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Farmers Thought They Had 20 Years To Use Groundwater As They Wished. Maybe Not Anymore

/in , /by /The Sacramento Beeby Dale Kasler

California farmers are laboring under a daunting edict: They must stop over-pumping groundwater from beneath their ranches. The saving grace is that state law gives them more than 20 years to do it. Now, however, a landmark court ruling could force many farmers to curb their groundwater consumption much sooner than that, landing like a bombshell in the contentious world of California water. For the first time, a California court has said state and county governments have a duty to regulate groundwater usage when it’s clear that the pumping drains water from adjacent rivers.

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OPINION: PRO/CON: Is Prop. 3 A Water Fix Or Billionaires’ Windfall?

/in , /by /The Mercury News (San Jose)

Proposition 3 would issue $8.9 billion in general obligation bonds for a range of water infrastructure projects. The funding breakdown includes $2.4 billion to restore and protect watersheds and another $4.1 billion for disadvantaged communities seeking to improve their water infrastructure. Prop. 3 would also allocate $640 million for groundwater improvements and $500 million for safe, affordable drinking water. Yes: Initiative’s main backer says Prop. 3 will meet state needs as population grows and climate changes. No: Sierra Club leader says Prop. 3 benefits billionaire stakeholders and could harm the environment.

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California Had Its Own Climate Summit. Now What?

/in , /by /The New York Timesby Brad Plumer

For years, presidents and prime ministers have been the public face of the fight against climate change, gathering at United Nations summit meetings and pressuring each other to reduce emissions. The results have often been lackluster. A climate conference in California this week tried something different. The meeting, organized by the state’s governor, Jerry Brown, had far fewer national leaders present. Instead, an array of governors, mayors and business executives from around the globe met to promote their successes in cutting greenhouse gas emissions locally and to encourage one another to do more.

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OPINION: California’s Boondoggles Threaten Property Owners And Taxpayers

/in , /by /The Orange County Registerby Jon Coupal

One would hope that with the profound foolishness associated with California’s infamous High Speed Rail (HSR) project that our elected leadership would have learned a thing or two. But this is California. Because we do things bigger and better than anyone else, it’s apparent that one massive boondoggle isn’t enough — we need two. Let’s recap what we’ll call Boondoggle, Senior. The complete dysfunction of HSR is no longer in dispute. Missed deadlines for the business plans, lack of transparency, massive cost overruns, engineering hurdles that make the project virtually impossible to complete and a lack of funding are tops on the list.

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Can We Operate the Colorado River Differently Amid Climate Change?

/in , /by /Water Deeplyby Matt Weiser

The Colorado River watershed faces increasing challenges from chronic water shortage. And it appears increasingly likely this is a new permanent condition, not an episodic drought.

As a result, the many reservoirs built in the watershed – large and small – may have to be operated differently to optimize new precipitation patterns and snowmelt routines. That is a complicated problem, because they are all operated by different entities, with different water demands and unique environmental and flood-control concerns.

But if the 10 million people who depend on the Colorado River are to continue thriving, something’s got to be done.

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More critical water storage is finally coming to California. It took nearly 40 years.

/in , /by /The News Tribune (Tacoma)by Kate Irby

California officials have been pushing for more natural water storage since the last large-scale facility was built in 1979. Now they’re finally going to get it, thanks to political pressure, President Donald Trump and some congressional creativity.

The House approved several provisions Thursday that help fund water storage projects. The Senate is expected to concur shortly, and Trump is expected to sign the legislation into law next week.

Republican Rep. Jeff Denham and Democrat Rep. Jim Costa have been pushing for additional water storage for the state for years in constantly-at-risk-of-drought California. Since 1979, California’s population has grown 70 percent.

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OPINION: More Conservation, Cooperation Vital To Our New Era Of Water Shortages

/in , /by /Water Deeply (New York)by Ted Kowalski

The agency tasked with managing water and power in the West recently issued its annual report on projected future water levels at Lake Mead, the reservoir that provides water to Arizona, Nevada and California. This report by the Bureau of Reclamation confirmed that it will not impose mandatory water cutbacks in 2019. But it also projected a more than 50 percent chance of cutbacks in 2020 if water levels in the lake continue their decline and fall below 1,075ft.

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OPINION: Ready for California’s next emergency? We hope so

/in , /by /Modesto Beeby Editorial Board

America is ready for Florence’s visit. That’s what President Donald Trump told us Thursday. We hope his confidence is justified and that people and provisions are in place to respond to this emergency.

We don’t want this to become another Hurricane Harvey, that destroyed 300,000 buildings in Texas. Or, worse, another Hurricane Maria, which killed maybe 64 people (the initial, now-discarded, estimates) or maybe 1,417 (a number supported by statisticians) or even 2,975 (which George Washington University is using now).

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Global Climate Action Summit puts stress on action

/in , /by /CBS Moneywatchby Rachel Layne

This has been a big week for advocates who fight climate change. Business leaders, mayors, governors and activists from around the world rallied in San Francisco at the Global Climate Action Summit to advance their agenda in the face of a defiant White House.

California Gov. Jerry Brown issued an order Monday announcing the goal to eliminate carbon emissions in the state within 27 years. He also just signed a bill into law, making the state’s electricity completely emissions-free by 2045. Brown signed as the White House reportedly enacted another policy to stymie such efforts, this time by relaxing methane emission regulations.

For advocates pressuring big pension funds, companies and investment firms to deploy their money with the environment in mind, a good return looks to be the best motivator.

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OPINION: A Permanent Solution To California’s Water Woes — Seawater

/in , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Michael L. Waxer

Environmental calamities recently have battered California with alarming frequency. Over the past year, we have suffered the most damaging wildfires in our history. But, as in Steinbeck’s era, chronic water scarcity remains our most serious environmental problem. In some corners of the state, extreme water conservation has become a year-round way of life. This is certainly the case on the Monterey Peninsula.

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