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Opinion: Collaboration is the Answer to California’s Fishery and Water Supply Challenges

/in , , /by /CalMattersby Roger Cornwell

California has the opportunity to enter a new era in water management. Unprecedented efforts by leaders at the state and national level have led to the kind of cooperation that will provide valuable benefits to water users and the environment.

I know because that’s what we’ve been doing in the Sacramento Valley for many years. The kinds of success we’ve achieved can be replicated in other parts of the state. By working together, we can accomplish much more than can ever be achieved when competing interests are fighting.

California’s current water regulatory system is completely broken. Farms, towns and cities suffer continued cutbacks and threatened fish species continue to dwindle. The only recourse currently available seems to be an ongoing parade of lawsuits that further paralyze the system and help no one.

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Millions in US at Risk of ‘Water Shutoffs’ Amid Layoffs Triggered by Pandemic

/in , , /by /The Guardianby Nina Lakhani

Millions of Americans risk losing running water if they fall behind with bill payments in coming months, as mass layoffs triggered by the coronavirus pandemic force families to make impossible tradeoffs on paying household expenses.

Around two-fifths of the country rely on water utilities which have not suspended the policy of shutoffs for non-payment, despite public health warnings that good hygiene – specifically frequent hand washing – is crucial to preventing spread of the highly contagious virus, according to data analysed by Food and Water Watch and the Guardian.

So far, the moratoriums on shutoffs include 12 statewide orders, which apply to private and public water providers, issued by the governors of California, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio and Wisconsin.

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New State Water Regulations Cause Angst on All Sides

/in , /by /Bakersfield.comby Lois Henry

A new set of water regulations aimed at protecting California’s native fish came down from the state earlier this week to near universal condemnation from both agricultural and environmental water folks.

The regulations are contained in a 143-page “incidental take permit” issued by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife that lays out when — and how much — water can be pumped out of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta by the State Water Project.

Agricultural contractors who get water from the project fear they could lose up to 300,000 acre-feet a year under the new permit.

Environmentalists say the permit gives a “free pass” to pumpers and is a path to extinction for native fish.
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Consultant Predicts a Post-Coronavirus ‘Construction Tsunami’ Copy

/in , , /by /Construction Diveby Jenn Goodman

President Donald Trump’s decision this week to extend the country’s social distancing guidelines until April 30 was based partly on data from statistical models that predict the peaks and plateaus of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S.

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There’s No Need to Stockpile Water During Coronavirus Pandemic

/in , , /by /Whittier Daily Newsby Vera Robles and Rob Katherman

During the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, worried consumers have been snapping up bottled water as soon as it hits grocery store shelves.

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Water District, Local Business Donate More than 50,000 Masks During Coronavirus Outbreak

/in , , /by /NBC 3 News Las Vegasby Tiffany Lane

More than 50,000 masks are in the hands of people who need them the most, our first responders and medical professionals in the Las Vegas valley.

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Consultant Predicts a Post-Coronavirus ‘Construction Tsunami’

/in , /by /Construction Diveby Jenn Goodman

President Donald Trump’s decision this week to extend the country’s social distancing guidelines until April 30 was based partly on data from statistical models that predict the peaks and plateaus of the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S.

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California’s Winter Goes Down as one of the Driest, Thin Snowpack Shows

/in , /by /The San Francisco Chronicleby Kurtis Alexander

When California snow surveyors trekked into the Sierra Nevada on Wednesday, they officially logged this past winter as one of the driest in state history.

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NASA, University of Nebraska Release New Global Groundwater Maps and U.S. Drought Forecasts

/in , /by /NASAby Ellen Gray

NASA researchers have developed new satellite-based, weekly global maps of soil moisture and groundwater wetness conditions and one to three-month U.S. forecasts of each product. While maps of current dry/wet conditions for the United States have been available since 2012, this is the first time they have been available globally.

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California Cities Want Transparency Rules Waived in Pandemic

/in , /by /AP Newsby Juliet Williams

Citing unprecedented challenges created by the coronavirus pandemic, city officials across California are asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to suspend or delay numerous state laws, saying they’re unable to comply with everything from environmental regulations to public records laws that give people a window into how the government is spending public money.

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