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California Funds New Dams To Protect Against Future Drought

/in , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Kurtis Alexander

For the first time since California’s dam-building boom ended nearly a half century ago, state officials on Tuesday approved a windfall of cash for new water storage projects, setting the stage for at least a mini-resurgence of reservoir construction. The historic $2.7 billion of voter-approved bond money will go to elevating two Bay Area dams, at Los Vaqueros Reservoir near Livermore and Pacheco Reservoir east of Gilroy, as well as to the development of two much larger dams in the Central Valley. Funds also will go to four less traditional endeavors that store water underground.

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The $3 Billion Plan To Turn Hoover Dam Into A Giant Battery

/in , /by /The New York Timesby Ivan Penn

Hoover Dam helped transform the American West, harnessing the force of the Colorado River — along with millions of cubic feet of concrete and tens of millions of pounds of steel — to power millions of homes and businesses. It was one of the great engineering feats of the 20th century. Now it is the focus of a distinctly 21st-century challenge: turning the dam into a vast reservoir of excess electricity, fed by the solar farms and wind turbines that represent the power sources of the future.

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California Hit With Two Heat Waves In Less Than A Month. Here’s Why It Matters.

/in , /by /Mashableby Mark Kaufman

Historic heat records fell in California earlier this month. Yet, two weeks later, another mass of warm air has returned to the southern part of the state, heating the region for days. The second heat wave of July will last from Monday through Thursday, said the National Weather Service. While this heat won’t be quite as severe as the last, it’ll still bring “record and near-record high temperatures” to different areas of California. As average temperatures around the globe continue their accelerated rise, extreme heat events like these are becoming more and more frequent.

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California’s Largest Reservoir Project In Decades Gets An $800 Million Boost. But Is It Feasible?

/in , /by /The Sacramento Beeby Dale Kasler and Ryan Sabalow

California officials Tuesday awarded $816 million in voter-approved bond money to build Sites Reservoir, an hour north of Sacramento, providing a financial boost for what would become the largest water storage project built in the state since the 1970s. Approved by the State Water Commission, the funds were the most given to any of the eight projects across California under consideration for a part of the $2.7 billion Proposition 1 water bond. Voters passed the bond in 2014 during the state’s historic drought.

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Here Are The Bay Area Water Projects That Got $1 Billion In Funding Today

/in , /by /KQED (San Francisco)by Lauren Sommer

California water officials have approved more than $2.5 billion for eight water projects across the state, marking one of the largest investments in water storage in decades. The proposed projects, including two in the Bay Area, will now begin seeking permits and looking for the remaining funding they need. Half of the eight projects approved on Tuesday by the California Water Commission are more traditional reservoirs and dams, while the other half focus on groundwater storage and recycled water.

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Deadline For Funding Of California Water Projects

/in , /by /Daily Democrat (Woodland)by Paul Rogers

During California’s recent five-year drought, it was common to hear people asking why the state doesn’t build more dams. On Tuesday, flush with cash from voters, the administration of Gov. Jerry Brown is expected to finally do just that, committing nearly $1 billion to build two huge dam projects in the Bay Area and an additional $1.5 billion for six big water projects from the Sacramento Valley to Bakersfield.

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BLOG: How Wildfires Affect California’s Water Supply

/in , /by /Public Policy Institute of California (San Francisco)by Henry McCann, Jeffrey Mount and Claudia Herbert

Summer marks the traditional beginning of California’s fire season, although the warming climate has stretched the season considerably. Until the winter rains arrive, wildfires will burn forests and grasslands throughout the state. Since January 1, about 3,700 fires have consumed more than 111,000 acres of land—outpacing 2017, the most destructive and deadly fire season in state history. While public safety and economic costs deserve and receive a great deal of attention, wildfires also have consequences for the management of water—including the amount and quality of supply, and the potential for flooding.

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Agency Aims To Tackle Groundwater Supply Problems

/in , /by /Santa Cruz Sentinelby Matthew Renda and Matthew Crenda

A diverse group of public officials, agency representatives and citizens are working to tackle one of the most pressing issues dogging the region — the continued depletion of groundwater reserves. “There’s not a lot of water available for recharge and there’s not going to be one project that is going to get us to the finish line,” said Darcy Pruitt of the Santa Cruz Mid-County Groundwater Agency, a group mandated by state law to develop a sustainability plan for local aquifers. “It’s and, not or.”

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Monitoring Agricultural Water Use Remains Challenging Despite New Oversight Rules

/in , /by /KQED (San Francisco)by Matt Weiser

A new program in California aimed at tracking agricultural water consumption is off to a bumpy start, highlighting the challenges of monitoring an industry that has historically enjoyed limited oversight. Agriculture is the biggest consumer of water in the West, with many states using more than 70 percent of developed freshwater supplies for agriculture. So you would think state governments watch water consumption on farms carefully to look for conservation opportunities. In fact, some do not.

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The Great Era Of California Dam Building May Be Over. Here’s What’s Next

/in , /by /KQED (San Francisco)by Lauren Sommer

For a century, California has harnessed its water with concrete, building dams and reservoirs on an epic scale. Now, as the state prepares to hand out $2.7 billion for new water storage projects, it looks as though that era of dam-building might be ending. During the height of the California’s 5-year drought, state voters approved new funding for water storage as part of Proposition 1. This week, the California Water Commission will allocate those funds to the eight projects that have qualified after a lengthy analysis.

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