You are now in Home Headline Media Coverage San Diego County category.

Here’s How Pine Needles From Torrey Pines State Reserve Could Solve the Water Crisis

/in , , /by /CBS8by Tim Blodgett

Emily Tianshi has loved coming to Torrey Pines State Preserve since she was young.

The beach and preserve is one of the very few places where its namesake grows. As a curious middle schooler with an interest in biology, she became fascinated with the rarely studied tree.

“Because the pine is so rare, nobody had studied its mechanisms before,” she says. “I would observe that the Torrey Pine needles are able to condense water from the marine layer that comes through the State Park and use that to water itself in the midst of drought.”

Full Story

La Niña Likely to Continue, Intensifying Drought, Wildfires; Snowpack Hits 91% of Average

/in , /by /Water Education Coloradoby Jerd Smith

As warm spring winds whip the Eastern Plains, sapping soils of moisture, and the state’s reservoirs sit at below-average levels, water managers got more bad news Tuesday: this two-year drought cycle could continue through the summer and into the fall leading the state into its third year of below-average snowpack and streamflows and high wildfire danger.

Looking ahead the weather pattern known as La Niña, which has created the intense drought of the past two years, is likely to continue, according to Peter Goble, a climate specialist with Colorado State University’s Colorado Climate Center.

Full Story

Vallecitos Board Declares Level 2 Drought Alert

/in , , /by /The Coast News Groupby Jean Gillette

To comply with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s executive order N-7-22, the Vallecitos Water District Board of Directors voted to move to a Level 2 Drought Alert April 21. The new drought level will prompt mandatory water-use restrictions for all Vallecitos customers starting April 21 and into the foreseeable future.

Full Story

Manchester Avenue Potable Water Pipeline Replacement Project Completed

/in , , /by /Water News Network

The Olivenhain Municipal Water District recently completed the Manchester Avenue Potable Water Pipeline Project. In total, 3,700 linear feet of aged potable water pipeline was replaced along Manchester Avenue, Rancho Santa Fe Road and Encinitas Boulevard.

The pipelines previously serving water in this area were installed in 1961 and were approaching the end of their lifespan. OMWD takes a proactive approach in repairing and replacing aging water infrastructure to avoid leaks and ensure the continuation of uninterrupted water service to its customers. In the third year of drought in California, projects like this pipeline replacement, help save potable water and reduces costs to ratepayers.

“Emergency leaks are very costly, can waste millions of gallons of water, and can be disruptive to surrounding communities,” said Bob Topolovac, OMWD board director. “The investments we made to prevent these emergencies will benefit our ratepayers well into the future.”

Full Story

Gov. Cox Issues State of Emergency Due to Drought

/in , , /by /KUTVby Matthew Jacobson,

Gov. Spencer Cox issued a drought state of emergency effective immediately.

The governor made the announcement at his monthly press conference.

“We’ve had a very volatile water year, and unfortunately, recent spring storms are not enough to make up the shortage in our snowpack,” Cox said in a media release. “Once again, I call on all Utahns – households, farmers, businesses, governments and other groups – to carefully consider their needs and reduce their water use. We saved billions of gallons last year and we can do it again.”

Full Story

500,000 Acre-Feet of Water Will Be Released From Flaming Gorge Reservoir in Wyoming to Protect Lake Powell

/in , , /by /The Colorado Sunby Chris Outcalt

Flaming Gorge reservoir in Wyoming will release 500,000 acre-feet of water under a new Drought Operations Plan to help prop up dangerously low water levels at Lake Powell.

The plan, approved Thursday by the Upper Colorado River Commission, does not call for any water to be released from Blue Mesa west of Gunnison, but also does not rule out the possibility of that being an option in the future.

Full Story

California Hikes Costs for Flood Protections in Farm Country

/in , , /by /ABC Newsby Michael Phillis

Climate change is worsening the already significant threat of flooding in California’s farm country, and state officials said Thursday that as much as $30 billion may be needed over three decades to protect the region, an increase from five years ago.

Every five years, flood protection plans are updated for the Central Valley, where about 1.3 million people live at risk in floodplains. State officials released a draft of the latest update that calls for investing in levees, maintenance and multi-benefit projects that recharge aquifers and support wildlife while enhancing flood protection.

Full Story

Can You Solve Drought by Piping Water Across the Country?

/in , /by /The New York Timesby Christopher Flavelle

The idea of taking water from one community and giving it to another has some basis in American history. In 1913, Los Angeles opened an aqueduct to carry water from Owens Valley, 230 miles north of the city, to sustain its growth.

But the project, in addition to costing some $23 million at the time, greatly upset Owens Valley residents, who so resented losing their water that they took to dynamiting the aqueduct. Repeatedly.

Full Story

Drought Boon or Boondoggle? Critics Blast Poseidon Desalination Plan as Crucial Vote Looms

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Ian James Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Among the many complex arguments over water in California, one particularly heated debate centers on whether the state should seek more drinking water from a plentiful but expensive source: the Pacific Ocean.

The debate has reached a critical stage in Huntington Beach, where Poseidon Water has been trying for more than two decades to build one of the country’s largest desalination plants. The California Coastal Commission is scheduled to vote next month on whether to grant a permit to build the plant.

Full Story

Spring Valley HOA and Watershed Benefit From Landscape Optimization Service

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

Conserving water and reducing pollution are two of many benefits from a new program in San Diego County.

Through a partnership between the County of San Diego’s Watershed Protection Program and the San Diego County Water Authority, residences and businesses in unincorporated areas of the county became eligible for newly enhanced water-use efficiency rebates in 2021. The Waterscape Rebate Program saves money for residential, commercial, and agricultural customers who make landscape upgrades to improve the region’s climate resilience and reduce the flow of pollutants into waterways.

The new concierge-style assistance program helped members of a Spring Valley homeowners association benefit from available incentives and rebates. As a result, residents saved money on landscape upgrades while reducing the flow of pollution into waterways and conserving water.

Full Story