Should a river have legal rights of its own? Should it be able to thrive, and even evolve naturally, without human interference? Those are the deep questions asked in a precedent-setting federal lawsuit filed in September in which the Colorado River, as an ecosystem, seeks federal legal rights to exist and to flourish. It is the first action […]
California needs to spend another $100 million a year to keep the state’s levee system sound, according to state flood control experts. At a press conference marking flood preparedness week Monday at a levee repair site near Sacramento, Bill Edgar, president of the Central Valley Flood Protection Board said the levees will need a $17 […]
The Trump administration pulled support Wednesday from Gov. Jerry Brown’s ambitious plan to build California’s biggest water project in decades, casting the current form of the $16 billion proposal to build two giant tunnels as another unwanted legacy from the Obama era The comments from a U.S. Department of the Interior spokesman marked the first […]
Is the Trump administration opposed to the Delta tunnels, Gov. Jerry Brown’s plan to remake the troubled estuary and improve water deliveries to the southern half of the state? For a while Wednesday, it certainly looked that way. A top spokesman for the U.S. Interior Department, Russell Newell, told The Associated Press that “the Trump […]
For many homeowners in Sonoma and Napa counties, nothing could have been more welcome than the splashing of rain that fell on Northern California last Thursday – the first significant precipitation in about five months. The rain helped put an end to the fires burning in the area, which first ignited on October 8, and have wreaked […]
It is by now a familiar story: The storm hits, the cities flood, dramatic rescues ensue to save people from the rising waters, followed by the arduous and expensive cleanup. But chances are you’ve thought less about the deadly and economically destructive consequences of a slower-moving culprit: drought. Repeated droughts around the world are destroying […]
First-Ever Lawsuit Asks: Does the Colorado River Have a Right to Exist?
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Water Deeply (New York)Should a river have legal rights of its own? Should it be able to thrive, and even evolve naturally, without human interference? Those are the deep questions asked in a precedent-setting federal lawsuit filed in September in which the Colorado River, as an ecosystem, seeks federal legal rights to exist and to flourish. It is the first action […]
Flood Experts Say California Levees Need Much More Money
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Mercury News (San Jose)California needs to spend another $100 million a year to keep the state’s levee system sound, according to state flood control experts. At a press conference marking flood preparedness week Monday at a levee repair site near Sacramento, Bill Edgar, president of the Central Valley Flood Protection Board said the levees will need a $17 […]
Trump Opposes Massive California Water Project
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Associated Press (As published by US News & World Report)The Trump administration pulled support Wednesday from Gov. Jerry Brown’s ambitious plan to build California’s biggest water project in decades, casting the current form of the $16 billion proposal to build two giant tunnels as another unwanted legacy from the Obama era The comments from a U.S. Department of the Interior spokesman marked the first […]
Is Donald Trump Fighting The Delta tunnels? No. But He Won’t Pay For Them, Either
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento BeeIs the Trump administration opposed to the Delta tunnels, Gov. Jerry Brown’s plan to remake the troubled estuary and improve water deliveries to the southern half of the state? For a while Wednesday, it certainly looked that way. A top spokesman for the U.S. Interior Department, Russell Newell, told The Associated Press that “the Trump […]
Toxic Ashes And Charred Forests Threaten Water After North Bay Fires
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Water Deeply (New York)by Alastair BlandFor many homeowners in Sonoma and Napa counties, nothing could have been more welcome than the splashing of rain that fell on Northern California last Thursday – the first significant precipitation in about five months. The rain helped put an end to the fires burning in the area, which first ignited on October 8, and have wreaked […]
Floods are Bad, but Droughts May Be Even Worse
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /CBS NewsIt is by now a familiar story: The storm hits, the cities flood, dramatic rescues ensue to save people from the rising waters, followed by the arduous and expensive cleanup. But chances are you’ve thought less about the deadly and economically destructive consequences of a slower-moving culprit: drought. Repeated droughts around the world are destroying […]