California’s increasingly volatile warming climate is making droughts more intense, and complicating water management. A just-launched commodity futures market for the state’s water provides a new tool for farmers, municipalities and other interested parties to ensure against water price shocks arising from drought-fueled shortages. Taking a Wall Street approach to an essential natural resource has prompted both […]
If there were any doubts that the climate is changing in the Colorado River Basin, 2020 went a long way toward dispelling them, thanks to yet another year of extreme weather. Unprecedented wildfires, deadly heat waves, withering drought—the many indicators of the climate mayhem that scientists have been warning about for years—ravaged the landscape, claiming […]
Mayors and county supervisors in towns along the Colorado River were already upset five months ago when the state water agency endorsed an investment company’s plan to take water from farmland near the river and sell it to a growing Phoenix suburb. Now, they’re incensed that the agency, which initially suggested holding back a large portion of the water, changed […]
Since the early 1920s, the Long Valley plains east of Yosemite have inspired comparison to a rustic Western paradise — an idyllic frontier where sparkling creeks meander through lush pastures, waters teem with feisty trout and sage grouse make ostentatious displays of romance.
Groundwater keeps the San Joaquin Valley’s orchards, vineyards and fields vibrant and supports a multibillion-dollar agricultural economy. But that bounty has come at a price. Overpumping of groundwater has depleted aquifers, dried up household wells and degraded ecosystems. Now, hundreds of agencies in California have the task of making things right in their respective groundwater […]
A drenching storm that brought California much-needed rain in what had been a dry winter wound down Friday after washing out Highway 1 near Big Sur, burying the Sierra Nevada in snow and causing muddy flows from slopes burned bare by wildfires. The atmospheric river weather system that barreled ashore in Northern California early in […]
Opinion: Water Markets in California Can Reduce the Costs of Drought
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /CalMattersby Ellen HanakCalifornia’s increasingly volatile warming climate is making droughts more intense, and complicating water management. A just-launched commodity futures market for the state’s water provides a new tool for farmers, municipalities and other interested parties to ensure against water price shocks arising from drought-fueled shortages. Taking a Wall Street approach to an essential natural resource has prompted both […]
Climate Change Ravaged the West With Heat and Drought Last Year; Many Fear 2021 Will Be Worse
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Inside Climate Newsby Judy FahysIf there were any doubts that the climate is changing in the Colorado River Basin, 2020 went a long way toward dispelling them, thanks to yet another year of extreme weather. Unprecedented wildfires, deadly heat waves, withering drought—the many indicators of the climate mayhem that scientists have been warning about for years—ravaged the landscape, claiming […]
Tensions Rise Over Company’s Plan to Sell Colorado River Water in Arizona
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Arizona Republicby Ian JamesMayors and county supervisors in towns along the Colorado River were already upset five months ago when the state water agency endorsed an investment company’s plan to take water from farmland near the river and sell it to a growing Phoenix suburb. Now, they’re incensed that the agency, which initially suggested holding back a large portion of the water, changed […]
Citing Climate Change, LADWP Ends Free Water Deal for Long Valley Ranchers and Sparks Anger Among Conservationists
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Los Angeles Timesby Louis SahagunSince the early 1920s, the Long Valley plains east of Yosemite have inspired comparison to a rustic Western paradise — an idyllic frontier where sparkling creeks meander through lush pastures, waters teem with feisty trout and sage grouse make ostentatious displays of romance.
In the Heart of the San Joaquin Valley, Two Groundwater Sustainability Agencies Try to Find Their Balance
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Western Water (Water Education Foundation)by Gary Pitzer and Douglas E. BeemanGroundwater keeps the San Joaquin Valley’s orchards, vineyards and fields vibrant and supports a multibillion-dollar agricultural economy. But that bounty has come at a price. Overpumping of groundwater has depleted aquifers, dried up household wells and degraded ecosystems. Now, hundreds of agencies in California have the task of making things right in their respective groundwater […]
California Storm Winds Down After Deluge of Rain and Snow
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Chelsea Campos /AP Newsby John Antczak and Scott SonnerA drenching storm that brought California much-needed rain in what had been a dry winter wound down Friday after washing out Highway 1 near Big Sur, burying the Sierra Nevada in snow and causing muddy flows from slopes burned bare by wildfires. The atmospheric river weather system that barreled ashore in Northern California early in […]