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Delta Tunnels Get ‘Real’ as Backers Seek $1.6B Loan From Trump Administration

/in , /by /Sacramento Beeby Ryan Sabalow And Dale Kasler

Critical permits and legal challenges are still pending, and some farming groups still haven’t committed to paying for part of Gov. Jerry Brown’s controversial $17 billion Delta tunnels project.

But even with the uncertainty, backers of the project are poised to ask the Trump administration for a $1.6 billion federal loan that millions of Californians ultimately would have to repay through increases in their water bills.

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Santa Clara Valley Water a Step Closer to Building $1 Billion Dam at Pacheco Pass Reservoir

/in , /by /San Jose Insideby Barry Holtzclaw

The Santa Clara Valley Water District is moving forward with plans to build a new Pacheco Pass reservoir in Santa Clara County, which the district describes as a “game-changer” to ease the impact of future droughts in the Bay Area.

If $485 million in state funds are approved this month, supporters they could raise the rest of the $969 million project budget from federal grants and increased water rates to build the largest reservoir constructed in the Bay Area in the past 20 years.

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Officials Hope Oroville Dam Spillways Will Be In Use Nov. 1

/in , /by /ABC 7 San Franciscoby ABC 7 Staff

Progress has been made at the Oroville Dam after several issues and infrastructure problems, the emergency and main spillways may be ready to use by Nov. 1.

The Department of Water Resources hopes to have them ready to use, if needed, by Nov. 1.

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Interior Secretary Zinke to Visit California as GOP Steps Up Fight Over State’s Water

/in , /by /McClatchy News Serviceby Emily Cadei and Kate Irby

With little clout in Sacramento, Republicans are trying to use their power in Washington to reshape California’s water policies.

Less than two weeks after state regulators announced sweeping new water allocation limits, the GOP-controlled House is expected this week to pass spending legislation that would block federal funding for that allocation plan. It also includes measures that would bar legal challenges to major water infrastructure projects in the state.

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OPINION: We Must Take Action On The Nation’s Coming Water Supply Crisis

/in , /by /The Hillby Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-Pa.) and Dr. Michael Shank

Most Americans take water for granted. It’s a resource that people assume will always be accessible, available, and consumable. For most people in this country, whether they’re at a public drinking fountain, a restaurant or at home, water is a commodity considered to be at our constant beck and call – but for how much longer? America’s water supply is in crisis and, if we don’t act now, we face an imperiled future. The news this week that California is facing record-shattering heat waves, and already on the verge of yet another drought, illustrates this point powerfully.

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OPINION: 10 Signs Of California Water Progress

/in , /by /Water Deeply (New York)by Sean Bothwell

The extreme weather swings California has experienced recently, from a historic drought to record-breaking rain and snow, may become increasingly commonplace. A study from the University of California, Los Angeles, suggests we will see more of this weather “whiplash” in the years to come. Fortunately, California has been busy preparing for an uncertain future. That means making the most of every drop of rain or snow that falls, stretching our supplies through increased efficiency, capturing rainwater and recycling water rather than dumping it. Below are 10 examples of water progress that suggest California is well on its way to water resilience.

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‘Controlled Burns’ Can Help Solve California’s Fire Problem — So Why Aren’t There More of Them?

/in , /by /KQED (San Francisco)by Molly Peterson

With climate change, wildfires threaten disaster and chaos in more California communities, more often. But experts say it’s possible to avoid catastrophic harm to human and forest health by setting planned burns before human error, lightning or arson choose when fires start. “Putting prescribed fire back out on the landscape at a pace and scale to get real work done and to actually make a difference is a high priority,” says Cal Fire chief Ken Pimlott. “It really is, and it’s going to take a lot of effort.”

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Dousing Rainfall To Remain Absent From California Into Late July As Wildfire Season Ramps Up

/in , /by /AccuWeather (State College, Pa.)by Renee Duff

As wildfires continue to char land in California, mainly dry, warm weather will provide little to no relief for firefighting efforts heading into the peak of fire season. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, the number of wildfires and acres burned so far this year has nearly kept the same pace as 2017, which was one of the most destructive fire seasons on record. Sixteen active fires are burning across California as of Sunday evening, July 15, according to Cal Fire.

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OPINION: What Gavin Newsom Said – And Didn’t Say – During His Visit Monday in Modesto

/in , /by /Modesto Beeby Modesto Bee Editorial Board

Gavin Newsom came to Modesto on Monday night to shake hands and meet important people.

Most, if not all, wanted to know one thing: Newsom’s position on water. Specifically, the water flowing down the Tuolumne, Stanislaus and Merced rivers. Water the state is trying to take from us.

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California Is Preparing For Extreme Weather. It’s Time To Plant Some Trees.

/in , /by /The New York Timesby Henry Fountain

For years, there has been a movement in California to restore floodplains, by moving levees back from rivers and planting trees, shrubs and grasses in the low-lying land between. The goal has been to go back in time, to bring back some of the habitat for birds, animals and fish that existed before the state was developed. But in addition to recreating the past, floodplain restoration is increasingly seen as a way of coping with the future — one of human-induced climate change.

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