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In Russian River’s Fabled Vineyards, the Harvest of a Drought

/in , , /by /The Mercury Newsby Lisa M. Krieger

Rich with promise and potential, the grapes that create the Russian River Valley’s famed wines are ripening in the intense midday heat.

But soon they’ll face the fight of their lives, deprived of water as the state diverts scarce supplies from agriculture to the region’s thirsty cities and subdivisions.

“Whatever water we have on the ground is all we’re going to get,” said Mendocino County supervisor and plant scientist Glenn McGourty, whose district spans the rural upper reaches of the river’s watershed, where the dance of cool nights and hot days, combined with alluvial soil, produces unique growing conditions.

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Drought: Marin District Details Water Pipeline, Desalination Plans

/in , , /by /The Mercury Newsby Will Houston

The Marin Municipal Water District has taken the first steps toward building an emergency water pipeline across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge for the first time in nearly 50 years to avoid potentially running out of water next summer.

The district said Friday that it has hired a consulting firm, Woodard & Curran, to find potential water rights holders in the Central Valley willing to sell their allotments. This water could be pumped across the bridge via the pipeline and into Marin’s water system should the drought stretch into winter.

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Helix Water District “Water is Life” Student Poster Contest Winners

/in , , /by /Water News Network

The Helix Water District Board of Directors June 16, honored East County student artists for their winning “Water Is Life” posters in an online awards ceremony.

Southern California students in kindergarten through eighth grade are invited to participate in their regional water agency’s Student Poster Art Contest to increase awareness about water conservation. This year, 231 students from 17 schools within the Helix Water District submitted their posters depicting how to use water wisely.

Plan to Raze 4 Dams on California-Oregon Line Clears Hurdle

/in , , /by /AP Newsby Gillian Flaccus

A proposal to bring down four hydroelectric dams near the California-Oregon border cleared a major regulatory hurdle Thursday, setting the stage for the largest dam demolition project in U.S. history to save imperiled migratory salmon.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission action comes after the demolition proposal almost fell apart last summer, but then a new agreement and additional funding revived it. Thursday’s ruling will allow the utility that runs the dams, PacifiCorp, to transfer its hydroelectric license jointly to the nonprofit Klamath River Renewal Corporation, Oregon and California.

Regulators still must approve the actual surrender of the license. Dam removal could start in 2023.

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A California Reservoir is Expected to Fall So Low That a Hydro-Power Plant Will Shut Down for First Time

/in , , /by /CNNby Alexandra Meeks

Water in a key California reservoir will fall so low this summer that its hydroelectric power plant will be forced to shut down for the first time, officials said Thursday, straining the state’s already-taxed electric grid. An unrelenting drought and record heat, both worsened by the changing climate, have pushed the water supply at Northern California’s Lake Oroville to deplete rapidly.

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When It’s Too Hot for Food to Grow

/in , , /by /Bay Natureby Eric Simons

Kou Her’s family has run the 12-acre Herr Family Farms in Sanger, just east of Fresno, for the last 20 years, raising a variety of vegetables for Bay Area produce and farmer’s markets. In those 20 years, Kou and his parents haven’t seen anything like the heat wave gripping the Central Valley this week.

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Las Vegas Weighs Tying Growth to Conservation Amid Drought

/in , , /by /AP Newsby Sam Metz

Record-breaking heat and historic drought in the U.S. West are doing little to discourage cities from planning to welcome millions of new residents in the decades ahead.

From Phoenix to Boise, officials are preparing for a future both with more people and less water, seeking to balance growth and conservation. Development is constrained by the fact that 46% of the 11-state Western region is federal land, managed by agencies like the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management that are tasked with maintaining it for future generations.

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Regulators Approve Emergency Rules to Allow Halt of Russian River Diversions for Thousands of Water Right Holders

/in , , /by /The North Bay Business Journalby Mary Callahan

The state water board has unanimously approved emergency regulations behind a move to halt Russian River diversions for up to 2,400 water right holders, part of a wider effort to conserve dwindling supplies in Lake Sonoma and Lake Mendocino.

The 5-0 vote of the State Water Resources Control Board late Tuesday came over the objections raised by agricultural interests and allies who argued the new rule was too blunt a tool to use to address the worsening drought.

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Low River Levels to Blame for ‘Earthy’ Taste to Sacramento Tap Water, City Says

/in , , /by /CBS Sacramento

Does your tap water taste a little off right now? Sacramento city leaders say the drought is probably to blame.

The city says they have been recently getting some calls with people reporting an “earthy” taste to their tap water. Some people have also been reporting an off smell as well.

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Cyberattack on Bay Area Water Supply: ‘No Specific Threat to Public Safety’

/in , , /by /https://www.sfchronicle.com/local/article/Cyberattack-on-Bay-Area-water-supply-No-16256688.phpby Nora Mishanec

A hacker accessed the computer system of a Bay Area water treatment plant in January and deleted programs the plant used to treat drinking water, a senior intelligence official confirmed Thursday.

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