The bottom is falling out of America’s most productive farmland. Literally. Swaths of the San Joaquin Valley have sunk 28 feet — nearly three stories — since the 1920s, and some areas have dropped almost 3 feet in the past two years. Blame it on farmers’ relentless groundwater pumping. The plunder of California’s aquifers is […]
Fear can be a powerful motivator. The mention of one plausible future scenario along the Colorado River is enough to make some water managers in the West break into a sweat. It’s called the Compact Call, and even though it’s never happened — and is years away from ever happening — its invocation conjures up […]
The Senate on Monday approved a $145 billion spending bill to fund the Energy Department and veterans’ programs for the next budget year. The 86-5 vote in favor of the bill sends it back to the House, which approved a similar bill this month. Lawmakers hope to send a unified bill to President Donald Trump […]
Splitting California into three new states would scramble nearly every segment of government that touches residents’ lives, from taxes to Medi-Cal to driver’s licenses. New agencies would have to be created to operate prisons, highways and universities. CalPERS, CalSTRS, Cal Fire and the California Highway Patrol, to name a few, would have to be reconfigured […]
A “use-it-or-lose-it” system of water allocation has historically required growers in California to irrigate their land or lose their water rights, whether market forces compelled them to grow crops or not. Now, in a significant breakthrough for the state’s water economy, a community of farmers near Ventura are about to join a new groundwater market. The […]
The state Department of Water Resources announced plans on Friday to draw Lake Oroville down to 808 feet elevation by early next week. This is to provide a second point of access to the upper chute of the Oroville Dam spillway, through the radial gates, for construction. Water surpasses the radial gates when the lake reaches […]
Dry Wells, Sinking Land And Fears Of A Global Food Crisis
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Andrea Mora /E&E News (Washington D.C.)by Jeremy P. JacobsThe bottom is falling out of America’s most productive farmland. Literally. Swaths of the San Joaquin Valley have sunk 28 feet — nearly three stories — since the 1920s, and some areas have dropped almost 3 feet in the past two years. Blame it on farmers’ relentless groundwater pumping. The plunder of California’s aquifers is […]
Colorado River Water Managers Can Imagine The Future And It Doesn’t Look Pretty
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Andrea Mora /KUNC (Greeley, Colo.)by Luke RunyonFear can be a powerful motivator. The mention of one plausible future scenario along the Colorado River is enough to make some water managers in the West break into a sweat. It’s called the Compact Call, and even though it’s never happened — and is years away from ever happening — its invocation conjures up […]
Senate Approves $145B Spending Bill To Fund Energy, Veterans
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Andrea Mora /Associated Pressby Matthew DalyThe Senate on Monday approved a $145 billion spending bill to fund the Energy Department and veterans’ programs for the next budget year. The 86-5 vote in favor of the bill sends it back to the House, which approved a similar bill this month. Lawmakers hope to send a unified bill to President Donald Trump […]
This One Issue Could Make Splitting California Into Three States Virtually Impossible
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Andrea Mora /The Sacramento Beeby Dale KaslerSplitting California into three new states would scramble nearly every segment of government that touches residents’ lives, from taxes to Medi-Cal to driver’s licenses. New agencies would have to be created to operate prisons, highways and universities. CalPERS, CalSTRS, Cal Fire and the California Highway Patrol, to name a few, would have to be reconfigured […]
A New Groundwater Market Emerges In California. Are More On The Way?
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Andrea Mora /Water Deeply (New York)by Alastair BlandA “use-it-or-lose-it” system of water allocation has historically required growers in California to irrigate their land or lose their water rights, whether market forces compelled them to grow crops or not. Now, in a significant breakthrough for the state’s water economy, a community of farmers near Ventura are about to join a new groundwater market. The […]
DWR Plans To Drop Lake Oroville Levels
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Andrea Mora /Chico Enterprise-Recordby Risa JohnsonThe state Department of Water Resources announced plans on Friday to draw Lake Oroville down to 808 feet elevation by early next week. This is to provide a second point of access to the upper chute of the Oroville Dam spillway, through the radial gates, for construction. Water surpasses the radial gates when the lake reaches […]