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Less than 1 percent of recent drinking water samples at California’s public schools showed elevated lead levels. But thousands more campuses still need to be tested, state officials said last week. A new law, AB 746, took effect in January requiring those tests at public schools over the next 16 months. Lead exposure can affect nearly every system in the body, and because it often has no obvious symptoms, it frequently goes unrecognized, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported. Childhood exposure to lead has been shown to affect IQ, ability to pay attention and academic achievement.

Showers and gusty winds are expected in Merced County through Saturday, weather officials report, and will only let up for a couple days before the next system rolls in. “We are looking at a pretty wet pattern the next several days,” said William Peterson, meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Hanford. “This is a much needed rain.” As of Thursday afternoon, Merced and Los Banos saw about a quarter inch of rain, Peterson said. By Saturday about an inch of rain is expected to fall in Merced and Los Banos is expected to get about three fourths of an inch.

On February 20, California’s State Water Resources Control Board postponed a decision on the adoption of new statewide regulations meant to curb wasteful water practices. The regulations would make permanent some rules California enacted temporarily during the recent drought, which ended last year. After several public comment periods this winter, water board staff tweaked the regulations to address concerns and recommendations from water users and other groups, but the postponement came after a large number of water agencies claimed the regulations are a violation of water rights.

A new University of California report forecasts kick-to-the-gut climate-change realities for California farmers, especially those who grow permanent crops in the Central Valley. In a nutshell, the report anticipates big trouble ahead for crops such as almonds, peaches, table grapes, corn and rice. Scorching summer heat and longer periods of sustained drought will reduce yields. Higher temperatures also will provide a perfect incubator for insects and diseases. Some longtime Valley staples won’t be grown here at all. Ag is nimble in adapting to challenges.