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

Everything, Everywhere, All at Once: The Great Floods of 2023

/in , , /by /Bulletin of the Atomic Scientistsby Jessica McKenzie

Another week, another catastrophic, record-setting, history-making flood, this time in Kentucky.

Preliminary assessments indicate rainfall in Graves County last week likely set a new record for most precipitation in a 24-hour period, with 11.28 inches of rain. This would make it yet another “1,000-year” flood event, which had, according to historical projections, less than a 0.1 percent chance of occurring in any given year. One of the towns that experienced flash flooding was Mayfield, a community still rebuilding from a 2021 tornado that killed 57 people.

This was just one of the 11 flash flood emergencies in as many days in the United States, according to Weather Channel meteorologist Heather Zons. These events have claimed multiple lives: 2-year-old Mattie Shiels, 9-month-old brother, Conrad, and their mother, Katie Seley drowned after getting swept away by flash flooding in Pennsylvania, during an event that killed at least four others. In New York earlier this month, 43-year-old Pamela Nugent was swept away trying to evacuate a flooded area; 63-year-old Stephen Davoll drowned in his home in Vermont.

Full Story

How Much Snow Still Covers California’s Mountains This July?

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Abhinanda Bhattacharyya

In a typical year, California mountains are largely snow-free at this stage in the summer, with some exceptions at higher elevations. This, however, has not been a typical year. In the last couple of weeks of July, large swaths of the Sierra continued to be covered in snow, making for tricky and in some cases treacherous hiking conditions.

Full Story

Citizens Water Academy Returns for Summer 2023

/in , , /by

On June 27, the San Diego County Water Authority kicked off its first Citizens Water Academy since 2020, when COVID-19 forced a shutdown of the program. The academy offers attendees the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the Water Authority’s life-sustaining mission.

Participants learn firsthand about critical water issues affecting the region and go behind the scenes with water planners, managers, and engineers for an inside look at the water delivery system.

Full Story

Climate Change Leaves Fingerprints on July Heat Waves Around the Globe, Study Says

/in , , /by /APby Seth Borenstein

The fingerprints of climate change are all over the intense heat waves gripping the globe this month, a new study finds. Researchers say the deadly hot spells in the American Southwest and Southern Europe could not have happened without the continuing buildup of warming gases in the air.

Full Story

These Cities Coordinate to Save Water, a Model for Parched Western Areas

/in , , /by /Idaho Capital Sun by Matt Vasilogambros

There are no lush green lawns among the rows of single-family homes that line a quiet boulevard a mile west of the University of Arizona campus. Instead, small lizards scurry across gravel to the shade of cacti, shrubs and trees native to the Southwestern desert, as cicadas drone and backyard chickens cluck in the triple-digit heat now common here in July.

Full Story

AccuWeather’s 2023 US Fall Forecast

/in , , /by /AccuWeatherby Brian Lada

Widespread heat has shattered records from coast to coast throughout the first half of summer, but the longest days of 2023 are in the rearview mirror and cooler weather is on the horizon.

Full Story

Expensive Water Bill? Expert Gives Tips on Ways to Cut Your Home Use and Save Money

/in , , /by /ABC7 by John Gregory

Water bills can be a big expense for many people, so we spoke with a water efficiency expert about ways to cut down on your water use in every part of your home.

Krista Guerrero with the Metropolitan Water District says the first thing you should do is to check for leaks in your home.

Leaks can be a major drain on your bank account and officials say the first place to look is inside your bathroom. Guerrero said the top water-wasting culprit is your toilet but there’s a simple way to check for a leak.

Full Story

State Pays Valley Farmers Millions to Keep Water in the Ground

/in , , /by /SJV Waterby Jesse Vad

The state is sending millions to farmers throughout the San Joaquin Valley to keep water in the ground.

The money, paid through the LandFlex program, goes to groundwater sustainability agencies (GSAs) and then directly to farmers, paying them for every acre foot they don’t pump.

Full Story

Free Landscape Workshops Convenient for Vallecitos Customers

/in , , /by /Water News Network Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

In partnership with the San Diego County Water Authority, the Vallecitos Water District offers a series of five WaterSmart landscape design workshops in August and September to help its customers redesign and install new water-saving, sustainable landscapes at a convenient North County location.

Full Story

Unusually Hot August Predicted for US West

/in , , /by /Courthouse News Serviceby Natalie Hanson

Although the West is still enjoying the effects of an exceptionally wet winter, climate experts say that extreme heat waves will continue chipping away at the benefits. Just 9.5% of California and Nevada remained in drought on July 20, compared to 99% at the beginning of the water year in October 2022. Drought conditions persist in areas that did not receive this past winter’s deluge, including parts of southeastern California and southern Nevada.

Full Story