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Opinion: Dixie Fire Isn’t Just Destroying Towns. California’s Water and Power Supply Is Under Threat

/in , , /by /The Sacramento Beeby Jonathan Kusel

The Dixie Fire has consumed over 730,000 acres and is now the second largest fire in California’s history. High winds coupled with low humidity, high temperatures and drought-parched vegetation make extinguishing it a devilish challenge in such difficult terrain.

The fire destroyed much of the town of Greenville, the largest town in my valley. For weeks, I’ve gone to bed wondering if my home will still be there in the morning. But the Dixie Fire is a problem that extends well beyond the towns it continues to threaten.

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Biden Aims to Remove All Lead Pipes. Will EPA Follow Suit?

/in , /by /E&E Newsby Hannah Northey

President Biden has made a push to remove the nation’s lead pipelines a cornerstone of his infrastructure agenda, but a requirement to make that happen is noticeably MIA in EPA’s current rule.

Advocates hope that changes.

“If EPA doesn’t require them to do it, our concern is that, frankly, utilities have had decades to replace their lead service lines or even to identify their lead services lines,” said Erik Olson, head of the Natural Resources Defense Council’s health program. “The ball has been in their courts for decades, and they’ve not done what’s needed.”

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Drought, Water Supply and Climate Change in the San Diego Region

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

An update on San Diego’s water supply during the current drought, and how climate change affects regional weather, was the main focus of a recent event sponsored by several organizations.

The Citizens Water Academy, Leaders 20/20 and San Diego Green Drinks hosted a lunch and learn session August 17 that also provided details on how weather and climate impacts water supplies, and how prepared the San Diego region is for drought impacts.

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As the West Bakes, Utah Forges Ahead with Water Pipeline

/in , , /by /E&E News by Jeremy P. Jacobs

As drought and climate change strangle the Colorado River, a small county in Utah nevertheless continues forging ahead with a billion-dollar pipeline to suck more water from it to sustain its growing population.

The proposed Lake Powell Pipeline, a 140-mile straw from one of the country’s largest reservoirs to Washington County in southwestern Utah, has sparked backlash from other states in the Colorado River basin and environmentalists, and now has the Biden administration in a difficult position.

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New Mexico Farmers Along Rio Grande Face Early Water Cutoff

/in , , /by /AP News

Hundreds of farmers along central New Mexico’s stretch of the Rio Grande face a second straight year of having their irrigation supplies cut off early.

The board that oversees the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District voted Friday to end deliveries for irrigation a month early because of low water availability.

The Oct. 1 shutoff means winter crops like those grown by Travis Harris just north of Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge are at risk.

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Concerns Rise Over Monterey County’s Reservoir Water Levels

/in , , /by /Salinas Valley Tribuneby Sean Roney

State and county leaders recently took a tour of Nacimiento and San Antonio dams to get a first-hand look of the impacts of drought and facility conditions.

Both reservoirs have reached near record lows, with Nacimiento at 14% capacity and San Antonio at 7%. Water releases from the reservoirs have ceased as of July 28, with the visible effects in the north county being a drying of the Salinas River.

Though the 7% at San Antonio amounts to 50,000 acre-feet of water, it can’t be released.

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Signs of Drought From Space

/in , , /by /PHYS.ORGby Sofie Bates, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

As Tracy Schohr goes about her day, water is always on her mind. She’s thinking of it as she rides an all-terrain vehicle around the pasture, looks up hay prices and weather forecasts, and collects data on grazing and invasive weeds for a scientific study.

Schohr is a rancher and farmer in Gridley, California, where her family has raised beef cattle and grown rice for six generations. She also aids in scientific research to study drought and other agricultural issues with the University of California Cooperative Extension.

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Opinion: In Southern Nevada’s Endless Water Crisis, We’re Well Past the Time to be Lawn Gone

/in , /by /The Nevada Independentby John L. Smith

The front lawn came with the house we moved into a couple years ago.

The patch of Bermudagrass was smaller than an average putting green and easy to mow. The splash of deep green was cute as far as that goes, but it was out of place on a street that had largely made the transition to colored rock and water-smart landscaping.

Beyond the postcard aesthetics, it made zero sense to continue to water a lawn in the desert. Setting aside the politics of climate change and our arid land with its endless water crisis — a basic definition of “desert” — there were no children at home to play on it. And I could live with the dogs’ disappointment. In short, there was nothing to debate.

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Demand for Greywater Systems Surge During Drought

/in , , /by /Spectrum News 1by Renee Eng

With a full house that includes her husband, two young daughters and two dogs, homeowner Erin Payne is constantly doing laundry, sometimes one load every day.

“All of our pets and kids and being out in the dirt,” she said. “It’s a lot.”

But Payne said one thing that always bothered her was all the water going to waste, not only for laundry but other things. “All of our showers and baths and bathroom sinks are all connected, so the combination is quite a bit of water,” she said.

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Megadrought to Pit Fish Lives Against Human Needs in U.S. West

/in , /by /Bloomberg Lawby Bobby Magill

Water cuts aimed at farmers amid the West’s megadrought have set the stage for bitter legal and political fights over one of the most overlooked water uses—the right of water to remain in streams to sustain fish and endangered species, lawyers say.

The drought is poised to call that right into question, pitting drinking water providers and food growers against conservationists who want to keep streams wet so that fish can survive.

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