You are now in California and the U.S. Home Headline Media Coverage category.

Drought and the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, 2012–2016: Environmental Review and Lessons

/in , , /by /California Water Blog (UC Davis Water Sciences)by Jay Lund

Droughts are common in California. The drought of 2012-2016 had no less precipitation and was no longer than previous historical droughts (Figure 1), but came with record high temperatures (Figure 2) and low snowpack (Figure 3), which worsened many drought impacts. Water supplies for agriculture and urban users statewide struggled to meet water demands. Conservation and rationing, increased groundwater pumping and a diversified economy helped keep California’s economy robust in most sectors. The drought degraded environmental conditions in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta as the region became saltier and warmer, invasive weeds spread, and iconic fishes like salmon and Delta smelt had strong declines.

Full Story

Glen Canyon Dam May Release More Water to Cope with COVID Electricity Needs

/in , , /by /Arizona Republicby Erin Stone

Summer energy demands driven higher as the COVID-19 pandemic keeps more people at home could lead to more water flowing from Glen Canyon Dam into the Colorado River.

Full Story

$5 Million in Federal Funding Granted for City’s Desalter

/in , , /by /Camarillo Acornby Brooke Stanley

Progress continues on the city’s $66.3-million North Pleasant Valley Groundwater Desalter Facility, which has received nearly $5 million in federal funding.

The grant from the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation will be used for the desalter plant that will treat brackish groundwater from the nearby Pleasant Valley Groundwater Basin. The filtered water will account for 40% of the city’s overall water supply once the facility is finished. It will help Camarillo wean itself from the more expensive imported water it has relied on since its incorporation in 1964.
Full Story

Questions Over Water Official Who Took Money from Interests Pushing Desal She’s Voting On

/in , , /by /Voice of OCby Brandon Pho

Regional water board member Kris Murray is on track later this week to vote on a controversial desalination plant sponsored by a company and interest groups she took money from during past political campaigns.

State regulators have identified more than $6,000 in campaign contributions that Murray fundraised for her Anaheim city council campaigns in 2014 and 2015 and county supervisorial in 2018 from the project’s parent company, Poseidon Water, and two trade unions who voiced support for the project in recent years.

Full Story

Public Protest, Questions Push Water Board Decision on Huntington Beach Desal Permit to Aug. 7

/in , , /by /Voice of OCby Brandon Pho

Amidst public protests and outstanding questions from regional water officials — about what kind of deal they’re getting into on a controversial desalination plant for Huntington Beach — a final decision on the project has been pushed to next week, Aug. 7.

The Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board on Friday held a second day of public hearings before board members vote on the project proposal’s wastewater discharge permit.

If the permit is approved, Poseidon Water, the company proposing the desal plant, would clear a major hurdle after two-decades of pushing it near the final stretch to getting it completely authorized for construction.

The last step for the company would be to get another permit approved by the state Coastal Commission.

Full Story

Lake Poway Water Level Temporarily Reduced for Maintenance

/in , , /by /Water News Network

Lake Poway’s water level is lower today, but it isn’t due to the current heatwave. The lake is being temporarily reduced to complete a planned maintenance project to replace a transducer.

Lake Poway serves as the City of Poway’s main water storage reservoir, with a capacity to hold more than one billion gallons of water. A transducer measures the lake’s water level and remotely sends data to the city.

 

Full Story

Water Agencies Warn of Threatening Calls by Scam Artists

/in , , /by /Fallbrook Village Newsby San Diego County Water Authority

Water agency customers in several San Diego County communities have received scam phone calls this week demanding immediate payment of water bills by credit card or their water will be turned off.

Don’t be fooled. Hang up.

Full Story

OPINION: Gavin Newsom’s Plan for California Water is a Good One. Stay the Course

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby The Times Editorial Board

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s new blueprint for California water policy offers a stay-the-course agenda for projects and policies intended to help cope with a warming climate and more volatile weather patterns that already are affecting the state’s irrigation, environmental and drinking water supplies. There are no moonshots and few surprises, and that’s fine; it will be challenging enough to ensure that all Californians are hooked up to safe and reliable water supplies to meet their needs for the coming decade and beyond.

Full Story

November, March Shutdowns Set in CWA’s 2020-2021 Aqueduct Operating Plan

/in , , /by /Fallbrook Village Newsby Joe Naiman Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

The San Diego County Water Authority has an annual Aqueduct Operating Plan, and the SDCWA’s 2020-2021 plan was presented at the Thursday, July 23, CWA board meeting as a non-voting item. The 2020-2021 plan includes shutdowns due to planned maintenance, and Fallbrook Public Utility District and Rainbow Municipal Water District turnouts will be impacted by a November shutdown to Pipelines 1 and 2 and a March 2021 shutdown to Pipeline 5.

Full Story

Olivenhain MWD Continues to Expand Recycled Water Use

/in , , /by /California Water News Daily

Earlier this month Olivenhain Municipal Water District announced they began supplying locally produced recycled water to the Seagate Village Homeowner Association in Encinitas.

The project is a collaboration between OMWD and San Elijo Joint Powers Authority since 2014 to bring recycled water to the Village Park neighborhood. San Elijo Water Campus, located in Cardiff-by-the-Sea, uses a combination of sand filtration, microfiltration, and reverse osmosis to produce high-quality water for irrigation and industrial uses.

Full Story