The multi-year drought has become so bad in some parts of California that last year wells dried up and communities had to have their water hauled in by truck. Even with that emergency lifeline, residents of places like East Porterville in Tulare County had to carefully parcel out their supplies for cooking and cleaning. Toilets were “flushed” by dumping used dishwater into the bowl. Showers became a luxury.
Recycled water will be available to San Diego water customers for free beginning Saturday in Scripps Ranch, according to city officials.
The city of San Diego’s public utilities department will offer the water from a fill station at 10137 Meanley Drive on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and on Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The water is available at no extra charge to city water customers who present valid billing documentation.
As wildfire rages in California, flooding affects millions in India and China, and eggs are fried on sidewalks in Iraq, scientists say global climate catastrophe is surpassing predictions. Southern California’s years-long drought has resulted in one of the “most extreme” wildfires the region has ever seen.
Record global heat in the first half of 2016 has caught climate scientists off-guard, reports Thompson Reuters Foundation. “What concerns me most is that we didn’t anticipate these temperature jumps,” David Carlson, director of the World Meteorological Organization’s (WMO) climate research program, told Thompson Reuters Foundation late Monday.
Scientists say a tiny endangered fish found in lagoons and streams along the California coast belongs to two separate species.
The tidewater goby, a 2-inch translucent fish, survives in relatively isolated populations from Del Norte County down to San Diego. The fish spend most of their lives in the same puddles, rarely traveling far from where they spawned.
Sweltering temperatures across California prompted calls for residents statewide to reduce their energy use through 9 p.m. Wednesday, officials said.
The so-called flex alert initiated by the California Independent System Operator, which manages the state’s electric grid for most of the state, was scheduled to run from 2 to 9 p.m. Utility companies urged their residential customers to voluntarily delay washing clothes and dishes until bedtime and to keep their thermostats at 78 degrees or higher.
San Diegans are likely already seeing advertisements at regional malls encouraging them to “Live WaterSmart,” which is the main message of an outreach campaign launched Tuesday by the San Diego County Water Authority.
Although state water-use reduction mandates were lifted in May, the Water Authority’s hope is that customers of its 24 member agencies will help maintain what’s already seen as a strong regional commitment to water-use efficiency. In June 2016 — the first month following the end of state water-use reduction mandates — water use was down 23 percent compared to June 2013.
As fire crews made progress controlling a deadly wildfire in Southern California on Wednesday, another blaze continued to rage along the state’s picturesque Central Coast, killing a heavy equipment operator and triggering numerous trail closures and hiker rescues in Los Padres National Forest.
The Sand and Soberanes fires, both of which erupted on Friday, tore through wildlands in Southern and Central California overnight with thousands of firefighters tackling unpredictable flames. Firefighters managed to gain 40% containment of the Sand fire, which has caused one death and destroyed 18 homes.
The San Diego County Water Authority has big plans to help us deal with drought conditions.
On Tuesday, officials are unveiled a campaign to promote long-term water-use efficiency as a way of life.
The San Diego County Water Authority is setting up shop in front of a Kensington house to launch it’s new water conservation program.
The San Diego County Water Authority unveiled the Live WaterSmart campaign on Tuesday, its latest water-efficiency movement in the region.
Live WaterSmart is a campaign aimed at promoting water-efficiency practices in everyday life, while offering some free water-saving services and tips to San Diegans. Members from the San Diego County Water Authority and its Board of Directors, San Diego Gas & Electric, Water Conservation Garden and water-efficiency professionals came together at a house in the Kensington neighborhood for the campaign launch.
