Rains have drenched Northern California, where most of the state’s largest reservoirs are located. The state had the second wettest October since the Department began keeping records in 1921. “We are almost 400 percent of the normal amount of rain in October here in the north and even the San Joaquin and Tulare regions are […]
The western United States set records for low winter snowpack levels in 2015, and a new report blames high temperatures rather than low precipitation levels, according to a new study. Greenhouse gases appear to be a major contributor to the high temperatures, according to the study published Monday in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. Scientists […]
California is moving forward with rules for how water districts can turn what goes down your toilet back into drinking water. State regulators are taking comments on a kind of water recycling where wastewater sits in a lake before being treated. Next up might be a way to skip the wait. The state already has […]
The blob is back. Since 2014, a mass of unusually warm water has hovered and swelled in the Pacific Ocean off the West Coast of North America, playing havoc with marine wildlife, water quality and the regional weather. Earlier this year, weather and oceanography experts thought it was waning. But no: The Blob came back, and […]
As California enters the sixth year of its historic drought, something unusual is happening: It’s raining. And raining. Rainfall is expected across much of the Bay Area again Sunday, with another storm coming Halloween night. Marin, Sonoma and other North Bay counties should get the biggest soaking. Meteorologists stress that it’s only the very beginning […]
California water agencies that spent more than $350 million in the last two years of drought to pay property owners to rip out water-slurping lawns are now trying to answer whether the nation’s biggest lawn removal experiment was all worth the cost. Around the state, water experts and water-district employees are employing satellite images, infrared […]
Reservoir Levels Rise In California With Record October Rainfall
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Capital Public Radio (Sacramento)by Amy QuintonRains have drenched Northern California, where most of the state’s largest reservoirs are located. The state had the second wettest October since the Department began keeping records in 1921. “We are almost 400 percent of the normal amount of rain in October here in the north and even the San Joaquin and Tulare regions are […]
Study Blames High Temperatures For Low 2015 Snowpack
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /CBS (San Francisco)The western United States set records for low winter snowpack levels in 2015, and a new report blames high temperatures rather than low precipitation levels, according to a new study. Greenhouse gases appear to be a major contributor to the high temperatures, according to the study published Monday in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. Scientists […]
California State Considers New Rules For Waste Water Recycling
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Capital Public Radio (Sacramento)by Daniel PotterCalifornia is moving forward with rules for how water districts can turn what goes down your toilet back into drinking water. State regulators are taking comments on a kind of water recycling where wastewater sits in a lake before being treated. Next up might be a way to skip the wait. The state already has […]
BLOG: ‘The Blob’ Is Back: What Warm Ocean Mass Means for Weather, Wildlife
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Water Deeply (New York)by Matt WeiserThe blob is back. Since 2014, a mass of unusually warm water has hovered and swelled in the Pacific Ocean off the West Coast of North America, playing havoc with marine wildlife, water quality and the regional weather. Earlier this year, weather and oceanography experts thought it was waning. But no: The Blob came back, and […]
California Drought: Is October Rain Making A Difference?
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /The San Jose Mercury Newsby Paul RogersAs California enters the sixth year of its historic drought, something unusual is happening: It’s raining. And raining. Rainfall is expected across much of the Bay Area again Sunday, with another storm coming Halloween night. Marin, Sonoma and other North Bay counties should get the biggest soaking. Meteorologists stress that it’s only the very beginning […]
In California, A $350 Million Social Experiment Over Lawns
/in California and the U.S. /by Mike Lee /Associated Press (As published by The Seattle Times)by Ellen KnickmeyerCalifornia water agencies that spent more than $350 million in the last two years of drought to pay property owners to rip out water-slurping lawns are now trying to answer whether the nation’s biggest lawn removal experiment was all worth the cost. Around the state, water experts and water-district employees are employing satellite images, infrared […]