Water is hard to come by on the Rocky Boy’s Reservation, and it has been for a long time. The Chippewa Cree tribe members who live on this reservation in north-central Montana get most of their water from a thin underground aquifer that is insufficiently replenished by occasional rainfall, and they’ve been under some form of water restriction for several decades.
The Biden-Harris administration October 19 announced next steps in the formal process to develop future operating guidelines and strategies to protect the stability and sustainability of the Colorado River system and strengthen water security in the West. The guidelines under development would be implemented in 2027, replacing the 2007 Colorado River Interim Guidelines for Lower Basin Shortages and the Coordinated Operations for Lake Powell and Lake Mead, which are set to expire at the end of 2026.
The Southern Nevada Water Authority announced that the state will continue to collaborate with Arizona and California on a long-term sustainable plan for the stability of the Colorado River.
According to a media release, the Bureau of Reclamation is moving the process forward to develop new operating guidelines for the Colorado River that will be in effect after 2026. To that end, the Lower Colorado River Basin states— water users in Nevada, Arizona and California—are contributing record volumes of water to Lake Mead.
After a blistering summer of record heat, raging wildfires and unpredictable storms, federal scientists on Thursday said a warm, wet winter driven by El Niño is in store for California and much of the rest of the country.
The first winter outlook from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts that a strong El Niño will remain in place through at least the spring, with further strengthening possible over the next couple of months.
Engineers are busy studying the soil near the Salton Sea.
This is where they’re planning on transforming more than 150 acres into a modern nature habitat.
Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill 3 into law in October to expand due process protections for those unable to pay their bills and ensure access to safe sources of water.
Existing water protection laws, such as the Water Shutoff Protection Act of 2018, created a 60-day grace period to cover past debt as well as established a payment system for those served by water companies with 200 or more customers.
Thanks to a stormy winter and spring, Lake Shasta’s water level is almost a third higher than it usually is in mid-October.
The state’s largest reservoir at Shasta Dam, nine miles north of Redding, was 71% full on Monday, according to the California Department of Water Resources. That’s 130% of what the lake usually holds on that date, according to the state.
A new report released Thursday by the Bureau of Reclamation shows the wealth of public feedback officials received as they begin the process of developing new guidelines for the Colorado River, which provides water to about 40 million people in the U.S. Southwest.
Escondido City Council on Wednesday voted 4-1 to increase the water rate over the next five years.
City leaders say it was needed to keep the utility department financially stable.
While the earthquake that struck near Isleton Wednesday morning wasn’t strong, the location did raise questions about the possible risk to an area that is critical to the state’s water supply.
The Delta region in Sacramento County relies on more than 1,000 miles of aging levees to protect local farms and communities that could be vulnerable in a more powerful quake.
