Locked in a multi-year drought, California’s urban water suppliers have, for the most part, happily enforced rules that prohibit specific wasteful water practices, such as hosing down driveways and over-watering lawns. But far fewer agencies have been willing to go beyond state mandates and penalize customers simply for using profligate volumes of water. The names of those […]
Tom Anderson stands on an overlook on the southern edge of the shallow lake. Red Rock Hill rises up near the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, where Anderson is a deputy project manager. Anderson works to reclaim habitat for shore birds that come here to forage and feed. Agricultural runoff and evaporation team […]
As California’s two largest inland bodies of water go, Lake Tahoe is the stereotypical beauty queen — classically stunning, endlessly photogenic, fragile. Frankly, quite chilly yet eternally inspiring to legions of admirers. The Salton Sea is the neighbor tucked away at the far end of the street and often forgotten. Stark, spare, somewhat homely, beloved by only […]
/in San Diego County/by Mike Lee /Voice of San Diegoby Robert Sulnick Mentioned: Carlsbad Desalination Plant
The same old arguments against desalination keep getting resurrected: It’s too expensive, too energy intensive, plus wastewater recycling and conservation by themselves can solve the drought problem. When put in the context of climate change, imported water and perpetual drought, none of these arguments make sense. Climate scientists are unequivocally telling Southern Californians to prepare for drought […]
Heavy Water Users in California Could Face Penalties, $500 Fines If Drought Persists
/in San Diego County /by Mike Lee /KTLALocked in a multi-year drought, California’s urban water suppliers have, for the most part, happily enforced rules that prohibit specific wasteful water practices, such as hosing down driveways and over-watering lawns. But far fewer agencies have been willing to go beyond state mandates and penalize customers simply for using profligate volumes of water. The names of those […]
Fading Salton Sea Thirsting For Water
/in San Diego County /by Mike Lee /KPBSby Erik AndersonTom Anderson stands on an overlook on the southern edge of the shallow lake. Red Rock Hill rises up near the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge, where Anderson is a deputy project manager. Anderson works to reclaim habitat for shore birds that come here to forage and feed. Agricultural runoff and evaporation team […]
OPINION: Finally, Progress Towards a Sustainable Salton Sea
/in San Diego County /by Mike Lee /Los Angeles TimesAs California’s two largest inland bodies of water go, Lake Tahoe is the stereotypical beauty queen — classically stunning, endlessly photogenic, fragile. Frankly, quite chilly yet eternally inspiring to legions of admirers. The Salton Sea is the neighbor tucked away at the far end of the street and often forgotten. Stark, spare, somewhat homely, beloved by only […]
OPINION: Wastewater Recycling and Conservation Aren’t Enough — That’s Where Desal Comes In
/in San Diego County /by Mike Lee /Voice of San Diegoby Robert Sulnick Mentioned: Carlsbad Desalination PlantThe same old arguments against desalination keep getting resurrected: It’s too expensive, too energy intensive, plus wastewater recycling and conservation by themselves can solve the drought problem. When put in the context of climate change, imported water and perpetual drought, none of these arguments make sense. Climate scientists are unequivocally telling Southern Californians to prepare for drought […]