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Water news you need to know

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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Aquafornia news Newsweek

New study: America’s rivers are changing, confusing fish

America’s rivers are changing rapidly due to climate change, and fish are getting confused as a result, a new study has found. The study, published in the journal Science by scientists at the University of Leeds in the U.K., found that climate change is disrupting the seasonal flows of rivers around the world, which is posing a serious threat to water supply and ecosystems. Rivers and their reservoirs provide water for human use, whether for drinking or agricultural purposes, meaning that changes to their flows can greatly affect everyday life. … Climate change is also causing more extreme weather patterns. An example of this can be seen in California. The state was in the grips of a severe drought for years, until last year the prolonged dry period was broken by a deluge of intense storms. These storms caused severe flooding and landslides that greatly disrupted local communities.

Aquafornia news Los Angeles Times

California missing out on billions of gallons of stormwater

For too long, California and other states have viewed stormwater as either a threat or an inconvenience — something to be whisked away from cities and communities as quickly as possible. But as traditional sources of water face worsening strain from climate change, population growth, agriculture and other factors, those unused gallons of rainwater pouring across asphalt or down rain gutters are starting to be viewed as an untapped resource that can help close the widening gap between supply and demand. In a report released Thursday, researchers with the Pacific Institute determined that every year, 59.5 million acre-feet of stormwater go uncaptured across the United States — or roughly 53 billion gallons per day. 

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Aquafornia news Arizona Republic

Navajo Nation nears completion of historic water agreement

The Navajo Nation is nearing completion of a settlement of water rights claims in Arizona, ending decades of negotiations and giving hope for thousands of people who have long gone without running water. For the past 60 years, Navajo leaders have worked to settle water claims in Arizona. The aim of the Northeastern Arizona Indian Water Rights Settlement Agreement is to affirm and quantify the nation’s rights to water in the state and to secure funding to build much needed water delivery infrastructure to homes on the Navajo Nation, according to a summary of the agreement. … The U.S. Supreme Court held last summer that the United States did not have an affirmative treaty or trust obligation to identify and account for Navajo Nation water rights on the Colorado River. Curley said that ruling was a pivotal moment that led the Navajo Nation and its water rights negotiation team to focus on completing on the settlement.

Aquafornia news Yale E360

New study: Boiling, filtering water can get rid of microplastics

A new study finds that boiling and then filtering tap water can remove up to 90 percent of microplastics. Minute particles of plastic, no larger than a grain of sand, have been found in every corner of the globe, from the bottom of the Tyrrhenian Sea, in the Mediterranean, to the clouds floating over Mount Fuji, in Japan. Shed from car tires, fleece sweaters, and myriad other plastic items, microplastics and even smaller nanoplastics are getting into our food and drinking water, and even the air we breathe. Scientists have found microplastics in blood and breast milk and in the lungs of people undergoing surgery — all troubling discoveries as microplastics have also been shown to damage human cells.

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Aquafornia news Public Policy Institute of California

Fact sheets: Floods and sea level rise in California

Sea levels and flood risks are both rising in California. More than seven million Californians—one in five residents—live in areas at risk of flooding, and redesigning and protecting infrastructure will be necessary but costly. Adaptation will require improved collaboration, land use planning, and insurance, as well as innovative flood management.

Aquafornia news Arizona State University News

Blog: ASU summit calls for innovations in atmospheric water harvesting technology

As questions about water resources and access continue to build in the Southwest, some experts are turning to an unlikely place for solutions: our atmosphere. Atmospheric water harvesting, a method of water collection that draws water from humidity in the air, offers a new pathway for water security.  Experts with a focus in areas such as engineering, hydrology, material science and thermodynamics gathered at Arizona State University this month for the Atmospheric Water Harvesting Summit — the first summit of its kind dedicated entirely to atmospheric water harvesting. 

Aquafornia news Colorado Sun

Dolores River monument plan sparks sudden opposition in western Colorado

In the past 10 days, nearly 2,000 people have signed an online petition opposing a proposal that asks President Joe Biden to designate a national monument around western Colorado’s Dolores River. “I think it absolutely, positively could be a threat,” petition organizer Sean Pond told The Colorado Sun. … Pond once had a career in the nuclear industry in the West End of Montrose County, home of the Uravan Mineral Belt, which is one of the country’s richest caches of uranium and vanadium. Now he rents paddleboards and off-road vehicles to tourists. He says a monument designation would bring crowds that could lead to future bans on motorized travel, which would hinder grazing and hunting. He worries a monument would ban mining in an area where residents have spent almost half a century waiting for a nuclear revival that would resuscitate uranium mining and milling.

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Aquafornia news KSBY - Central Coast

Proposed bill could help low-income families struggling with increased bills

Residents in Grover Beach are feeling the pinch as water rates surged this month, but a new bill could ease their burden. “We had a rate increase of $26, which we were billed once every two months,” said Dave Browning, who lives in Grover Beach. “That was roughly $13 per month.” Grover Beach residents recently felt the impact of a long-discussed water rate hike. “We did send a couple of letters, and I know they’ve received quite a few from what I was being told,” Browning said. And while many still have strong opinions about it moving forward, those facing the reality of the hike now are concerned about how they’ll pay for it.

Aquafornia news SJV Sun

California Farm Water Coalition announces new leadership

The California Farm Water Coalition announced Thursday Greg Johnson has been elected as its next president. Johnson owns Far West Rice in Durham. Johnson succeeds Bill Diedrich as president, who served in the role for the last eight years. Along with Johnson, the Coalition also announced that Imperial Valley farmer Gina Dockstader has been elected Vice President. Fresno County farmer Wayne Western of Hammonds Ranch has been elected as the secretary and treasurer of the board. Brett Lauppe and Jeff Sutton also join the board as new members. The organization’s returning directors are Peter Nelson, Mark McKean and Diana Westmoreland.

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Aquafornia news San Francisco Chronicle

Thursday Top of the Scroll: How California storms suddenly changed state’s water supply outlook

Even before the major storm forecast for this weekend, a wet February has eased fears that California would end the rainy season with too little water. In fact, many parts of the state are now likely to wrap up with average or above-average rain and snow totals. The state’s March snow survey, taking place Thursday, will show that snowpack in California’s mountains is around 80% of average for the date, a substantial leap from the end of January when it hovered around 50%. Rainfall, meanwhile, stood at 103% of average statewide Wednesday, up from about 80% last month. While the numbers are not exceptional, they mark enough of an improvement since the start of the year — when some water managers began to talk about drought — that reservoirs are sufficiently primed with precipitation to avoid major water shortages in 2024, even if the rest of the rainy season disappoints.

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Aquafornia news The Associated Press

Climate change, cost and competition for water drive settlement over tribal rights to Colorado River

A Native American tribe with one of the largest outstanding claims to water in the Colorado River basin is closing in on a settlement with more than a dozen parties, putting it on a path to piping water to tens of thousands of tribal members in Arizona who still live without it. Negotiating terms outlined late Wednesday include water rights not only for the Navajo Nation but the neighboring Hopi and San Juan Southern Paiute tribes in the northeastern corner of the state. The water would come from a mix of sources: the Colorado River that serves seven western states, the Little Colorado River, and aquifers and washes on tribal lands. The agreement is decades in the making and would allow the tribes to avoid further litigation and court proceedings, which have been costly.

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Aquafornia news CalMatters

New study: California’s urban runoff flows down the drain. Can the drought-plagued state capture more of it?

California fails to capture massive amounts of stormwater rushing off city streets and surfaces that could help supply millions of people a year, according to a new analysis released today. The nationwide report, by researchers with the Pacific Institute, ranks California ninth nationwide among states with the most estimated urban runoff. … The analysis reports California sheds almost 2.3 million acre-feet of precipitation from pavement, roofs, sidewalks and other surfaces in cities and towns every year. If it were captured and treated, that would be enough to supply more than a quarter of California’s urban water use, or almost 7 million Southern California households each year.

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Aquafornia news Los Angeles Times

Will a $16-billion water tunnel destroy California’s delta?

In the heart of California, at the place where two great rivers converge beneath the Tule fog, lies the linchpin of one of the largest water supply systems in the world. [T]he Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta … is also the site of a bitter, decades-long battle over a proposed plan known as the Delta Conveyance Project — a 45-mile tunnel that would run beneath the delta to move more water from Northern California to thirsty cities to the south. State officials say the tunnel is a critical piece of infrastructure that would help protect millions of Californians from losing water supplies in the event of a major earthquake or levee break. … Opponents say the tunnel is a boondoggle that would further imperil the delta’s fragile ecosystem, which has already been eroded by heavy water withdrawals for agriculture and cities. 

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Aquafornia news Mono Lake Committee

Blog: Will DWP increase Mono Basin diversions this year?

Water diversions to Los Angeles—and away from Mono Lake—began just after noon on January 31. With the turn of a control wheel, the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power (DWP) opened the aqueduct, sending Mono Basin water into the Mono Craters tunnel and on a 300-mile journey down the aqueduct system. … On April 1, the maximum limit on water exports will increase nearly fourfold. Will DWP choose to maintain the same export level as recent years? Or will it choose to quadruple its water diversions—and push Mono Lake’s level downward? This year is also shaping up to be the year for action on the California State Water Resources Control Board’s rules that govern the DWP diversions, and the flaws that have become visible over the 30 years since those rules were set forth.

Aquafornia news Office of Senator Alex Padilla

News release: Padilla introduces bill to create permanent, national water assistance program

Today, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Fisheries, Water, and Wildlife, introduced the Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP) Establishment Act, legislation that would establish a permanent, nationwide water assistance program to help families afford their water bills. 

Aquafornia news Audubon California

News release: New model maps a resilient SF Bay future through climate-smart seagrass restoration

Audubon California and partners released their San Francisco Bay Eelgrass Habitat Suitability Model, a powerful new tool that highlights future-resilient locations within the bay most suitable for restoration of eelgrass, a linchpin species for long-term bay health. The project was developed as a collaboration between Audubon California, Merkel & Associates, Inc., and Dr. Katharyn Boyer (Interim Director, Estuary and Ocean Science Center, San Francisco State University), funded by a grant from the California Ocean Protection Council. … San Francisco Bay hosts an estimated 17% of California’s eelgrass. Eelgrass (Zostera marina) plays a critical role in the marine food web and bay ecosystem. Not only does it provide home and food to a vast quantity of marine life, including waterbirds like Surf Scoters, Buffleheads, and Western Grebes - its dense growth along the seafloor traps sediment and substrate, a crucial factor in preventing coastal erosion. 

Aquafornia news KSBW - Central Coast

$10 million to be given out to flood survivors in a California community

Pain and hurt continue to linger through the Pajaro community as the anniversary of the devastating floods approaches. On Tuesday, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors approved the final rollout plan for the $10 million allocated directly to help survivors. … Six million dollars will be allocated for individual households and $4 million for small businesses. Residents who sustained damages to property can qualify for up to $15,000 dollars, and small businesses up to $85,000. All residents, regardless of citizenship status, will be able to apply in person for aid. The county, ultimately decided how much would be dispersed on a case-by-case basis.

Related article: 

Aquafornia news Law360

Enviro orgs sue EPA over factory farm water pollution regs

Green groups are pushing the Ninth Circuit to revive their petition asking the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to craft new, stronger Clean Water Act regulations for the large animal feeding facilities …

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Aquafornia news The Santa Barbara Independent

Getting to bottom of Goleta’s million-gallon sewage spill

The cause of Santa Barbara County’s biggest offshore sewage spill in recent memory — north of one million gallons — remains the subject of an ongoing investigation, the county supervisors were told in an informational briefing this Tuesday morning.  The supervisors were most interested in figuring out why it took six days for its Department of Public Health to get the news of a leak that was first detected late Friday, February 16. 

Aquafornia news Sonoma Magazine

Discover Santa Rosa’s peaceful waterway on these winter walks

When rain falls anywhere in Santa Rosa, Windsor, Rohnert Park, Cotati, or Sebastopol, the water will make its way to the Laguna de Santa Rosa. Sitting at the bottom of the greater Santa Rosa plain, the Laguna is the largest freshwater wetlands complex on the northern California coast. In 2011, it was designated a Wetland of International Importance. Yet how many locals could find it on a map? To be fair, parts of the Laguna have been altered and obscured by decades of development. Sebastopol dumped its sewage there until 1978. Restoration work has been underway since the 1990s, and December 2023 saw the release of the first-ever comprehensive restoration plan for the entire Laguna, designed to guide its continued recovery.