California and the U.S. Archives

See All That Water Flowing Into The Ocean? California Bill Aims To Save It

February 21, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /The Mercury News (San Jose)by Kevin Modesti

In stormy winters like this, residents of drought-prone Southern California fret about how much rainfall flows into the ocean, a reminder of the amounts of water the region is wasting instead of saving for good use. A new bill by a San Fernando Valley state senator aims to fix that. The bill introduced Monday by Sens. Bob Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys, and Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, would require huge reductions in the volume of treated wastewater discharged into the Pacific Ocean and California estuaries.

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OPINION: Delta Interests Should Seize The Opportunity To Cease Water Fights

February 21, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /CALmatters (Sacramento)by Ellen Hanak and Jeffrey Mount

The Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta is a major source of water for cities and farms across the state, and a major source of water conflict. In a Sacramento Bee commentary two years ago, we and our colleague Brian Gray promoted a grand compromise for the Delta. We suggested that the three broad interests fighting about its future—water users, environmental groups, and Delta residents—give up something in order to reduce conflict and make progress. During his first state of the state address, Gov. Gavin Newsom opened the door to just such a compromise.

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Before And After: See California’s Monster Snow Year By Satellite

February 20, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /KQED (San Francisco)

A rolling conveyor belt of storms this winter has left the Sierra Nevada blanketed in a thick layer of snow. The year started modestly, with the snowpack measuring around 70 percent of average on the first of the year. A robust January and February has brought the snowpack up to around 145 percent of normal for this time of year. April 1 typically marks the peak of Sierra snowpack accumulation and the start of the spring runoff. Move the sliders below to view the terrain before and after snowstorms.

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California Wastes So Much Of Its Rainwater. Here’s Why

February 20, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Los Angeles Timesby Hannah Fry and Alejandra Reyes-Velarde

California’s wet winter has dumped an estimated 18 trillion gallons of rain in February alone. But much of it is simply going down the drain. In what has become a source of much concern in a state prone to droughts and water shortages, the vast majority of rainwater in urban areas flows into storm drains and is eventually lost to the Pacific Ocean.

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Showdown Over Water Bill Averted, Clearing Way For Arizona To Finish Colorado River Deal

February 20, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Arizona Republic (Phoenix)by Ian James

Proposed water legislation that might have upended Arizona’s Colorado River drought plan was set aside by a leading Republican lawmaker following a day of tense debate. The dispute over the bill pitted House Speaker Rusty Bowers, who introduced the measure on behalf of a group of farmers and ranchers, against the Gila River Indian Community, whose leader threatened to pull out of the drought deal if the bill went forward.

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Pricing California’s Water During The Drought: Can Rate Structures Provide An Incentive For Conservation?

February 20, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Water Finance and Management

The relationship between water pricing and water use is more nuanced than basic economic theory on supply and demand suggests. That’s what the Environmental Finance Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (EFC) found in a recent study on water pricing during the California drought. California’s severe drought and statewide conservation mandate provided an opportunity to analyze the effects of pricing strategies as a tool to prevent wasteful water use. In 2015, the State Water Resources Control Board was charged with implementing a reduction of 25 percent on the state’s local water supply agencies.

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Storms Cause Millions Of Dollars In Damage To California Highways

February 19, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Los Angeles Timesby Alejandra Reyes-Velarde

Recent debris flows and flooding in the San Jacinto and San Bernardino mountains have caused extensive damage to Southern California roadways, requiring some highways to be closed for months as crews work on repairs that will cost at least $14 million. Last week’s series of storms, including a moisture-packed atmospheric river that slammed the state, has brought consistent rainfall to California, dumping 18 trillion gallons of rain — nearly half the volume of Lake Tahoe.

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Legal Rights For Lake Erie? Voters In Ohio City Will Decide

February 17, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /The New York Timesby Timothy Williams

The failing health of Lake Erie, the world’s 11th largest lake, is at the heart of one of the most unusual questions to appear on an American ballot: Should a body of water be given rights normally associated with those granted to a person? Voters in Toledo, Ohio, will be asked this month to decide whether Lake Erie, which supports the economies of four states, one Canadian province and the cities of Toledo, Cleveland and Buffalo, has the legal right “to exist, flourish, and naturally evolve.”

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Atmospheric Rivers Are Pulling California Out Of Drought And Piling On The Snow

February 16, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /CNNby Paul P. Murphy

When 2019 started, California’s snowpack was at 67%. Now it’s at over 136% and rising. The atmospheric rivers that are dumping rain along coastal California are also dumping massive amounts of snow in the state’s Sierra Nevada. Newly released photos from NASA, taken four days and a year apart, show how much snow has fallen. In its news release, NASA singled out Mammoth Mountain, which is now the snowiest ski resort in the United States, having received more than 37 feet since winter began. On its website, Mammoth Mountain says all that snowfall will allow the resort to stay open until the Fourth of July.

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Federal Legislators Announce $15Mil For Water Infrastructure Improvements At U.S.-Mexico Border

February 15, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /KUSI News

A group of federal legislators from San Diego announced the allocation of $15 million today for water infrastructure improvements along the U.S-Mexico border. Legislators included the funding in a spending bill approved earlier this week and signed today by President Donald Trump. The $15 million will go to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s U.S.-Mexico Border Water Infrastructure program. Reps. Juan Vargas, D-San Diego, Scott Peters, D-San Diego, and Susan Davis, D-San Diego, as well as congressional representatives from border regions of New Mexico and Texas have sought funding for the program since last March.

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