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A New Groundwater Storage Project Could Help Southern California in the Next Drought

/in , , /by /LAist by Makenna Sievertson

The first stage of a new groundwater storage project in the Antelope Valley is now up and running after three years of construction.

The High Desert Water Bank, which is through a partnership with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and the Antelope Valley-East Kern Water Agency (AVEK), has the capacity to store and withdraw enough water to serve about 210,000 Southern California homes each year.

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Los Angeles Steps Into San Diego’s Water Divorce

/in , /by /Voice of San Diegoby MacKenzie Elmer Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

In their efforts to break away from the San Diego County Water Authority, two small farming communities have run into a powerful and unexpected foe: The Los Angeles-based Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

At least, they ran into the man who chairs Metropolitan’s board: Adán Ortega Jr., a water policy consultant and former lobbyist elected in October to lead at Met.

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California Agreed to Reduce Its Colorado River Usage, but San Diego Might Not See a Change

/in , , /by /FOX 5 San Diegoby Danielle Dawson Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

In a historic consensus, California, alongside the six other states that rely on the Colorado River for survival, announced an agreement last week for a plan to cut back water usage over the next three years.

The proposal drafted by the three lower basin states – California, Arizona and Nevada – would cut water use from the river by at least 3 million acre-feet by the end of 2026 through conservation to prevent the river’s reservoirs from falling to critically low levels.

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Opinion: Colorado River Water Deal Gives California Another Reprieve. For Now

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby LA Times Editorial Board

The Colorado River deal announced Monday is more of a temporary reprieve than a solution to plummeting water supplies. The deep water cuts for California, Arizona and Nevada will tide over thirsty residents and farmers only until the end of 2026. The real reckoning comes when operating agreements expire for Lake Mead, which feeds the Colorado’s water to Southern California and the two other lower-basin states, and Lake Powell, which regulates the flow into Lake Mead while serving Wyoming, Colorado, Utah and New Mexico.

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Opinion: California Taxpayers on the Hook to Save Two Unhealthy Western Rivers

/in , /by /CalMattersby Dan Walters

The Klamath River begins in Oregon, draining the eastern slope of the Cascade Mountains, and slices through the northwestern corner of California before flowing into the Pacific Ocean. The Colorado River begins in Colorado, draining the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains, before meandering southwesterly and emptying into Mexico’s Sea of Cortez – if there’s any water left after California and other states have tapped the river for irrigation and municipal supplies.

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New Report Finds Proposed Delta Tunnel Could Bankrupt Metropolitan Water District

/in , , /by /Sacramento News & Review by Dan Bacher

In a report sponsored by the California Water Impact Network, policy expert Max Gomberg revealed that the continued funding of the controversial Delta Tunnel – also known as the Delta Conveyance Project – could bankrupt the powerful Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. Gomberg is the former climate change and water conservation manager for the State Water Resources Control Board.

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How Capturing Rainfall Can Help Crisis on Colorado River

/in , , /by /8 News Nowby Kyle J. Paine

The snow melt provides most of the water that flows into the Colorado River. However, in California capturing rainfall is another option to save water to help the crisis on the Colorado River.

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SoCal Homeowners Can Get More Drought-Resistant Plants Installed With This Rebate Offer

/in , , /by /ABC 7 by Leo Stallworth

As the state continues to deal with a historic drought, Southern California homeowners are getting the chance to transform their thirsty grass and gardens.

The Metropolitan Water District offers rebates to residents ripping up their lawns and putting in plants that don’t need a lot of water to survive.

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Here’s How Southern California’s Drought Emergency Could Affect You

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Hayley Smith

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California has declared a regional drought emergency and called on water agencies to immediately reduce their use of all imported supplies. The reason? Drought conditions are limiting imported water supplies from the State Water Project in Northern California and the Colorado River.

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All of Southern California Under Drought Emergency, According to Metropolitan Water District

/in , /by /ABC 10Newsby Natalie Chuck Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

Outside of Mark Larson’s home are 12 acres of blossoming Bird of Paradise. Flowers have grown on his farm since the 1960s. “Once you get used to the country and all this open space it’s hard to go back to the city,” said Larson. However, he says agriculture is disappearing from San Diego County, due in part to the cost of and access to water.

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