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‘Snow Droughts’ Are Coming For The American West

/in , , /by /National Geographicby Alejandra Borunda

On April 1 each year, researchers ski and snowshoe out into the high mountains of the western United States to jab stakes into the bright, crystalline snow, checking the thickness of the blanket. But in 2012, many researchers could barely travel on snow to their test sites—and when they got there, there was almost no snow to measure.

2013 was almost as bad. 2014, the same. And in 2015, on the April 1 assessment, many sites across the Sierra Nevada mountains were bald and snowless—the worst snow drought, scientists found, in at least the last 500 years.

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July 2019 Was Hottest Month On Record For The Planet

/in , , /by /National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Much of the planet sweltered in unprecedented heat in July, as temperatures soared to new heights in the hottest month ever recorded. The record warmth also shrank Arctic and Antarctic sea ice to historic lows.

The average global temperature in July was 1.71 degrees F above the 20th-century average of 60.4 degrees, making it the hottest July in the 140-year record, according to scientists at NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information. The previous hottest month on record was July 2016.

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Valley Democrats Declare War On Invasive Swamp Rats

/in , /by /GV Wire

Rep. Josh Harder of Turlock put on waders and traipsed through the water in search of swamp rats recently.

The goal: Publicizing a bill that he and three other California Democrats have introduced targeting nutria, an invasive species from South America creating havoc with irrigation canals and levees.

“It sounds ridiculous, but these swamp rats are actually a major problem for our water infrastructure,” Harder said in a news release. “My bill would revive a program that helped successfully get rid of the pests in Maryland and bring millions of dollars in federal help to the Central Valley.”

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Water Recycling Most Sustainable Method Of Conserving Water – Experts

/in , /by /Joy News ( Ghana )

Experts have touted water recycling as the most sustainable method of conserving water.

According to Patricia Sinicropi who is Executive Director of the Water Reuse Association in the USA, water recycling technologies are becoming more sophisticated with every passing day, making it easy for it to be scaled out.

“The most important benefit of recycled water is that it’s a reliable and sustainable source. It’s not an imported source of water. You can control it. You know what is in it at all times,” she said.

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Water Resilience In Cape Town

/in , , /by /Imperial Valley Newsby Karen Ross

Cape Town, South Africa – At the height of the drought (April 2018) in this amazing city, residents were restricted to 50 liters (13 gallons) of water per person, per day, and that allowed Cape Town and the Western Cape province to avert an unprecedented catastrophe, Day Zero, the day this city of four-million residents could have run out of water.

The threat made conservation the new normal, resulting in practices like hotel showers with minute timers, closed water taps in public places, and informational slogans/campaigns throughout the city.

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Farmers Use Tech To Squeeze Every Drop From Colorado River

/in , , /by /AP by Dan Elliot

A drone soared over a blazing hot cornfield in northeastern Colorado on a recent morning, snapping images with an infrared camera to help researchers decide how much water they would give the crops the next day.

After a brief, snaking flight above the field, the drone landed and the researchers removed a handful of memory cards. Back at their computers, they analyzed the images for signs the corn was stressed from a lack of water.

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As Phoenix Heats Up, The Night Comes Alive

/in , /by /The New York Timesby Marguerite Holloway

Dozens of hikers set out for the summit of Piestewa Peak on a July evening, their flashlights dancing in the dark. “You feeling O.K.?” Trevor Plautz, a park ranger, asked two women, one of whom had stumbled and was breathing hard. “You have enough water?” Both soon turned back, moving slowly down unlit rocky switchbacks. An owl chittered. “You definitely feel the heat, but the nights are better,” Mr. Plautz said. “A lot of people hike right now instead of during the day because it is a lot cooler.” Phoenix, which had 128 days at or above 100 degrees Fahrenheit last year, is one of the hottest and fastest-warming cities in the United States.

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SGMA Rollout Coming Along Smoothly

/in , /by /AgNet West Radio Networkby Brian German

The implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) has presented some challenges, however it appears the overall process is progressing smoothly overall. Supervising Engineering Geologist with the Department of Water Resources (Department), Steven Springhorn noted that the stakeholders have been diligent in adhering to the timeline established by the regulation. “In general, the status of SGMA is going well,” said Springhorn. “That was really shown by the first major milestone, the GSA formation deadline. Roughly 99 percent of the area that had to be covered, was covered. So that just built a lot of momentum.”

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Notable Sonoma County Wine Executive’s Vineyard Business Firm Accused Of Water Quality Violations

/in , /by /The Press Democrat (Santa Rosa, Calif.)by Bill Swindell

Prominent Sonoma County wine executive Hugh Reimers, who last month abruptly left as president of Foley Family Wines, faces allegations that his grape growing company has violated regional, state and federal water quality laws for improperly clearing land near Cloverdale to build a vineyard. The North Coast Regional Water Quality Board accused his Santa Rosa vineyard management company, Krasilsa Pacific Farms, of violations of the water board’s local water rules, the California Water Code and the federal Clean Water Act for clearing and grading 140 acres. The water quality board concluded the work on a section of Krasilsa Pacific’s more than 2,000-acre property was done without applying or obtaining the necessary permits required by the county to operate a vineyard.

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California’s Shasta Dam Project Hits Financial, Legal Snags

/in , , /by /Bloomberg Environment (New York City, N.Y.)by Emily C. Dooley

Feds want to raise dam, expand reservoir to improve water reliability State officials, environmental groups say plan violates California law A plan to raise and expand California’s largest reservoir is on hold as federal officials look for partners to share in the $1.4 billion cost. The federal Bureau of Reclamation also must grapple with opponents who have sued, saying the Shasta Dam project violates state law. The bureau has long-pushed to raise its 602-foot Shasta Dam by 18.5 feet and enlarge the reservoir by 630,000 acre-feet, saying it would increase water supply reliability and reduce flood risks. An acre-foot is about 326,000 gallons of water.

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