Saying desalination will guarantee the drinking water supply for future generations of Baja California residents, Gov. Francisco Vega de Lamadrid on Friday celebrated a groundbreaking ceremony for a desalination plant envisioned as the largest in the Western Hemisphere.
A series of supercharged storms that blasted the Sierra in March has bolstered the snowpack that was alarmingly low before the start of the month. The National Weather Service (NWS) in Sacramento tweeted Saturday that the water content of the snowpack has more than tripled in the past month. On Feb. 22, an average of 4.6 inches was measured and on March 23 an average of 15.5 inches was recorded, going from 16 percent to 56 percent of the April 1 average.
The Trump administration is pushing for a $1.3 billion expansion of the 602-foot Shasta Dam in Northern California even though state officials are dead set against it, according to the Los Angeles Times. Plans include a vertical expansion the equivalent of two stories, although California state law prohibits an increase to the dam’s current height. The dam is on federal land, but similar projects in the past have deferred to state law in the permitting and construction processes.
The San Diego County Water Authority is planning to co-sponsor a nationwide contest to advance leak- and corrosion-detection technologies for large-diameter pipelines. The competition runs through May 8 and includes a $75,000 prize provided by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The Water Authority is helping to design the competition and providing judges to identify new approaches to detecting problems with pipelines. Corrosion and leaks result in billions of gallons of wasted water annually, the authority said.
The State Water Board is updating the water quality plan for the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. This plan sets flow and water quality standards for the Delta and its watershed, affecting water supply to more than 25 million Californians and millions of acres of Central Valley farmland. Parties that would be affected by this plan – water suppliers, fish and wildlife managers, environmental nonprofits – are negotiating voluntary agreements to present to the board for consideration.
Every brief rain brings hope that California is not slipping back into drought. And local water officials assure us that we have enough water to get us through the year, even if the drought resumes. They point to state and local reservoirs filled to their historic averages or more, a deal to access water from the Imperial Valley and added supply from a new desalination plant in Carlsbad.
A powerful storm moved into Southern California on Wednesday, drenching fire-ravaged neighborhoods and setting several new rainfall records for the day but so far not causing the damage and destruction that some officials feared. The storm marked a direct hit by an “atmospheric river” system but has proved to be less powerful than forecasters initially predicted. Still, they warned that the heaviest downpour is yet to come on Thursday and urged residents to stay vigilant.
The San Diego County Water Authority Board of Directors voted Thursday to endorse Proposition 68, a $4 billion state bond measure on the June 5 ballot for parks, natural resources protection, climate adaptation, water quality and supply and flood protection. Approval of the measure would mean $12 million for the San Diego River Conservancy and $200 million to Salton Sea restoration activities. “Robust Salton Sea funding in this bond measure is significant for San Diego County because it supports agreements that generate substantial water supplies for our region,” said Mark Muir, chair of the water authority’s board.
Last year’s deluge of water was significant enough in Southern California to end a six-year drought in the region, but not enough to keep the drought at bay this year. The U.S. Drought monitor finds most of San Diego County is experiencing moderate drought conditions with much of the region in the Los Angeles basin experiencing severe drought conditions. The KPBS Drought Tracker follows rainfall and snowpack conditions, with the help of Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and both indicators are significantly below where they should be for this time of year.
A fierce atmospheric river blasted the northern and central Sierra overnight, dumping several feet of snow to elevations above 8,000 feet and bringing a slushy mix of rain and snow to lower elevations. On State Route 88 over the Carson Spur, Caltrans snow ploughs faced drifts that rose well above the top of their trucks. As of 11:30 a.m., the road still wasn’t clear. In the mountains, ski resorts shuttered lifts due to the high volume of snow. Squaw Valley and Alpine Ski resorts ceased operations at 3 p.m. due to high avalanche conditions.
