Prompted by a 2015 state law, the State Water Resources Control Board has begun designing a program to provide state aid to individuals and families who need help paying their water bills. Due to the Legislature by February 1, 2018, California is determined to be the first to use state funds to subsidize water service […]
Governor Jerry Brown and other state officials have constantly claimed the Delta Tunnels project will “restore” the Delta ecosystem, but they revealed their real plans on October 7 when the administration applied for a permit to kill winter-run Chinook salmon, Central Valley steelhead, Delta and longfin smelt and other endangered species with the project. The California Department of Water Resources […]
If you live in an apartment in California, you don’t pay for the water you use – not directly, anyway. Apartments in California, with few exceptions, don’t have individual water meters, known as submeters. Instead, water usage is wrapped up in the rent payment, which means tenants have no idea how much water they’re using, and […]
Look out weather watchers: La Niña is lurking. And that could mean a warm and dry winter for the USA’s southern tier and a potentially cooler, stormier one across the north, federal scientists announced Thursday morning. The La Niña climate pattern — marked by cooler-than-average ocean water in the central Pacific Ocean — is one of the main drivers of weather in […]
In a move that could have ramifications across the arid West, a government watchdog agency accused federal water regulators of wasting taxpayer funds when they gave Klamath Basin farmers more than $32 million to stop growing crops and to pump groundwater instead of drawing from lakes and rivers.The funds were spent in a failed bid […]
California has been trying to fill its reservoirs for 5 years, and it will get a little help from a storm expected to hit later this week. Right now, Lake Shasta is only at 60% capacity and Lake Oroville is at 44%, with other reservoirs across the state even lower. “So, there’s plenty of room […]
California Designs First Statewide Water Affordability Program
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Circle of Blue (Traverse City, Mich.)by Brett WaltonPrompted by a 2015 state law, the State Water Resources Control Board has begun designing a program to provide state aid to individuals and families who need help paying their water bills. Due to the Legislature by February 1, 2018, California is determined to be the first to use state funds to subsidize water service […]
Brown Administration Applies for Permit To Take Endangered Species In Delta Tunnels
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /YubaNet.com (Nevada City)by Dan BacherGovernor Jerry Brown and other state officials have constantly claimed the Delta Tunnels project will “restore” the Delta ecosystem, but they revealed their real plans on October 7 when the administration applied for a permit to kill winter-run Chinook salmon, Central Valley steelhead, Delta and longfin smelt and other endangered species with the project. The California Department of Water Resources […]
Submeters: A New Incentive for California Tenants to Save Water
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Water Deeply (New York)by Matt WeiserIf you live in an apartment in California, you don’t pay for the water you use – not directly, anyway. Apartments in California, with few exceptions, don’t have individual water meters, known as submeters. Instead, water usage is wrapped up in the rent payment, which means tenants have no idea how much water they’re using, and […]
How Will The Lurking La Niña Affect Our Winter?
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /USA Todayby Doyle RiceLook out weather watchers: La Niña is lurking. And that could mean a warm and dry winter for the USA’s southern tier and a potentially cooler, stormier one across the north, federal scientists announced Thursday morning. The La Niña climate pattern — marked by cooler-than-average ocean water in the central Pacific Ocean — is one of the main drivers of weather in […]
Farmers Were Paid $32M To Pump And Not Farm. Was It A Waste Of Money?
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The Sacramento Beeby Ryan SabalowIn a move that could have ramifications across the arid West, a government watchdog agency accused federal water regulators of wasting taxpayer funds when they gave Klamath Basin farmers more than $32 million to stop growing crops and to pump groundwater instead of drawing from lakes and rivers.The funds were spent in a failed bid […]
Don’t Expect Much Snow From The Soaking Storm Approaching California
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /SFGate (San Francisco)by Kristin HanesCalifornia has been trying to fill its reservoirs for 5 years, and it will get a little help from a storm expected to hit later this week. Right now, Lake Shasta is only at 60% capacity and Lake Oroville is at 44%, with other reservoirs across the state even lower. “So, there’s plenty of room […]