You are now in California and the U.S. Media Coverage category.

State Grid of China Switches on World’s Largest Pumped-Hydro Station

The State Grid Corporation of China, which is China’s largest state-owned grid operator and power utility, has commissioned, last week, the 3.6GW Fengning Pumped Storage Power Station, a pumped-storage hydroelectric power station located in Hebei province.

The construction of the $1.87 billion project, which was implemented in two 1.8GW phases, was started by engineering company China Gezhouba Group Company Limited in 2014.

As OC Digs Deeper for Drinking Water, Worries About Contamination Arise

According to attorney and water policy expert Felicia Marcus, who is also the William C. Landreth Visiting Fellow at Stanford University, regional officials hope to purify this groundwater and are also actively pursuing collaborations with local water districts in order to obtain clean drinking water for its residents.

South Orange County, though, is not affected by this dilemma as at least 90% of its water is imported.

Training Preps North County Firefighters for Confined Space Rescues

North San Diego County fire agencies teamed up with Olivenhain Municipal Water District in early December for confined space training drills. The drills prepare firefighting professionals to respond to emergencies in facilities such as water or wastewater treatment plants and are required to maintain their confined space certification.

Precipitation Since Oct. 1 Tops Previous Full ‘Water Year’ in California

More precipitation has fallen on California during its current “water year” than in the full prior 12-month span, the National Weather Service says.

The downpours and mountain storms of recent weeks have helped boost the state’s precipitation volume to 33.9 trillion gallons thus far for the water year that began Oct. 1, compared to the previous water year’s 33.6 trillion gallons, the service said Sunday. Lake Tahoe by comparison contains roughly 40 trillion gallons.

2022 Promises Continued Climate Extremes, But Also A Glimmer of Hope for Californians

It’s a brand new year, and perhaps you have hopeful resolutions in mind—losing weight, getting politically active, leaving your house more often.

But when you look over your shoulder, the demon that was 2021 is lurking behind you. In its eyes is the pandemic that kept you in your house for way too long, on its breath are the flames that nearly burned down your favorite part of the Sierra, the sweltering heat from last summer, and the wildfire smoke choking out the space in your lungs.

Opinion: The Importance of California’s Agricultural Water Supplies

Wendell Berry famously said that eating is an agricultural act. That makes all of us into farmers, and nowhere is that more true than in water terms.

For farming is irreducibly the process of mixing dirt, water and sunshine to bring forth from the ground what we need to eat. And no matter who you are, it’s true:  somebody, somewhere, must devote a lot of water to the process of feeding you.

In Pinal County, Colorado River Shortage is Forcing Growers to Plant Fewer Ccres

More than two decades of dry winters and drying Colorado River reservoirs will finally produce a long-feared landscape of drier farms in central Arizona starting this month.

Desert farmers, especially the 900 or more in Pinal County, start the new year with massively reduced allocations from the canal that delivers water hundreds of miles from the river.

Record Snowfall in Northern California May Help the State’s Electric Grid in 2022

The deluge of snow in recent days along the Sierra Nevada mountain range has been a record-breaker. And that’s not only good news for ski resorts but it may lead to a healthy boost in hydroelectricity production in California this coming summer, which would help the state’s often-strained electric grid.

Plentiful Early-Season Sierra Snowpack Signals ‘Remarkable Turnaround’ Amid Historic Drought

A series of record-setting blizzards in recent weeks that buried roads, snarled holiday traffic and even temporarily shut down ski resorts have combined to offer California a glimpse of hope after two years of historic and punishing drought.

Snowpack across the Sierra Nevada appears far ahead of historical averages — an unexpected respite from years of bone-dry forecasts, leaving climatologists cautiously optimistic about drought conditions improving across the state.

Water News Network Top Stories of 2021

The Water News Network top stories of 2021 highlight how the region’s water providers ensured a safe, plentiful and reliable water supply, while also looking to the future. In the second year of a statewide drought, San Diegans stepped up their water conservation, proving once again, that “water conservation is a way of life in San Diego County.”