Tag Archive for: Northern California

Drought Ravages Californias Reservoirs Ahead of Hot Summer

/in , , /by /AP Newsby Adam Beam

Each year Lake Oroville helps water a quarter of the nation’s crops, sustain endangered salmon beneath its massive earthen dam and anchor the tourism economy of a Northern California county that must rebuild seemingly every year after unrelenting wildfires.

But now the mighty lake — a linchpin in a system of aqueducts and reservoirs in the arid U.S. West that makes California possible — is shrinking with surprising speed amid a severe drought, with state officials predicting it will reach a record low later this summer.

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Reclamation Halts Water Deliveries to Northern Calif. Farmers

/in , , /by /The San Joaquin Valley Sunby Alex Tavlian

More than a month after announcing it was suspending water deliveries to farmers on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley, the Bureau of Reclamation delivered equally bad news to farmers north of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

Their water supplies, tabbed at 5 percent of their contracted amount, were not available for delivery via the Central Valley Project due to limited supply.

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Opinion: California is One of the Most Biodiverse Places On the Planet. Here’s Why We are Losing Our Biodiversity at an Alarming Rate

/in , , , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Charlton H. Bonham

Bonham is the director of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Last month, Gov. Gavin Newsom stood on a bone-dry lakebed in Northern California and announced the state is experiencing drought conditions again. Thus far, the most severe conditions are in specific northern watersheds such as the Russian and Klamath river basins. In the San Diego region, investments in diversifying water sources, conserving and recycling have enhanced resiliency to drought conditions.

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Stunning Drone Photos over Lake Oroville Show Drought Emergency in Northern California

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby By Robert St. John (L.A. Times) and Justin Sullivan (Getty Images)

Stunning drone photographs of Lake Oroville help illustrate the drought emergency declared by Gov. Gavin Newsom in two Northern California counties. Water levels at Lake Oroville have dropped to 42% of its 3,537,577 acre foot capacity.

Conditions are particularly acute in Mendocino and Sonoma counties because the local water supply depends on rainfall in the Russian River watershed.

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Lessons Learned from Previous California Drought Helpful in ‘Dry Years’

/in , , /by /KCRA3by Melanie Wingo

As the rain season comes to a close across Northern California, water districts are keeping a close eye on rain totals that are below average, and water managers are explaining what another “dry water year” means for our region. According to California’s Department of Water Resources, or DWR, the state is well into its second consecutive dry year. That causes concern among water managers. However, it comes as no surprise.

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California’s Wet Season Nears an End with Big Concerns About Drought

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Kurtis Alexander

A disappointingly dry February is fanning fears of another severe drought in California, and cities and farms are bracing for problems. In many places, including parts of the Bay Area, water users are already being asked to cut back.

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Rain in the Bay Area, Snow in Tahoe: Here’s When Storms are Forecast to Hit

/in , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Nora Mishanec

A series of storms will usher in a wet holiday weekend across Northern California, threatening to put a damper on outdoor activities and cause driving delays for holiday travelers.

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EPA Water Pollution Permit Limits Challenged by San Francisco

/in , /by /Bloomberg Lawby Maya Earls

San Francisco is challenging the EPA over conditions imposed in a permit that allows the city to send discharge from its combined sewer system into the Pacific Ocean, according to a petition for review in the Ninth Circuit. The city’s filing in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit comes after the Environmental Protection Agency refused to review three conditions in the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System Permit. The EPA approved the permit in December 2019.

 

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Biggest Storm of the Year is About to Hit Northern California. When to Expect the Worst of It

/in , /by /The Sacramento Beeby Michael McGough

Clear out the gutters. Plan some extra time for the morning commute Wednesday. And don’t even think about heading up the hill for a few days. The biggest storm of the season is barreling down on Northern California. The Sacramento region could see up to 3 inches of rain this week – perhaps doubling the amount of rain we’ve received for the entire winter season – as an extreme storm arrives Tuesday afternoon. The cold, wet system will bring dangerous winds to the region, localized flooding and up to 80 inches of snow – yes, that’s nearly 7 feet – to the summits on Interstate 80 and Highway 50.

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Sea Level Projections Drive San Francisco’s Adaptation Planning

/in , /by /Smart Water Magazine

As a utilities planner for the City and County of San Francisco, David Behar knows that access to the latest information about sea level rise is crucial to his job — and his city. Behar is climate program director for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. He tracks the latest climate science and leads the translation of that work for the agency and other city departments, working with a team of engineers and planners.

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