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California’s New Natural Resources Secretary Takes On Challenge Of Implementing Gov. Newsom’s Ambitious Water Agenda

/in , , /by /The Water Education Foundation by Gary Pitzer

One of California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s first actions after taking office was to appoint Wade Crowfoot as Natural Resources Agency secretary. Then, within weeks, the governor laid out an ambitious water agenda that Crowfoot, 45, is now charged with executing. That agenda includes the governor’s desire for a “fresh approach” on water, scaling back the conveyance plan in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and calling for more water recycling, expanded floodplains in the Central Valley and more groundwater recharge.

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Harder Unveils Bill Funding Valley Water Projects, Including Reservoir Near Patterson

/in , , /by /The Modesto Beeby Ken Carlson

Rep. Josh Harder, D Turlock, thinks there is a better way to find water solutions for California’s Central Valley and to stop squandering water in wet years that’s needed in dry years. His bipartisan water legislation unveiled Wednesday promises federal support for storage and innovation projects to address shortages that too often plague Valley agriculture and communities. Representatives from water districts, agriculture, local and state government and other groups joined the freshman congressman on the Tuolumne River bank in Modesto to announce the bill.

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45 Day Moratorium On Drilling Of Certain Oil Wells Passes

/in , , /by /Ventura County Starby Kathleen Wilson

County supervisors have outlawed drilling of certain new oil wells in the vicinity of a major aquifer for 45 days in light of water-safety questions. The decision Tuesday by the Ventura County Board of Supervisors came a couple of months after scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey reported that they had found petroleum-related gases in wells supplying irrigation water on the Oxnard Plain.The moratorium applies to the drilling of new wells and the re-drilling of existing ones near the Fox Canyon Aquifer, which is described as a major source of drinking quality groundwater.

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San Diego Ranks 6th Among Most Polluted Cities In US

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union Tribune by Lauryn Schroeder

Greater San Diego has the sixth worst ozone pollution in the country for the fifth year in a row, a report released Wednesday by the American Lung Association says. Local officials said it’s time to take action and protect the communities most affected.San Diego County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher and officials from the American Lung Association and local environmental groups held a press conference at Cesar Chavez Park in Barrio Logan to discuss the annual air quality report, which estimates more than 40 percent of Americans live with unhealthy air quality.

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Groundwater Policy Still Muddled Until Supreme Court Rules

/in , , /by /E&E Newsby Ellen M. Gilmer

A new EPA policy addressing pollution that moves through groundwater was intended to clarify the scope of the Clean Water Act but may serve to further complicate matters, at least in the near term.

Trump appointees released the memo last week, declaring that any pollutants that travel through groundwater before reaching a surface waterway are beyond the purview of the bedrock environmental law.

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Spring Cleaning: Ways To Keep San Diego’s Water System Clean

/in , , /by /NBC 7 San Diegoby Ashley Matthews

All water leads to a recycling center so even it’s going down the drain, there are some things San Diegans can do to ensure our region’s water is as clean as possible. Water is always in high demand in California, so it’s necessary to take care of it in any way possible. The San Diego County Sheriff’s Department says one easy thing to protect the county’s waterways is to avoid dumping perscription pills. Tossing prescription medication down the drain or toilet contaminates the water system, which can cause bigger problems when it drains back into the ocean and threatens the environment, SDSO said.

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California Has Farmers Growing Weeds. Why? To Capture Carbon

/in , , /by /KQED News (Sacramento)by Lauren Sommer

California’s climate change efforts can be spotted all over the Bay Area in the growing number of electric cars and solar panels. But now, California is enlisting people from a more conservative part of the state  even if they don’t think climate change is much of a concern. California’s farmers are receiving millions of dollars to pull carbon out of the atmosphere, something the state says is crucial for meeting its ambitious climate goals.

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Can Sensor Data Save California’s Aquifers?

/in , , /by /Futurityby Josie Garthwaite

In California, the amount of water exiting aquifers under the state’s most productive farming region far surpasses the amount of water trickling back in. That rampant overdraft has caused land across much of the region to sink like a squeezed out sponge, permanently depleting groundwater storage capacity and damaging infrastructure. The trend—and a 2014 mandate for sustainable groundwater management in the state—has ignited interest in replenishing aquifers in California’s Central Valley through managed flooding of the ground above them. But until now there has been no reliable way to know where this type of remedy will be most effective.

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Gov. Gavin Newsom Hits Back At Trump In New Fight Over Who Controls California Water

/in , , /by /The Sacramento Beeby Ryan Sabalow

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration is taking unprecedented steps to combat President Donald Trump’s efforts to ship more water to his agricultural allies in the San Joaquin Valley. Saying Trump’s water plans are scientifically indefensible and would violate the state’s Endangered Species Act, the state Department of Water Resources on Friday began drawing up new regulations governing how water is pumped from the Sacramento San Joaquin Delta to the southern half of the state.

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Climate Change And California’s Crops

/in , , /by /The Capital and Main (Los Angeles)by Larry Buhl

Last month the U.S. Drought Monitor declared California drought-free for the first time since 2011, thanks to a series of winter storms. But the long term prognosis is for more droughts and severe weather, which will profoundly affect state agriculture. While farmers and lawmakers are taking notice, few see an immediate threat. However, a 2018 report published by Agronomy, a peer-reviewed, open access scientific journal, laid out a stark future for California agriculture, predicting it will be vastly different by the end of the century.

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