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Gov. Newsom to Ask Legislature for $750m as State Looks to Conserve Water

/in , , /by /Action News Nowby Jafet Serrato and Brandon Downs

During Gov. Gavin Newsom’s visit to Butte County on Tuesday, Newsom said he will ask the legislature for $750 million to help with drought conditions.

At the Hyatt Powerplant at Lake Oroville, which shut down last year due to record low lake levels, Newsom spoke about how the state needs a different approach to water conservation.

Newsom already invested $5.2 billion in the past three years for water security for all Californians.

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Marine Heat Wave Currently Forming Off California Coast, Federal Forecasters Say

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Tara Duggan

Federal scientists have created a new tool for forecasting marine heat waves, and they say one is currently forming in the North Pacific Ocean not far from the California coast.

The marine heat wave currently predicted to linger into fall is not expected to have the impact of “the blob” — the name for a period of high seawater temperatures that persisted along the West Coast from 2014 to 2016. But scientists say their new prediction models will help forecast similar extreme ocean warming events that are expected to increase in duration and intensity with climate change.

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Dry as a Bone: Las Vegas Enforces New Water Restrictions

/in , , /by /KGUN 9by Newsy

The megadrought gripping the Western United States is widening.

Fifty-seven percent of the country and 100% of Nevada is in some level of drought, and nowhere is it as obvious as along the Colorado River.

In the Southwestern U.S., the massive Lake Mead Reservoir near Las Vegas is not as massive as it used to be. The water level has dropped to near-record-low levels.

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Opinion: Food Shortages, Rising Prices … We’ve Been Warning About This for Years

/in , , /by /AZ Centralby Paul Orme and Dan Keppen

As the Ukraine war kindles fears of rising food prices, the recognition of a secure domestic food supply – driven in large part by irrigated agriculture in the Western U.S. – is something we need to talk about.

The Family Farm Alliance last month released a report that describes current and projected food shortages resulting from the Russia-Ukraine war. This is nothing new, from our standpoint. The domestic food security issue is a concern that we’ve warned our policy leaders about for more than 15 years.

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Newsom Reappoints Turlock Woman to Board That Will Make Key Decisions on River Flows

/in , /by /The Modesto Beeby John Holland

Dorene D’Adamo of Turlock will serve four more years on the State Water Resources Control Board, which deals with river flows and other key issues.

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the reappointment, subject to confirmation by the state Senate. D’Adamo, an attorney, first was named to the five-member board in 2013.

The board oversees California’s complex system of water rights and is part of the response to the now three-year drought. It also deals with drinking water quality, notably a recent grant to provide free bottled water to users of tainted wells in Stanislaus County.

 

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Why National City’s Drinking Water Turned Yellow

/in , /by /Voice of San Diegoby MacKenzie Elmer

National City resident Ramel Wallace thought maybe he just forgot to flush the toilet on Thursday night.

Come Friday, faucets in the sink, kitchen and shower all spilled apple juice-colored water, he said. Wallace went straight to a National City Facebook group to crowd-source the reason and saw neighbors posted about the issue.

“A lot of people thought they were tripping,” said Wallace, who said he’s lived in National City for five years.

Running his water didn’t flush-out the color. About midday on Friday, his water cleared up. Wallace said he didn’t get any notification about what caused the discoloration.

The public water agency Sweetwater Authority, which supplies drinking water to National City, confirmed it didn’t issue a press release about the problem because there was nothing to fear.

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The New 5-Million-Gallon Water Tank in Mission Trails You’ll Never See Again

/in , , /by /NBC 7 San Diegoby Joe Little Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

A multimillion-dollar construction project is almost done on a massive water tank in Mission Trails Regional Park. Once construction is complete, it will likely be forgotten because no one will be able to see it.

The San Diego County Water Authority is wrapping up construction on its newest flow regulatory structure on the western edge of the park. Work began in earnest at the beginning of 2021 on the five-million-gallon water tank and it’s expected to wrap up next month.

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Lisa Marie Harris is one of the CFO of the Year Winners

/in , , /by /San Diego Business Journal Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

San Diego County Water Authority Finance Director Lisa Marie Harris is the CFO of the Year in the Public Sector category by the San Diego Business Journal. Harris and the other winners are celebrated in a special section of the publication.

Harris has served as director of finance and treasurer for the Water Authority since May 2014, capping 30 years of experience in both public and private finance.

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Colorado River Named the Most Endangered in the U.S. by Conservation Group

/in , , /by /CPR Newsby Michael Elizabeth Sakas

The Colorado River is the epicenter of the nation’s water and climate crisis, according to an annual report from the conservation group American Rivers that ranked the waterway the country’s most endangered.

“The eyes of the world have been on the Colorado for a couple years now as the system has been quite literally crashing,” said Matt Rice, the group’s southwest regional director.

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Valley Farmers Worried as Groundwater Levels Remain Low

/in , , /by /ABC 30by Dale Yurong

Throughout western Fresno County, fertile land has been taken out of production because the irrigation supply isn’t stable enough to bring a crop to harvest.

Many of Joe Del Bosque’s dry fields in Firebaugh will stay that way this season.

“We pulled out our asparagus and we’re not planting our sweet corn, so we’re down to just two crops – almonds and our melons,” he said.

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