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State Board Again Delays Vote On Contentious River Plan

/in , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Bettina Boxall

Under pressure from Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration, state regulators once again postponed a vote on a contentious plan to force San Francisco and several big San Joaquin Valley irrigation districts to give up some of their water supplies for environmental protection. On the eve of Wednesday’s scheduled vote, Brown and the man who will succeed him next year, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, asked for a month’s delay and promised to get involved in ongoing settlement negotiations.

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San Diego Unified Likely To Tackle Lead In Drinking Water And Security Upgrades With New Bond Money This Summer

/in , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Kristen Taketa

Voters delivered a solid endorsement of the San Diego Unified School District on Tuesday when they approved a $3.5 billion bond measure for the school system, the district’s largest ever bond measure and the third approved since 2008. About 62 percent of voters said yes to Measure YY, despite critical media coverage of the measure, opposition from watchdog groups and residents and “no” endorsements from multiple organizations, including the San Diego County Taxpayers Association, which only disapproved of one other school bond measure on Tuesday’s ballot.

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OPINION: Natural Resources Chief: California Is Fully Committed To The Salton Sea’s Future

/in , /by /The Desert Sun (Palm Springs)by John Laird

The Salton Sea has been an anomaly since its very formation. Created when the entire Colorado River flowed unchecked into the Salton Sink for two years beginning in 1905, the modern-day Salton Sea is a changed ecosystem that supports introduced fish and a major stop on the Pacific Migratory Flyway. Flows into the sea have declined over time, leaving higher concentrations of various contaminants. Coupled with evaporation, the result is a shrinking, increasingly saline lake. Previously submerged lake bed — known as playa  —  is being exposed, creating dust that can be hazardous as it dries and becomes airborne.

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Predicting San Diego Rainfall Cause To Rejoice

/in , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Robert Krier

Correlation is not the same as causation. But it can be fun to play with correlation, especially when causation starts to grow cloudy. As the deadline nears for entry in the Union-Tribune’s 17th annual Precipitation Prediction Contest, here’s some correlation to chew on, if you haven’t already entered: Since 1850, San Diego has recorded at least 0.5 of an inch of rain in October 44 times, including this year (0.57). That’s a little more than one fourth of the years. Of those 44 years with a wet October, the entire season ended up wet 26 times, or about 59 percent of the time.

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SFID To Vote On Water Rate Increases Dec. 20

/in , /by /Rancho Santa Fe Reviewby Karen Billing

The Rancho Santa Fe Association is pushing back against the Santa Fe Irrigation District’s proposed water rate increases. The water district is proposing three percent water rate increases over the next three years and is scheduled to vote at a Dec. 20 hearing. If approved, the new rate would be implemented on Jan. 1. “The Rancho Santa Fe Association is protesting the rates,” said RSF Association Manager Christy Whalen at the Nov. 1 Association board meeting. “We are one of the largest users in the district and we are looking for a more equitable rate structure.”

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New Director Representing City Of San Fernando Joins MWD Board

/in , /by /MyNewsLA.com

San Fernando’s public works director and city engineer was sworn in Tuesday as the city’s representative on the board of directors of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. Yazdan “Yaz” Emrani succeeds San Fernando Mayor Sylvia Ballin, who had served on the 38-member board since September 2007. Emrani has 30 years of experience in civil and environmental engineering, including planning, design and construction management of infrastructure improvement projects in both the public and private sectors.

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As More People Move To The Inland Empire, How Is There Going To Be Enough Water?

/in , /by /KVCR 91.9 (San Bernardino) by Shareen Awad

With all of the new housing going up and considering we’re in a drought area, how is local government going to provide enough water? Water scarcity is an issue people in Southern California think about a lot. California experienced one of the worst droughts in state history from 2011 to 2017. Governor Jerry Brown declared a drought State of Emergency in 2014, calling for statewide water conservation. By 2022, California residents will need to limit their indoor water use to 55 gallons of water per person a day. And by 2030, that number will drop to 50 gallons.

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OPINION: Region’s Water Supplies Sufficient For 2019 And Beyond

/in , /by /Village News (Fallbrook)by Jim Madaffer

A rainstorm in mid-October provided the first significant relief from months of hot and dry weather – before the weather turned hot and dry once again. On average, the county gets about 10 inches of rain a year – far less than what is needed to sustain a $220 billion economy and 3.3 million people. With continued investments in water supply reliability and water-use efficiency, the county can continue to thrive. As residents look toward the rainy season, it’s worth taking stock of why there is sufficient water supplies for 2019 regardless of the weather.

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Environment Report: Tribes Want A Say In The Colorado River’s Future

/in , /by /Voice of San Diegoby Ry Rivard

There are several ticking time bombs in western water. The first is obvious. How much less water will fall from the sky because of climate change? Another big one is barely talked about and will take decades if not a century to end. How will bureaucrats, lawmakers and the courts deal with the rights of Native American tribes that have claims to water from the Colorado River? The Colorado is already suffering because states that rely on it — largely California and Arizona — are taking more out of the river than snow and rain put back in. After two decades of drought, this “structural deficit” is close to becoming a crisis for millions of Americans and Mexicans who depend on the river’s water.

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Environmentalists Want More Marshland In Mission Bay To Fight Sea Level Rise

/in , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby David Garrick

San Diego’s proposed redevelopment of Mission Bay Park’s northeast corner could include significantly more marshland if city officials embrace new proposals from local environmentalists concerned about sea level rise. One proposal calls for 200 acres of marshland, more than double the 84 acres proposed by the city, which would limit acreage for new amenities and could require closure or shrinkage of Mission Bay Golf Course.

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