California and the U.S. Archives

Another Looming Climate Disaster: Dam Collapses

Major dams in California are five times more likely to flood this century than the last one due to global warming, a new study finds, possibly leading to overtopping and catastrophic failures that threaten costly repairs and evacuations. That means Californians can expect more disasters like the Oroville Dam, whose overflow channel failed in 2017 after days of flooding had filled state reservoirs to 85% of their capacity, leading to the evacuation of more than 180,000 people and losses of around $300 million.

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California Gov. Gavin Newsom Downsizes Delta Water Project: One Tunnel, Not Two

February 12, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby Dale Kasler and Ryan Sabalow

Gov. Gavin Newsom, diving into one of California’s most contentious water issues, said Tuesday he wants to downsize the Delta tunnels project. The Democratic governor also set out to overhaul state water policy by naming a new chair of the state’s water board. Newsom said he wants the twin-tunnel project — designed to re-engineer the troubled estuary that serves as the hub of California’s elaborate water-delivery system — reduced to a single tunnel.

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With CVWD Okay, Imperial Irrigation District Now Holds Key To Seven State Drought Deal

February 12, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /The Desert Sun (Palm Springs)by Janet Wilson

It’s all up to the Imperial Irrigation District. The fate of a seven-state plan to address dwindling Colorado River water supply now appears to rest squarely with the sprawling southeastern California water district. Its neighbor to the north, the Coachella Valley Water District, voted unanimously on Tuesday to approve interstate agreements that would conserve water for use by 40 million people and vast swaths of agricultural lands. IID has tied its approvals to a binding promise to receive $200 million in federal matching funds to restore the fast-dwindling Salton Sea, which lost critical Colorado River water imports a year ago.

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Reclamation Awards More Than $35M To Water Reclamation, Reuse Projects In California

February 12, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Water World (Tulsa, Okla.)

Bureau of Reclamation is awarding $35.3 million for six authorized Title XVI water reclamation and reuse projects in California. The funding will be used to improve flexibility during water shortages and diversify the water supply. “Title XVI projects provide opportunities for communities to recycle wastewater and treat water that was previously unusable,” Commissioner Brenda Burman said. “It is a proven tool that enables communities to access dependable water supplies.”

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Oroville Dam: Two Years After The Mass Evacuation, Here’s Where We Are

February 12, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Chico Enterprise-Recordby Risa Johnson

Two years ago today, about 188,000 people were ordered to evacuate for fear the damaged Oroville Dam spillway would fail. While the worst fears never materialized, the incident had impacts still felt in the community. It also spawned new legislation related to dam safety, a modern rebuild of the spillway, and many lawsuits against the state Department of Water Resources. This is by no means a comprehensive summary, but below are some major updates related to the spillway crisis.

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Newsom Backs One Water Tunnel, Curbing Brown Family Legacy

February 12, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Voice of San Diegoby Ry Rivard Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Sixty years ago, California voters approved Gov. Pat Brown’s plan for a 700-mile system of dams, water pumps and aqueducts to control flooding in Northern California and send water south to Los Angeles and San Diego. His son, Jerry, spent the better part of four terms as governor trying to expand his father’s work. On Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom effectively capped the Browns’ multi-generation effort, known as the State Water Project, the source of about a third of Southern California’s drinking water.

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Massive Bird Die-Off At Salton Sea Raises Environmental Concerns

February 11, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /KQED (San Francisco)by Benjamin Purper

Thousands of birds were discovered dead at the Salton Sea last month, raising new concerns about the lake’s declining health. California Department of Fish and Wildlife workers cleaned up the carcasses at the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge after hunters initially reported the gruesome bird die-off. More than 400 species of birds use the Salton Sea’s wetlands as a stop along the Pacific flyway for migratory birds. The man-made Salton Sea is receiving less and less water from agricultural runoff and the Colorado River, causing it to shrink dramatically. Andrea Jones, director of bird conservation for Audubon California, said the birds fell victim to avian cholera, a contagious disease, due to overcrowding.

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American Canyon Keeps Sites Reservoir In Its Sights

February 11, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Napa Valley Registerby Barry Eberling

American Canyon will continue looking to the proposed, massive Sites reservoir in Colusa County to someday help slake its thirst. The city of about 20,000 residents is the only Napa County city without a local reservoir. It depends on the state’s North Bay Aqueduct that pumps water out of Barker Slough, a dead-end slough in the Solano County portion of Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Supply reliability is tied to the Sierra snowpack that melts and sends water into the state’s Lake Oroville reservoir that feeds into the Delta. From year to year, it’s wait-and-see how much of the American Canyon allocation will actually arrive.

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An Atmospheric River Could Bring Torrential Rainfall To California Over Several Days This Week

February 11, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /The Washington Postby Mike Branom

California has all the elements in place for nasty flooding because of an “atmospheric river” event: Waterlogged soil from an already-wet winter? Check. Many square miles of land scorched by fire? Check. A thick snowpack on the mountaintops? Check. And wouldn’t you know it, the hours are ticking away before another atmospheric river makes landfall somewhere in the Golden State. Welcome to West Coast winter 2018-2019, responsible for a snowbound Seattle (the most snow in February since the Truman administration), a soaked Los Angeles (its wet season rainfall exceeding 13 inches, more than 50 percent above average) and totally stoked skiers in between.

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California’s ‘Dry Farmers’ Grow Crops Without Irrigation

February 11, 2019/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Andrea Mora /Santa Cruz Sentinelby Donald Fukui

Jim Leap fondly recalls the first Early Girl tomatoes he grew at UC Santa Cruz’s farm in 1990. Sweet and bursting with flavor, they were raised without a single drop of irrigated water. Nearly three decades later, he remains deeply committed to “dry farming” — forsaking modern irrigation and relying on seasonal rainfall to grow tomatoes, winter squash, potatoes, dry beans and corn on the 4-acre San Juan Bautista farm that Leap and his wife, Polly Goldman, have owned for eight years. “What motivated us to dry farm was the environmental ethic,” Goldman said. “We are not using city water or groundwater.”

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