On a clear afternoon recently, Mayor Eric Garcetti looked down at the Hollywood Reservoir from 1,200 feet in the air.
“It’s as low as I can ever remember it being,” Garcetti said of the reservoir from the back seat of a Los Angeles Department of Water and Power helicopter. “You can see the bathtub ring.”
More than 60% of California’s groundwater wells are operating at below-normal levels, endangering much of the Golden State’s population that relies on the precious resource.
Although relatively unknown to many Californians, who see water supply in terms of rivers, streams and reservoirs, groundwater is a hugely vital source that is largely invisible.
A $140 million desalination plant is expected to be approved by California regulators on Thursday as the U.S. state contends with how to convert ocean water into drinking water amid the worst drought in 1,200 years.
Just five months ago, the Coastal Commission by an 11-0 vote rejected a privately owned plant that would have been 10 times the size of the proposed South Coast Water District’s Doheny Ocean Desalination Project in Orange County, just south of Los Angeles.
One of the largest public works projects in Sacramento’s history has been quietly under construction, out of sight for most people in the region.
Sacramento RegionalSan is upgrading its wastewater processing facility in Elk Grove, which processes wastewater from customers across Sacramento County, and West Sacramento in Yolo County. On an average day, 150 million gallons of wastewater is handled at the facility.
With Oct. 1 marking the beginning of a new water year, Mendocino County officials reported recently that local water districts are preparing for what could be another dry year.
In the latest update from the Mendocino County Water Agency, local water managers are quoted as describing their current status and outlook.
The National Weather Service in Seattle posted a graphic this week that contains a startling fact. Since July 1, Seattle, a city synonymous with rain, has been drier than San Diego, a city synonymous with clear, dry skies.
From July 1 to Oct. 9, San Diego recorded 0.65 inches of rain. Seattle, 1,250 miles to the north, had only 0.48 inches.
California American Water has shifted its plans for a desalination plant on the shores of Marina, announcing it will now seek to build the project in multiple phases.
“Phasing the Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project strikes the right balance to meet the critical need for sufficient and reliable drought-proof water supply to meet demands in the near term while allowing for additional supply as it becomes needed over the next 30 years,” said Josh Stratton, a Cal Am spokesman, in an email. “In addition, as we heard from the community, phasing the project with the possibility of expanding the project to accommodate future regional water supply needs through public participation is important. This is a win-win for the region that provides an opportunity to help the Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project be part of future water supply solutions for our customers and nearby communities.”
On Scott Beylik’s 4-acre farm about 60 miles northwest of Los Angeles, rows of tomato vines climb wires strung from the beams of his greenhouses. There’s no soil, so the roots are submerged in little bags with water. Every drop of water he uses goes directly to the plant.
s the drought in the West drags on, the future of water-loving crops like tomatoes hangs in the balance. Hydroponic farming — the technique Beylik farms with — uses as little as 10% of the water traditional systems use to grow tomatoes and other field crops.
The fall season is settling into Sacramento, which means watering rules for the city will change soon.
As a part of a water conservation ordinance from 2017, the city of Sacramento set up restrictions on when businesses and residents water their lawns.
From Nov. 1 to Feb. 28, individuals can only water their landscape one day per week, on Saturday or Sunday, at any time of day. Watering on a weekday is not allowed.
The California Coastal Commission is slated to vote Thursday on a crucial permit for a project that would draw ocean water through the sand off the coast of Dana Point, purify it and use it to help bolster water supplies for communities throughout Southern California.
A dozen desalination plants are permitted to turn ocean water into drinking water in California today, from as far south as Carlsbad to as far north as Monterey Bay. A year ago, three new desalination projects were pending in Southern California alone. But only one still remains viable: the Doheny Ocean Desalination Plant, which is being developed by South Coast Water District.
