The East Coast Is Sinking
New satellite-based research reveals how land along the coast is slumping into the ocean, compounding the danger from global sea level rise. A major culprit: overpumping of groundwater.
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Biden Signs Bill to Study Salt Lakes in Drought-Hit US West
/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /AP Newsby Sam MetzScientists will get $25 million to study salt lake ecosystems in the drought-stricken U.S. West, as President Joe Biden signed legislation Tuesday allocating the funds in the face of unprecedented existential threats caused by the lack of water. The funding allows the United States Geological Survey to study the hydrology of the ecosystems in and around Utah’s Great Salt Lake, California’s Mono Lake, Oregon’s Lake Albert and other saline lakes.
Why is the Colorado River Drying Up?
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Newsweekby Robyn WhiteThe Colorado River’s water levels are the lowest they have been in a century. Scientists fear the reservoirs the river feeds into could reach deadpool level in the next few years. That would mean the water level would be too low to flow downstream from a dam or to drive turbines to generate power. And these reservoirs are integral for surrounding water supply.
The Sinking Central Valley Town
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Chelsea Campos /SJV Waterby Lois HenryIn California’s San Joaquin Valley, the farming town of Corcoran has a multimillion-dollar problem. It is almost impossible to see, yet so vast it takes NASA scientists using satellite technology to fully grasp. Corcoran is sinking. Over the past 14 years, the town has sunk as much as 11.5 feet in some places — enough to swallow the entire first floor of a two-story house and to at times make Corcoran one of the fastest-sinking areas in the country, according to experts with the United States Geological Survey.
Klamath Basin Faces Drought, Again
/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /Jefferson Public Radioby April EhrlichForecasts based on U.S. Geological Survey data predict that the Klamath Basin will only fulfill about a third of what’s needed for agriculture. The Upper Klamath Lake is more than a foot lower than it was this time last year, which was also a drought year.
The Klamath County commissioners voted Tuesday to issue a county-level drought declaration. The board voted to request that Gov. Kate Brown’s office issue a state-level drought declaration, which would open up financial resources for water users.
Near Coasts, Rising Seas Could Also Push Up Long-Buried Toxic Contamination
/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Chelsea Campos /NPRby Laura KlivansMarquita Price grew up spending lots of time at her grandmother’s one-story lavender house in Deep East Oakland. It’s a place she’s always considered home, and where her grandmother still lives. So Price, an urban planner, was upset to learn about a lesser-known aspect of climate change fueled by sea level rise: it could cause the groundwater beneath this formerly-industrial community to rise, and wreak slow-motion havoc in the process.
Opinion: California Must Change Course to Avoid Water Shortages
/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez /Redlands Daily Factsby Daniel KolkeyCalifornians have recently endured increasingly aggressive wildfires, rolling power outages, and smoke-filled air for days. Unless the state government changes course, we can add water shortages to this list.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, California has already suffered three droughts during this century – 2001-2002, 2007-2009, and 2012-2016. To address this reality, the state has enacted legislation to require urban water agencies, under penalty of $1,000 fines per day, to increasingly reduce average water use by residents and businesses, without requiring any significant steps to increase water capture and storage during wet years.
Colorado River Expert Biden’s Pick for Interior Water Post
/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez /Bloomberg Lawby Tripp Baltz and Bobby MagillTanya Trujillo, an expert on water law and the Colorado River Basin, is President Joe Biden’s choice to serve in the Interior Department’s top water and science position.
If confirmed by the Senate, Trujillo, currently the Lower Basin project director for the Colorado River Sustainability Campaign, will serve as principal deputy assistant secretary for water and science, overseeing the Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Geological Survey.
Why Understanding Snowpack Could Help the Overworked Colorado River
/in California and the U.S., Home Headline, Media Coverage /by Kimberlyn Velasquez /Deseret News (Utah)by Amy Joi O'DonoghueForty million people, 5.5 million acres of farmland and the livelihood of residents in major metropolitan areas such as Salt Lake City, Denver and Las Vegas depend on the Colorado River, described as the workhorse of the West and under assault by drought.
The U.S. Geological Survey is in the beginning stages of learning more about this river via an expanded and more sophisticated monitoring system that aims to study details about the snowpack that feeds the river basin, droughts and flooding, and how streamflow supports groundwater, or vice versa.
Time’s Up on Groundwater Plans: One of the Most Important New California Water Laws in 50 Years Explained
/in California and the U.S., Media Coverage /by Mike Lee /KQED (San Francisco)by Molly PetersonMuch of California’s water supply is a hidden asset: Deep below the surface, rocks, gravel and sand store water like a sponge, in an underground zone called an aquifer.
In dry years, this groundwater has been tapped to save farms, keep grass green and provide drinking water to millions of Californians. But over time, people have taken more water out than nature has put back in.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
