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City Will Remain in a “Stage 2 Water Shortage Level” Despite Recent Wet Winter

/in , , /by /Santa Monica Daily Pressby Scott Snowden

Council voted unanimously to continue the 20 percent reduction in water use per the 2020 Water Shortage Contingency Plan last week despite an abnormally wet winter that pulled much of the state out of drought. The decision was part of the Annual Water Shortage Assessment Report that is due each year by July 1 to the California Department of Water Resources and also requires formal adoption by Santa Monica City Council.

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Lake Mead Water Levels Expected To Reach 1,060 Feet End of July With Snowpack, Report Shows

/in , , /by /KTNVby Joe Moeller

As the temperatures warm up across the West, all eyes remain on the water levels at lakes Powell and Mead. Experts say there is still plenty of snowpack to add to the Colorado River as well. Even on a windy Monday, people still want to visit Lake Mead.

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Water Authority General Manager Sandra Kerl Celebrated for 40 Year Public Service Career

/in , , /by /Water News Network Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

California Senate President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins June 16 recognized the accomplishments of San Diego County Water Authority General Manager Sandra L. Kerl, who is retiring later this month after a 41-year career in public service.

During a ceremony at the Water Authority’s Kearny Mesa headquarters, Atkins presented Kerl with a framed plaque of the resolution on behalf of the entire San Diego County delegation in the state Legislature. The resolution honors Kerl’s long career, highlighting many of her accomplishments, including her work the past 14 years at the Water Authority.

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Landscape Optimization Service Simplifies El Norte Park Homes Makeover

/in , , /by /Water News Network Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

While San Diego County residents continue to embrace low-water use landscapes taking advantage of rebates to swap grass for native and drought-tolerant plants. There are also incentives for areas with larger landscapes to increase water use efficiency.

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Lakes Powell, Mead Levels Rise as Government Plans Future Water Rules

/in , , /by /8 News Nowby Duncan Phenix

A year after Lake Mead dropped to a historic low, the U.S. government’s Department of Interior and Bureau of Reclamation have announced the beginning of the process to develop a new plan to deal with the changing water levels in reservoirs along the Colorado River. To do this it is setting up three public input meetings online where people can voice ideas and concerns.

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Opinion: California’s Regulated Water Utilities Work Constantly to Provide Safe, Clean Water

/in , , /by /Desert Newsby Jennifer Capitolo

Water is a precious resource, essential to life and requires our utmost care. As drought, climate change, wildfires and other natural disasters become more impactful, it is more important than ever that we are meeting our everyday and emergency water needs.

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This is Why Your Strawberries Were So Meh This Season Until Now

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Helen Li

You can blame California’s wild winter for all sorts of havoc this spring and summer: moldy, leaking roofs, plagues of mosquitoes, cabin fever.

Giant, less-flavorful strawberries also deserve a spot on that list.

California produces 90% of the nation’s strawberries, which typically enjoy a growing season that starts as early as January and lasts until July. Peak season usually begins in March.

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How Did San Diego’s Sewage-Blasted Shorelines Evade the List of Dirtiest Beaches in California?

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Joshua Emerson Smith

Heal the Bay released its 33rd annual beach report card this week, including a list of the dirtiest shorelines in California.

Glaringly absent were the ocean waters off San Diego’s southern coast, from Coronado down to Imperial Beach. Residents there have endured a record number of swimming restrictions over the last 18 months as massive amounts of sewage continue to spill over the border from Tijuana.

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This Year’s Snow Season Wipes Away Drought in Much of the West

/in , , /by /Water News Networkby NOAA/NIDIS (National Integrated Drought Information System)

The 2022–2023 snow season started off relatively active across the West, with a few modest storms bringing snow accumulations to the mountains in early November. By the start of December, snow water equivalent across much of the region was above normal.

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Feds Announce Start of Public Process to Reshape Key Rules on Colorado River Water Use by 2027

/in , , /by /APby Ken Ritter

A public process started Thursday to reshape the way Colorado River water is distributed, with federal officials promising to collect comments about updating and enacting rules in 2027 to continue providing hydropower, drinking water and irrigation to farms, cities and tribes in seven Western U.S. states and Mexico.

The U.S. Interior Department said it will publish in the Federal Register on Friday a call for replacing guidelines that expire in 2026, including pacts enacted in 2007 for states to share cutbacks in water drawn from a river diminished by drought and climate change, as well as operating plans for the key Lake Powell and Lake Mead reservoirs. An agreement between the United States and Mexico on use of Colorado River water also is set to expire at that time.

The department’s U.S. Bureau of Reclamation promised a “robust and transparent public process” beginning with online virtual public meetings July 17, July 18 and July 24. It set an Aug. 15 deadline for receipt of public comments on “specific operational guidelines, strategies and any other issues that should be considered.”

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