High-capacity batteries aren’t just making electric vehicles viable. They’re also beginning to transform water utilities. In Southern California, a number of water utilities have begun to install large batteries alongside their pumping plants and water treatment facilities. The idea is to store energy in the batteries overnight, when energy is cheaper. Then during the daytime, when […]
Every spring in the western United States, snow melts off mountains, feeding rivers with surges of water that can cause disastrous floods. But warm weather isn’t the main culprit, a new study finds. Instead, dusty soil that sticks to snow can darken it and accelerate its melting. The findings could establish a new way of […]
The California Department of Water Resources is facing a new and potentially very costly lawsuit over the failure of the spillways at Oroville Dam a year ago. A complaint filed in Butte County Superior Court Wednesday outlines approximately $120 million in losses claimed by more than 40 farms, businesses and other property owners along the […]
The last time California officials conducted their snow survey near Echo Summit, a month ago, the ground was practically barren. This time there was snow. Just not a lot of it. The Department of Water Resources’ monthly snow survey at Phillips Station on Thursday revealed a meager 13.6 inches of snow, or 14 percent of […]
In the midst of California’s severe drought back in 2014, more than 67-percent of California voters helped to pass Proposition 1, the $7.5 billion water bond to fund water quality, supply, treatment and storage projects. In the nearly four years since the bond’s passage we have seen the last historic drought come to an end, […]
While the Temperance Flat Reservoir Project hit a speedbump recently, local officials still have hope the project will get funded and bring more water storage to the Valley. “I hope in 10 years we can all get together and celebrate a new dam,” said Doug Verboon, Kings County supervisor and county representative on the San […]
Battery Storage Begins to Find a Home at Some Water Utilities
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Water Deeply (New York)High-capacity batteries aren’t just making electric vehicles viable. They’re also beginning to transform water utilities. In Southern California, a number of water utilities have begun to install large batteries alongside their pumping plants and water treatment facilities. The idea is to store energy in the batteries overnight, when energy is cheaper. Then during the daytime, when […]
The Real Culprit Behind Snowmelt Floods Isn’t Temperature—It’s Dirt
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Science MagazineEvery spring in the western United States, snow melts off mountains, feeding rivers with surges of water that can cause disastrous floods. But warm weather isn’t the main culprit, a new study finds. Instead, dusty soil that sticks to snow can darken it and accelerate its melting. The findings could establish a new way of […]
New Suit Seeks Huge Damages for DWR ‘Recklessness’ at Oroville Dam
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /KQED News (San Francisco)The California Department of Water Resources is facing a new and potentially very costly lawsuit over the failure of the spillways at Oroville Dam a year ago. A complaint filed in Butte County Superior Court Wednesday outlines approximately $120 million in losses claimed by more than 40 farms, businesses and other property owners along the […]
Sierra Nevada Snow Picture Brightens, but is Still Just a Fraction of Normal
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento BeeThe last time California officials conducted their snow survey near Echo Summit, a month ago, the ground was practically barren. This time there was snow. Just not a lot of it. The Department of Water Resources’ monthly snow survey at Phillips Station on Thursday revealed a meager 13.6 inches of snow, or 14 percent of […]
OPINION: Water Storage Needed — But Keep Faith with Prop. 1
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Capitol Weekly (Sacramento)In the midst of California’s severe drought back in 2014, more than 67-percent of California voters helped to pass Proposition 1, the $7.5 billion water bond to fund water quality, supply, treatment and storage projects. In the nearly four years since the bond’s passage we have seen the last historic drought come to an end, […]
Temperance Flat Dam Hits hurdle
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sentinel (Hanford)by Julissa ZavalaWhile the Temperance Flat Reservoir Project hit a speedbump recently, local officials still have hope the project will get funded and bring more water storage to the Valley. “I hope in 10 years we can all get together and celebrate a new dam,” said Doug Verboon, Kings County supervisor and county representative on the San […]