Record snowfall in recent years has not been enough to offset long-term drying conditions and increasing groundwater demands in the U.S. Southwest, according to a new analysis of NASA satellite data. Declining water levels in the Great Salt Lake and Lake Mead have been testaments to a megadrought afflicting western North America since 2000. But surface water […]
As general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Adel Hagekhalil has overseen a public agency that’s responsible for supplying the water that 19 million people drink. And he has been playing a leading role in efforts to transform how Southern California manages water, one of the most consequential issues the region faces […]
A Sacramento County judge on Thursday ruled in favor of several water districts and local governments over California’s planned delta tunnel project that would divert water from Northern California to the south of the state, saying that exploratory work can’t continue until the state completes a necessary certification process. The decision by Superior Court Judge Stephen […]
Efforts to stretch the overused Colorado River appear to be working: The total amount of water used across Nevada, California and Arizona is the lowest it’s been in 40 years. The reduction is the result of several factors, including a good snowpack year allowing for more use of groundwater, increased conservation efforts and millions of […]
Legal rights to use water — particularly those obtained prior to 1914 — lie at the heart of California’s perpetual wrangling over the allocation of increasingly limited water supplies. For years state officials have been trying, with limited success, to reduce farmers’ diversions, increase river flows and restore declining numbers of fish, particularly salmon, and other wildlife.
After a year of dominance, El Niño’s wrath has come to end — but its climate-churning counterpart, La Niña, is hot on its heels and could signal a return to dryness for California. El Niño is the warm phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation, sometimes referred to as ENSO. The climate pattern in the […]
Groundwater Declines in the U.S. Southwest
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Kylie Capuano /NASA Earth Observatoryby James R. RiordonRecord snowfall in recent years has not been enough to offset long-term drying conditions and increasing groundwater demands in the U.S. Southwest, according to a new analysis of NASA satellite data. Declining water levels in the Great Salt Lake and Lake Mead have been testaments to a megadrought afflicting western North America since 2000. But surface water […]
Adel Hagekhalil: Southern California’s Embattled ‘Water Doctor’
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Kylie Capuano /Los Angeles Timesby Ian JamesAs general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Adel Hagekhalil has overseen a public agency that’s responsible for supplying the water that 19 million people drink. And he has been playing a leading role in efforts to transform how Southern California manages water, one of the most consequential issues the region faces […]
California Judge Grants Injunction in Water Conveyance Project
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Kylie Capuano /Courthouse News Serviceby Alan RiquelmyA Sacramento County judge on Thursday ruled in favor of several water districts and local governments over California’s planned delta tunnel project that would divert water from Northern California to the south of the state, saying that exploratory work can’t continue until the state completes a necessary certification process. The decision by Superior Court Judge Stephen […]
Nevada Leads as 40-year Low is Reached in Colorado River Water Use
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Kylie Capuano /Las Vegas Review Journalby Alan HalalyEfforts to stretch the overused Colorado River appear to be working: The total amount of water used across Nevada, California and Arizona is the lowest it’s been in 40 years. The reduction is the result of several factors, including a good snowpack year allowing for more use of groundwater, increased conservation efforts and millions of […]
OPINION: In rain, Snow and Drought, California’s Fights Over Water Rights, Supplies Persist
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Kylie Capuano /Cal Mattersby Dan WaltersLegal rights to use water — particularly those obtained prior to 1914 — lie at the heart of California’s perpetual wrangling over the allocation of increasingly limited water supplies. For years state officials have been trying, with limited success, to reduce farmers’ diversions, increase river flows and restore declining numbers of fish, particularly salmon, and other wildlife.
El Niño Makes an Exit, but La Niña Could Bring Dry Conditions Back to California
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Kylie Capuano /Los Angeles Times by Hayley SmithAfter a year of dominance, El Niño’s wrath has come to end — but its climate-churning counterpart, La Niña, is hot on its heels and could signal a return to dryness for California. El Niño is the warm phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation, sometimes referred to as ENSO. The climate pattern in the […]