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Some of Arizona’s Most Valuable Water Could Soon Hit the Market

/in , /by /Circle of Blueby Brett Walton

South of Headgate Rock Dam, beyond riverbanks lined with willow and mesquite, the broad floodplain of the Colorado River spreads across emerald fields and sun-bleached earth.

The Colorado River has nourished these lands in present-day western Arizona for millennia, from the ancestral Mohave people who cultivated corn, squash, beans, and melons, to the contemporary farmers of the Colorado River Indian Tribes, or CRIT, whose reservation extends for 56 miles along its namesake river.

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As Colorado River States Await Water Cuts, They Struggle to Find Agreement on Longer-Term Plans

/in , /by /Associated Pressby Suman Naishadham

The federal government is expected to announce water cuts soon that would affect some of the 40 million people reliant on the Colorado River, the powerhouse of the U.S. West. The Interior Department announces water availability for the coming year months in advance so Western cities, farmers and others can plan.

Behind the scenes, however, more elusive plans are being hashed out: how the basin will share water from the diminishing 1,450-mile (2,334-kilometer) river after 2026, when many current guidelines that govern it expire.

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UCSD Researchers Suggest Mars has Water, a Key ‘Ingredient for Life’

/in , /by /Axios San Diegoby Kate Murphy

In a new study, UC San Diego researchers suggest Mars has large amounts of liquid water miles beneath its surface after analyzing data from NASA’s InSight lander mission.

Why it matters: Knowing if, when, where and how much water exists on Mars helps scientists determine the water cycle and evolution of the planet, and whether it can sustain life or was able to in the past.

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OPINION: Delta Tunnel Project will Protect California’s Vital Water Supply

/in , /by /The Mercury Newsby David Bini and Tim McRae

California’s history is defined by building great and innovative infrastructure projects that improve our quality of life and set our state up for continued economic prosperity. From the Golden Gate Bridge to interstates 5 and 80, these projects are symbols of how major infrastructure investments can drive incredible economic growth. Though the creation of these projects was seemingly impossible to many at their inception, they quickly became an essential part of our critical infrastructure fabric that sustains our economy and way of life.

We are at a similar crossroads in building reliable water infrastructure to deliver water to two-thirds of Californians through the Delta Conveyance Project. This proposed project has been studied, refined, redesigned and rerouted due to extensive public input and thoughtful improvements by Gov. Newsom’s administration.

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Bakersfield Water Bills Going Up. How Much? That’s a Little Murky

/in , /by /SJV Waterby Lois Henry

Bakersfield customers of California Water Service could be paying 34.5% more each month to fill their tubs and flush their toilets in coming years.

That’s how much the water company is seeking to boost rates over 2026, 2027 and 2028, subject to approval by the California Public Utilities Commission. If approved at the requested amounts, Bakersfield residents who use 8,977 gallons a month would see a bill of $47.87 go to $56,58 in 2026, then $61.02 in 2027 and $66.20 in 2028.

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OPINION: California Dam Raise Would Take More Delta Water. Why Are Environmentalists Silent?

/in , /by /The Fresno Beeby Marek Warszawski

Fresno drivers headed to the Bay Area via Pacheco Pass on Highway 152 can’t help but take note of a sprawling inland sea that seemingly appears out of nowhere among the yellowed, oak-dotted foothills.

This is San Luis Reservoir, essentially a 2 million acre-foot holding tank built to irrigate San Joaquin Valley farms and supply drinking water to Silicon Valley. Its construction was considered such a significant addition to California’s water supply that President John F. Kennedy turned out in 1962 to push the dynamite plunger.

 

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July was California’s Hottest Month Ever, as Climate Warms to Dangerous New Extremes

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Grace Toohey

The month of July kicked off with a dire warning: A rare, long-duration heat event was forecast to bring extreme heat risk across the West, with triple-digit temperatures and dangerous fire conditions expected in much of California for days on end.

That outlook quickly proved accurate — and would end up defining almost the entire month in the Golden State, which would see little relief from unrelenting heat.

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Drought-Related Water Pollution Disproportionately Affects California Latino Communities: Study

/in , /by /The Hillby Sharon Udasin

Drought-driven drinking water contamination is disproportionately affecting members of California’s Latino communities, a new study has found.

Among the pollutants plaguing these water systems are arsenic and nitrate, which are linked to an increased risk of a variety of diseases, according to the study, published Wednesday in the American Journal of Public Health. Some such illnesses include cancers, cardiovascular diseases, developmental disorders and birth defects.

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Arrowhead Water Bottler Ordered to Stop Operations in California Mountains

/in , /by /Fox 5/KUSIby Cameron Kiszla

The federal government has backed up California state regulators in ordering the company that bottles Arrowhead water to stop drawing from the San Bernardino Mountains.

Though BlueTriton Brands draws from springs in the mountains that have been used for bottled water since 1906, environmental activists have claimed the removal of that water is harming wildlife, particularly Strawberry Creek.

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Some California Drinking Water Disproportionately Contaminated by Nitrate, Arsenic—an Issue Worsened by Drought

/in , /by /Food Safety Magazine

A new study has uncovered a disparity between the safety of drinking water in certain regions of California—serving majority Latino communities—and water from community water systems in other areas of the state. Led by University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara) researchers, the study uncovered that some drinking water systems have higher nitrate and arsenic contamination levels, and that the contamination is exacerbated by droughts, which may become more frequent with climate change.

Long-term exposure to contaminants such as arsenic and nitrate in water is linked to an increased risk of cancers, cardiovascular diseases, developmental disorders, and birth defects in infants. According to the study, in the U.S., there is an acknowledged disparity in exposure to contaminants in tap water provided by community water systems. Scientific literature demonstrates that, oftentimes, systems distributing water with higher contamination levels exist in areas that lack adequate public infrastructure or sociopolitical and financial resources.

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