California and the U.S. Archives

106,000 American Clean Energy Jobs Were Lost in March

The dramatic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic have hit every sector of the U.S. economy hard, with renewable energy being no exception. Today, BW Research released an analysis of unemployment data that shows more than 106,000 clean energy workers lost their jobs in the month of March.

Those 106,000 job losses represent a 3% loss in employment across the clean energy industry. In 2019, the clean energy industry added more than 70,000 jobs for a 2.2% growth rate, one which outpaced the U.S. workforce as a whole. The renewable energy generation sector alone lost 16,500 jobs.

The analysis, coupled with forecasts from industry trade groups and companies, led BW Research to the conclusion that, if no actions are taken quickly to support the industry, up to 500,000 jobs could be lost — or almost 15% of the clean energy workforce.

Broken down by state, California experienced the largest number of layoffs, losing 19,900 jobs, which equates to more than 3.5% of its clean energy workforce.

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Opinion: For California’s Water, a Tale of Two Letters

Two weeks after the State of California rolled out its plan that spells the end of coordinated distribution of the state’s water resources from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, California Democrats in Congress have finally spoken out, sort of.

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Power Shutoff Bans Amid Pandemic May Require Cost Recovery for Utilities

April 16, 2020/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez /Utility Diveby John Funk

More than 100 members of Congress, including 15 senators, are pressing the House and Senate leadership to include language in the next COVID-19 funding package prohibiting utilities from disconnecting customers who may not be able to pay their bills now or immediately after the crisis that has closed businesses and thrown millions out of work.

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Industry Survey Indicates Revenue Challenges for U.S. Water Utilities

April 15, 2020/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez /Circle of Blueby Circle of Blue

A rising number of water utilities expect that the coronavirus pandemic will result in financial repercussions. Two-thirds of water utilities say that changes in water demand and customer payments during the coronavirus pandemic will cause cash flow problems within the next two months or more.

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Opinion: Wastewater Treatment Kills Most Pathogens, Including COVID-19 Virus

April 15, 2020/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez /PPICby Lori Pottinger

Californians reuse treated wastewater as a water supply, to irrigate crops, and to support freshwater ecosystems. To get answers to questions about managing the new coronavirus in the “sewershed,” we talked to two experts: Kara Nelson, an expert in waterborne pathogens at UC Berkeley; and Adam Link, executive director of the California Association of Sanitation Agencies.

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California Water Supplier Heading to Court in State Permit Fight

April 15, 2020/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez /Bloomberg Lawby Emily C. Dooley

A powerful California water distributor plans to take the state to court over a permit it received last month to manage water delivery. The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California on Tuesday voted to sue the state of California over a permit one state agency granted to another at the end of March.

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More Drought Predicted for Western U.S. Amid Low River Flows

April 15, 2020/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez /The Salt Lake Tribuneby Susan Montoya Bryan

The mighty Rio Grande is looking less mighty as U.S. forecasters predict spring flows will be less than half of average — or worse — and that signals potential trouble for the already stressed waterway.

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$21.4 Million US-Israel Center to Develop Water-Energy Technologies

April 14, 2020/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez

A U.S.-Israel team that includes researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory has received $21.4 million over five years from DOE’s Office of International Affairs and Israel’s Ministry of Energy to develop new technologies to help solve global water challenges.

Largest Dam Removal Project in US Takes Further Step Forward

April 14, 2020/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez /Water Power Magazine

The Klamath River Renewal Corporation’s (KRRC) plans to remove four dams on the Klamath River in the US has taken a major step forward with the issuance of key documents from the California State Water Board.

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