On Monday, California water officials slogged through deep snow 7,000 feet above sea level, west of Lake Tahoe, to affirm what everyone already knew: A series of Pacific storms has generated record-level amounts of precipitation, filling reservoirs, inundating low-lying towns and fields and threatening more disastrous flooding as the Sierra snowpack melts.
California water officials reported on Monday that preliminary data showed the water contained in the state’s April snowpack is near historic levels.
Officials previewed the results after a morning measurement south of Lake Tahoe, where the snowpack exceeded 10.5 feet deep at one of California’s 260 snow measurement locations.
Though recent snow and rainfall have certainly improved drought conditions, California water officials still want to make every drop of water count.
That means cutting out the watering of decorative grass — also known as non-functional turf — frequently landscaped at traffic medians or office parking lots.
Decorative grass is becoming a bigger problem for Western water agencies to address as policymakers look to cut back its water usage in statewide bans, proposed legislation and local ordinances.
The state Supreme Court allowed local governments and conservation groups Monday to ask the state for further safety measures and environmental safeguards at the Oroville Dam despite federal authority to license the facility, where a breach and spill forced 188,000 people to evacuate their homes in 2017.
The ruling will not interrupt operations at the nation’s tallest dam, a 770-foot structure on the Feather River in Butte County. But the 5-2 decision enables California water officials to conduct additional review, under state environmental laws, of the dam and other federally regulated water projects.
For the second time in a single water season, California water officials are preparing to zero out water deliveries to Valley farmers reliant on the State Water Project.
During a Tuesday meeting of California’s State Water Resources Control Board, Department of Water Resources director Karla Nemeth announced her agency would be enacting the cuts on water contractors and preserving resources for health and safety needs only.
Brad Hooker of Agri-Pulse first reported the news.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
