Posts

Pursuing Independent Water Sources, San Diego Ignores One Beneath Its Feet

San Diego is not well endowed with many freshwater sources to support its growing population, so some water experts are perplexed the city’s ignoring a self-replenishing local groundwater source that, though small in size, is safe from the threat of natural disasters and reliably recharged by the San Diego River.

The Colorado River is Awash in Data Vital to its Management, but Making Sense of it All is a Challenge

Practically every drop of water that flows through the meadows, canyons and plains of the Colorado River Basin has reams of science attached to it. Snowpack, streamflow and tree ring data all influence the crucial decisions that guide water management of the iconic Western river every day.

Why Some in Nevada See Utah Pipeline Plan as ‘First Salvo in Coming Water Wars’

Lake Powell isn’t in Southern Nevada. Rather, it’s about four hours away by car in southern Utah. But some environmentalists say the water consumption of St. George, Utah, and neighboring communities could have a direct and deleterious impact on the Las Vegas water supply.

Colorado, 5 Other States Promise Lawsuits if Feds Fast-Track Approval of Utah’s Lake Powell Pipeline Project

For more than 20 years, negotiations among the seven states that rely on the Colorado River have avoided lawsuits, even as drought and population growth threaten the river’s flows.

That may change as a promise to rush the environmental review of a diversion project between the Colorado River’s upper and lower basins has six states suggesting lawsuits challenging the project could topple years of agreements.

After the Blazes: Poisoned Water and ‘a Flood on Steroids’

Historic wildfires raging from California to Colorado are weakening watersheds and setting the stage for deadly mudslides and flooding and, in some places, threatening to poison critical water supplies.

Mexican Water Wars: Dam Seized, Troops Deployed, at Least One Killed in Protests About Sharing with U.S.

Mexico’s water wars have turned deadly.

A long-simmering dispute about shared water rights between Mexico and the United States has erupted into open clashes pitting Mexican National Guard troops against farmers, ranchers and others who seized a dam in northern Chihuahua state.

Arizona Endorses a Company’s Plan to Sell Colorado River Water to Queen Creek

Arizona’s top water regulator has endorsed a company’s proposal to take water from farmland near the Colorado River and sell it to the fast-growing Phoenix suburb of Queen Creek.

The plan, which still would require federal approval, has generated a heated debate about whether transferring water away from the farming community of Cibola could harm the local economy, and whether the deal would open the gates for more companies to buy land near the river with the sole aim of selling off the water for profit.

San Diego Water Managers Seek Better Rain Forecast Information

San Diego water managers are working with local researchers to understand how atmospheric rivers bring water to the region.

The moisture-laden storm systems bring rain to Southern California, but too much rain can be damaging.

Scripps Institution of Oceanography researchers are working to better understand atmospheric rivers, or ARs, so they can predict when and where the weather systems will hit.

The Water Authority is Resurrecting its Pipe Dream – Again

After almost 80 years of suckling the proverbial teat that brings fresh water from the Colorado River and Sierra Nevadas to San Diego, the local water manager is hatching a plan to unlatch.

Delta on the Edge

In spring and summer, when the skies are warm and the shadows thin, California’s snowy Sierra Nevada and southern Cascades unleash billions of gallons of fresh water each day, a melted bounty that nourishes the state’s mightiest rivers before converging slowly on the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.