Tag Archive for: San Luis Reservoir

Expansion of San Luis Reservoir Set to Boost California’s Water-Storing Capacity

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Ian James

The Biden administration and eight California water agencies have reached an agreement to share in the costs of raising a dam to expand San Luis Reservoir, a nearly $1-billion project intended to increase the state’s water-storage capacity and benefit a group of urban communities and agricultural areas.

The plan to raise B.F. Sisk Dam and enlarge the reservoir near Los Banos will enable it to hold more water during wet years, boosting the reserves of water suppliers in parts of the Bay Area and the San Joaquin Valley.

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Reclamation and Partners Complete Negotiations for the B.F. Sisk Dam Raise and Reservoir Expansion Project in Merced County, Advancing Water Supply Reliability in California’s Central Valley

/in , /by /Sierra Sun Times

The joint project creates an additional 130,000 acre-feet of storage space in San Luis Reservoir, the nation’s largest off-stream reservoir, producing additional water supply for two million people, over one million acres of farmland and 135,000 acres of Pacific Flyway wetlands and critical wildlife habitat. Reclamation signed the Record of Decision for the project on Oct. 20, 2023, the first approval of a major water storage project in California since 2011.

Significant provisions of the agreement include cost sharing and space management for the federally-funded and authority-funded shares of the expanded reservoir. A $25 million investment to the project under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law was announced in October 2022 and an additional $10 million in July 2023. An additional $60 million was authorized for project construction from the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act, for a total of $95 million in federal contributions to date in construction costs.

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OPINION: California Dam Raise Would Take More Delta Water. Why Are Environmentalists Silent?

/in , /by /The Fresno Beeby Marek Warszawski

Fresno drivers headed to the Bay Area via Pacheco Pass on Highway 152 can’t help but take note of a sprawling inland sea that seemingly appears out of nowhere among the yellowed, oak-dotted foothills.

This is San Luis Reservoir, essentially a 2 million acre-foot holding tank built to irrigate San Joaquin Valley farms and supply drinking water to Silicon Valley. Its construction was considered such a significant addition to California’s water supply that President John F. Kennedy turned out in 1962 to push the dynamite plunger.

 

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Opinion: California’s Water Wars See Some Breakthroughs but More Clashes Loom

/in , , /by /CalMattersby Dan Walters

The politics of water in California could be likened to the constant grinding of tectonic plates 10 miles or more beneath its surface. The Pacific Plate battles with the North American Plate for dominance along the 800-mile-long San Andreas Fault tracing California’s coast. When one gives way, the state experiences an earthquake.

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First Major Water Storage Project in Over a Decade Moving Forward

/in , , /by /AgNet Westby Brian German

The recent approval of the B.F. Sisk Dam Raise and Reservoir Expansion Project marks a significant improvement to California’s water storage capacity. This major project, greenlit as part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, represents the first substantial water storage approval in California since 2011. The Department of the Interior, in collaboration with the San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority, has granted the nod to this crucial initiative, signaling a new era for water storage in the state.

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Feds OK Plans for Major Expansion of San Luis Reservoir

/in , , /by /The San Joaquin Valley Sunby Daniel Gligich

California is getting its first major water storage project in a dozen years, expanding an existing reservoir through federal funding.

Friday, the Department of the Interior and San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority improved plans to implement the B.F. Sisk Dam Raise and Reservoir Expansion Project.

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State Water Project to Deliver 100% of Requested Supplies as Reservoirs Fill

/in , , /by /Times of San Diego by Chris Jennewein

The California Department of Water Resources announced Thursday that the State Water Project will be able to deliver 100% of requested water supplies this year thanks to full reservoirs following record winter rain and snow.

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Water Windfall: Key California Reservoir Fills for Just Third Time in 12 years

/in , , /by /The Mercury Newsby Paul Rogers

Five months ago, San Luis Reservoir — the massive lake along Highway 152 between Gilroy and Los Banos — was just 24% full, an arid landscape of cracked mud and lonely boat ramps painfully far away from the dwindling water’s edge.

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Planning for Dry Times: The West Considers More Reservoirs and Aquifers

/in , , /by /The Pew Charitable Trustsby Matt Vasilogambros

As parched California receives much needed rain and snow this winter, some local water officials are calling on state leaders to invest in new infrastructure projects that will store freshwater for inevitable dry times to come. The worst megadrought in 1,200 years is devastating the water supply in the Western United States.

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Toxic Blue-Green Algae That Can Kill Dogs Spotted in California. How to Identify and Avoid It

/in , /by /The Sacramento Beeby Hanh Truong

With temperatures heating up, it might be tempting to take a dip in the river or let your dog dehydrate at the shore after a walk, but you might want to think twice.

Toxic blue-green algae, known for causing negative health effects in people and animals who’ve been exposed to it, has bloomed in central California at the San Luis Reservoir in Merced County, according to a release from Department of Water Resources on May 31.

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