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Trading Water: Can Water Shares Help Save California’s Aquifers?

/in , , /by /Reutersby Carey L. Biron

California is by far the United States’ most populous state, as well as its largest agricultural producer. Increasingly, it is also one of the country’s most parched places.

But Edgar Terry, a fourth-generation farmer in Ventura County, just outside Los Angeles, thinks he has a key to reversing worsening water stress: establishing tradeable rights to shares of fast-depleting groundwater aquifers.

Doing so would turn aquifer water into a more valuable asset that could be traded on a market, similar to “cap-and-trade” systems that have been set up to regulate air pollution, conserve fisheries and manage other such common resources.

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Water In The Bank: Coalition Of Agencies Develops ‘Historic’ Sustainable Groundwater Plan

/in , , /by /Recordnet.com by Joe Goldeen

There’s progress to report in the momentous task of ensuring that San Joaquin County and surrounding communities have enough water to meet anticipated needs for the next 20 years.

Earlier this month, the Eastern San Joaquin Groundwater Authority — or ESJGWA, comprised of 16 area agencies including cities, counties and water districts — recommended that each of its member agencies adopt a mutually agreed upon Groundwater Sustainability Plan by Jan. 8.

 

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Conservation Groups Sue Feds Over California Water Projects Opinion

/in , , /by /Courthouse News Service by Carson McCullough

Several fishing and conservation organizations brought a federal complaint Monday over the harm they expect to befall an already threatened species of fish from the Trump administration’s efforts to set new rules for the operation of major California water projects.

Led by the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, the groups claim that the government’s biological assessments of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project were politically motivated and failed to consider proper environmental protection standards. They filed their suit in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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Storm Runoff Blames For Railroad Track Washouts On Fragile Del Mar Bluff

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribune by Phil Diehl

A second spot may need repairs after an unusually wet Thanksgiving Day storm closed the railroad tracks at Del Mar for work over the weekend, transit district officials said Monday.

The “area of concern” is less than a block away from the spot fixed Saturday, North County Transit District Executive Director Matt Tucker said Monday in an email to the district’s board of directors.

The additional job needs an engineering design plan before the work is done, and it may wait until January to be included in the next phase of the district’s ongoing bluff stabilization work, Tucker said.

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First State Water Project Allocation at 10% for the 2020 Calendar Year, California Department of Water Resources Announces

/in , , /by /Sierra Sun Times

SACRAMENTO, Calif. –  On Monday, the California Department of Water Resources announced an initial State Water Project allocation of 10 percent for the 2020 calendar year.

The initial allocation is based on several factors, such as conservative dry hydrology, reservoir storage, and releases necessary to meet water supply and environmental demands. State allocations are based on conservative assumptions and may change depending on rain and snow received this winter.

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‘The Storm Door is Open,’ Bay Area Weather Officials Warn

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Alejandro Serrano

On-and-off rain for the better part of a week is expected to continue Tuesday and Wednesday in the Bay Area, but a larger storm will likely swamp the region starting Thursday, officials said.

A weather system from the Northwest and coast is expected to bring rain to areas that have not been affected as much by the recent storm, such as San Jose and Redwood City, according to the National Weather Service.

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Fresno Ties Rain Record, Merced Hit Even Harder – and More Wet Weather is on the Way

/in , , /by /Fresno Beeby Abbie Lauten-Scrivner

Fresno tied an almost 70-year-old single-day rainfall record Sunday — while areas north of the city like Merced were hit even harder, according to the National Weather Service.

Sunday’s rainfall in Fresno exactly matched the Dec. 1, 1952, high of .78 inches of rain.

“They tied it to the hundredth,” said Jim Dudley, a NWS meteorologist. “Right on the nose.”

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New Agricultural Water Rate Program Benefits San Diego County Growers

/in , , /by /Water News Network

The San Diego County Water Authority Board of Directors Nov. 21 approved a new and permanent Special Agricultural Water Rate program structure that offers lower water rates to farmers in exchange for lower water supply reliability.

Unlike the current temporary program, the structure of the new water rate program will let new participants join as a way to strengthen the region’s multi-billion-dollar agriculture industry.

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Colorado Rethinks Dam Safety as Climate Change Heightens Risk for State’s 27 “Unsatisfactory” Structures

/in , , /by /The Fort Morgan Times (Fort Morgan, Colo.)by Bruce Finley

A climate-driven shift toward extreme storms has compelled Colorado officials to rethink the safety of hundreds of dams across the state that hold water and mine waste, including 27 high-hazard structures near people that already are listed as deficient.

They’re trying to calculate the potential for sudden hard rain resulting in flooding and accelerated erosion that could trigger fatal collapses.

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What is an Atmospheric River and Why Should Southern Californians Keep Their Umbrellas Handy?

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Paul Duginski

A new storm fed by the first atmospheric river of the season is expected bring rain to Northern and Central California beginning Saturday, and cause significant travel delays and hazards for Thanksgiving travelers returning home on Sunday, the National Weather Service said.

Based on predictions of its water vapor transport capacity, this atmospheric river is classified as moderate to strong.

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