water. There’s also a long-term drought, and less water to buy from the Central Arizona Project canal system . It’s leading Phoenix exurbs to cast about, looking for new buckets.

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PFAS Management to Drive $12.1 Billion in Water Utility Spending Over Next Decade

/in , , /by /WaterWorld Magazine

Mounting public concerns and new state regulations in the U.S. are compelling water & wastewater utilities to address health risks associated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) – a class of pervasive chemicals found in drinking water and wastewater biproducts.

According to a new report from Bluefield Research, PFAS: The Next Challenge for Water Utilities, more than US $3 billion is forecasted to be spent annually on drinking water remediation technologies by 2030. While any significant increase in water treatment solutions hinges on federal policies, 29 states have already implemented a mix of policy directives, including testing requirements, prohibitions on product applications (e.g., food packaging), and the elimination of select fiirefighting foam constituents.

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Public Comment for Lake Powell Pipeline Open, Again, Until September

/in , , /by /KJZZ Arizonaby McKenzie Stauffer

Comments, questions and concerns are now being accepted, again, for the Lake Powell Pipeline. This comes after the Bureau of Reclamation issued the draft Environmental Impact Statement for the pipeline, which is designed to pump water to Washington County.

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The Past, Present and Future of California’s Groundwater

/in , , /by /Water in the West (Stanford University)by Michelle Horton

A century after the state began overseeing surface water, the California legislature enacted a set of three laws regulating water below the surface. The passage of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) in 2014, granted the state official oversight authority of groundwater. However, its involvement existed long before SGMA and continues to influence current policies and regulation of the resource. A new paper published in Society and Natural Resources, examines how the state’s ongoing involvement helped shape current policies by looking at the 120-year history of California’s role in groundwater management and policy development.

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Could the Answer to Groundwater Resources Come From High in the Sky?

/in , , /by /Berkeley Labby Christina Procopiou

Groundwater makes up 30 to 50 percent of California’s water supply, but until recently there were few restrictions placed on its retrieval. Then in 2014 California became the last Western state to require regulation of its groundwater. With deadlines starting this year, for the first time water managers in the nation’s premier agricultural region – the state’s Central Valley – are tasked with estimating available groundwater. It’s a daunting technological challenge.

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Oral Arguments in IID’s Abatti Appeal Set for Friday

/in , , /by /Imperial Valley Pressby Michael Maresh

A three-member Fourth Appellate District Court of Appeals panel at 9 a.m. Friday will listen to oral arguments in the Imperial Irrigation District’s appeal of a 2017 Superior Court ruling in favor of former IID director and local farmer Mike Abatti on water rights.

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Understaffed and ‘Struggling,’ Central Valley Water Board Trims Programs

/in , , /by /Agri Pulseby Brad Hooker

The State Water Resources Control Board and its regional branches are facing an uncertain time, and farmers could see the fallout.

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Tahoe’s Average Clarity Decreases by 8 Feet In 2019

/in , /by /Sierra Sunby Justin Scacco

Lake Tahoe’s famed clarity has long been used to gauge the health and changing conditions of Big Blue. Unlike in recent years when researchers were able to point to a dominant factor affecting lake clarity like drought or higher-than-average precipitation, 2019 saw a range of influences on Tahoe, including lake mixing for the first time in several years, sediment, algae, and climate warming.

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Green Infrastructure Can Be Cheaper, More Effective than Dams

/in , /by /Scientific Americanby Daniel Cusick

Hundreds of studies on nature-based solutions to extreme events show that “green infrastructure” is often cheaper and more effective than engineered projects like dams, levees and sea walls, according to a new analysis.

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