Beside the winding curves of the Colorado River, the Palo Verde Valley spreads out in a lush plain in the middle of the desert, a farming oasis filled with canals and fields of hay. For 12 years, the valley’s farmers have been participating in a program that pays them to leave some of their lands […]
Humboldt County recorded its third highest rainfall total in the 2016-17 water year since records first began 130 years ago, according to the National Weather Service Eureka. The downpour caused tens of millions of dollars in damage to local infrastructure and seemingly failed to produce the beneficial effects to fish and wildlife on the Klamath […]
The system, for which the Penn State Research Foundation has applied for an international patent, features a clip-on unit that contains sensors to detect the thickness and electrical capacitance, or the ability to store a charge, of individual leaves. The array of sensors is connected to a WiFi node, which transmits the data to a […]
In 2015, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation on more than $1 billion in spending for water projects. Hundreds of millions of those dollars are allocated for long-term projects associated with flood control, desalination, water recycling, and conservation. One particular project currently in the water works is Southern California’s plan for desalination by turning 50 […]
Federal fisheries regulators have approved a controversial plan opposed by environmental groups that would allow for more pumping from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta this fall. On Wednesday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service signed off on a proposal championed by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and south state California water interests to ramp up Delta […]
As increasingly intense hurricanes batter the Southeast and the Caribbean, heightening some of the worst fears about a changing climate, California is facing its own threat of bigger and more destructive storms. Mounting research, much of it done in the wake of the near-record rains that pulled California out of a five-year drought this past […]
A New Fight Over Water In The California Desert, With Echoes of ‘Chinatown’
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Desert Sun (Palm Springs)Beside the winding curves of the Colorado River, the Palo Verde Valley spreads out in a lush plain in the middle of the desert, a farming oasis filled with canals and fields of hay. For 12 years, the valley’s farmers have been participating in a program that pays them to leave some of their lands […]
Humboldt County Records Highest Rainfall on Record Since 1903-04
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Eureka Times-Standardby Will HoustonHumboldt County recorded its third highest rainfall total in the 2016-17 water year since records first began 130 years ago, according to the National Weather Service Eureka. The downpour caused tens of millions of dollars in damage to local infrastructure and seemingly failed to produce the beneficial effects to fish and wildlife on the Klamath […]
This Snap-On Sensor Could Tell Farmers Exactly How Much To Water Their Crops
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Smithsonian.comby Nathan HurstThe system, for which the Penn State Research Foundation has applied for an international patent, features a clip-on unit that contains sensors to detect the thickness and electrical capacitance, or the ability to store a charge, of individual leaves. The array of sensors is connected to a WiFi node, which transmits the data to a […]
BLOG: Whittling Water Worries
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /aNewsCafe.com (Redding)by Courtney Paige Mentioned: Carlsbad Desalination PlantIn 2015, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation on more than $1 billion in spending for water projects. Hundreds of millions of those dollars are allocated for long-term projects associated with flood control, desalination, water recycling, and conservation. One particular project currently in the water works is Southern California’s plan for desalination by turning 50 […]
Plan to Pump More Water From the Delta Gets Approved
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby Ryan SabalowFederal fisheries regulators have approved a controversial plan opposed by environmental groups that would allow for more pumping from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta this fall. On Wednesday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service signed off on a proposal championed by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and south state California water interests to ramp up Delta […]
‘Horizontal Hurricanes’ Pose Increasing Risk for California
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /San Francisco ChronicleAs increasingly intense hurricanes batter the Southeast and the Caribbean, heightening some of the worst fears about a changing climate, California is facing its own threat of bigger and more destructive storms. Mounting research, much of it done in the wake of the near-record rains that pulled California out of a five-year drought this past […]