Did you know just one inch of rain yields 650 gallons per every 1,000 square feet of roof space? Solana Center, in partnership with the San Diego County Water Authority, has brought back the discounted rain barrel program for San Diego County residents. Not only do rain barrels conserve precious water, they help protect our watershed and oceans by reducing urban water runoff, which is a major source of ocean pollution. The 50-gallon rain barrels are made of 100 percent recycled material and come with all the parts to start catching water now.

The State Water Resources Control Board Tuesday committed to an annual timetable for habitat restoration and dust suppression projects aimed at rehabilitating the Salton Sea over the course of the next decade. The agreement sets milestones for completing projects within the $383 million Salton Sea Management Plan, which calls for construction of 29,800 acres of ponds, wetlands and dust suppression projects to restore the receding lake, beginning with 500 acres in 2018, increasing to 4,200 acres by 2028. The agreement also includes committing to a long-term plan — to be created by 2022 — that goes beyond the initial 10-year plan.

California regulators on Tuesday approved a plan to spend nearly $400 million over 10 years to slow the shrinking of the state’s largest lake, a vital migratory stop for birds and a buffer against swirling dust in farming towns. Funding for the Salton Sea is unclear but the plan enjoyed support of major water agencies and environmental advocacy groups and preserves a fragile peace among urban and rural areas in California on distributing the state’s share of Colorado River water.

eachers and administrators at schools near the Salton Sea have grown accustomed to helping students with asthma, often keeping inhalers on hand in case dusty air triggers an attack. A new survey of the families of first- and second-graders at four schools in the Imperial Valley confirms that the children are suffering from alarmingly high rates of asthma and other respiratory problems.  The survey was carried out by researchers from the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine, who are focusing on the health of children near the shrinking lake.

Between Saturday and Sunday nights most Californians will remember to adjust their clocks (it’s time to “fall back” one hour) as daylight saving time ends. For those who forget to make this annual adjust they will show up to work, school, church or other commitments an hour early on either Sunday or Monday morning.