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Property Owners Pressed As New SF Water Efficiency Standards Loom

/in /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Kurtis Alexander

At least a third of San Francisco’s commercial properties risk running afoul of city law requiring water-efficient toilets and faucets by the end of the year. A 2009 conservation ordinance, which established some of the state’s most aggressive building codes even before California’s historic drought began, would leave thousands of property owners on the hook for monthly fines if they don’t swap out their old plumbing fixtures soon. City officials estimate that 30 percent of San Francisco’s 160,000 commercial toilets do not meet efficiency standards that go into effect Jan. 1 — a maximum of 1.6 gallons of water per flush.

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OPINION: Building The Future Of Water And Energy In California

/in /by /Water Deeply (New York)by Joe Grindstaff

California is growing. Our population growth remains steady, as more people want to live and work here each year. And our economy continues to expand at a rate that would be the envy of many states in our nation, not to mention nations around the world. That growth comes with responsibilities, including the important task of ensuring the people of our state can continue to rely on the water and energy supplies and services that utilities in California provide. Water and energy utilities have long shared a symbiotic connection: the “Water-Energy Nexus.”

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Water and Wastewater Rates Approved, Farmers and Seniors Oppose Charges

/in /by /The Coast News Group (Encinitas)by Promise Yee Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Not to the surprise of residents, the City Council said yes to water and wastewater rate increases on Nov. 14. While another year of increases to pay for bought water, pass-through charges, city infrastructure and expansion of local water sources was expected, farmers and seniors asked the city to take another look at their rates. Farmers asked the city to reconsider water rates that make it difficult to maintain farms. They said they have done as much as they can to lower bought water use and use wells, and need a hand.

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San Marcos’ Looming Water Shortage Might Be a Mirage

/in /by /Voice of San Diegoby Ry Rivard Mentioned: Vallecitos Water District

The Vallecitos Water District, which provides water in and around San Marcos, told state regulators that demand for water will soon exceed its supplies. The state believes the district messed up the numbers by overestimating demand, but the report is threatening new development around San Marcos and worrying residents.

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VIDEO: ‘Dead Before the Fire Even Came Through’

/in /by /The New York Timesby Melissa Bosworth, Lakshmi Sarah, Kaitlyn Mullin and Maureen Towey

In parts of California, millions of drought-stressed trees have succumbed to disease and insects.

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Teen Develops Water-Saving Pods For Seeds

/in /by /Science News For Students (Washington, D.C.)by Bethany Brookshire

Times are dry in California, which is finishing its fifth consecutive year of drought. Cynthia Chen, 14, began to wonder what she could do to help. After doing a little background research, she found out that 80 percent of the water people use in California goes to farming. So Cynthia — now in ninth grade at the Harker School in San Jose, Calif. — decided to attack the problem by building a water-saving seed pod that keeps seeds moist until they sprout.

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In Water-Scarce Regions Desalination Plants Are Risky Investments

/in /by /Circle Of Blue (Traverse City, Mich.)by Keith Schneider Mentioned: Carlsbad Desalination

Earlier this year, during India’s deepest drought in decades, local authorities in central Maharashtra reported the highest rainfall deficit in the country. Water levels behind dams dropped so far that reservoirs had bathtub rings of dried sand and mud. Puddles lay at the bottom of seven dams in the region, including the Jayakwadi Dam in Aurangabad, one of Asia’s largest earthen dams.

 

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Rain Doesn’t Signal Wet Winter, But Does Reduce Wildfire Risk

/in /by /KPBSby Maureen Cavanaugh And Brooke Ruth

San Diego County may get more rain Saturday night or Sunday, a National Weather Service meteorologist said. Temperatures in the county on Thanksgiving could be in the mid- to upper 70s before cooling down over the weekend, meteorologist Alex Tardy said. Northern California will see rain over the holiday, in keeping with what has already been a wet fall. Tardy said the region is 100 to 120 percent above normal for rainfall since Oct. 1. That’s in contrast to Southern California, which is below average for rainfall nearly two months into the state’s sixth year of drought.

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3 Storms Sierra Bound; Thanksgiving Day Best For Travel

/in /by /The Sacramento Bee

A trio of storms on their way into the Sierra could make for hazardous travel off-and-on into the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, with several inches of snow expected around Lake Tahoe and a mix of snow and mostly rain in the Reno area. The first of the storms was expected to arrive Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. As much as 8 inches of snow is possible in the mountains above Lake Tahoe and up to 5 inches at lake level by Wednesday. Forecasters say Thanksgiving Day itself may be the best day for travel with sunny skies and mild conditions.

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California Rejects Measure That Threatened Water Tunnels Project

/in /by /The Sacramento Beeby Alexei Koseff

California voters have rejected Proposition 53, a November measure to limit the state’s use of revenue bonds to pay for large public works projects that could have undermined Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed twin water tunnels under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The ballot measure was trailing by more than 200,000 votes, or 49 percent to 51 percent, when The Associated Press called the race Tuesday night after two weeks of counting late-arriving mail and provisional ballots.

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