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‘Godzilla’ El Niño is Dead

/in /by /The Washington Post by By Angela Fritz

Over the past few weeks, the equatorial Pacific has been cooling. The extreme tropical temperatures that broke records earlier this winter have waned, and El Niño, though still present, is a shadow of its former Godzilla self. It signals a possible shift to the Pacific’s other phase, La Niña.

The strength of El Niño is measured by how abnormally warm the ocean water is in the equatorial Pacific. El Niño can be classified as “very strong” if surface waters are running at least 2 degrees Celsius warmer than average for at least three months in a row.

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Federal Government to Probe State Spending on Delta Tunnels

/in /by /San Francisco Chronicle by By Carolyn Lochhead

The Interior Department’s inspector general has opened an investigation into possible funding irregularities involving the proposed delta tunnels, a $15 billion plan to dig giant twin pipes to siphon water directly from the Sacramento River and send it underground to farms and cities in the southern part of the state.

The decision, made public Monday, came after a nonprofit called Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility filed a complaint alleging that federal money intended to go for fish and wildlife was spent instead on planning for the tunnels.

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BLOG: Time to Manage Reservoirs Differently

/in /by /Water Deeply (New York)by By Matt Weiser

Some California reservoirs are releasing vast amounts of water even though the drought continues. This wouldn’t be necessary if water managers used new weather and streamflow forecasting tools, says Rob Hartman, hydrologist-in-charge of the California/Nevada River Forecast Center

It might be difficult to believe, but California’s water-supply reservoirs are not managed according to the weather. In the midst of the state’s ongoing drought, reservoirs in recent weeks have been releasing huge quantities of water, as seen recently at Folsom Reservoir on the American River near Sacramento.
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Sierra Nevada Snow Won’t End California’s Thirst

/in /by /The New York Times by By Henry Fountain

Thanks in part to El Niño, snowpack in the Sierra Nevada is greater than it has been in years. With the winter snowfall season winding down, California officials said that the pack peaked two weeks ago at 87 percent of the long-term average.

That’s far better than last year, when it was just 5 percent of normal and Gov. Jerry Brown announced restrictions on water use after four years of severe drought. But the drought is still far from over, especially in Southern California, where El Niño did not bring many major storms.

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Southern California Water District Buys Delta Land

/in /by /Associated Press (As Published by KPBS)

Southern California’s largest water district has signed a multimillion deal to buy several sprawling islands far north in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, drawing criticism for giving the powerful district a stronghold in the vital water hub, officials said Monday.

The deal worth $175 million will put the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California in ownership of 20,000 acres in the delta, a source of water for millions of residents throughout the state and some of the nation’s most valuable farmland.

 

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Rancho Santa Fe, Solana Beach Water District Seeks Input on Rate Hike

/in /by /Del Mar Times by By Karen Billing Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

The Santa Fe Irrigation District is going through its rate-setting process right now and an eight-page notice was recently sent out to all customers on what is being proposed and how they can participate in the process — including how to oppose the increases.

Santa Fe Irrigation District Manager Michael Bardin visited the Rancho Santa Fe Association board meeting on April 7 as the district continues its outreach process on the proposed raise in rates.

 

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Water Agency Finances Hit by Mandatory Conservation

/in /by /The San Diego Union-Tribune by By Bradley J. Fikes Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

This is the time of year when water utilities set their rates, which almost inevitably go up. But this year, the rate hikes are likely to be higher than usual, as water utilities cope with the unexpected impact of mandatory conservation on their budgets.

On April 12, Metropolitan’s board of directors is scheduled to vote on its prices for 2017 and 2018. These prices will be passed down to customers like the San Diego County Water Authority. In turn, the Water Authority sells to retail agencies that sell to the ultimate residential, business and agricultural customers.

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VIDEO: Crews free man after getting arm stuck in water pipe

/in /by /CBS 8 (San Diego)

Crews free man after getting arm stuck in water pipe.

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Crews Free Water District Worker With Hand, Arm Stuck in Line: SDFD

/in /by /NBC 7 (San Diego) by By Samantha Tatro

Crews briefly turned off the water supply for a line serving all of 4S Ranch to help rescue a worker who somehow got his arm and hand stuck inside the valve of a 48-inch water line.

The Metropolitan Water District worker had his arm stuck in the water release pipe for nearly two hours while crews worked to free him, San Diego Fire-Rescue (SDFD) Capt. Amador said.

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OPINION: Desalination Plant Lessens Local Impacts of State Emergency Regulation

/in /by /Seaside Courier (Encinitas)by By Mark Muir

Over the past several months, the San Diego County Water Authority joined with its member agencies and local civic and business groups to advocate for state policies that reflected local water supply investments and conditions. The proposed modifications were designed to achieve important statewide water management goals in a more equitable and sustainable manner, allow communities to receive the benefits of their investments in water supply reliability and minimize unnecessary impacts to ratepayers.

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