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

Mexico Poised to Breach 75-Year Water Treaty with US

/in , , /by /bnamericas

Mexico is at risk of breaching a 75-year old water treaty with the US if it does not come up with a new strategy to deliver 457,800 acre-feet (565 million cubic meters – Mm3) of water to its northern neighbor by October 24.

That amount represents 350,000 acre-feet of water that the Latin American country is expected to deliver annually under the US-Mexico water treaty of 1944, in addition to making up for the delayed delivery of around 108,000 acre-feet that it has postponed during the 2015-20 cycle.

Full Story

U.S. EPA Moves to Curb State Powers to Deny Permits for Energy Projects

/in , , /by /Reutersby Valerie Volcovici

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency chief Andrew Wheeler signed on Monday a rule limiting state powers to block energy infrastructure projects, setting up a fight with some Democratic governors who say Washington is stripping their ability to protect their states’ interests and combat climate change.

Full Story

Officials Worry About Wildfires as More People Enjoy Nature After Coronavirus Lockdowns

/in , , /by /The Weather Channelby Jan Wesner Childs

Parts of the West are already in extreme drought ahead of wildfire season, and officials in some areas are worried about an uptick in fire action as more people emerge from coronavirus-related lockdowns and resume outdoor activities like hiking and camping.

Full Story

Boise Joins International Study To Test Coronavirus Levels In Wastewater

/in , /by /Boise State Public Radioby Molly Wampler

One of the biggest unknowns about coronavirus is how it spreads within a community, especially with asymptomatic carriers and minimal testing capabilities. In a new international effort, the City of Boise in partnership with the lab Biobot, has started sampling the city’s wastewater system to collect data on community levels of COVID-19.

Full Story

New Front Opens in the Fight Over the Lake Powell Pipeline

/in , , /by /The Salt Lake Tribuneby Brian Maffly

The water rights behind the proposed Lake Powell pipeline are not actually coming from the project’s namesake lake, but rather from the major reservoir upstream on the Green River.

Full Story

NV5 Awarded $3M to Support Water Conservation in the Western US

/in , , /by /Water World

Funding from NASA and the California Department of Water Resources asks Quantum Spatial to provide remote sensing services.

Full Story

USDA Approves $2.5 Million for California Water Investments

/in , , /by /AgNet Westby Brian German

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced that it will be providing more than $2.5 million for California water investments through the Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant program.  USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Rural Development Bette Brand noted that the department will be investing $281 million for 106 projects in 36 states and Puerto Rico to improve water and wastewater infrastructure.

Full Story

Utilities Ramp Up Lobbying for Relief, Broader Reforms

/in , , /by /E&E Newsby Hannah Northey

The nation’s water utilities, facing more than $27 billion in lost revenue from the pandemic, are ramping up their outreach to Congress as lawmakers prepare to act on infrastructure legislation and additional relief in the face of a historic pandemic.

In addition to a flurry of letters and meetings, advocacy groups and lobbyists with congressional expertise are pushing for provisions in both Water Resources Development Act bills moving through the House and Senate, and the next round of COVID-19 stimulus funds.

In the near term, the bills could be a lifeline for both residents and utilities reeling from the economic fallout of the pandemic.

Over the longer term, some hope the bills could provide a pathway for revamping a highly fractured, aging water system — old lead pipes, vulnerable dams and 1,500 drinking water systems in violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act, said Robert Powelson, CEO of the National Association of Water Companies.

Full Story

With $3 Billion PFAS Cleanup Price Tag Looming, Pentagon Looks to Industry for Ideas

/in , , /by /McClatchy DCby Tara Copp

Staring down a $3 billion — and growing — tab to clean up water sources at military installations across the country that are contaminated with cancer-causing chemicals linked to firefighting foam, the Defense Department is now in discussions with private firms about potential cleanup solutions that might reduce the cost.

Full Story

Sunniest Spring on Record Raises U.K. Drought Risk

/in , /by /Bloomberg Greenby Rachel Morison and Jess Shankleman

The U.K. had its driest May in 124 years and sunniest spring on record, increasing the threat of a summer drought and compounding conditions that have been made worse by climate change.

The country had 9.6 millimeters of rain in May, which is just 16% of the average for the month and the least since 1896, according to early data by the U.K.’s Meteorological Office. It also recorded 573 hours of sunshine during Spring, which is due to end May 31. That makes it the sunniest spring since records began in 1929.

Full Story