The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has posed an unprecedented threat to the global community, requiring quick action, responsible decision-making, and forward thinking. With nearly every community facing this global health emergency, the Olivenhain Municipal Water District has taken several proactive steps to protect customers, employees, and the water supply, according to a news release.
California has evacuation plans for earthquakes, floods, mudslides and, of course, wildfires, but what if one of those disasters occurs as the state is dealing with the coronavirus outbreak when everyone is being urged to stay home?
State and local officials are trying to figure that out.
“That’s something that is being looked at, but it’s challenging,” said California Office of Emergency Services’ spokesman Brian Ferguson.
Kim Zagaris, longtime fire and rescue chief for the emergency services agency, came out of retirement to help with planning during the virus crisis.
Because of recent heavy rainfall, the city of San Diego Saturday began releasing about 923 million gallons of water from Hodges Reservoir into the San Dieguito River, which may eventually lead to the ocean, city officials said.
The dam release began at about 11 a.m. Saturday and will continue for about seven days or until the reservoir elevation is near 295 feet, spokesperson José Ysea said.
For safety reasons, the California Division of Safety of Dams has determined that the water level at Hodges Reservoir should not exceed 295 feet, which is 20 feet below spillway elevation, Ysea said. This requires periodic water releases from Hodges Reservoir.
Many nature webcams in California are seeing record traffic and interest this past month, as people bracing against the coronavirus pandemic look for virtual escapes from the doldrums of life indoors.
San Diego has agreed to build seven new road medians in University City at an estimated cost of $1.2 million to settle two lawsuits that sought to block construction of the city’s Pure Water sewage recycling system.
More than three dozen atmospheric rivers made landfall on the West Coast from fall through early spring, but a lack of strong events in California led to the development of drought conditions in parts of the state.
An atmospheric river is a thin, but long plume of moisture in the atmosphere that stretches from the Pacific Ocean tropics or subtropics into higher latitudes. They provide a boost to the rain and snow totals produced by storm systems taking aim at the West Coast, mostly from late fall into early spring. Although these events can bring hazardous impacts, they are also beneficial since they help replenish the water supply in the West.
The Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes at Scripps Institution of Oceanography studies atmospheric rivers and other extreme weather. Graphic: CW3E Scripps/UC San Diego
Nearly three in four water and wastewater treatment plants are worried about running out of masks, gowns, and gloves to protect workers from the deadly coronavirus, according to a survey of utilities.
The survey, released late Tuesday, reveals that the same proportion of utilities are also concerned about being able to keep workers 6 feet apart at all times to prevent transmission of the virus that causes Covid-19.
The findings are a snapshot of the concerns a subset of the nation’s water and wastewater utilities shared with the nonprofit American Water Works Association, which conducted the survey March 25-30. Responses came from 532 utilities, and the margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points.
With the nation grappling to keep the coronavirus pandemic in check, clean and safe running water for washing hands and other cleaning has been deemed an essential service.
At Monday’s remote meeting of the Valley Center Municipal Water District board, directors approved an Emergency Powers Resolution, granting Gen. Mgr. Gary Arant Emergency Powers for a 120-day period during the current Coronavirus/Covid-19 (virus) Pandemic Event.
The resolution gives Arant the power the modify the ability of the public to access the district office at 29300 Valley Center Rd., “including closing the facility to all public access.”
Arant is also empowered to “Modify staff duties, work schedules, methods, and locations, including, but not limited to staff working remotely, sheltering at home and responding remotely, responding from on-call status remotely, re-assignment to different divisions and departments, requiring staff to work at different locations at district facilities, requiring staff to reasonably restrict movement and interaction with other staff members, assigned staff duties and responsibilities, and requiring staff to work out of class on a temporary basis.”
California’s decision to depart from federal regulations when managing its water supplies is causing strife across the water world.
The state recently got a new permit for water delivery operations from its wildlife agency. In the past, that kind of authority came from adhering to federal rules. Now, with a dispute between the state and federal government over water management and endangered species act protections, the state issued its own permit.
Critics of the state’s move say they plan to file lawsuits. Different detractors say the rules are too stringent, or too weak.
U.S. Drought Monitor data released Thursday show that less of California is abnormally dry, and more of the state is drought-free.
The improvement is mostly in Southern California and along the Central Coast, while data for Northern California show little change.
