A collection of top water news from around California and the West compiled each weekday. Send any comments or article submissions to Foundation News & Publications Director Chris Bowman.
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The U.S. and Mexico are experiencing another border dispute,
and this one is about water. The conflict stems from an
80-year-old treaty where the countries agreed to share water
from the Colorado River and the Rio Grande. However, because
water is in more demand but scarcer than ever, sharing has not
been going to plan. The U.S. and Mexico signed a treaty in
1944 stipulating that Mexico send 1.75 million acre-feet of
water to the U.S. every five years from the Rio Grande, and the
U.S. send 1.5 million acre-feet of water to Mexico from
the Colorado River each year. But water levels are
lower than ever, and Mexico has “sent only about 30% of its
expected deliveries, the lowest amount at this point of any
four- or five-year cycles since 1992,”
said Reuters. … The effects are far-reaching. …
Texas, in particular, is home to sugar and citrus farms
struggling from a lack of water. On the other hand, farmers in
Mexico are protesting sending water to the U.S., as they are
also suffering from scarcity.
Wildfires are on the rise. The smoke they bring darkens the sky
and deposits ash. Ocean research has provided clues about how
smoke affects marine ecosystems, but little is known about how
it affects freshwater ecosystems like lakes. A new study
published in Communications Earth and Environment shows that in
some California lakes, smoke can alter physical and biological
processes that are key to systems such as nutrient cycling,
rates of carbon sequestration, and food web structure. Both the
number of smoky days and the extent of smoke coverage have
climbed in recent decades, said Adrianne Smits, an
environmental scientist at the University of California, Davis,
and coauthor of the new study. “Smoke cover in California is
really no longer an ephemeral event,” she said, but “could be
thought of more as a seasonal phenomenon.”
It wasn’t the appearance of a flashy, high-ranking California
official at the podium, or the review of 35 years of efforts to
protect the Bay’s watershed at the beginning of the May 2024
State of the Estuary conference that made me sit up in my red
velvet auditorium seat. It was an awards ceremony for
outstanding projects. … There to receive each small plaque
from Friends of the Estuary were long lines of “collaborators.”
As they snaked on and off the stage for a photo and handshake,
the line of folk who had helped complete this or that project —
from mapping the range of the salt marsh harvest mouse to
involving students and teachers in watershed restoration — got
longer and longer. … Though the region’s ability to
collaborate with other agencies and scientists and managers to
protect and restore the San Francisco Estuary has grown
exponentially, over the years, these same folks are now
tangling with a new challenge: how to make this work relevant
to the Bay Area’s most “underserved” communities.
Officials from the California Water Resources Control Board are
urging people to avoid Lake Elsinore due to an algae bloom
that’s created dangerous levels of harmful toxins. Visitors are
urged to stay out of the water, keep their pets at a safe
distance and do not drink water or eat any fish or shellfish
from the lake. Five “distinct areas” of Lake Elsinore were
tested and high levels of toxins were detected that officials
say pose a significant health risk.
Today, U.S. Representative John Garamendi (D-CA08) voted
to pass the “Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2024″
(H.R.8812) in the House Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure by a bipartisan vote of 61 to 2. The full House
of Representatives is expected to take up the bill in the
coming weeks. “The biennial Water Resources Development Act
strengthens flood protection and our precious water resources
in communities across California and the country. This
soon-to-become law will upgrade our water infrastructure,
strengthen climate resiliency, and restore aquatic ecosystems
across the Bay Area and California Delta,” Garamendi
said. ”As a longstanding member of the House Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure, I secured key provisions in
the bill to support dredging the Mare Island Strait, enhance
environmental restoration efforts at Lake Tahoe, and expand the
Army Corps’ existing vessel removal authority to also include
abandoned and derelict vessels. I expect President Biden to
sign this bipartisan bill into law.”
Since Sacramento’s acclaimed Museum of Science and Curiosity
(MOSAC) opened in November 2021, more than 331,000 visitors
have toured the facility, which features dozens of interactive
exhibits on topics such as health care, nature, space
exploration and water. A popular MOSAC section is the Water
Challenge Exhibit, which includes three interactive displays
sponsored by Cultivate California and its nonprofit parent
organization the California Farm Water Coalition that
illustrate how farmers are working hard to use less water.
Governor Katie Hobbs’ recent veto of three Republican water
bills, including the “Ag to Urban” bill, represents a
significant setback for Arizona’s efforts to address its
ongoing water crisis. … The “Ag to Urban” bill was a
pragmatic approach to one of our state’s most pressing issues:
water conservation. Arizona’s current water management laws
inadvertently discourage transitioning land from agriculture to
suburban use, despite the fact that agricultural practices are
substantially more water-intensive than residential or
municipal uses. This transition is essential for our state’s
future, and the vetoed bill aimed to facilitate this shift by
addressing the outdated and counterproductive incentives
embedded in our water laws. … The Governor’s veto, therefore,
is not just a rejection of a Republican bill, but a refusal to
embrace a forward-thinking solution to Arizona’s water and
housing crises. — written by Alexander Kolodin, attorney and Republican
member of the Arizona State House
Almost 400 water systems serving nearly a million Californians
don’t meet state requirements for safe and reliable drinking
water supplies — and fixing them would cost billions of
dollars. More than two-thirds of these failing water systems
serve communities of color, and more than half are in places
struggling with poverty and pollution, according to an annual
assessment released today by the State Water Resources Control
Board. These water systems failed to provide water “which
is at all times pure, wholesome, and potable,” as required.
Some violated drinking water standards for chemicals, bacteria,
taste or odor. Others rely on bottled water, or have failed to
meet treatment, monitoring or other requirements. … The price
tag for ensuring safe, affordable and accessible water supplies
for all Californians is staggering — an estimated $16 billion
over the next five years — as the state grapples with a
multibillion-dollar deficit.
… The Biden Administration has poured money … allocating $4
billion from the Inflation Reduction Act for Colorado River
projects. … The Biden administration framed the spending
effort as “water conservation,” but Arizona’s municipal water
leaders aren’t using it to make changes traditionally thought
of as conservation. Instead of paying for small tweaks to water
use – like encouraging residents to install low-flow
showerheads or rip out their thirsty lawns – many are thinking
bigger, putting their multimillion dollar checks towards
billion dollar infrastructure projects that are aimed at
keeping taps flowing for decades to come. Basically, cities
like Peoria are planning to engineer their way out of the
problem.
Today, the Bureau of Reclamation announced another increase in
the Central Valley Project 2024 water supply allocation for
south-of-Delta contractors. While all north-of-Delta Central
Valley Project contractors are currently at 100% of their
supplies, south-of-Delta agricultural contractors are being
increased from 40% to 50%. All other Central Valley
Project contract allocations remain the same per the March 22
water supply update. Initial contract allocations were
announced on Feb. 21 and updated in March and April.
As the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) approaches
its tenth anniversary, California is making progress towards
implementation—but the 2020–22 drought shows that much work
still lies ahead. Drought poses a particular challenge for SGMA
compliance in many farming regions. Increased groundwater use
keeps crops irrigated when surface water is scarce, but it can
cause undesirable impacts such as dry wells, infrastructure
damage from land subsidence (sinking lands), and increased
rates of seawater intrusion. While SGMA allows some flexibility
for extra groundwater pumping during droughts, it also requires
local agencies to guard against these undesirable impacts.
One of the most contested water management policies in the
United States relies on an ill-informed agreement forged more
than a century ago. The 1922 Colorado River Compact “ignored
available science and overallocated the river’s water,” say the
scientist-authors of the lead story in this year’s policy
issue. But it’s not too late to change course, they argue in
“Fixing the Flawed Colorado River Compact.” Data from rivers
and other inland waters can inform policies surrounding climate
action and conservation, as well as water management, as
evidenced by “Inland Waters Are a Blind Spot in Greenhouse Gas
Emissions” and “Kansas Prairie Streams Are Getting Choked,
Maybe for Good.” Both articles focus on the sobering challenges
of evaluating riverine and riparian ecosystems.
A newly published report challenges the financial feasibility
of the Delta Conveyance Project (DCP) as outlined by the
Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) released by the Department of Water
Resources’ (DWR). The report from Dr. Jeffrey A. Michael,
Director of Public Policy Programs at the University of the
Pacific, finds that DWR’s BCA is flawed and inflated, with
questionable assumptions, overvalued benefits and a failure to
consider major project risks and financial implications. At an
estimated cost of $20.1 billion, the DCP represents a
substantial financial commitment for water agencies amidst
growing financial constraints. The DWR’s BCA claims a
benefit-cost ratio of 2.2, suggesting the project’s economic
viability. However, Dr. Michael’s review concludes that this
ratio is inflated and unreliable due to unjustified optimistic
assumptions underlying the analysis.
EPA Clean Water Act (CWA) wastewater regulations are set to
face U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) scrutiny. In the case City and
County of San Francisco v. EPA, San Francisco is suing the EPA
over generic water quality prohibitions in permitting
decisions. “The EPA had urged the Supreme Court to decline the
petition, insisting narrative limitations were within its
right,” according to Newsweek. On May 28, 2024, SCOTUS agreed
to hear the case.
With the Regional Environmental Sewer Conveyance Upgrade
(RESCU) Program’s ribbon cutting, Silicon Valley Clean
Water (SVCW) is delivering on its commitment to protecting
public health and the environment for generations to come. An
early adopter of progressive design-build (PDB), SVCW
recently celebrated the successful use of this collaborative
project delivery approach for the on-time and on-budget program
with a Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony on May 13. The
RESCU Program is one of the largest wastewater PDB programs on
the West Coast and has served as a model for other agencies,
both locally and nationally.
The Biden administration released a report last week
acknowledging “the historic, ongoing, and cumulative damage and
injustices” that Columbia River dam construction caused
Northwest tribal nations starting in the 20th century,
including decimation of the salmon runs that Indigenous people
were entitled to by government treaty. Across 73 pages, the
report from the U.S. Department of the Interior concludes “the
government afforded little, if any, consideration to the
devastation the dams would bring to Tribal communities,
including to their cultures, sacred sites, economies, and
homes.” But here’s what’s not in the report: The injuries to
Native people were not just an unforeseen byproduct of federal
dam building. They were, in fact, taken into account at the
time. And federal leaders considered that damage a good thing.
In government documents from the 1940s and 1950s, obtained by
Oregon Public Broadcasting and ProPublica, government officials
openly discussed what they called “the Indian problem” on the
Columbia River, referring to the tribes’ fisheries that were
protected under federal treaties.
New research reveals why some rivers in the San Joaquin Valley
are causing the ground to uplift when others aren’t. The answer
lies beneath the ground’s surface. A new study from
scientists at Stanford University combines satellite data with
airborne electromagnetic (AEM) flight data to see exactly
what’s happening with recharged water from the Sierra
Nevadas. The satellite process, called interferometric
synthetic aperture radar (InSAR,) bounces signals onto the
ground which can read over time where ground has uplifted due
to groundwater recharge. The data, from the wet year of 2017,
shows water traveling through the valley underground uplifting
the surface as it moves. But other areas didn’t see the
same effect. The study points out two sites where there are
natural waterways, one near Fresno and one near Visalia. The
Fresno site didn’t see any uplift while the Visalia site did.
… They found that only areas with significant clay saw
uplift. If the ground is made up of too much coarse material,
like sand and gravel, the water sinks in fast but simply moves
through it and doesn’t uplift.
Thunderstorms, rain showers and hail could be headed to parts
of Northern California, according to the National Weather
Service. “Some monsoonal moisture will allow for slight
thunderstorm chances” through Tuesday afternoon, the weather
service said Monday in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The agency warned of “possible fire starts due to a few stray
lightning strikes” as well as gusty winds. “When the thunder
roars, go indoors,” the weather service said. It’s the second
time this month that the forecast has called for thunderstorms.
The frequency and magnitude of extreme wildfires around the
globe has doubled in the past two decades due to climate
change, according to a study released Monday… Though previous
research found a decrease in the area burned globally by
wildfires this century, the new study found that extreme
wildfire events have increased 2.2-fold since 2003. Extreme
wildfires have severe ecological and societal impacts, leading
to deaths and biomass loss while emitting high levels of
carbon. According to the study, burn severity, which is a
measure of these impacts, has increased in more regions than it
has decreased.
The Biden administration is preparing to set water standards
for rivers, streams and lakes on hundreds of Native American
reservations for the first time, a move welcomed by tribes as
key for safeguarding natural resources. EPA proposed a rule
last spring to establish “baseline” water quality standards for
the majority of tribes that do not already have standards of
their own. The standards already exist in every state and are
the foundation of efforts to control pollution from wastewater
treatment plants, energy projects, and manufacturing and
chemical industries.
