Infrastructure

A study by the Union of Concerned Scientists examined how real estate values were affected in 23 coastal states. Florida has the most to lose, according to the research.

Hard-hat workers are toiling deep underground, 55 stories beneath the Hudson River, to eliminate gushing leaks in an aging tunnel that carries half the city’s water supply over 85 miles from Catskill Mountain reservoirs. Using a cylindrical, space-rocket-size borer, they are carving through solid rock to create a 2.5-mile bypass tunnel around the worst of the leaks.

Work continues after a massive storm that stalled over the North Shore dropped 28 inches of rain in 24 hours from April 14 to 15. The only road through the area, the westernmost stretch of Kuhio Highway, was severely damaged by flooding and mudslides.

Amid accelerating sea level rise from climate change, Marin County has the highest number of households in California vulnerable to coastal flooding, according to a report released Monday. In the worst case scenario, there are a possible 4,377 Marin homes at risk of being inundated with chronic flooding by 2045, the Union of Concerned Scientists reported.

The Trump administration is ringing in a new era at the Bureau of Reclamation, one that harkens back to earlier days of ambitious water-storage projects. The administration and Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke are “very focused” on infrastructure, and Reclamation wants to partner with water users to bring new projects forward, Brenda Burman, Bureau of Reclamation commissioner, said during the Idaho Water Users Association water law conference on Tuesday.

The West Sacramento City Council voted 4-1 last month to begin a process that would convert an independent district in charge of levee management into a subsidiary of West Sacramento, and allow the council to replace the district’s board of directors with appointees or the council members themselves. Reclamation District 900 has operated independently since 1911, managing 13.6 miles of levees that provide flood protection along the Sacramento River.

At a time when many Americans are struggling to access economic opportunity and many of the country’s infrastructure assets are at the end of their useful life, infrastructure jobs offer considerable promise. … The country’s water infrastructure is emblematic of this significant opportunity.

Construction crews are hard at work at the Lake Oroville Dam.