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Opinion: Climate Change Will Undermine Quest by Fallbrook and Rainbow for Cheaper Water

/in , , /by /Water News Network / Times of San Diegoby Chris Jennewein Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

The long-running debate over whether the Fallbrook and Rainbow communities should leave the San Diego County Water Authority to obtain cheaper rates ignores a very large elephant in the room — climate change.

If the two rural communities cast their lot with Riverside County, their agricultural economy will depend upon the Colorado River and the State Water Project, both of which have been reeling from increasingly severe droughts.

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Opinion: Lawyers, Votes and Money: New Developments in San Diego’s Water Wars

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Michael Smolens Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Legislation that could block two small districts from getting cheaper water elsewhere hit a bump in the road in Sacramento.

And a controversial hire by a water district that supplies San Diego County with water is being eyed warily by some officials.

First, the good news. The massive snowpack from the winter storms has nourished the ailing Colorado River, a major source of water for San Diego and much of the Southwest.

The bounty is such that the federal government has eased water cuts in various states. (Those reductions didn’t affect San Diego, which over the years built adequate supplies through water purchases, infrastructure projects and recycling programs — at considerable cost.)

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Heavy Rain, Gusty Wind Seen as Tropical Storm Hilary Moves Out of San Diego

/in , , /by /Times of San Diegoby Chris Jennewein

A diminished Tropical Storm Hilary moved out of the San Diego Sunday night as gusty winds and bands of heavy rain continued to drench the region. “Tropical Storm Hilary will continue to move north across Southern California tonight. Strong and gusty winds will continue mainly across the mountains and foothills. Widespread moderate to heavy rainfall will continue through much of tonight,” the San Diego office of the National Weather Service said in its 9:30 p.m. forecast update.

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How Climate Change Shaped California’s First Tropical Storm in Decades

/in , , /by /E&E Newsby Chelsea Harvey

Tropical Storm Hilary made history Thursday, becoming the first storm of its kind to enter California since 1997. The state rarely sees landfalling tropical cyclones or hurricanes, thanks to a confluence of cold water and unfavorable atmospheric conditions off the coast. Experts say the occurrence will likely remain relatively rare even as the climate changes. But rising ocean temperatures mean the hurricanes that do happen to make it up the coast may be stronger and more damaging.

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Water Released From El Capitan Reservoir in Lakeside as Precaution

/in , , /by /East County Magazineby Miriam Raftery

The City of San Diego has announced that today it has begun releasing water from El Capitan Reservoir in Lakeside, in anticipation of a potential spill due to Tropical Storm Hilary. Flowing water will be visible downstream from the dam in El Monte Valley and beyond. The notice is posted on the city’s webpage for El Capitan Reservoir.

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Storm Hilary Slams Southwest US with Heavy Rain

/in , /by /Reutersby Daniel Trotta

Parts of Southern California and the U.S. Southwest on Monday faced the threat of flash flooding along with landslides and mudslides after storm Hilary unleashed record-breaking downpours overnight. Some 17 million Americans were under flood and high-wind advisories, watches and warnings as remnants of the storm moved north, dumping heavy rains from the California-Mexico border up through Las Vegas and into parts of the Northwest, the National Weather Service said.

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Marin Water Utility Set to Begin Studies of New Supply Options

/in , /by /Marin Independent Journalby Will Houston

The Marin Municipal Water District is preparing to launch more in-depth studies of new water supply projects, beginning with assembling consulting teams. The district board is set to vote on contracts with new consulting teams next month to begin preliminary technical, environmental and engineering studies of larger, more complex projects. The projects include expanding local reservoir storage, constructing a brackish Petaluma River desalination plant and installing new pipelines to transfer Russian River water directly into local reservoirs.

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Opinion: Climate Change Will Undermine Quest by Fallbrook and Rainbow for Cheaper Water

/in , /by /Times of San Diego by Chris Jennewein Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

The long-running debate over whether the Fallbrook and Rainbow communities should leave the San Diego County Water Authority to obtain cheaper rates ignores a very large elephant in the room — climate change.

If the two rural communities cast their lot with Riverside County, their agricultural economy will depend upon the Colorado River and the State Water Project, both of which have been reeling from increasingly severe droughts.

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Hurricane Hilary Barrels Toward Southern California, Bringing Unprecedented Dangers

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Grace Toohey, Hayley Smith, Rong-Gong Lin II, Connor Sheets and Jeremy Childs

With Hurricane Hilary fast bearing down on the region, officials issued a tropical storm warning for a swath of Southern California Friday night — meaning tropical storm-force winds are expected in the region within the next 36 hours.

Southern California was already bracing for a rare and potentially destructive weekend. Such lashing winds would be only one of the storm’s potentially dangerous impacts, with forecasters also predicting intense rain, flash flooding in the desert and mountain areas and harrowing conditions along the beaches.

The storm has prompted officials to cancel events and issue dire alerts, particularly as the system moves across southwestern California on Sunday and Monday.

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Loveland Reservoir Expected to Spill Early Next Week Due to Tropical Storm, Flooding in Area Likely

/in , , /by /Sweetwater Authority

Chula Vista, Calif. – Due to expected heavy rainfall from tropical storm Hilary, Sweetwater Authority expects unplanned water releases, or spills, from Loveland Reservoir in Alpine, California may occur early next week. These potential unplanned water releases, together with expected abundant storm runoff, could cause flooding in areas downstream. Residents in the Sweetwater River flood-plain asked to prepare in order to reduce possibility of damage to property.

(Editor’s note: The Sweetwater Authority is one of the San Diego County Water Authority’s 24 member agencies that deliver water across the San Diego County region.) 

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