Friday’s Top of the Scroll: Governor Brown Urges Action On Climate Change

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 9:00 am

From Capital Public Radio:

California Governor Jerry Brown continues to make climate change a focus of his administration. He is joining more than 500 scientists in calling for action on the issue.

Listen to the story at Capital Public Radio

 

Gov. Brown and Scientists Call for Action on Climate Change, Global Environment

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:59 am

From the Association of California Water Agencies:

Gov. Jerry Brown joined scientists from throughout the world May 23 in issuing a call to action on the environment and releasing a list of environmental issues policymakers must address to avoid reaching a “tipping point” of harm to the planet.

Read more from ACWA

 

Jerry Brown: News Media Ignoring Climate Change

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:58 am

From the Sacramento Bee:

Gov. Jerry Brown complained bitterly this morning that the news media ignores climate change, in a speech attended by more than a dozen photographers and reporters.

Read more from the Sacramento Bee

Southern California Lawmakers Trumpet ‘Strong Support’ for Jerry Brown’s Water Plan

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:57 am

From the Sacramento Bee:

A group of south state lawmakers has sent a letter to Brown and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell trumpeting “continued strong support” for the plan.

“Our ability to increase our water supply depends on the reliability of water imported into the region,” reads the letter signed by Reps. Grace Napolitano, Henry Waxman, Jim Costa, Lucille Roybal- Allard, Linda Sánchez, Judy Chu, Brad Sherman, Janice Hahn, Adam Schiff, Tony Cardenas, Karen Bass and Julia Brownley and Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

Read more from the Sacramento Bee

Delta-Related Bill Held in Senate Appropriations Committee

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:56 am

From the Association of California Water Agencies:

An ACWA-opposed bill dealing with reduced reliance on the Delta was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee May 23.

SB 449 (Galgiani) is seen as inconsistent with the 2009 water package enacted by the Legislature.

Read more from ACWA

 

Manteca: Supervisors Fear Delta Water Grab

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:55 am

From the Manteca Bulletin:

Frank Ruhstaller and Steve Bestolarides are rallying the troops as California’s perennial water wars heat up.

This time they warn San Joaquin County’s economic vitality and ability to make local land use decisions without potentially kowtowing to a regional agency are at stake.

Read more from the Manteca Bulletin

Some Damage, Multiple Aftershocks from N. California Quake

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:54 am

From the Associated Press:

An earthquake in far northeastern California did not injure anyone but did cause moderate damage, including to a water tank that supplies hundreds of homes with drinking water, local authorities said Friday.

Read more from the Associated Press

Plastic Ocean Debris the Target of New Calif. Bill

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:52 am

From the Associated Press:

 two California legislators have introduced an “extended producer responsibility” bill that would require manufacturers to figure out how to keep the most common plastic junk out of state waterways. The proposal, Assembly Bill 521, aims to reduce 95 percent of plastic pollution along the state’s coastline by 2024.

The Assembly Appropriations Committee will vote on the bill Friday. If it passes, the measure will go before the full chamber next week and would face several other legislative hurdles before it could become law.

Read more from the Associated Press

Dry Conditions, Warmer Temperatures Fuel Early Wildfire Season

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:50 am

From the Association of California Water Agencies:

With 2013 proving to be a second dry year for most of California, state fire officials are bracing for a potentially severe fire season.

Dry conditions have already triggered an early start to this year’s wildfire season, and the outlook calls for above normal potential for significant wildfires in much of the state.

Read more from ACWA

 

Alameda County Urges Conservation

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:49 am

From the Fremont Bulletin:

Alameda County Water District announced Tuesday that the continuing dry conditions should remind Tri-City residents to continue the water conservation habits they developed during the last drought. Although water supplies are adequate to meet demands, the next significant rainfall probably will not occur until next autumn or winter.

Read more from the Fremont Bulletin

Waterways Infrastructure Bill Passed by Senate

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:47 am

From the Western Farm Press:

Aiming to update existing U.S waterways infrastructure and provide additional funds for future projects, on May 15 the Senate passed the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) on an 83 to 14 vote. The act was backed by numerous business, labor and agriculture advocacy groups.

Read more from the Western Farm Press

Plumas National Forest Facilities Hit By Metal Thieves

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:47 am

From Capital Public Radio:

The U.S. Forest Service is making unexpected repairs after metal thieves broke into three dozen buildings and stole more than $200,000 worth of copper and brass this winter.

Listen to the story at Capital Public Radio

 

Fracking Role for Environmental Defense Fund Splits Green Groups

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:45 am

From Bloomberg:

A coalition of 67 grassroots groups criticized the Environmental Defense Fund for its ties to natural gas drillers in setting voluntary standards for hydraulic fracturing, a process opposed by many green advocates.

The activist groups, many in communities where natural gas production is booming or in New York where it could start soon, said EDF is offering “greenwashing” for companies such as Chevron Corp.by joining them on a set of standards for fracking.

Read more from Bloomberg

 

Commentary: Newspaper Condemns California’s Plot To Solve State’s Water Problems

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 24, 2013 at 8:44 am

From Forbes:

The [San Jose Mercury News’s] opposition [to the BDCP]  is surprising given that San Jose and the Silicon Valley would benefit in important ways from the cleaner, more healthful water that BDCP would more reliably provide. But even more surprising was the newspaper’s reasoning — or lack of it.

Read more from the BDCP commentary

 

Thursday’s Top of the Scroll: Congressional Delegation Expresses Support for BDCP

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 9:00 am

From the Association of California Water Agencies:

A coalition of 13 members of Congress on May 22 sent letters to Gov. Jerry Brown and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell expressing their strong support for the Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP) and urging the state and federal government to continue to make the BDCP a “top priority.”

Read more from ACWA

 

Southern California Weighs in on Jerry Brown’s Water Plan

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:59 am

From the Sacramento Bee:

A group of Southern California lawmakers has sent a letter to Brown and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell trumpeting their “continued strong support” for the Delta plan and asking that it “remains a top priority of the Department of the Interior and the State of California.”
Contrast that with the tone of a March missive from a Northern California delegation that called the Delta plan “flawed” and “reckless” and dismissed it as a “an expensive plumbing system that doesn’t add a single drop to the state’s water supply.”

Read more from the Sacramento Bee

 

Commentary: Finding Common Ground in the Delta

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:56 am

From the California Majority Report:

“…neither plan on its own can get the job done. But together, BDCP and the Portfolio Alternative present an opportunity for immediate and long-term progress in the Delta. Conveyance improvements and habitat restoration are critically important, and should be implemented without further delay. However, the State cannot and should not proceed with their plan without linking other critical elements and right-sizing conveyance facilities to ensure efficient investment of public resources.”

Read more from the California Majority Report

 

Commentary: Making Storage Work

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:55 am

From the BDCP Blog:

 California needs a better way to capture water when it is available….The bottom line? The BDCP is about making today’s storage system work. And it is about establishing the improved conditions to set the stage for additional future storage improvements north and south of the Delta.

Read more from the BDCP Blog

 

Santa Cruz Moves Forward With Desal Eliminating Moss Landing

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:54 am

From the Monterey Weekly:

Santa Cruz is facing many of the same water problems as the Monterey Peninsula: seawater intrusion, the need for a drought-proof water supply and state-mandated cutbacks on river pumping. Officials from both regions say desalination is part of the solution. 


But judging by the draft environmental impact report (DEIR) for the Santa Cruz desal proposal, the neighboring regions won’t be working together on it.


Read more from the Monterey Weekly

 

State Appeals Court Backs Marin Desalination Environmental Analysis

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:53 am

From the Marin Independent Journal:

A state appeals court has given its blessing to an environmental study of the Marin Municipal Water District’s proposed desalination project, although the district has — at least for now — shelved its desalination plans.

Read more from the Marin Independent Journal

 

Monterey: Cal Am Takes Responsibility for Some Spiked Water Bills

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:52 am

From the Monterey Herald:

California American Water says it was at fault in at least a few recent cases of high water bills, citing errors that included accounting mistakes and a mismatched water meter register.

While the company insists the overwhelming majority of “spiked” water bills were caused by costly tiered rates combined with leaks and other mistakes that customers are responsible for, Cal Am spokeswoman Catherine Bowie said it’s important to investigate each case individually.

Read more from the Monterey Herald

 

Majority Thinks Global Warming, Clean Energy Should Be Priorities

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:51 am

From the Los Angeles Times:

Global warming and clean energy should be priorities for Congress and the president, a majority of Americans said in a recent survey.

In the survey, released Tuesday by Yale and George Mason universities, 70% of American adults say global warming should be a priority for the nation’s leaders, while 87% say leaders should make it a priority to develop sources of clean energy. Those support levels have dropped by 7% and 5% respectively since fall.

Read more from the Los Angeles Times

 

Berkeley Researcher: Plate Piles Keep Levees Intact

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:50 am

From the University of California:

[UC Berkeley rresearcher] Hamed Hamedifar is designing a plate pile system, rectangular plates affixed to three-yard beams, to bolster the strength of levees in places like the California Delta.

Read more from the University of California

 

Disaster Expert Predicts Trouble for Sacramento Area

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:50 am

From Fox40:

Bob Bea’s work as a forensic engineer is erie, detective-like, sort of a dark art. His grim expertise has led him to believe where the next big disaster will take place – the Sacramento-San Joaquin delta and levee system. The reasons why: The 150-year old levee system protecting the delta from the San Francisco Bay is decrepit and leaking, and a $750 million dollar levee modernization plan back in 2010 was shelved. 

Read more from Fox 40

 

Beach Report Card Shows Improved SoCal Water Quality

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:49 am

From NBC Southern California:

Swimmers and surfers in Southern California enjoyed cleaner beach water this year, likely due to one of the driest winters on record in the region, according to Santa Monica-based Heal the Bay’s 2012-13 study released Wednesday.

Read more from NBC Southern California

 

Environmentalists Lobby To Change Proposal By Brown For Cap and Trade Funds

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:48 am

From Capital Public Radio:

Environmentalists and other groups are urging lawmakers to reject California Governor Jerry Brown’s budget proposal to borrow money from the state’s cap and trade program.

Read more from Capital Public Radio

 

Water Staff Recommends Water Rate Hikes For Now, Future

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:47 am

From the Long Beach Gazette:

Bringing water to Long Beach residents is getting more expensive annually, and this year customers may have to start bearing more of that burden with a rate increase.

Long Beach Water Department officials have recommended to the Water Commission that its members vote for a 4% water rate increase for the fiscal year 2014. This initial rate hike will be one of several in a multi-year plan, should it pass the commission.

Read more from the Long Beach Gazette

 

Funding for Water Reuse and Efficiency Projects Headed to California

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:46 am

From the Association of California Water Agencies:

Four more water projects in California will get federal funding as part of a U.S. Bureau of Reclamation program that promotes water recycling and reuse opportunities in the western states and Hawaii.

Read more from ACWA

 

How Long Can Underfunded State Parks Keep It Up?

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:45 am

From KQED:

Two years ago this month, the California Department of Parks and Recreation announced a list of 70 parks it planned to close. Park lovers rallied, giving their time and money to pick up the parks the state was willing to drop off. There is no closure list now, and the state parks are under new management, but the financial crisis has not passed. Those park lovers are now wondering how long they’re going to carry the extra load

Listen to the story at from KQED

 

Riverside County Cuts Solar Fees; Others May Follow

Posted by: Aquafornia on May 23, 2013 at 8:43 am

From KQED:

Solar panels have sprouted up all over the sunny spots of California, but for industrial scale projects, there’s no beating desert country — if the price is right. Developers are cheering a decision by Riverside County officials on Tuesday to slash fees on new projects. Riverside could set a new standard for how local communities do business with big solar.

Listen to the story at KQED

 

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