Experts from NASA say a previously unmeasured underground source accounts for about 10% of all the water that enters the highly-productive Central Valley farmland each year.
The NASA study shows an average of four million acre-feet of water is delivered through the soil and fractured rocks under California’s Sierra Nevada mountains to the Central Valley annually.
Months of bitter negotiations between seven states that rely on the Colorado River’s vanishing water have collapsed along a clear fault line over the past week: California versus everyone else.
The multi-state talks, which have been ongoing in fits and starts for months, were focused on achieving unprecedented water cuts to save the Colorado River – a system that provides water and electricity to more than 40 million people in the West.
Exposed to the beating sun and hot dry air, more than 10% of the water carried by the Colorado River evaporates, leaks or spills as the 1,450-mile (2,334-kilometer) powerhouse of the West flows through the region’s dams, reservoirs and open-air canals.
For decades, key stewards of the river have ignored the massive water loss, instead allocating Arizona, California, Nevada and Mexico their share of the river without subtracting what’s evaporated.
Encinitas, Carlsbad and Oceanside representatives on the San Diego County Water Authority Board of Directors are among seven new members who participated in their first formal meeting Jan. 26.
Encinitas Deputy Mayor Joy Lyndes, Carlsbad Councilwoman Teresa Acosta and Oceanside Water Utilities Director Lindsay Leahy are part of the Water Authority’s 24 retail member agencies, which are represented by at least one member of the 36-member Board of Directors, according to a Jan. 27 agency news release.
The rain in December and January is still paying off for 200,000 South Bay residents.
The Sweetwater Authority, which provides water to customers in Western Chula Vista, Bonita, and National City, just opened a massive valve in the Loveland Dam Thursday to send water to the Sweetwater Reservoir for the second time in two months.
Fountains still shimmer opulently at casinos on the Las Vegas Strip, but lush carpets of grass are gradually disappearing along the streets of Sin City.
Despite its reputation for excess, the Mojave Desert metropolis has been factoring climate change into its water plans for years, declaring war on thirsty lawns, patrolling the streets for water wasters and preparing for worst-case scenarios on the Colorado River, which supplies 90% of the area’s water.
The new year started off with a parade of storms, leading to San Francisco and the wider Bay Area seeing one of its rainiest time frames since the Gold Rush era. This onslaught of storms seemed a bit out of place with the trend of La Niña, an outlook that traditionally brings warm, dry conditions to most of California. Instead, the first half of the 2022-23 winter season was marked by atmospheric river-enhanced storms and notable reductions in drought conditions across the state. And chances persist for some rain showers to hit California in the coming days to weeks.
The San Diego County Water Authority Board of Directors today welcomed Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Board Chair Adán Ortega, Jr. by hosting a reception for him to meet San Diego County’s community, civic and business leaders.
Ortega took the helm of MWD’s Board on January 10 as the first Latino chair in the district’s 95-year history. In a presentation during the Water Authority’s formal Board meeting, Ortega focused on shared challenges and opportunities the two water wholesalers face in the era of climate change.
The 15th annual Sweetwater Authority High School Photo Contest is now open for entries. The contest showcases and celebrates how safe, reliable water service supports our daily lives through photography. The theme for the 2023 contest is “Water In Daily Life.”
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
