After a bone dry December, the stubborn atmospheric ridge of the Pacific Coast has broken down, the storm door has opened up, and on Monday, Californians from Redding to San Diego welcomed something we haven’t seen all winter: the Golden State’s first significant storm of the season.
Few things are more important to the future of the Bay Area and Northern California than the quality of our water supply. And here comes the latest threat. At the behest of the Central Valley’s billionaire agribusiness operators, the Trump administration on Dec. 29 proposed pumping more water south from the fragile Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta […]
California finally got its first real taste of winter weather Monday as a substantial rainstorm swept through the state, causing numerous traffic accidents and bringing warnings of flooding and mudslides in areas burned by wildfires. The National Weather Service said much of the Sacramento Valley could receive up to 2 inches of rain by the […]
Last year’s devastating floods and fires in California combined with hurricanes and other natural disasters to wreak unprecedented financial damage on the United States, the federal government reported Monday. The nation endured 16 weather and climate events that inflicted $1 billion or more apiece in damage in 2017, tying 2011 for the most 10-digit calamities […]
Think of it as a dense blob of air. When it parks itself over the Pacific Ocean, it can act like a wall – and prevent rain and snow from reaching Northern California. When meteorologists say a “high pressure system” or a “ridiculously resilient ridge” is keeping the West unseasonably dry, this is what they […]
A tiny fish caught in California’s tug of war over water has become harder to find than ever, a state survey found, despite a very wet winter last year that had raised hopes for a bounce back after five years of drought. Environmentalists say the record-low fall survey for the Delta smelt bolsters the case […]
California Storm Sets Rainfall Records, Triggers Trouble in Fire Zones
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Mercury News (San Jose)After a bone dry December, the stubborn atmospheric ridge of the Pacific Coast has broken down, the storm door has opened up, and on Monday, Californians from Redding to San Diego welcomed something we haven’t seen all winter: the Golden State’s first significant storm of the season.
OPINION: Block Trump Plan to Pump Delta Water South to the Central Valley
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Mercury News (San Jose)Few things are more important to the future of the Bay Area and Northern California than the quality of our water supply. And here comes the latest threat. At the behest of the Central Valley’s billionaire agribusiness operators, the Trump administration on Dec. 29 proposed pumping more water south from the fragile Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta […]
First Big Winter Storm Reaches California. Here’s What it Means for the Water Year
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento BeeCalifornia finally got its first real taste of winter weather Monday as a substantial rainstorm swept through the state, causing numerous traffic accidents and bringing warnings of flooding and mudslides in areas burned by wildfires. The National Weather Service said much of the Sacramento Valley could receive up to 2 inches of rain by the […]
2017 Was Costliest Year Ever In U.S. for Weather, Climate Disasters
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /San Francisco ChronicleLast year’s devastating floods and fires in California combined with hurricanes and other natural disasters to wreak unprecedented financial damage on the United States, the federal government reported Monday. The nation endured 16 weather and climate events that inflicted $1 billion or more apiece in damage in 2017, tying 2011 for the most 10-digit calamities […]
A Dense Blob Has Kept California Weather Dry. Here’s How It Works
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby Dale Kasler and Ryan SabalowThink of it as a dense blob of air. When it parks itself over the Pacific Ocean, it can act like a wall – and prevent rain and snow from reaching Northern California. When meteorologists say a “high pressure system” or a “ridiculously resilient ridge” is keeping the West unseasonably dry, this is what they […]
Hopes for Delta Smelt Rebound Dashed by Record-Low Survey
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /East Bay Times (San Jose)A tiny fish caught in California’s tug of war over water has become harder to find than ever, a state survey found, despite a very wet winter last year that had raised hopes for a bounce back after five years of drought. Environmentalists say the record-low fall survey for the Delta smelt bolsters the case […]