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

Eastern Municipal Water District Receives $36M State Grant for Groundwater Improvements

/in , , /by /California Water News Daily by California Water News Daily

Eastern Municipal Water District’s (EMWD) proposed Perris North Groundwater Program received a major boost with a $36.3 million grant from the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB). The proposed project is a long-term solution to improve groundwater quality in the North Perris Groundwater Basin, in the Moreno Valley area of Riverside County. The program would also make beneficial use of available local groundwater supplies, further reducing reliance on imported water supplies, by up to 6,700 acre-feet per year.

The grant award covers up to 50 percent of the estimated $72 million program to remove and contain nitrates, perchlorates, volatile organic compounds, and total dissolved solids from groundwater in the basin. It is the largest grant in EMWD’s history.

Full Story

Coastal Commission Staff Recommends Denial Of Permit For Cal Am’s Desalination Plant.

/in , , /by /Monterey County Weeklyby Asaf Shalev

The staff of the California Coastal Commission is recommending that commissioners deny a critical coastal development permit for wells that would supply California American Water’s proposed desalination plant near Marina.

The recommendation, published Monday, Oct. 28, is a major blow to Cal Am ahead of the next commission meeting scheduled for Nov. 13-15 in Half Moon Bay. The vote on the wells will take place on Nov. 14, and hundreds of residents of Monterey County are expected to arrive and voice their support for or opposition to the permit.

In their 110-page report, commission staff cited the relatively high cost of the desal project to the public, possible environmental harm, and the availability of an alternative water project.

Full Story

OPINION: Californians Should Favor Dam Expansion Plan: Tom Campbell

/in , , /by /The Orange County Register by Tom Campbell

The Public Policy Institute of California, one of the most respected, neutral research institutes in our state, reports that more than a third of all the water that falls on California in the form of rain or snow flows to the Pacific Ocean.

This constitutes a greater percentage of our water than agriculture, industrial and urban uses combined. The next largest destination for California’s water is environmental, which also exceeds all that is consumed by agriculture, industrial and urban use combined. Together, water going to environmental uses and water flowing to the ocean make up two-thirds of all California’s water.

Full Story

Vallejo Lifts ‘Water Emergency’ After PG&E Brings In Powerful Generator

/in , , /by /KTVU FOX 2by Lisa Fernandez

VALLEJO, Calif. – The city of Vallejo lifted a mandatory water conservation notice on Monday morning after PG&E brought in a powerful generator to power the city’s water pump.

In a video message, Joanna Altman, assistant to the city manager, said residents no longer had to reduce their showers or toilet flushing and they could resume watering their outside plants if they wanted to.

Full Story

Two California Projects Awarded Reclamation/CALFED Water Use Efficiency Grants for Reliability

/in , /by /California Water News Daily

The Bureau of Reclamation recently awarded two $500,000 in CALFED Water Use Efficiency grants to two California projects for what is expected to conserve approximately 4,000 acre-feet annually and improve infrastructure for fiscal year 2020. Along with cost-share contributions, these projects at the Shafter-Wasco Irrigation District (SWID) and the South San Joaquin Municipal Utility District (SSJMUD) are expected to implement about $2.7 million in water management improvements during the next two years.

Full Story

Cancer-Linked Contaminants Found In OC’s Drinking Water: Report

/in , /by /Patch by Ashley Ludwig

Most Americans don’t think twice about drinking a glass of water. A report released Wednesday, though, found more than 270 harmful contaminants in local drinking water across the nation, including in Orange County. The substances are linked to cancer, damage to the brain and nervous system, hormonal disruption, problems in pregnancy and other serious health conditions.

The nonprofit Environmental Working Group, collaborating with outside scientists, aggregated and analyzed data from almost 50,000 local water utilities in all 50 states.

The organization found a troubling discrepancy between the current legal limits for contaminants and the most recent authoritative studies of what is safe to consume.

Full Story

Weekend Power Shutoffs Lead To Water Shortage In Vallejo

/in , , /by /CBS SF Bay Area by John Ramos

As much of Vallejo struggles without power, officials have planned for such a problem by installing a backup generator at the city’s water treatment facility. That plant turns raw water from Northern California lakes into potable drinking water but over the weekend there was a water emergency that had nothing to do with Vallejo at all.

“We were getting close to about two days water left,” said Beth Schoenberger, Vallejo Water Department Operations Manager. “It’s not a situation that we are comfortable with and it’s relatively unprecedented.”

Full Story

Here’s How $500M New Reservoir Planned Near Patterson Would Work

/in , /by /The Modesto Beeby Ken Carlson

A proposed reservoir in Del Puerto Canyon, just west of Patterson, promises reliable water deliveries for farms in western Stanislaus County and nearby counties.

It could serve to recharge groundwater for Patterson, a city of 23,750 residents, while other proposed benefits are water deliveries for wildlife refuges and flood control on occasions when storms threaten flash floods on Del Puerto Creek.

Proponents including Del Puerto Water District and the San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors Water Authority discussed the multiple benefits of the Del Puerto Canyon Reservoir at a press briefing Monday.

Full Story

Wall Street Spends Millions to Buy Up Washington State Water

/in , , /by /The Seattle Timesby Evan Bush

Follow the water and you’ll find the money.

That’s how it often works in the dusty rural corners of Washington, where a Wall Street-backed firm is staking an ambitious venture on the state’s water.

Crown Columbia Water Resources since 2017 has targeted the water rights of farms on tributaries of the mighty Columbia River.

Full Story

Winter Floods Are Coming: Here’s How to ‘Be Flood Ready’

/in , , /by /Chico Enterprise-Recordby Chico Enterprise-Record

SACRAMENTO — The California Department of Water Resources is encouraging Californians to prepare for a wide variety of potential flooding in the coming months, as the winter storm season quickly approaches.

More than seven million Californians in rural communities, urban areas and along the coast are at risk of flooding. Flooding can occur throughout the state and Californians need to be aware and understand the potential risks of flooding in their communities, the department said in a recent press release.

Full Story