On rich Delta farmland just outside Tracy, Suzanne Womack spent her childhood on more than 600 acres dating back to 1961. “I moved there when I was 3 years old,” said Womack. “I learned to ride horses there.” Now, for years, her attention has turned to preserving her land against what she calls poor maintenance by […]
In 2016, annual precipitation was average for the Central Valley and above average for northern California. But the allocation of Central Valley Project water to public water agencies that serve farmers south of the Delta was only 5%. The federal government blamed the low allocation of water on hydrological conditions, rather than environmental regulations that limited pumping of water and prevented […]
Images from the state Department of Water Resources show round-the-clock work the week of March 11-17, 2017 at Oroville Dam. A giant fracture developed in Oroville Dam’s main spillway during a heavy storm earlier this year. Five days later, water flowed over the dam’s emergency spillway for the first time, nearly causing the hillside below […]
State officials said Wednesday that Californians reliant on water pumped out of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta won’t face supply shortages, even as crews shut down a massive pumping station that serves much of Southern California for at least a month to make repairs to its intake reservoir. The repair effort involves Clifton Court Forebay, a […]
Despite the wet winter and far-above-average Sierra Nevada snowpack, California forests remain at risk from tree mortality, bark beetle infestations and overgrown landscapes, according to presentations at the 2017 California Farm Bureau Federation Leaders Conference.(Left) Timber operator and Tuolumne County Farm Bureau President Shaun Crook during the California Farm Bureau Leaders Conference in Sacramento. Photo/Ching Lee. […]
A powerful and unrelenting winter blast coated the Northern Sierra Nevada this winter. Back-to-back storms buried the Lake Tahoe area in snow, crippling transportation, shuttering ski resorts, knocking out power and disrupting the daily lives of thousands. In the first three weeks of January alone, the region received nearly a full winter’s worth of snow, and […]
State Dealing With Another Reservoir Fix Near Tracy, Says It Won’t Interrupt Water Deliveries
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /ABC10 (Sacramento)by Kurt RiveraOn rich Delta farmland just outside Tracy, Suzanne Womack spent her childhood on more than 600 acres dating back to 1961. “I moved there when I was 3 years old,” said Womack. “I learned to ride horses there.” Now, for years, her attention has turned to preserving her land against what she calls poor maintenance by […]
Contradiction in Water Policy
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Fox & Hounds Dailyby Johnny AmaralIn 2016, annual precipitation was average for the Central Valley and above average for northern California. But the allocation of Central Valley Project water to public water agencies that serve farmers south of the Delta was only 5%. The federal government blamed the low allocation of water on hydrological conditions, rather than environmental regulations that limited pumping of water and prevented […]
VIDEO: A Look At Repair Efforts At The Lake Oroville Dam Spillway This Week
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby David CaraccioImages from the state Department of Water Resources show round-the-clock work the week of March 11-17, 2017 at Oroville Dam. A giant fracture developed in Oroville Dam’s main spillway during a heavy storm earlier this year. Five days later, water flowed over the dam’s emergency spillway for the first time, nearly causing the hillside below […]
Can California Repair Damaged Delta Reservoir Within 45 Days?
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby Ryan Sabalow and Phillip ReeseState officials said Wednesday that Californians reliant on water pumped out of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta won’t face supply shortages, even as crews shut down a massive pumping station that serves much of Southern California for at least a month to make repairs to its intake reservoir. The repair effort involves Clifton Court Forebay, a […]
Wet Winter Fails to Solve California’s Forest Problems
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Sierra Sun Times (Mariposa)by Christine SouzaDespite the wet winter and far-above-average Sierra Nevada snowpack, California forests remain at risk from tree mortality, bark beetle infestations and overgrown landscapes, according to presentations at the 2017 California Farm Bureau Federation Leaders Conference.(Left) Timber operator and Tuolumne County Farm Bureau President Shaun Crook during the California Farm Bureau Leaders Conference in Sacramento. Photo/Ching Lee. […]
Has Lake Tahoe Ever Looked More Beautiful Than It Does Right Now?
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /SFGate (San Francisco)by Amy GraffA powerful and unrelenting winter blast coated the Northern Sierra Nevada this winter. Back-to-back storms buried the Lake Tahoe area in snow, crippling transportation, shuttering ski resorts, knocking out power and disrupting the daily lives of thousands. In the first three weeks of January alone, the region received nearly a full winter’s worth of snow, and […]