Big Infrastructure Bill ‘Isn’t Dead’ as WRDA Talks Heat Up
A high-stakes Supreme Court confirmation and COVID-19 negotiations may be the focus on Capitol Hill, but a sprawling water infrastructure bill is still advancing quickly behind the scenes.
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PFAS Used by Many Industries Warrant Controls, Scientists Say
A subset of so-called forever chemicals, used to make thousands of industrial and consumer products, can’t be deemed “low-concern” despite chemical manufacturers’ arguments, a group of international scientists said in a paper released Tuesday.
Gómez and Jacobs on the Green New Deal, Climate Injustice
If San Diego’s urban core were a human heart, then the 53rd Congressional District would be, geographically, its left ventricle. The political battle to represent its people is one between two liberals: former environmental justice advocate and San Diego City Council President Georgette Gómez and Sara Jacobs, the granddaughter of a Qualcomm co-founder who also chairs a childhood poverty organization called San Diego for Every Child.
La Niña May Signal Scant Relief from California’s Seemingly Endless Loop of Hot, Dry Weather
After a brief interlude of mild temperatures Saturday, a warm-up is forecast to begin Sunday as upper-level high pressure builds into California, the National Weather Service said. High temperatures will climb by several degrees on Sunday.
As Wildfires Ravage the West, Contaminated Water Raises Health Concerns
A few weeks after the devastating 2017 Tubbs Fire raged through parts of northern California, Gerald and Serene Buhrz returned to their Santa Rosa home, turned on the kitchen sink faucet, and were hit with a stinging smell.
Reservoir Release Pilot Project on the Colorado River
A new experiment is looking into how drought conditions, like we’re currently in, can affect water traveling downstream the Colorado River. The pilot project involved shepherding water from a high mountain reservoir to the Colorado-Utah state line. The project is a partnership between Colorado Springs Utilities, Aurora Water and Pueblo Board of Water Works.
Vast New Reservoir in South Orange County Gets Its First Drops of Water
Right now, it’s just a huge hole in the hills off Ortega Highway in San Juan Capistrano. Really huge, as it’s designed to hold 1.6 billion gallons of water.
It’s still dry as dirt, but promises to be a central component of future water supplies for the 165,000 people served by the Santa Margarita Water District. While the district currently imports 100% of its drinking water from the Colorado River and northern California, the new Trampas Canyon Reservoir is part of a plan to generate 30% of potable water supplies locally and to recycle more wastewater.
Cal Am, Marina Open to Meeting on Desal Project ‘Solution’
California American Water and Marina city officials are in the process of setting up talks on the company’s desalination project after exchanging letters over the past several weeks. In a Sept. 25 letter, Cal Am president Rich Svindland reached out to Marina officials, proposing talks aimed at resolving differences over the company’s paused desalination project and suggested a series of “possible options that could be mutually beneficial for the city, Cal Am, and the region as a whole.”
What’s Green, Soggy and Fights Climate Change?
Protecting intact peatlands and restoring degraded ones are crucial steps if the world is to counter climate change, European researchers said Friday. In a study, they said peat bogs, wetlands that contain large amounts of carbon in the form of decaying vegetation that has built up over centuries, could help the world achieve climate goals like the limit of 2 degrees Celsius of postindustrial warming that is part of the 2015 Paris agreement.
Water Agencies Assist in Fighting Valley Fire
The Sweetwater Authority and the Otay Water District collaborated with multiple agencies during the recent Valley Fire in San Diego County. Water infrastructure played a key role in the firefighting effort.
Cooperation and collaboration are critical elements during wildfires. Both water agencies worked with multiple responders, including U.S. Forest Service firefighters, CALFIRE and SDG&E, to ensure the safety of crews and keep a safe, reliable water supply flowing for their customers.
