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California Snow Drought Ends in Dramatic Fashion, While Other States Still Deal with Shortage

/in , , /by /CNNby Allison Chinchar
Thanks to multiple atmospheric river events, average snowpack in California has gone from 18% to 98% in just two weeks.
“Increases in snowpack of this size are not common, but also not unprecedented,” Julie Kalansky, deputy director of operations for the Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes (CW3E), explained.
Kalansky pointed out previous studies have shown a jump on this scale can happen about twice every three years, but usually over the course of an entire winter, not just the month of December. While they don’t have the exact rankings for each month of the year, “most of the storm events in the study we referenced for the above calculation were in the second half of December and later into the season,” Kalansky added.
The sudden change gives California its wettest start to the Water Year in more than 40 years, thanks to several drought-denting rain and snow systems pushing through the area in recent weeks. The Water Year runs from October 1 through September 30 of the following year.
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UCSD Reports ‘Unprecedented’ Spike in COVID Virus in San Diego Wastewater

/in , , /by /Times of San Diegoby Debbie L. Sklar

An “unprecedented” spike in COVID-19 viral load in wastewater collected from San Diego County’s primary wastewater treatment facility was reported Saturday by UC San Diego School of Medicine researchers.

The amount of COVID-19 virus detected in wastewater has predicted the region’s COVID-19 caseload up to three weeks ahead of clinical diagnostic reports, the researchers said. Since people with COVID-19 shed the virus in their stool even before they experience symptoms, wastewater screening acts as an early warning system.

“The wastewater screening results reported on Friday are unlike any the team has seen before,” said Jackie Carr of UC San Diego Health. Both Delta and Omicron variants of the virus were detected in the wastewater.

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Storms to Deliver Rain, Mountain Snow Across Western US Through Christmas

/in , , /by /AccuWeatherby Ryan Adamson

Residents across the western United States who have drought relief on their holiday wish lists this season will be in luck over the next week. A series of storms will take aim at the West Coast and deliver needed rain and mountain snow from Southern California to the Pacific Northwest through Christmas Day.

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Manchester Avenue Pipeline Replacement Project Underway in Encinitas

/in , , /by /Water News Network Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Work is progressing toward completion on the first of two pipeline replacement projects in Encinitas by Olivenhain Municipal Water District.

Replacement of an existing drinking water pipeline is wrapping up at Rancho Santa Fe Road and Encinitas Boulevard, with completion expected in early 2022. The original pipeline was installed in 1961 and was approaching the end of its lifespan. Proactively replacing aging water pipelines prevents leaks and avoids emergency shutdowns.

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RMWD Adds Cultural and Tribal Monitoring Consultant Tasks to Rice Canyon Pipeline Project

/in , , /by /Village Newsby Joe Naiman

The Rainbow Municipal Water District’s Rice Canyon Pipeline project will have cultural and tribal monitoring during construction.

The official Rainbow board action Dec. 7, which was approved on a 4-0 vote with Pam Moss absent, approves a change order to the as-needed consulting services contract the district has with Helix Environmental Planning. The board also appropriated an additional $115,000 to cover the cost of the cultural and tribal consulting work.

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Opinion: San Diego, Los Angeles Water Agencies Frame Water Sale as an End to Hostilities

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Michael Smolens Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

As heavy rain swept across Southern California on Tuesday, another rare water event was taking place. The Los Angeles-based Metropolitan Water District of Southern California agreed to buy thousands of acre-feet of water from the San Diego County Water Authority.

Usually, water sales go in the other direction.

The transaction is significant on a number of fronts. The water should help some of MWD’s member agencies that are in dire straights due to drought and severe cutbacks from the State Water Project. Also, the deal again underscores that the Water Authority, which also is a member under Metropolitan’s umbrella, has for years moved to diversify and stockpile water supplies to become more resilient during drought conditions.

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Atmospheric River is a Win for California: Snowpack Goes From 19% to 83% of Average

/in , , /by /SF Gateby Amy Graff

The drought is far from over in California, but this week’s atmospheric river may have begun to put a small dent in the state’s worrisome water deficit. While a prior October atmospheric event earlier in the year brought historic rainfall totals to Northern California, this most recent storm delivered drenching rains to both the north and the south and blasted the Sierra Nevada with snow.

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LAFCO Begins Public Review of Draft MSR Updates for FPUD, RMWD, NCFPD, CSA No. 81

/in , , /by /Village Newsby Joe Naiman

San Diego County’s Local Agency Formation Commission has released the draft municipal service review updates of Fallbrook special districts for public review. Discussion on updating the municipal service review information for the Fallbrook Public Utility District, the Rainbow Municipal Water District, the North County Fire Protection District, and County Service Area No. 81 was part of the Dec. 6 LAFCO board meeting although releasing the report for public review did not require a vote.

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Water Authority Earns Climate Registered Gold Status for Climate Initiative

/in , , /by /Water News Network Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

The San Diego County Water Authority has earned Climate Registered gold status from The Climate Registry for verifying and publicly reporting its greenhouse gas emissions. The effort fosters transparency for the agency’s climate mitigation initiatives and will help the Water Authority track and validate emissions reductions in the future.

The Climate Registry operates North America’s largest voluntary registry for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The Water Authority’s 2019 and 2020 inventories were verified and published in The Climate Registry’s public database in November, earning the agency gold status for both years.

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New $2.3 Billion Dam Planned Near Pacheco Pass Gets Big Boost From State

/in , , /by /Mercury Newsby Paul Rogers

A plan to build a new $2.3 billion reservoir in southern Santa Clara Couty passed a significant milestone on Wednesday when a key state agency ruled that it continues to qualify for nearly half a billion dollars in state funding.

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