Andrew Schwartz, manager of the Central Sierra Snow Laboratory for the University of California Berkeley, says researchers across the West are using outdated models and measurements to predict drought.
When the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California this week unveiled its strictest-ever water restrictions for about 6 million residents, it did so with an urgent goal in mind: a 35% reduction in water consumption, equating to an allocation of about 80 gallons per person per day.
Officials said that’s the number needed to conserve critical supplies for health and safety amid worsening drought — and to prevent a full outdoor watering ban as soon as September. Currently, the average potable water use across the MWD’s service area — including residential, commercial and industrial water use — amounts to 125 gallons per person per day.
Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing three actions to protect communities and the environment from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in our nation’s waters. The actions announced today advance progress under the Biden-Harris Administration’s Plan to Combat PFAS Pollution by improving methods to detect PFAS in water, reducing PFAS discharges into our nation’s waters, and protecting fish and aquatic ecosystems from PFAS. These efforts complement the historic investment of $10 billion to address PFAS and emerging contaminants secured under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Momentum is building for a unique interstate deal that aims to transform wastewater from Southern California homes and business into relief for the stressed Colorado River. The collaborative effort to add resiliency to a river suffering from overuse, drought and climate change is being shaped across state lines by some of the West’s largest water agencies.
Senators plan to roll out a draft water infrastructure bill today that will serve as a vehicle for bipartisan provisions that aim to protect the nation’s coasts against widespread, deadly flooding and storm surge tied to climate change. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is planning to release a draft 2022 Water Resources Development Act. Known as WRDA, the legislation has a long track record of passing both chambers and making its way to the president’s desk every two years. The bill provides a blueprint for how the Army Corps of Engineers conducts some of the nation’s largest and most ambitious flood control, navigation and ecosystem restoration initiatives.
County officials lifted a water contact closure for beaches from the south end of Seacoast Drive through Carnation Avenue in Imperial Beach, they said Saturday. Testing confirmed that water quality along the Imperial Beach shoreline meets state health standards following recent sewage contamination, according to the San Diego County Department of Environmental Health and Quality. The shoreline from the international border to the south end of Seacoast Drive, however, will remain closed. Sampling also must confirm that these areas are safe for water contact.
The Scripps Institution of Oceanography reported that dense phytoplankton blooms — popularly known as “red tides” — have become more visible throughout Southern California this week. Blooms have been spotted in La Jolla, Newport Beach, and Santa Barbara. Researchers with the cooperative Southern California Coastal Ocean Observing System are monitoring the blooms. In La Jolla, Scripps said the species Lingulodinium polyedravery is turning water dark red and producing bioluminescence at night. In Newport Beach, the Akashiwo sanguinea species is responsible for orange-red water that can be harmful to birds, fish, and shellfish.
Stormwater infrastructure in cities is highly visible and serves to mitigate flooding and reduce pollution that reaches local waterbodies. Being so visible, it might be reasonable to assume that stormwater is adequately funded both in infrastructure and water quality management. Yet, stormwater infrastructure and water quality improvement are notoriously difficult to fund. Paying for stormwater quality improvements in California has been a multi-decade challenge due to the industry’s relatively recent emergence during a time of fiscal constraints on local governments.
One day after approving a restriction that will limit outdoor watering to once a week for millions of Southern California residents and businesses, leaders of the region’s largest water wholesaler said Wednesday they needed to take unprecedented steps to respond to the record drought.
“The reality is, this drought has left us without the water supply we need to meet normal demands in these areas,” Adel Hagekhalil, general manager of the Los Angeles-based Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, said in a statement.
Justin Seidenfeld’s vineyard ran out of water last year. The area of Petaluma where his Parliament Hills Vineyard is located received just 4.5 inches of rain throughout 2021, not nearly enough sustenance for his vines of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
“We ended up trucking water in at a very, very high cost,” Seidenfeld said, “and even with that trucking, we had barely enough to get by.”
