In increasingly arid regions such as the western U.S., water managers are learning that careful management and restoration of watershed ecosystems, including thinning trees and conducting prescribed burns, are important tools in coping with a hotter, drier climate.
If you try to figure out the total water stored in the Sierras, you run into a methodological wall. There’s no good way to get there directly. Starting about two decades ago, a small group of scientists suggested a new solution: What if they could measure the water cycle from space?
“The yellow-legged frog, a native of the high Sierra, will soon be listed as an endangered species, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Friday.”
“The National Park Service said Monday that nobody was hurt when the 16,000 tons of rock fell 500 feet from a cliff near Hetch Hetchy Reservoir on March 31.”
“2014 marks the 20th anniversary of State Water Board Decision 1631 that mandated lake level rise for Mono Lake and restoration of Mono’s tributary streams and waterfowl habitat. For the last 20 years the Mono Lake Committee has embraced D1631 and the subsequent restoration orders as if they were family members.”
“By now, the story seems old. A young city, thirsty for water, deploys wealth, cunning and power to divert a river from a distant valley, safeguarding its future at the expense of others. …
“But 100 years after the Owens River was diverted to L.A., the story is not over.”
“Mammoth Mountain is currently supplementing its natural snow base with man-made snow, so the slopes are open and many, both residents and visitors to the area, have been taking advantage of the unseasonably warm weather to hike and enjoy other outdoor activities.
“While the slopes are white and visitors continue heading to Mammoth to ski and snowboard, an extended drought in the Owens Valley poses other challenges in the form of dry creeks and ditches and popular high-elevation lakes with low water levels.”
“Over the objections of critics, Los Angeles is moving ahead with plans to build a $680-million 200-megawatt solar energy plant within view of this desolate Eastern Sierra site that was a Japanese American internment camp during World War II.”
“Over the objections of critics, Los Angeles is moving ahead with plans to build a $680-million 200-megawatt solar energy plant within view of this desolate Eastern Sierra site that was a Japanese American internment camp during World War II.”
“As 100 mules march from the Eastern Sierra to Los Angeles to raise awareness about where L.A.’s water comes from, The Inyo Register’s correspondent, Elizabeth Glazner, took to the streets to find out if L.A. residents are aware of their relationship with the Eastern Sierra.”
“As water from the Eastern Sierras began gushing down a hillside into the San Fernando Valley on Tuesday, an actor dressed as William Mulholland hollered on cue, ‘There it is!
“It was 100 years ago Tuesday that Los Angeles, after buying up most of the Owens Valley and its water rights east of the High Sierra, opened its 233-mile L.A.
“Mark Berry was 17 in 1976 when he and a friend stole some dynamite and blew apart a gate that regulated the flow of water to the [Los Angeles] aqueduct.”
“Conventional wisdom says that in life it is important to celebrate successes. By all accounts, the Mono Basin Stream Restoration Agreement certainly qualifies, so on September 30th we celebrated.
“In truth, we celebrated a lot of things that day—starting with the original State Water Board restoration orders that led us to this day and have produced the results you can already see on Rush, Lee Vining, Parker, and Walker creeks.
“There’s nothing like fish to get emotions flowing in Mono County.
“Just ask the Mono County Supervisors, now embroiled in a contentious lawsuit filed against the county by a private aquaculture group after an effort to make the county self sufficient in terms of fish stocking went sour recently.”
“A photograph showing plumes of dust rising from a dry lake bed became a focal point for discussion on Wednesday as government officials and experts met to consider the growing dangers posed by air pollution around the shrinking Salton Sea.
“The photo, which began the first presentation at the meeting at UC Riverside’s Palm Desert campus, showed clouds of gray dust billowing in high winds from Owens Lake on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada.”
