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Fall Back and Adjust Irrigation Systems to Save Water

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

The end of daylight saving time is a reminder to residents to assess their outdoor watering needs and adjust their irrigation systems to reduce water waste – an especially important step after more than two years of statewide drought. Plants simply don’t need as much water during cooler months, and they typically don’t need irrigation at all after heavy rains. Using water efficiently indoors and outdoors is easier than ever thanks to online resources offered by the Water Authority at www.watersmartsd.org.

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Family Farms Struggling as California Drought Worsens: ‘We Haven’t Faced Anything Like This’

/in , , /by /The Fresno Beeby Nadia Lopez

Amid this year’s severe drought, Hmong farmer June Moua had to leave a portion of her 10-acre plot of land in eastern Fresno County dry and fallow. Large sections of the rows of crops she did plant, including bunches of water-intensive greens, have wilted and shriveled into crunchy bits of brown foliage. Her kale and bok choy are casualties of the central San Joaquin Valley’s dwindling water supply. Declining groundwater levels have made it harder for her to pump water from her well into her fields.

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Climate Change is Acidifying and Contaminating Drinking Water and Alpine Ecosystems

/in , , /by /Scientific Americanby Elizabeth Miller

Garrett Rue grew up fly fishing in central Colorado, often surrounded by mountains stained amber and maroon, and hiking along streams that seemed to borrow those colors. Sometimes he would cast for native trout and come back with nothing—because there was nothing to catch. Then he started hearing stories about people in nearby mountain communities who couldn’t drink their own water. He began to wonder: “These streams have problems supporting ecosystems, and they’re not usable for drinking. What’s going on here?”

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Opinion: A Vote on Water Storage May Be Near

/in , , /by /The OC Register

A proposed ballot measure would force the state to dedicate 2% of the general fund to building more water storage for California’s urban areas and farms. The Water Infrastructure Funding Act of 2022 would require the transfer of the funds into a trust account every year until the projects funded by the account have created an additional 5 million acre-feet of additional water supply that can be reliably delivered to Californians every year thereafter.

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Touton Confirmed as Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation

/in , , /by /Las Vegas Review-Journalby Gary Martin

Camille Touton of Nevada was confirmed by the Senate on Thursday to be commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation, which oversees water management of the Colorado River in Western states. Democratic and Republican senators approved President Joe Biden’s nominee on a voice vote.

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Water Authority Completes Pipeline 3 Relining in Mission Trails Regional Park

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

San Diego County Water Authority Operations and Maintenance staff recently completed a complex relining project on a section of Pipeline 3 in central San Diego, within Mission Trails Regional Park. Pipeline 3 traverses the western portion of the region from the Riverside County border in the north to Lower Otay Reservoir in the south. The proactive Pipeline 3 relining project is part of the asset management program to make preventative repairs to large-scale infrastructure.

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How Californians Can Save More Water

/in , , /by /The New York Times (California Today)by Soumya Karlamangla Mentioned: San Diego Couty Water Authority

The results are in: Californians aren’t saving enough water. Amid a historic drought, Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked us to reduce water consumption by 15 percent. Yet in August, the most recent month for which data is available, we’d brought usage down just 5 percent compared with the same time last year. Of course, not all water-saving is the responsibility of California households. Eighty percent of California’s water goes toward agriculture, and other businesses play a big role too.

(Editor’s note: The New York Times published a previous story, How San Diego Has Water Despite A Punishing Drought.)

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As Climate Talks Put Focus on Water Crisis, the Colorado River Provides a Stark Example

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Ian James and Jaweed Kaleem

As world leaders meet in Scotland this week to discuss efforts to address the climate crisis, experts are urging greater focus on adapting to fundamental shifts in the planet’s water supplies — and they’re pointing to the Colorado River as a prime example.

The river, a vital water source for about 40 million people from Denver to Los Angeles, has continued to shrink and send reservoirs declining toward critically low levels after years of extremely dry conditions compounded by hotter temperatures.

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Opinion: Federal Investment in Clean Energy Will Mean Good Jobs for San Diegans

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Cristina Marquez

The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 569 represents over 3,600 electricians, power professionals and working families in San Diego and Imperial Counties, and we have long advocated for a future that involves clean energy to help tackle the climate crisis. The need for urgent action on climate change is everywhere. We see it daily as our communities experience record-breaking heat, historic wildfires, dangerous droughts and more. We cannot ignore the increasing public health and economic threats to our state.

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Spillway Gravel Launch Ramp Reopens as Lake Oroville Rises

/in , , /by /The Enterprise-Recordby Michael Weber

As the rain falls down in the watershed, Lake Oroville’s water level rises.

Lake Oroville recovered some of its water over the last two weeks from a recent storm ending a long streak of low lake levels that has lasted since its record low on Aug. 4.

According to a community update from the California Department of Water Resources, the recent storm brought the reservoir’s elevation from 629 feet on Oct. 22 to 658 feet by Oct. 27. The elevation Wednesday was 661 feet.

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