Home Headline Archives

California Approaching a Record Snow Year as Yet Another Storm Hits

February 28, 2023/in Home Headline, Media Coverage, San Diego County /by Mike Lee /Los Angeles Timesby Grace Toohey and Nathan Solis

California was hit Monday with yet another winter storm, adding to what has become an unusually cold and wet season that some experts say has the chance to become one of the snowiest on record if conditions continue.

The new winter storm is forecast to bring more rain and snow across the state through Wednesday, though forecasters say it isn’t expected to be as exceptional as the previous system, which brought snowfall to unusually low elevations almost statewide.

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Will Colorado River Return to Health This Year? Snowpack Remains a Third Above Normal

February 28, 2023/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /8 News Nowby Greg Haas

February snowfall might have fallen behind January’s brisk pace, but the Upper Colorado River Basin will go into March still well above average snowpack levels.

With all the headlines about snow in California and Utah, the area that matters most to the Las Vegas valley and Lake Mead is the region around the Colorado River’s headwaters — where the river is born among the peaks in and around Rocky Mountain National Park.

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Calif. Reservoir Levels Show Signs of Improvement After Recent Winter Storms

February 28, 2023/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /ABC 7 by Zach Fuentes

All of this rain in California has had positive impacts on some of the state’s main reservoirs. Though officials say reservoir levels have seen major improvements, we’re not out of the drought yet.

“California, statewide is at 131% of average precipitation,” said Jeanine Jones, interstate resources manager for the California Department of Water Resources, “What that means is that a lot of our reservoirs have had the opportunity to improve significantly, compared to last year or the year before. Most of our reservoirs are fairly close to full.”

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Opinion: Solving the Worsening Drought in the Western States Will Require All of Us Working Together

February 27, 2023/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Alex Padilla and Dianne Feinstein

For Californians, drought has been a constant and inescapable fact of life for decades. Worsening drought in the Western United States is just one of the many life-threatening impacts of the climate crisis. And as drying conditions bring water reservoirs along the Colorado River to dangerously low levels, the impact of extended drought conditions is now threatening 40 million Americans’ access to water — unless we can come up with a plan to protect it.

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First Aqueduct Maintenance Shutdown Feb. 27-March 8

February 27, 2023/in Home Headline, Media Coverage, San Diego County /by Mike Lee /Water News Network

The final shutdown for scheduled maintenance of the San Diego County Water Authority’s First Aqueduct started today, February 27. The shutdown will run through March 8, allowing crews to reline portions of the historic aqueduct and perform regular maintenance work that ensures a safe and reliable water supply for the region.

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Opinion: Imperial Valley Takes its Colorado River Senior Water Rights Seriously

February 27, 2023/in Home Headline, Media Coverage, San Diego County /by Mike Lee /Desert Sunby Stephen Benson

Drought and population growth have taken their toll on the Colorado River, pushing it to historic lows.

As we work together with our neighboring states and the federal government on a long-term solution, many eyes are focused on the Imperial Valley, because of its senior water rights. And as much as we believe in upholding the rule of law, we are equally committed to being responsible water users and doing our part to keep the river healthy enough to meet the needs of all seven states.

(Editor’s Note: Stephen Benson is a farmer in California’s Imperial Valley, a board member of Imperial Valley Water (IVH2O), former board member of the Imperial Irrigation District and a current board member of the Family Farm Alliance and Imperial Valley Vegetable Growers Association. He can be reached at

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Here’s How Much Rain Fell in 40 San Diego County Communities in the Past Five Days

February 27, 2023/in Home Headline, Media Coverage, San Diego County /by Mike Lee /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Gary Robbins

Here’s how much rain fell across San Diego County during the five day period ending at 1 a.m on Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.

Although the number wasn’t huge for San Diego, the city has now received 9.57 inches of rain since the rainy season began on October 1. That’s only 0.20 inches below what the city averages from October 1 to September 30.

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USDA Undersecretary Meets with Imperial Irrigation District

February 27, 2023/in Home Headline, Media Coverage, San Diego County /by Mike Lee /KYMA, KECYby Dillon Fuhrman, Adelmi Ruiz

The Undersecretary of the United States Department of Agriculture, Robert Bonnie, privately met with the Imperial Irrigation District. The meeting started at 4:00pm Sunday and took place in El Centro.

During the meeting, Bonnie and the IID discussed the Western Water Policy and irrigation assistance to southeastern California farmers and ranchers.

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This Reservoir on the Sacramento River Has Been Planned for Decades. What’s Taking So Long?

February 27, 2023/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /CalMattersby Alastair Bland

Last century, California built dozens of large dams, creating the elaborate reservoir system that supplies the bulk of the state’s drinking and irrigation water. Now state officials and supporters are ready to build the next one.

The Sites Reservoir — planned in a remote corner of the western Sacramento Valley for at least 40 years — has been gaining steam and support since 2014, when voters approved Prop. 1, a water bond that authorized $2.7 billion for new storage projects.

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