The state’s water conservation districts don’t need the approval of property owners or voters to charge their customers fees to fund programs aimed at protecting groundwater, the California Supreme Court ruled on Monday. But the justices in a unanimous decision also said the districts cannot charge cities disproportionately more than farmers for conservation efforts. The […]
Biologists assumed baby winter-run Chinook salmon hung out in the Sacramento River where they hatched until they grew large enough to make the trip downstream to the Pacific Ocean. A recently released scientific study challenges that assumption – and may have implications in how fisheries agencies manage Sacramento Valley waterways to protect the critically endangered […]
Anthony Cupaiuolo has been skiing the Sierra Nevada backcountry near Lake Tahoe since 1997. But over the last decade, he’s noticed some changes. “Outside of last year, which really sticks out as an anomaly, we haven’t seen [snow] coverage down at lower elevations nearly as much as we would in the late ’90s and early […]
Now that summer is over and rain has returned to California, it appears that the dramatic 2017 fire season is finally behind us. The effects of fire season can linger, however, with the possibilities of erosion and polluted runoff from burned areas. Napa County has even issued suggestions for how to protect waterways in burned landscapes. Not […]
Phase two of construction at Oroville Dam — with work on both spillways — might prove more challenging than the first feat, the contractor’s project director said in a media call Thursday. Jeff Petersen, project director for Kiewit Infrastructure West Co., said finishing work for the 3,000-foot main spillway including concrete finishing, joint sealing, drain […]
State lawmakers opposed to Gov. Jerry Brown’s Delta tunnel plan are stepping up calls for greater transparency into the project’s finances, as the proposed water delivery system suffered a series of setbacks this fall. At a Thursday town hall in the Delta town of Walnut Grove, lawmakers representing the region called on the Brown administration […]
California Water Districts Don’t Need Voter Approval On Fees
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Associated Press (As published by The Sacramento Bee)by Sudhin ThanawalaThe state’s water conservation districts don’t need the approval of property owners or voters to charge their customers fees to fund programs aimed at protecting groundwater, the California Supreme Court ruled on Monday. But the justices in a unanimous decision also said the districts cannot charge cities disproportionately more than farmers for conservation efforts. The […]
Baby Endangered California Salmon Use Different Rivers Than Expected, Research Shows
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby Ryan SabalowBiologists assumed baby winter-run Chinook salmon hung out in the Sacramento River where they hatched until they grew large enough to make the trip downstream to the Pacific Ocean. A recently released scientific study challenges that assumption – and may have implications in how fisheries agencies manage Sacramento Valley waterways to protect the critically endangered […]
Study: Sierra Nevada ‘Snow Line’ Is Moving Uphill
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Sierra Sun Times (Mariposa)Anthony Cupaiuolo has been skiing the Sierra Nevada backcountry near Lake Tahoe since 1997. But over the last decade, he’s noticed some changes. “Outside of last year, which really sticks out as an anomaly, we haven’t seen [snow] coverage down at lower elevations nearly as much as we would in the late ’90s and early […]
BLOG: A Tale of Two Fires: How Wildfires Can Both Help And Harm Our Water Supply
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /California Water Blogby Gabrielle BoisraméNow that summer is over and rain has returned to California, it appears that the dramatic 2017 fire season is finally behind us. The effects of fire season can linger, however, with the possibilities of erosion and polluted runoff from burned areas. Napa County has even issued suggestions for how to protect waterways in burned landscapes. Not […]
Oroville Dam: Phase Two of Spillway Construction May Be More Challenging
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /East Bay Times (San Jose)Phase two of construction at Oroville Dam — with work on both spillways — might prove more challenging than the first feat, the contractor’s project director said in a media call Thursday. Jeff Petersen, project director for Kiewit Infrastructure West Co., said finishing work for the 3,000-foot main spillway including concrete finishing, joint sealing, drain […]
Lawmakers Push for Transparency on Feasibility of Delta Tunnels
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /KQED News (San Francisco)State lawmakers opposed to Gov. Jerry Brown’s Delta tunnel plan are stepping up calls for greater transparency into the project’s finances, as the proposed water delivery system suffered a series of setbacks this fall. At a Thursday town hall in the Delta town of Walnut Grove, lawmakers representing the region called on the Brown administration […]