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Topic: Ecosystem

Overview April 24, 2014

Ecosystem

An ecosystem includes all of the living organisms (plants, animals and microbes) in a given area, interacting with each other, and also with their non-living environments (air, water and soil).

Ecosystems are dynamic and are impacted by disturbances such as a drought, an extraordinarily freezing  winter, and pests. Longer-term disturbances include climate change effects.

Ecosystems provide a variety of goods and services upon which people depend. Ecosystem management emphasizes managing natural resources at the level of the ecosystem itself and not just managing individual species.

The California Legislature was the first in the country to protect rare plants and animals through passage of the California Endangered Species Act in 1970. Congress followed suit in 1973 by passing the federal Endangered Species Act.

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Aquafornia news October 15, 2020 Stanford News

New agreement on U.S. hydropower and river conservation

A dialogue organized by Stanford that brought together environmental organizations, hydropower companies, investors, government agencies and universities has resulted in an important new agreement to help address climate change… Dan Reicher, a former U.S. assistant secretary of energy and board member of the conservation group American Rivers, spoke with us about brokering this new agreement…

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Aquafornia news October 15, 2020 E&E News

FEMA ends policy favoring flood walls over green protections

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has taken a dramatic step to encourage communities to use environmentally friendly features such as wetlands for flood protection instead of building sea walls and levees.

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Aquafornia news October 15, 2020 Northern California Water Association

Blog: Thinking about population health and wellness in the Sacramento Valley

This moment in time provides an opportunity for introspection, a time to think about our families and friends, what is essential in our lives, and how we can contribute to population health and wellness. In the Sacramento Valley … our team is working hard to envision the role that water suppliers and local governments can serve to help people live healthier and more fulfilling lives.

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Aquafornia news October 15, 2020 Futurity

Multiple droughts can be a mixed bag for forests

Droughts usually leave individual trees more vulnerable to subsequent droughts. “Compounding extreme events can be really stressful on forests and trees,” says Anna Trugman, assistant professor in the geography department at the UC Santa Barbara. She compares the experience to a person battling an illness: You’ll be harder hit if you get sick again while you’re still recovering.

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Aquafornia news October 15, 2020 E&E News

Mary Nichols may be EPA’s next boss. Here’s her vision

California Air Resources Board Chair Mary Nichols yesterday outlined her vision for EPA over the next four years. And it starts with science.

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Aquafornia news October 15, 2020 Chico Enterprise-Record

Lessons from Camp Fire could help prevent water contamination after North Complex Fire

The [Butte] county’s Forest Health Watershed Coordinator Wolfy Rougle said there is indeed reason to worry about preventing toxic runoff quickly, particularly with the magnitude of the North Complex fires’ destruction, and the county’s resources are stretched thin…So small nonprofit organizations typically have boots on the ground to do the work with concerned residents, like the Camp Fire Restoration Project.

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Aquafornia news October 15, 2020 EOS.org

Linking critical zone water storage and ecosystems

Several years into the research at the California Critical Zone Observatories, a multiyear drought lasting from fall 2011 to fall 2015 hit the state, causing massive tree death in the southern Sierra, while in Northern California there was essentially none. The massive die-off in the Sierra was a wake-up call for land managers and researchers alike…

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Aquafornia news October 14, 2020 AgAlert

Executive order aims to conserve land, biodiversity

A new California Biodiversity Collaborative will help determine how to carry out an executive order from Gov. Gavin Newsom aimed at conserving 30% of California’s land and marine areas by 2030—and agricultural organizations said they would participate to assure the collaborative recognizes stewardship efforts carried out on the state’s farms and ranches.

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Aquafornia news October 13, 2020 Salmonid Restoration Federation

Blog: Marshall Ranch flow enhancement

The South Fork Eel River is considered one of the highest priority watersheds in the state for flow enhancement projects. Forested tributaries like Redwood Creek provide refugia habitat for threatened juvenile coho salmon but suffer from the cumulative impacts of legacy logging and unregulated water diversions.

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Aquafornia news October 13, 2020 The New York Times

Tuesday Top of the Scroll: Environmentalists and dam operators, at war for years, start making peace

The industry that operates America’s hydroelectric dams and several environmental groups announced an unusual agreement Tuesday to work together to get more clean energy from hydropower while reducing the environmental harm from dams, in a sign that the threat of climate change is spurring both sides to rethink their decades-long battle over a large but contentious source of renewable power. The United States generated about 7 percent of its electricity last year from hydropower, mainly from large dams built decades ago, such as the Hoover Dam, which uses flowing water from the Colorado River to power turbines. 

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Aquafornia news October 13, 2020 WaterWorld

EPA announces $108M loan to improve water quality in the California Delta

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced a $108 million Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loan to the Stockton Public Financing Authority to help modernize the city’s wastewater treatment facility and reduce nitrogen discharges to the San Joaquin River.

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Aquafornia news October 13, 2020 Yale Environment 360

As waters warm, ocean heatwaves are growing more severe

Off the coast of California this August a sea monster of record size was spotted: a patch of warm water that grew to the size of Canada, 9.8 million square kilometers simmering up to 4 degrees Celsius warmer than usual. … Researchers are now scrambling to chart or anticipate the impacts…

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Aquafornia news October 12, 2020 Monterey Herald

Cal Am, Marina open to meeting on desal project ‘solution’

California American Water and Marina city officials are in the process of setting up talks on the company’s desalination project after exchanging letters over the past several weeks.

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Aquafornia news October 12, 2020 Christian Science Monitor

Setting ‘good fires’ to reduce the West’s wildfire risk

Prescribed burning … targets brush, grasses, and other accumulated vegetation, along with dead and downed trees, to improve ecosystem health and reduce the fuels that power wildfires. … “We’re trying to encourage a cultural shift in our relationship with wildfire,” says Sasha Berleman, a fire ecologist who runs a prescribed burn training program based in the San Francisco Bay Area. “Fire isn’t going away, so let’s change how we’re living with it.”

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Aquafornia news October 12, 2020 Stat

As wildfires ravage the West, contaminated water raises health concerns

Some neighborhoods in California and Oregon are already witnessing benzene levels that exceed state and federal permissible limits as evacuees return to ‘do not drink/do not boil’ warnings. “The number of water systems that we expect to see impacted could be the highest yet,” says Daniel Newton, assistant deputy director of California’s Water Resources Control Board’s Division of Drinking Water. “It is a concern.”

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Aquafornia news October 12, 2020 Fox21News.com

Reservoir release pilot project on the Colorado River

A new experiment is looking into how drought conditions, like we’re currently in, can affect water traveling downstream in the Colorado River. The pilot project involved shepherding water from a high mountain reservoir to the Colorado-Utah state line.

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Aquafornia news October 12, 2020 The Press

Department of Water Resources calls for the community’s input

The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) recently launched an environmental justice community survey to gather input to inform Delta Conveyance Project planning. The survey, entitled, “Your Delta, Your Voice,” seeks direct input from communities that may be disproportionately affected by the proposed project.

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Aquafornia news October 12, 2020 The New York Times

What’s green, soggy and fights climate change?

Protecting intact peatlands [such as those in California] and restoring degraded ones are crucial steps if the world is to counter climate change, European researchers said Friday. In a study, they said peat bogs, wetlands that contain large amounts of carbon in the form of decaying vegetation that has built up over centuries, could help the world achieve climate goals like the limit of 2 degrees Celsius of postindustrial warming that is part of the 2015 Paris agreement.

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Aquafornia news October 9, 2020 E&E News

Concerns grow about herbicide use in wildfires’ wake

The Forest Service’s use of herbicides and pesticides has raised occasional alarm from environmental groups, which point to the chemical’s potential to harm wildlife or water supplies, or to have long-term effects on people who apply them. In some regions, they say, scarcely a tree-planting project occurs without the use of chemical herbicides.

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Aquafornia news October 9, 2020 Mt. Shasta Herald

River Exchange disbands after 25 years of stewardship in Dunsmuir

After nearly 25 years of unprecedented stewardship of the upper Sacramento River, including raising millions in grant money for everything from educational programs to the annual removal of countless tons of trash, the River Exchange is disbanding. The Dunsmuir-based nonprofit made the announcement October 1, citing funding issues and the successful completion of its mission.

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Aquafornia news October 9, 2020 Philadelphia Inquirer

This California firm promises a guilt-free plastic water bottle that breaks down: It’s not easy

Cove’s sustainable and biodegradable packaging is meant to provide a less dubious retail alternative, Totterman said, as recycling programs have failed to handle what the industry generates.

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Aquafornia news October 8, 2020 Environmental Defense Fund

Blog: Keeping food on the table when water is scarce is a balancing act. This new app will help

In the western United States, crops and natural landscapes consume the greatest portion of water supplies. However, tracking that consumption is surprisingly complex and expensive… A recently announced web application called OpenET aims to fill this gap for farmers and water managers to build more resilient water supplies…

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Aquafornia news October 8, 2020 Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment

Desalination’s role in a circular water economy

While use of large seawater desalination plants will continue to be limited to coastal communities, small-scale, localized systems for distributed desalination will be essential to cost-effectively tapping and reusing many of these nontraditional water sources across the country.

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Aquafornia news October 8, 2020 Tahoe Daily Tribune

Citizen science drives restoration, preservation in Tahoe-Truckee

Volunteer citizen scientists working with the League to Save Lake Tahoe conducted surveys of Donner and Spooner lakes to detect aquatic invasive species, and restored native wetland habitat in Johnson Meadow in September. Both efforts are aimed at preserving the Tahoe-Truckee region’s unique ecology.

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Aquafornia news October 8, 2020 Associated Press

Thursday Top of the Scroll: California governor calls for protecting 30% of state land and waters

Newsom, who made the announcement in a walnut orchard 25 miles outside of Sacramento, said innovative farming practices, restoring wetlands, better managing forests, planting more trees and increasing the number of parks are all potential tools. The goal is to conserve 30% of the state’s lands and coastal waters in the next decade as part of a larger global effort.

Related articles:

  • San Jose Mercury News: Newsom announces plan to conserve 30% of California’s land and coastal waters
  • The Desert Sun: Newsom signs order to protect 30% of California’s land and coastal waters by 2030
  • San Francisco Chronicle: Newsom calls for California to conserve land, coasts to fight climate change
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Aquafornia news October 8, 2020 Northern California Water Association

Blog: Serving multiple benefits along the Sacramento River: A look at fall operations

As we have transitioned from summer to fall in the Sacramento Valley, we are finishing the agronomic season and there is now a focus on fall and winter operations on the Sacramento River. Water resources managers and fish and wildlife agencies continue to work together in the Sacramento River watershed to serve water for multiple benefits, including two salmon runs and the essential time for birds (and other species) migrating along the Pacific Flyway.

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Aquafornia news October 8, 2020 Fast Company

How to redesign a forest: Restoring California’s trees in the age of fire

Last spring, a tree-planting crew hiked into the hills near Paradise, California, to take on a challenge: What’s the best way to replant a forest when it’s very likely that it could burn again?

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Aquafornia news October 8, 2020 Environmental Monitor

Blog: San Francisco Bay’s nutrient phenomena

Water from every toilet flush, shower and load of laundry is treated and pumped back into the bay. San Francisco’s wastewater management processes have kept cities going and scientists busy for quite some time. The San Francisco Estuary Institute researchers are committed to monitoring contamination levels in the bay and studying the associated ecological impacts.

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Aquafornia news October 7, 2020 Pacific Institute

Blog: From source to tap: Assessing water quality in California

Water providers in California face myriad challenges in sustainably providing high quality drinking water to their customers while protecting the natural environment. In this blog post, I explore the stresses that surface and groundwater quality challenges pose for California’s retail water agencies. 

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Aquafornia news October 7, 2020 Bloomberg Law

California tightens reporting for rocket fuel chemical in water

The federal Environmental Protection Agency earlier this year declined to regulate perchlorate, which has been linked to thyroid conditions. The unanimous vote from the State Water Resources Control Board is the first step toward tightening California’s drinking water standard, currently set at 6 parts per billion. The chemical has been found in 27 counties throughout California…

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Aquafornia news October 7, 2020 Voice of San Diego

New state law requires an action plan for the Tijuana River

The bill, which was written by state Sen. Ben Hueso, also aims to address some of the binational challenges in managing the watershed. The plan that the California EPA is putting together will create a framework for how California can work with the Mexican and U.S. governments.

Related article:

  • Border Report: Report shows high levels of chemicals, metals and oils in Tijuana River Valley
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Aquafornia news October 6, 2020 The Current

Blog: Fall River – The gem of California’s natural springs

Naturally when I say, “cold water,” what comes to mind are lakes, rivers, wetlands, delta, estuaries and even reservoirs. These are the areas that I spend the most time fishing, boating, swimming, rafting etc. However, our natural cold-water resources include a few lesser-known components that are just as important to the entire operating system.

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Aquafornia news October 6, 2020 Natural Resources Defense Council

Blog: Raising Shasta Dam is an even worse idea than we knew

Reclamation has identified a significant seismic risk problem at Shasta Dam that may preclude the enlargement of Shasta Dam in a safe manner. … In addition … modeling disclosed by Reclamation to NRDC (see last page of this link) indicates that enlarging Shasta Dam would reduce the water supply for State Water Project contractors by an average of 14,000 acre feet per year.

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Aquafornia news October 6, 2020 The Nevada Independent

In correcting misappropriation of water, Nevada must balance legal rights with existing use

In the area that the Moapa Valley Water District serves, water users are facing an uncomfortable future: People are going to have to use less water than they were once promised. Over the last century, state regulators handed out more groundwater rights than there was water available. Today state officials say that only a fraction of those rights can be used, which could mean cuts.

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Aquafornia news October 6, 2020 Utility Dive

California’s Salton Sea offers chance for US battery supply chain, despite financial, policy challenges

Developing a lithium industry in California’s Salton Sea, an area that experts think could supply more than a third of lithium demand in the world today, could help set up a multi-billion dollar domestic supply chain for electric vehicle batteries, according to a new report from New Energy Nexus.

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Aquafornia news October 6, 2020 San Francisco Chronicle

Tuesday Top of the Scroll: Redwood City salt ponds subject to environmental protections, judge rules

A federal judge ruled Monday that a sprawling collage of salt ponds in Redwood City is subject to protection under the Clean Water Act — going against a previous decision by the Environmental Protection Agency that would have eased development along the bay.

Related articles:

  • San Jose Mercury News: San Francisco Bay: Cargill’s Redwood City development plans dealt setback by court
  • Courthouse News Service: San Francisco Bay salt ponds are protected US waters, judge rules
  • Bloomberg Law: EPA must review San Francisco water rule decision, judge says
  • San Mateo Daily Journal: Court deals blow to salt pond development in Redwood City
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Aquafornia news October 5, 2020 CalMatters

Unsafe to drink: Wildfires threaten rural towns with tainted water

Among the largest wildfires in California history, the LNU Lightning Complex fires killed five people and destroyed nearly 1,500 structures — including whole blocks of the Berryessa Highlands neighborhood where Kody Petrini’s home stood. Camped out in a trailer on his in-laws’ nearby lot, the 32-year-old father of two, along with all of his neighbors, was warned not to drink the water or boil it because it could be contaminated with dangerous compounds like benzene… 

Related articles:

  • Voice of America: Western wildfires threaten water supplies, spur utilities to action
  • Here & Now: How wildfires are contaminating the water supply with benzene, other hazardous chemicals
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Aquafornia news October 5, 2020 Voice of America

Western wildfires threaten water supplies, spur utilities to action

In California’s Placer County, an unusual partnership between a county water utility, the U.S. Forest Service and environmentalists is taking on the work to prevent catastrophic fires on more than 11,000 hectares in the northern Sierra Nevada Mountains. The partnership arose from the ashes of 2014’s King fire. 

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Aquafornia news October 5, 2020 Los Angeles Times

Can steelhead trout return to the L.A. River?

Biologists and engineers are setting the stage for an environmental recovery effort in downtown Los Angeles that could rival the return of the gray wolf, bald eagle and California condor. This time, the species teetering on the edge of extinction is the Southern California steelhead trout and the abused habitat is a 4.8-mile-long stretch of the L.A. River flood-control channel that most people only glimpse from a freeway.

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Aquafornia news October 5, 2020 Associated Press

Nevada dam changes give rare trout new life 115 years later

U.S. and tribal officials are celebrating completion of a $34 million fish bypass system at a Nevada dam that will allow a threatened trout species to return to some of its native spawning grounds for the first time in more than a century. Construction of the side channel with fish-friendly screens is a major step toward someday enabling Lahontan cutthroat trout to make the same 100-mile journey — from a desert lake northeast of Reno to Lake Tahoe atop the Sierra — that they did before the dam was built in 1905.

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Aquafornia news October 5, 2020 Orange County Register

Support of Poseidon’s desalination at stake in water board election

For years, the Orange County Water District has expressed interest in buying the desalted water, provided Poseidon receives the necessary regulatory permits. But the water district’s appetite for the controversial project could be in jeopardy after Nov. 3, if two board members who support the project are upset in their reelection bids and replaced by Poseidon skeptics.

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Aquafornia news October 2, 2020 Maven's Notebook

Update on the Central Valley Water Board’s Irrigated Lands Program

Runoff and other discharges from agricultural lands affect water quality by transporting pollutants including pesticides, sediment, nutrients, salts, pathogens, and heavy metals from cultivated fields into surface waters. … Sue McConnell is the manager of the Central Valley Board’s Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program.  At the September 15 State Water Board meeting, she gave an update on the implementation of Order WQ-2018-0002, hereafter referred to as the ‘petition order’.

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Aquafornia news October 2, 2020 KCET

Mercury in our waters: The 10,000-year legacy of California’s gold rush

If you look closely in the waters of Deer Creek, near Nevada City, Calif., something strange may catch your eye; lying in globules amongst the gravel is quicksilver, or liquid elemental mercury. Carrie Monohan, head scientist for the Sierra Fund, lives next to Deer Creek, and became concerned about mercury contamination in the waterways when she pulled liquid mercury from the water in a turkey baster.

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Aquafornia news October 1, 2020 The Sierra Nevada Ally

Walker Lake: Legal saga continues with endgame in question

According to river flow data, there is currently almost no water flowing into Walker Lake, a common condition. Today, where the riverbed meets the lake is an ooze of mud. The lake is all but biologically dead. But a decades-old public trust lawsuit made a move forward in its glacial process through federal courts last week, and advocates are hopeful Walker Lake, a cornerstone of the regional economy and ecology, can one day be revived.

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Aquafornia news October 1, 2020 U.S. Bureau of Reclamation

News release: Partnership celebrates restoration of Truckee River fish passage to historical spawning grounds

On Wednesday, the Bureau of Reclamation joined its partners, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Farmers Conservation Alliance, to celebrate the completion of the Derby Dam Fish Screen Project. The infrastructure modernization project at Derby Dam will provide Lahontan Cutthroat Trout access to natural spawning grounds for the first time since 1905.

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Aquafornia news September 30, 2020 The New York Times

Strange bacteria are attacking California’s trout supply

When Jay Rowan learned in late April that trout in California hatcheries were exhibiting strange symptoms, he had been the hatchery production manager for California’s Department of Fish and Wildlife for less than a month. Already forced to rejigger operations after the coronavirus lockdowns, Mr. Rowan began to worry that a second crisis was on the way.

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Aquafornia news September 30, 2020 Public Policy Institute of California

Blog: Paying for forest health projects

Four days before dry lightning ignited this year’s statewide wildfire siege, state and federal leaders signed an agreement to vastly expand vegetation management in California. This signals progress towards shared management of forests to reduce the risk of large severe wildfires and improve their resilience to the changing climate. … But are current funding sources enough to keep pace?

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Aquafornia news September 30, 2020 The Desert Sun

Wednesday Top of the Scroll: Gavin Newsom greenlights commission on Salton Sea lithium extraction

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday added his signature to a new law that orders the formation of a commission to study the feasibility of lithium extraction around the Salton Sea. Local politicians hope the commission will lead to the creation of a green economy around the state’s largest lake, which is a geothermal hotspot. It was one of several bills focused on California’s environment that Newsom dealt with this week.

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Aquafornia news September 30, 2020 Bay Nature

How Measure AA funds are restoring the bay

Assessments of the worst-case scenario predict the Bay may rise a damaging 1.9 feet by 2050 and as much as nearly 7 feet by 2100. Restoring even a fraction of the Bay’s lost wetlands would provide long-lasting benefits.

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Aquafornia news September 30, 2020 Bay Nature

Restoring a watershed for wildlife at Marsh Creek

Called the Three Creeks Parkway Restoration, the $9 million project will yield two acres of floodplain and a canopy of riparian trees set in nearly 4.5 acres of grassland and oak woodland. Construction began in May and is scheduled for completion at the end of the year…

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Aquafornia news September 30, 2020 Arizona Public Media

After Clean Water Act change, uncertainty reigns over water protections

In June, the Trump administration’s new version of which waters are protected under the Clean Water Act took effect. The new rule is an about-face from the Obama-era regulations, and Arizona state regulators are trying to make sense of it.

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Aquafornia news September 29, 2020 Lost Coast Outpost

‘Make noise’: Yurok Tribe water analyst discusses PacifiCorp’s new stance on Klamath dam removal

The day after Congress passed a bill that included potential consequences to PacifiCorp if it reneged on an agreement to remove four Klamath River dams, the Yurok Tribe’s senior water policy analyst urged people to “make noise in anyway that you can.”

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Aquafornia news September 29, 2020 Bay City News

York Creek dam removal sets stage for environmental restoration in Napa

After 27 years of starts and stops, a lawsuit brought by state regulators, a court order, a long-running federal fine and the threat of further legal action from environmentalists, the old earthen dam is finally being removed in order to restore a portion of the creek to a more natural state.

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Aquafornia news September 29, 2020 San Francisco Estuary Magazine

Makeover for Delta weed patch & salt trap?

The collaborative design process for the Franks Tract Futures project brought initially skeptical local stakeholders on board and is being hailed as a model for future initiatives. Yet major uncertainties remain as interested parties explore the challenges of implementing a complex redesign of a big chunk of the Delta.

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Aquafornia news September 29, 2020 UC Davis News

Natural capital a missing piece in climate policy

Clean air, clean water and a functioning ecosystem are considered priceless. Yet the economic value of nature remains elusive in cost-benefit analysis of climate policy regulations and greenhouse-gas-reduction efforts. A study published Monday in the journal Nature Sustainability incorporates those insights from sustainability science into a classic model of climate change costs.

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Aquafornia news September 29, 2020 Maven's Notebook

Audio: How fish interact with wetland topography

In this podcast, reporter Alastair Bland and UC Davis PhD student and fish researcher David Ayers discuss the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, its fish, its marshlands, its flows, and its future.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Ventura County Star

What we know about a plan to settle the Ventura River litigation

Some of the largest users of the Ventura River recently released their proposal to settle litigation and potentially stave off a water-rights adjudication. The plan includes multiple habitat restoration projects intended to help endangered steelhead trout, but largely avoids any changes to water use. Before it goes to a judge, however, other parties likely will weigh in, including the state.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Alameda Sun

Alameda to seek wetland park funding

The proposed ecological wetland park at Alameda Point, known as DePave Park, is another step closer to becoming a reality. On Sept. 15, four members of the city council gave thumbs up to moving forward with seeking a $2 million grant to pay for a master planning process.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Las Vegas Sun

This year’s monsoon season in Las Vegas? More like a ‘nonsoon’

The monsoon season — that period from mid-June through September that each year brings rains to the Mojave Desert and other areas of the Southwest from the tropical coast of Mexico — has been a dud this year. Las Vegas is in the middle of a record-breaking stretch without rain, and residents should be prepared for it to stay that way, scientists say.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Las Vegas Review-Journal

Opponents of Colorado River pipeline project view delay as progress

Regional water conservation groups and a Clark County commissioner welcomed a request by Utah officials Thursday to extend the federal environmental review of a controversial plan to divert billions of gallons of water from the Colorado River to southwest Utah.

Related articles:

  • Associated Press: Utah asks US to delay decision on tapping Colorado River
  • KUTV: Extension requested of Bureau of Reclamation on Lake Powell Pipeline timeline
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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 SJV Water

Dominos from the massive Creek Fire teetering over Central Valley farmers

When the Creek Fire erupted on Sept. 5 and chewed through the forest toward Southern California Edison’s Big Creek power system, little did anyone know how that might affect grape growers in Delano nearly a month later.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Mad River Union

Cyanobacteria confirmed in Mad River – dogs and children at highest risk

Samples with confirmed cyanobacteria were collected at three locations on the Mad River spurring local Public and Environmental Health officials to warn community residents to keep themselves and their pets out of the water.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Associated Press

Walker Lake group to take water suit back to federal court

Lawyers representing Mineral County and the Walker Lake Working Group announced this week they intend to take a water rights case with broad implications back to federal appeals court to ask whether Nevada can adjust already allocated water rights to sustain rivers and lakes long-term.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 San Francisco Estuary Magazine

The Delta’s blooming problem

Bright-green blotches of algae have been popping up all over the Delta since early summer, from Discovery Bay to the Stockton waterfront, befouling the air and poisoning the water with toxins that can sicken or even kill humans and animals. Veteran Delta watchers believe that this year’s harmful algal blooms may be the worst ever, and worry that some features of Governor Gavin Newsom’s recently released Water Resilience Portfolio for California will aggravate the problem.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 The Desert Sun

Students kayak the Salton Sea to raise awareness about lake’s plight

Three Coachella Valley high schoolers kayaked across the Salton Sea Saturday to raise awareness about the social and ecological crisis unfolding as California’s largest lake continues to shrink and toxic dust from its shores pollutes the air.

Related article:

  • NBC Palm Springs: Students kayak across the Salton Sea for a purpose
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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Klamath Falls Herald & News

How worms and a parasite harm salmon on the Klamath River — and how a new data portal may help

The Klamath Basin used to be the third most important salmon-bearing watershed in the Pacific Northwest. Now, only a fraction of those runs remain. The multiple reasons for their decline are complex and interconnected, but they all have to do with how water moves through the system.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 The San Diego Union-Tribune

Mexican governor, California mayor launch war of words over cross-border sewage spills

The mayor of Imperial Beach and governor of Baja California are in a public spat over cross-border sewage spills. Gov. Jaime Bonilla has held three separate press conferences this month demanding Mayor Serge Dedina apologize for his public criticisms of Mexico’s inability to stop sewage from flowing into the United States.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Ridgecrest Daily Independent

Water Board candidates differ on how to balance basin, protect ratepayers

Potentially the most important question popped up roughly halfway through the Indian Wells Valley Water District Board candidate forum Wednesday night. Hidden within a longer question was the key point: how do the candidates think the local water basin should be balanced and how do they plan to protect water district ratepayers while doing so?

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 SJV Water

Locals gear up for fight to keep Kings River water

Just as they did more than two generations ago, Kern County farmers are looking to another Central Valley river to the north to refill their groundwater shortfall. But this time around, natives in the Kings River watershed are “sharpening their knives” to fight off what they say is a desperate water grab.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Audubon

Blog: When it comes to droughts, the costs of climate change are too high for both birds and people

Although droughts may not garner as much attention as acute extreme events like hurricanes, floods or fires, their multidimensional effects are vast. … A multi-year drought in California has seen the number of breeding waterfowl dip 46% below average as wetlands shrink and dry up.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Chico Enterprise-Record

Riparian restoration project in motion

California State Parks, Butte County Resource Conservation District and River Partners kicked off a Bidwell-Sacramento River State Park riparian restoration project earlier this week. The project will restore 24 acres of natural habitat adjacent to the Pine Creek Access Unit and the Sacramento River.

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Aquafornia news September 28, 2020 Monterey Herald

Opinion:  Water supply – the testimony that never was

Last week on these pages, you heard the President of California American Water explain their rationale for withdrawing their application for a desalination plant from the California Coastal Commission the day before their Sept. 17 hearing. What he didn’t tell you is that there is a feasible alternative project that has less environmental impact, is more socially just, and would be less costly to ratepayers

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Aquafornia news September 25, 2020 Maven's Notebook

Opinion: The Gulf hurricane is a call to action to protect Californians from catastrophic floods

No California communities are more shaped by water than those in the Delta.  Water surrounds communities like Stockton.  Water shaped our history and still shapes our economy, quality of life, culture, and is essential for a healthy environment.  And for our communities, water-related disasters are devastating. We see proof of that every day.

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Aquafornia news September 25, 2020 BBC News

Global warming driving California wildfire trends – study

Climate change is driving the scale and impact of recent wildfires that have raged in California, say scientists. Their analysis finds an “unequivocal and pervasive” role for global heating in boosting the conditions for fire. California now has greater exposure to fire risks than before humans started altering the climate, the authors say.

Related articles:

  • ScienceBrief: Climate change increases the risk of wildfires
  • E&E News: Climate change ‘unequivocal’ in driving wildfires — report
  • CounterPunch: Opinion: Climate change is responsible for devastating wildfires
  • Diablo Magazine: Apocalypse now: Fire and drought in the East Bay
  • Union of Concerned Scientists: Blog: Governor signs bill to strengthen state infrastructure amid climate chaos
  • Truthout: West Coast wildfires underscore ominous global trend: Forests are dying
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Aquafornia news September 25, 2020 Reuters

California outpaced Trump’s Forest Service in wildfire prevention work: data

While more than half of California’s forests fall under federal management, the U.S. Forest Service consistently spends fewer dollars than the state in managing those lands to reduce wildfire risks, a Reuters data analysis reveals. The relative spending by federal and state forest authorities undermines President Donald Trump’s repeated attempts to blame deadly wildfires on a failure by California to clear its forests of dead wood and other debris.

Related articles:

  • E&E News: USFS official: Feds must double or triple firefighting push
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Aquafornia news September 25, 2020 The Desert Sun

Friday Top of the Scroll: California Democrats decry federal inaction in Congress’ first hearing on Salton Sea in 23 years

In a congressional hearing Thursday that starkly illuminated partisan divides, California Democrats called on the federal government to provide greater assistance in remedying environmental and public health crises at the Salton Sea. All but one GOP members were absent, and the one who did attend criticized the organizers for holding the hearing.

Related articles:

  • NBC Palm Springs: Salton Sea gets first Congressional hearing in two decades
  • E&E News: Salton Sea’s death spiral sparks pleas for Congress to help
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Aquafornia news September 25, 2020 Truthout

West Coast wildfires underscore ominous global trend: Forests are dying

Behind the apocalyptic wildfires in California and Oregon, another ominous trend is creeping across the globe: Everywhere in the world, trees are dying, with the biggest trees going first. Entire forests are threatened worldwide.

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Aquafornia news September 25, 2020 Stanford News

News release: Newly identified ‘landfalling droughts’ start over ocean

Stanford scientists have identified a new kind of “landfalling drought” … that can potentially be predicted before it impacts people and ecosystems on land. …  They found that droughts that make landfall in the region have been associated with certain atmospheric pressure patterns that reduce moisture, similar to the “Ridiculously Resilient Ridge” pattern that was one of the primary causes of the 2012-2017 California Drought.

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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 E&E News

Senate Dems push resolution against Trump WOTUS rule

Senate Democrats unveiled a resolution today calling on EPA to maintain and strengthen the Clean Water Act, a direct rebuke of the Trump administration’s regulatory rollbacks.

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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 Noozhawk

With its beaches and creeks deemed ‘impaired,’ Santa Barbara takes steps to improve water quality

All of Santa Barbara’s beaches and creeks are designated as “impaired” under the federal Clean Water Act. … The council voted 7-0 to send its proposed changes to stormwater runoff to the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board… The list of changes are extensive, and are proposed over four tiers based on various types and levels of new construction development. They involve landscape changes and stormwater treatment for new impervious construction.

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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 The Desert Sun

California filmmaker premieres new Salton Sea documentary

A new documentary — “Miracle in the Desert: The Rise and Fall of the Salton Sea” — takes a crack at the growing public health issue, drawing on archival footage to tell the tale of a lake that was largely forgotten by the government even before its shorelines began receding.

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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 E&E News

How the loss of Ginsburg will affect the term ahead

The absence of the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the Supreme Court this coming term is unlikely to change the outcome of two looming battles over water rights and Endangered Species Act records, but legal experts say her death will have a lasting impact on environmental jurisprudence at the nation’s highest bench.

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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 Utah State University

Blog: How well do we understand numbers in the Colorado River basin?

We analysed data reported by the Bureau of Reclamation and the U. S. Geological Survey that describe the primary inflows to Lake Powell and the Colorado River between Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Mead, as well as the losses from both reservoir and the releases from Hoover Dam. … The significance of the uncertainties we identify can be measured by reminding the reader that the annual consumptive uses by the state of Nevada cannot exceed 300,000 acre feet/year…

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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 The New York Times

Heat and drought team up more frequently, with disastrous results

The combination of drought conditions and heat waves, which can make wildfires more likely, is becoming increasingly common in the American West, according to a new study. The results may be predictably disastrous.

Related articles:

  • National Public Radio: Scientists say disasters are teaming up during time of climate change
  • Carbon Brief: US sees ‘alarming’ increase in combined heatwaves and droughts
  • Capital Public Radio: California’s coastal range fires are getting significantly worse every decade, experts say
  • The Hill: Trump NOAA pick questions ties between climate change and extreme weather
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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 Maven's Notebook

Collaboration on the Colorado River between Mexico and the US brings benefits for both countries

At the September meeting of Metropolitan’s Water Planning and Stewardship Committee, Laura Lamdin, an associate engineer in water resource management, gave a presentation on how the United States and Mexico built a collaborative relationship, the many accomplishments that have come as a result, and a look at the work currently in progress.

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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 The Desert Sun

Newsom aims to phase out new hydraulic fracking permits in California by 2024

California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday vowed to work with the state legislature to phase out new permits for hydraulic fracking by 2024, but left untouched a more widely used oil extraction technique in the state that has been linked to hundreds of oil spills.

Related articles:

  • KTVU TV: California ban on fracking by 2024 criticized as too late
  • Los Angeles Times: Environmentalists plan lawsuit challenging Newsom over oil and gas drilling permits
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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 Somach Simmons & Dunn

Blog: Colorado River Basin states request a better forum to resolve concerns with Lake Powell pipeline

In Utah, there is a significant effort underway to build a water delivery pipeline from Lake Powell to transport part of Utah’s Colorado River entitlement to Utah’s St. George area. As the federal environmental review for the proposed Lake Powell Pipeline in Utah continues, Utah’s six fellow Colorado River Basin states weighed in as a group, cautioning that unresolved issues remain.

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Aquafornia news September 24, 2020 UPI

Scientists publish water quality database for 12,000 freshwater lakes

Scientists have published a global water quality database detailing the health of nearly 12,000 freshwater lakes, almost half the world’s freshwater supply. Compiled by researchers at York University, in Canada, the database offers water quality information on lakes in 72 countries and all seven continents, including Antarctica.

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Aquafornia news September 23, 2020 National Geographic

How beavers became North America’s best firefighters

A new study concludes that, by building dams, forming ponds, and digging canals, beavers irrigate vast stream corridors and create fireproof refuges in which plants and animals can shelter. In some cases, the rodents’ engineering can even stop fire in its tracks.

Related articles:

  • Fairfield Daily Republic: Neighbors of Laurel Creek upset Fairfield tore down beaver dam
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Aquafornia news September 23, 2020 Chico Enterprise-Record

Teichert Ponds fish dying due to ash, poor air quality and lack of oxygen

The Park and Natural Resource Manager for Chico and Butte County Linda Herman confirmed the dead fish being reported are on the back side of the pond near the fresh water area, saying the fish have succumbed to lack of oxygen in the water due to a thick layer of ash that has formed atop many parts of the pond.

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Aquafornia news September 23, 2020 San Francisco Estuary Magazine

Nursing salmon on flooded farms

In 2012 a team of salmon researchers tried a wild idea: putting pinky-sized Chinook on a rice field in the Yolo Bypass, a vast engineered floodplain designed to protect the city of Sacramento from inundation. … Now, after nearly a decade of testing fish in fields, a new paper in San Francisco Estuary and Watershed Science outlines lessons learned as well as next steps in managing floodplains for salmon.

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Aquafornia news September 23, 2020 Water Education Foundation

Latest Western Water article examines major report that tries to make sense of science vital to Colorado River management

Practically every drop of water that flows through the meadows, canyons and plains of the Colorado River Basin has reams of science attached to it. Our latest article in Western Water news examines a new report that synthesizes and provides context for that science and could aid water managers as they prepare to rewrite the operating rules for a river system so vital to the Southwestern United States and Mexico.

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Aquafornia news September 22, 2020 Writers on the Range

Opinion: A clear warning about the Colorado River

A crisis could be approaching. The two giant reservoirs on the Colorado River are both below 50 percent of capacity. If drought causes even more drastic drops, the Bureau of Reclamation could step in to prioritize the making of electricity by the hydro plants at lakes Mead and Powell. No one knows what BuRec would do, but it would call the shots and end current arrangements.

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Aquafornia news September 22, 2020 E&E News

House Dems set hearing on Western wildfires

A House Agriculture subcommittee this week will examine the response to Western wildfires, less than three months after its chairwoman predicted the COVID-19 pandemic would make this fire season like no other.

Related articles:

  • Public Policy Institute of California: Blog: How California’s wildfires are changing
  • Marin Independent Journal: Opinion: The next major wildfire could threaten our water supply
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Aquafornia news September 22, 2020 American Rivers

Blog: Investing in rivers is money well spent

Earlier this summer, American Rivers released a new report, Rivers as Economic Engines, detailing how the right investments in water infrastructure, natural infrastructure and river restoration can create jobs, strengthen communities and address longstanding injustices. … We are calling on Congress to invest $500 billion over 10 years to create the transformational change we need when it comes to ensuring clean water and healthy rivers for everyone.

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Aquafornia news September 22, 2020 Marin Independent Journal

Opinion: The next major wildfire could threaten our water supply

The last time Mt. Tamalpais had a major wildfire was in 1929. In 1930, Marin’s population was 41,648. Today it’s more than 258,000. … As with many other utilities, the Marin Municipal Water District is updating its treatment plants. It is unclear, from a technology and science perspective, whether our community treatment plant could handle sediment runoff from a big rainstorm after a catastrophic, climate-driven wildfire.

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Aquafornia news September 22, 2020 NOAA Fisheries

Blog: New conservation plan benefits California steelhead—and irrigators, too

The Calaveras River Habitat Conservation Plan finalized this week includes commitments by the Stockton East Water District to improve conditions in the Calaveras River for steelhead. In turn, the Water District gets assurances that it can continue distributing water to irrigators and others without violating the Endangered Species Act….These changes will be implemented under the first plan of its kind in the Central Valley of California.

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 Microsoft

Blog: Microsoft will replenish more water than it consumes by 2030

By 2030 we will be water positive, meaning we will replenish more water than we use. We’ll do this by putting back more water in stressed basins than our global water consumption across all basins. … We will focus our replenishment efforts on roughly 40 highly stressed basins where we have operations….Our new Silicon Valley campus, opening later this year in California, features an on-site rainwater collection system and waste treatment plant to ensure 100% of the site’s non-potable water comes from onsite recycled sources.

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 California WaterBlog

Blog: Crawdads: Naturalized Californians

Non-native crayfish, regardless of species, can (a) displace fish and native crayfish from cover, making them more vulnerable to predation, (b) reduce aquatic plant densities, making water clearer, © compete with fish for aquatic invertebrates as food, especially snails, and (d) displace native crayfish from their habitats. How much of all this they do in California ecosystems, however, is not well understood.

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 California Department of Water Resources

Blog: Why floodplains are important for California salmon

Floodplains were the historic rearing areas for juvenile salmon, and the remaining floodplains in California are an important food-rich habitat as present-day salmon grow and attempt to survive their trip out to the ocean. We sat down with Hailey Wright, a Department of Water Resources environmental scientist, to discuss the salmon lifecycle and her work designing and implementing projects in the Yolo Bypass…

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 CalMatters

Opinion: Three lessons for California’s water funding challenges in today’s recession

California’s water managers have had their hands full keeping our water systems safe and operational during the COVID-19 pandemic. But their work on addressing the fiscal consequences of the deep economic recession is just beginning. Three lessons from the Great Recession of 2007-09 could guide more effective policy responses today.

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 The Sacramento Bee

Los Angeles accuses 45 of poaching at San Pedro tide pools

Hordes of people are descending on fragile Los Angeles-area tide pools to scrape starfish, mussels and other sea life from the rocks, city officials say. The Los Angeles city attorney’s office announced charges Thursday against 45 people accused of overfishing, fishing without licenses and taking restricted species at White Point Beach in San Pedro.

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 The Desert Sun

California oil: Companies profit from illegal spills; the state lets them

Along with being a global leader on addressing climate change, California is the seventh-largest producer of oil in the nation. And across some of its largest oil fields, companies have for decades turned spills into profits, garnering millions of dollars from surface expressions that can foul sensitive habitats and endanger workers, an investigation by The Desert Sun and ProPublica has found….Under state laws, it’s illegal to discharge any hazardous substance into a creek or streambed, dry or not.

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 Monterey Herald

Opinion: Explaining California American Water’s decision to withdraw desalination application

After years spent developing this project and making adjustments to respond to stakeholder concerns, it became obvious that we needed to take more time to address objections raised by the community of Marina — namely that our project would be built in their backyard without them receiving any benefit from it.

Related articles:

  • Orange County Register: Opinion: ‘Environmental justice’ starts by providing more water
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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 High Country News

Killing the Vegas pipeline — Nevada’s attitude toward water is changing

Over the years, these groups united against a single cause: the Southern Nevada Water Authority’s “Groundwater Development Project,” a proposal to pump 58 billion gallons of water a year 300 miles to Las Vegas from the remote rural valleys of Nevada and Utah. … In May, their three decades of resistance to the pipeline ended in victory: The project was terminated.

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 The Hill

Trump dismisses climate change role in fires, says Newsom needs to manage forest better

President Trump dismissed evidence pointed to by California’s governor of climate change’s role in the state’s continuing wildfires during a Fox News interview on Sunday… The president went on during the interview to attack California over its water management policies, which he blamed on efforts to protect the Delta smelt…

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 KAZU Radio

Santa Cruz County drinking water takes a hit after wildfire

The CZU Lightning Complex Fire badly damaged seven and a half miles of water supply lines made of polyethylene, a plastic, in northern Santa Cruz County. That triggered the San Lorenzo Valley Water District, State Water Resources Control Board, and Santa Cruz County Health Department to issue a Do Not Drink - Do Not Boil water advisory for over 3,000 households in Northern Santa Cruz County in late August.

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 E&E News

House panel to probe toxic wasteland in California lake

A House committee will meet Thursday to discuss the deteriorating public health crisis at the Salton Sea.

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Aquafornia news September 21, 2020 Marketplace

Water enters futures market, allowing buyers to lock in prices

There is a new product allowing businesses in California — mostly farms and other agricultural businesses that rely on water — to lock in prices for water. But there are plenty of questions as to how this will actually work. To state the obvious, it’s just not that easy to transact in water. It’s not a block of gold, or even a barrel of oil.

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Aquafornia news September 18, 2020 Bloomberg Law

Water wars at the Supreme Court: ‘It’s only going to get worse’

The U.S. Supreme Court kicks off its new term next month with a unique “original jurisdiction” water dispute—the likes of which could become more common as the climate changes. The justices are set to hear Texas v. New Mexico, virtually, on their first day of oral arguments Oct. 5. Here’s how original jurisdiction water cases work, what’s at stake this term, and what’s on the horizon.

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Aquafornia news September 18, 2020 New Times San Luis Obispo

Conservation groups complete Chorro Creek restoration project, benefiting the Morro Bay watershed

For years, a stretch of Chorro Creek near Hollister Peak ran through active farmland, where its flow was diverted for irrigation and its banks were shored up by levees, blocking the water’s natural access to its floodplain. … After nearly two decades of planning and fundraising, the Estuary Program and its partners recently completed a major restoration of the site.

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Aquafornia news September 18, 2020 The Nevada Independent

Nevada Supreme Court says state cannot change water rights for ‘public trust,’ a loss for environmentalists, county

The Nevada Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state cannot reshuffle existing water rights to prevent environmental damage, despite recognizing a legal principle that requires the government to preserve natural resources for future generations… The Nevada court, in a 4-2 decision, separated itself from the California Supreme Court, which reached the opposite conclusion in a landmark 1980s case.

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Aquafornia news September 18, 2020 Maven's Notebook

Opinion: Almond growers are committed to finding water solutions that work for people, farms, and fish

Through research funded by the Almond Board of California we are exploring ways to recharge groundwater aquifers, be good stewards of the water that we all collectively share as a state, and even helping the salmon industry understand how agricultural land, like rice fields, could play a role in supporting salmon health.

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Aquafornia news September 18, 2020 Popular Science

California wildfires may give way to massive mudslides

When fires burn up vegetation, the charred remains become hydrophobic—meaning they repel away any water. The soil is also very dry, which counterintuitively makes it harder for water to infiltrate. … Fires can also destroy the natural clumps in soil, increasing their erodibility. Altogether, this means that water is hitting the ground with more force and the soil is unable to suck it up.

Related article:

  • Northern California Water Association: Blog: When the smoke clears: Taking action for healthy headwaters
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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 Monterey Herald

Thursday Top of the Scroll: Cal Am withdraws desal project bid

California American Water has withdrawn its Peninsula desalination project bid at the Coastal Commission on the eve of the commission’s special meeting, citing social and environmental justice issues.

Related articles:

  • Los Angeles Times: Company drops desalination plan in battle over environmental justice
  • Voices of Monterey Bay: Cal Am pulls plug on desal plan; Promises a better approach next time
  • KSBW TV: Cal Am withdraws Marina coastal commission permit application
  • The Sacramento Bee: Opinion: Monterey Bay desalination project promotes economic racism
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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 E&E News

Trump WOTUS rewrite could backfire, lawmakers warned

A top water regulator from New Mexico yesterday warned senators that hardrock mines, wastewater facilities and other industrial entities could face stricter environmental oversight as the Trump administration’s Waters of the U.S., or WOTUS, rule takes effect.

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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 North Bay Business Journal

Regulators raise water quality fine to $6.4 million for Montage Healdsburg resort

Poor erosion control on the 258-acre site unleashed soils into streams of the Russian River watershed and put fish and other other aquatic wildlife at risk, regulators found, counteracting millions of dollars spent to improve habitat and restore imperiled, protected runs of salmon and steelhead…

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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 Voice of Orange County

Conservationists split over Poseidon desal project’s potential to help Bolsa Chica Wetlands

Along a Huntington Beach coastline dotted with oil rigs and a power plant, one of California’s largest remaining saltwater marshes has been a source of pride for local environmentalists. But the marsh, known as the Bolsa Chica Wetlands, is endangered despite a years-long struggle to pull together sufficient public funding for its upkeep.

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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 E&E News

Meet the man who told Trump climate change is real

Wade Crowfoot, a California Cabinet secretary, didn’t plan on confronting President Trump on extreme heat and wildfires. Then Trump dismissed climate change.

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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 USA Today

Creek Fire ignites fire management debate on beetles, climate change

When the Creek Fire exploded to 160,000 acres in just 72 hours, ripping through a jewel of the Sierra Nevada just south of Yosemite National Park, California and the world looked on in horror and surprise. But the stage had long been set for the megablaze, one of a half-dozen transforming millions of acres of Golden State landscapes to ash. Droughts supercharged by climate change dried out vegetation, aiding its transition into fuel.

Related articles:

  • E&E News: Senators urge swift passage of forest policy overhaul
  • The Washington Post: Trump’s plan for managing forests won’t save us in a more flammable world, experts say
  • National Geographic: The science of how climate change impacts fires in the West
  • Grist.org: Meet the DIY firestarters trying to save California from itself
  • Politico.com: Trump blames California for fires. He should check to see whose land they’re on
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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 Arizona Daily Star

University of Arizona researchers unveil new model for desert farming in warming world

A team of scientists, led by the University of Arizona, has developed a new blueprint for arid-land agriculture using wild, native crops and modern growing techniques. The 14 researchers from the Southwest and Mexico believe their model can produce a sustainable, local source of food that will improve the health and well-being of consumers and farmworkers alike.

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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 EOS.org

Study: Dams alter nutrient flows to coasts

The right balance of nutrients is crucial for a healthy coastal ecosystem. If rivers deposit too much nitrogen and phosphorus in coastal areas, algae that flourish on those nutrients can cause dead zones; if too little silicon flows downstream, organisms that depend on it will die off.

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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 CalMatters

Opinion: Water board must establish a state water budget that California can afford

Former U.S. Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt writes that a “Grand Bargain” in California water is needed to end the “political culture of deferral” and allow major water projects to advance. On the contrary, what’s needed is an adult regulator that will make hard choices that water users refuse to make.

Related article:

  • News release: CSPA asks San Francisco water agency to withdraw voluntary agreement
  • Read more
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Aquafornia news September 17, 2020 Phys.org

Blog: Wildfires can leave toxic drinking water behind – here’s how to protect the public

We recommend issuing “Do Not Use” orders in the wake of major fires to protect the public before water testing results are available. We believe it is acceptable to use water for fire fighting and toilet flushing, but not for purposes that involve ingestion, skin exposure or inhalation, such as bathing or cooking.

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Aquafornia news September 16, 2020 Fast Company

This tool is mapping every tree in California to help stop megafires

Scientists at Salo Sciences, a startup that works on technology for natural climate solutions, began creating the tool after interviewing dozens of experts in California about the state’s challenges with wildfires: They need more detailed, up-to-date information about the forests so they can better predict how fast and in what direction fires will spread…

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Aquafornia news September 16, 2020 UC Merced News

Blog: Past wildfires offer future roadmap for forest management’s effects on water

The Sierra Nevada provides more than 60 percent of California’s water supply and sustains a globally important agricultural region. Quantifying the water-related benefits can be critical in showing the true value and cost-benefit of forest management. But until now, there hasn’t been enough locally relevant data to incentivize restoration projects.

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Aquafornia news September 16, 2020 Phys.org

The consequences of spraying fire retardants on wildfires

Wildfires started burning in California early again this dry season—more than two million acres have burned so far. Larger and larger wildfires are occurring as new heat records are being broken each year. Firefighting efforts have leaned heavily on aerial spraying of fire retardants, but their environmental and health effects [including on fish and waterways] are little studied …

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Aquafornia news September 15, 2020 CalMatters

Opinion: A greater sense of urgency needed for crises at the Salton Sea

Responding to the lack of progress in 2017, the State Water Resources Control Board ordered the California Natural Resources Agency to adopt a 10-year plan to implement projects to suppress the harmful dust and restore habitat. … But in the three years since the water board’s order, progress has been dismal, even though there is more than $350 million available to implement the plan.

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Aquafornia news September 15, 2020 Los Angeles Times

Fight over desalinization is now about environmental justice

This proposal by California American Water has become one of the most complicated and fraught issues to come before the California Coastal Commission, whose long-awaited vote on Thursday could determine not only the contentious future of water on the Monterey Peninsula — but also the role of government in undoing environmental inequity.

Related articles:

  • Monterey Herald: Coastal Commission to revisit Cal Am desal project Thursday
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Aquafornia news September 15, 2020 The Grass Valley Union

Protecting South Yuba River proves challenging amidst COVID-19

Every September for the last 22 years, the South Yuba River Citizens League has hosted a Yuba River Cleanup with the help of the California Coastal Commission. This year, the river’s need for some tender, loving care has only grown as the region reckons with more visitors, more single-use plastics and less accountability amidst the pandemic.

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Aquafornia news September 15, 2020 InsideClimate News

Changing patterns of ocean salt levels give scientists clues to extreme weather on land

New mapping of salt concentrations in the world’s oceans confirms what physics and climate models have long suggested: Global warming is intensifying Earth’s water cycle, speeding up the rate at which water evaporates in one area and falls as rain or snow somewhere else. That intensification has enormous implications because it worsens droughts and increases extreme rainstorms and flooding.

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Aquafornia news September 14, 2020 San Francisco Chronicle

Is climate change worsening California fires, or is poor forest management to blame? Yes

In recent years, nearly 150 million trees died around the state as their roots delved fruitlessly for water and a devastating bark beetle infestation took hold. Both the drought and the insect spread that came with it were exacerbated by changing climate conditions linked to humans burning fossil fuels, scientists concluded. Now those trees, like so much else in the American West, are burning as California contends with a reckoning more than 100 years in the making.

Related articles:

  • Associated Press: Fires raise fight over climate change before Trump’s visit
  • San Francisco Chronicle: ‘This is a climate damn emergency,’ California’s Gavin Newsom says
  • The Press Democrat: Heat, wildfires and red skies: The week climate change seized the national spotlight
  • Voice of America: Climate change making western wildfires in US worse
  • E&E News: Calif., a leader on climate, agonizes over not acting faster
  • E&E News: Wildfires force Biden and Trump to reckon with climate
  • Los Angeles Times: 150 million dead trees could fuel unprecedented firestorms in the Sierra Nevada
  • Tahoe Daily Tribune: Tree mortality on decline, but drought conditions continue
  • Tahoe Daily Tribune: Opinion: Climate change front and center at Tahoe
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Aquafornia news September 14, 2020 Western Water

The Colorado River is awash in data vital to its management, but making sense of it all is a challenge

Dizzying in its scope, detail and complexity, the scientific information on the Basin’s climate and hydrology has been largely scattered in hundreds of studies and reports. Some studies may conflict with others, or at least appear to. That’s problematic for a river that’s a lifeline for 40 million people and more than 4 million acres of irrigated farmland.

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Aquafornia news September 14, 2020 EurekAlert

News release: Trout don’t follow the weather forecast

While working at the United Water Conservation District, Michael Booth used 19 years of records from a designated fish trap on southern California’s Santa Clara River to identify potential environmental drivers that spur some fish to make the arduous trip to the Pacific Ocean. … He found that steelhead migration was triggered by the lengthening daylight of spring rather than factors like recent rains…

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Aquafornia news September 14, 2020 Monterey Herald

Opinion: Moving toward water supply security

The Monterey Peninsula is about to find out if a long-term water supply will become a reality on Thursday as California’s Coastal Commission is scheduled to hear the application for a permit to build the desalination source water wells. The Farm Bureau believes the permit is necessary to secure a reliable water supply for Peninsula residents and businesses.

Related article:

  • CalMatters: Opinion: Desal project on Monterey Peninsula would improve water supply, environment and economy
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Aquafornia news September 14, 2020 Circle of Blue

Monday Top of the Scroll: Western wildfires damage, contaminate drinking water systems

One of the most severe examples is the San Lorenzo Valley Water District, which serves parts of inland Santa Cruz County, in central California. More than 7 miles of an HDPE plastic water supply pipeline were destroyed in the CZU Lightning Complex Fire, according to Rick Rogers, the district manager.

Related articles:

  • E&E News: After the blazes: Poisoned water and ‘a flood on steroids’
  • Paso Robles Daily News: Caltrans contracting project for drainage in areas affected by Dolan Fire 
  • American Rivers: Blog: Fire and rivers in California
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Aquafornia news September 14, 2020 Bloomberg Law

White House environmental review rule survives legal test

The White House’s rewrite of National Environmental Policy Act rules is set take effect as planned this month, after a federal judge on Friday declined to freeze the measure. The decision is a victory for the Trump administration’s efforts to speed up approvals for pipelines, oil and gas wells, highways, and other projects.

Related article:

  • E&E News: Trump NEPA rules take effect after court denies freeze
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Aquafornia news September 14, 2020 Audubon

A disease outbreak in California has killed an estimated 40,000 birds

As wildfires burn across California, temperatures hit record highs, and communities cope with the COVID-19 crisis, biologist Caroline Brady is helping respond to a different disaster: the worst avian botulism outbreak that anyone can remember at the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex.

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Aquafornia news September 14, 2020 Las Vegas Sun

Why some in Nevada see Utah pipeline plan as ‘first salvo in coming water wars’

Lake Powell isn’t in Southern Nevada. Rather, it’s about four hours away by car in southern Utah. But some environmentalists say the water consumption of St. George, Utah, and neighboring communities could have a direct and deleterious impact on the Las Vegas water supply.

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Aquafornia news September 14, 2020 E&E News

Democrats press Warren Buffett to support dam removal

Top Democrats on Friday pressed billionaire Warren Buffett to intervene and support the country’s largest potential dam removal project.

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Aquafornia news September 11, 2020 U.S. Bureau of Reclamation

News release: Reclamation announces virtual open house and public comment period extension for Shasta Dam proposal

Reclamation announces a virtual open house website for the Shasta Lake Water Resources Investigation Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement. Website visitors will be able to learn more about the project, review summaries of Draft Supplemental EIS chapters, and submit comments.

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Aquafornia news September 11, 2020 KJZZ Radio

Colorado River flow now part of caddisfly battle in Bullhead City

The idea was to lower the flows while temperatures were still warm enough to dry out the caddis larvae. That required buy-in from local merchants and the Bureau of Reclamation, local tribes and others. They were able to do it, and on Aug. 27, the first of two flow reductions took place. When the river dropped, people pitched in for a day of river cleanup.

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Aquafornia news September 11, 2020 The New York Times

Friday Top of the Scroll: La Niña may worsen Southwest drought this winter

Mike Halpert, deputy director of the Climate Prediction Center, said that as a result of La Niña, Southern California, as well as most of Arizona and New Mexico, could “tilt toward dry” this winter. Southern California, which gets most of its rainfall from late fall to early spring, is already abnormally dry…

Related articles:

  • Associated Press: Q&A: La Nina may bring more Atlantic storms, western drought
  • CNN: La Niña has arrived. Here’s what it could mean for you
  • Golden Gate Weather: Blog: La Niña 2020 — No sure thing
  • Climate.gov: News release: La Nina develops during peak hurricane season
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Aquafornia news September 11, 2020 Forbes

Blog: Climate change may bring unexpected benefits to San Francisco Bay-Delta

The San Francisco Bay-Delta is literally threatened from all sides: rising sea levels from the ocean, disruptions to sediment supply from upstream, and within the Bay-Delta itself, development and other land use changes have left only a tiny fraction (5%) of marshland untouched. … A recent study by scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey used historical streamflow and sediment data to predict what will happen to the Bay-Delta under varying levels of climate change.

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Aquafornia news September 11, 2020 EnviroBites

If a forest burns in a fire, does it return to normal?

“When a forest burns in a wildfire, should we expect it to return as it was before?” Research scientist Jonathan Coop and his team pose this question. It addresses a critical conundrum in ecology: How do ecosystems recover from disturbance and why?

Related articles:

  • Bay Nature Magazine: Wildfire, like lightning, can strike twice
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Aquafornia news September 11, 2020 Maven's Notebook

Delta Independent Science Board: 10 years on

At the August meeting of the Delta Independent Science Board, the new members joined with the outgoing members for reflections and discussion to bring the new members up to speed on the Delta ISB’s ongoing work.

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Aquafornia news September 11, 2020 Bloomberg Law

Companies eager to ‘lock in’ Trump-era water rule exemptions

Coal miners, stone quarrying companies, and other businesses are rushing to lock down any exemptions to federal water jurisdiction for at least five years, under changes the Trump administration recently made to the nation’s water rule. … A decision that might in some instances have taken multiple site visits and nearly three years now can come as quickly as a day, the data show.

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Aquafornia news September 10, 2020 Napa Valley Register

Progress on St. Helena dam removal ends years of daily fines

The pending removal of the Upper York Creek Dam has put a stop to a daily $70 fine that’s been levied against the City of St. Helena for almost eight years. Thanks to rapid progress on the long-awaited project, which will improve fish passage and restore habitat along York Creek, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has suspended the $70 per day penalty the city has incurred since November 2012…

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Aquafornia news September 10, 2020 Courthouse News Service

Study of ocean salinity reveals amped-up global water cycle

There is something in the water on planet Earth. A study published Wednesday reveals climate change has amplified the water cycle, which explains the more frequent extreme weather patterns in recent years.

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Aquafornia news September 10, 2020 The New York Times

The climate connection to California’s wildfires

While California’s climate has always made the state prone to fires, the link between human-caused climate change and bigger fires is inextricable, said Park Williams, a bioclimatologist at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.

Related articles:

  • Associated Press: Think 2020′s disasters are wild? Experts see worse in future
  • The Weather Channel: California’s all-time record heat an ingredient in wildfire siege
  • Legal Planet: Blog: California’s burning. What’s the link to climate change?
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Aquafornia news September 10, 2020 Somach Simmons & Dunn

Blog: California Supreme Court holds public agencies may not categorically classify groundwater well permit approvals as ministerial

In Protecting Our Water and Environmental Resources v. County of Stanislaus, the Court held that the County may not categorically classify all groundwater well permit issuances as ministerial decisions. Such a classification exempts well permit issuances from environmental review.

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Aquafornia news September 10, 2020 Water Environment Federation

Blog: Water utilities commended for transformational programming

The Utility of the Future Today recognition program celebrates the achievements of water utilities that transform from a traditional wastewater treatment system to a resource recovery center and leader in the overall sustainability and resilience of the communities they serve.

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Aquafornia news September 10, 2020 Los Angeles Times

Firestorm devastates Butte County again as California burns

Less than two years after the most destructive fire in California history tore through Paradise, the same region was under siege from a second monster firestorm that quickly grew to more than 250,000 acres, sweeping through mountain hamlets and killing at least three people. … Across the state, 28 major wildfires have prompted more than 64,000 people to evacuate…

Related articles:

  • Sacramento Bee: Homes and towns destroyed in Northern California’s Bear Fire
  • San Francisco Chronicle: Explosive blaze kills three in Butte County, destroys 2,000 structures
  • CBS News Sacramento: California fire crews are stretched thin and competing for resources
  • SFGate.com: Butte County Sheriff’s Office: 3 dead, at least 12 missing in Bear Fire
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Aquafornia news September 10, 2020 The Desert Sun

Have an idea to fix the Salton Sea? The state wants your input this month

The California Natural Resources Agency announced it will be hosting a new round of public engagement sessions in September to get input to assist in the development of wildlife habitat restoration and dust suppression projects for the Salton Sea Management Program’s 10-year plan.

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Aquafornia news September 10, 2020 E&E News

Thursday Top of the Scroll: Forests: Lawmakers plead for federal help as Western fires rage

Sens. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said yesterday they secured a public hearing on legislation to ease some regulatory hurdles for forest management projects… The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will take up the bill, S. 4431, next week. The “Emergency Wildfire and Public Safety Act,” would also allow the Forest Service to declare emergencies in certain areas affected by wildfire, allowing for restoration with less-extensive environmental review.

Related articles:

  • Sacramento Bee: As fires rage, U.S. Forest Service closes California’s woods to public use for first time
  • Redding Record Searchlight: ‘You can’t manage it’: Agriculture undersecretary takes heat during North State visit
  • Red Bluff Daily News: Rep. Doug LaMalfa and Agriculture Undersecretary talk forest management 
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Aquafornia news September 10, 2020 SantaCruzLocal.org

Santa Cruz water quality at risk from wildfire damage

The most pressing risk is debris that could clog the San Lorenzo River near River Street and Highway 1 where water enters the city’s system, said Santa Cruz Water Director Rosemary Menard. The San Lorenzo River is the city’s largest water source. It represents about 45% of the water supply.

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Aquafornia news September 9, 2020 Morgan Hill Times

Valley Water relocates threatened steelhead for upcoming dam retrofit

Though they are not native to the Anderson Reservoir, the steelhead population is in decline, making the local watershed particularly important to preservation efforts.

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Aquafornia news September 9, 2020 SJV Water

Proposed $171 million Central Valley groundwater bank faces TCP contamination

Irvine Ranch Water District and Rosedale-Rio Bravo Water Storage District had just begun environmental review for their joint banking project this past April when TCP reared its head. … TCP (trichloropropane) is a carcinogenic leftover from a nematode pesticide made by Shell Oil and Dow Chemical that was liberally applied to Central Valley farmland from the 1950s through the 1980s.

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Aquafornia news September 9, 2020 Palo Alto Online

With Baylands under flood threat, Palo Alto explores projects to address sea level rise

If current predictions hold, the entire Palo Alto Baylands could be submerged by the middle of the century because of sea level rise, a destructive predicament that would threaten both the sensitive habitat and the critical infrastructure in the nature preserve. To prepare for rising tides, the city is moving ahead with the creation of a new Sea Level Adaptation Plan…

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Aquafornia news September 9, 2020 Public Policy Institute of California

Blog: Making the most of water for the environment

Restoring specific “functional flows” would better support fish migration and spawning, water quality, dry-season base flows, and physical conditions that support aquatic species. A panel of experts, moderated by PPIC senior fellow and study coauthor Jeff Mount, discussed how to put this approach into practice. We invite you to watch the event video.

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Aquafornia news September 9, 2020 E&E News

Report: Great Salt Lake shrinking more than a foot annually

Utah’s Great Salt Lake is shrinking every year, but experts are implementing measures to slow the water loss, a new report said.

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Aquafornia news September 9, 2020 The Sacramento Bee

Wednesday Top of the Scroll: ‘Ground zero’ for dead trees: How California mega-drought turned Creek Fire into inferno

By killing millions of trees in the Sierra National Forest, the historic drought that ended in 2017 left an incendiary supply of dry fuel that appears to have intensified the fire that’s ravaged more than 140,000 acres in the southern Sierra Nevada, wildfire scientists and forestry experts said.

Related articles:

  • Washington Post: Large, intense wildfire outbreak destroys town, closes forests, with California winds raising threat further
  • CalMatters: ‘We are in uncharted territory’: High winds spreading already-historic fires
  • San Jose Mercury News: California fires: Five reasons why this year is so bad
  • Sacramento Bee: Bear Fire rages in Northern California, with 20,000 evacuated. Oroville under warning
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Aquafornia news September 9, 2020 Red Bluff Daily News

Online portal offers information on harmful algal blooms throughout California

The results of targeted sampling for more than 80 lakes and rivers are summarized in an interactive map showing which sites were tested at each waterbody. The map indicates the specific tiered recreational health advisory level — “Caution,” “Warning” or “Danger” — based on cyanotoxin testing results and/or visual indicators confirming presence of a harmful algal bloom.

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Aquafornia news September 9, 2020 Oregon Public Broadcasting

Audio: Plan to remove 4 Klamath River dams may stall again

In 2010, tribes joined the company that owns the dams and other stakeholders in an agreement to remove the dams in 2020. The plan was later delayed to 2022, and now it may stall again because of a recent decision by federal regulators.

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Aquafornia news September 9, 2020 Bloomberg Law

Broad ‘fishnet’ PFAS testing worries industry, helps regulators

The test they want to use measures total organic fluorine amounts in water and can provide a broader picture of all per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in a sample instead of testing for one or a few substances at a time. By removing the need to test for individual PFAS, states may be able to speed up the process for regulating groups of the chemicals, some of which have been linked to cancer.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 The Modesto Bee

‘Until the Last Drop’ documentary explains California water wars

The water wars are far from over, a point made clear in a just-released feature-length documentary, “Until the Last Drop.” If you can block from your mind the old Folgers “good to the last drop” commercials, the film title will evoke a combination of dripping water with a fight to the last drop of blood.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 Arizona Republic

Arizona endorses GSC Farm LLC’s plan to sell Colorado River water to Queen Creek

Arizona’s top water regulator has endorsed a company’s proposal to take water from farmland near the Colorado River and sell it to the fast-growing Phoenix suburb of Queen Creek. The plan, which still would require federal approval, has generated a heated debate about whether transferring water away from the farming community of Cibola could harm the local economy, and whether the deal would open the gates for more companies to buy land near the river with the sole aim of selling off the water for profit.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 Associated Press

Tuesday Top of the Scroll: California sets record with 2M acres burned so far this year

Wildfires have burned more than 2 million acres in California this year, setting a state record even as crews battled dozens of growing blazes in sweltering temperatures Monday that strained the electrical grid and threatened power outages for millions. The most striking thing about the record is how early it was set, with the most dangerous part of the year still ahead…About 30 houses were destroyed in the remote hamlet of Big Creek, … [but] a school, church, library, historic general store and a major hydroelectric plant were spared…

Related articles:

  • Los Angeles Times: California’s biggest fire season could get much worse as powerful winds return Tuesday
  • Santa Rosa Press Democrat: New evidence shows rising temperatures accelerating frequency and intensity of Northern California wildfires
  • The Guardian: California fires burn record 2m acres
  • E&E News: Record heat, fires, planned blackouts sweep state
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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 Sonoma County Gazette

Opinion: Ways to get involved with protecting Sonoma County creeks

Creek Week (starting the fourth week of September), and California’s Coastal Cleanup Day all coincide in September to encourage public participation in keeping our water free of harmful pollutants, with a primary focus on removing trash from local waterways.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 U.S. Geological Survey

News release: Scientists collect water quality data prior to wastewater treatment plant upgrades

The Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District (Regional San) is currently completing major upgrades to its wastewater treatment plant. In anticipation of these upgrades, USGS scientists are gathering data to establish baselines for current nutrient levels and dynamics in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Delta).

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 Tahoe Daily Tribune

Different technologies help address Lake Tahoe clarity

Groups in the Tahoe Basin are using new technology to fight invasive species and decreasing lake clarity. Researchers at University of Nevada, Reno and Tahoe Regional Planning Agency have been testing a UV light equipped vessel to control aquatic invasive plants in the Tahoe Keys.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 The New York Times

Americans back tough limits on building in fire and flood zones

Americans support far more aggressive government regulation to fight the effects of climate change than elected officials have been willing to pursue so far, new research shows, including outright bans on building in flood- or fire-prone areas — a level of restrictiveness almost unheard-of in the United States…in California and elsewhere, officials continue to approve development in areas hit by fires.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 The Mendocino Voice

Fort Bragg’s water shortage means steep cuts, no watering of lawns; climate scientists say to expect more

Starting in mid-July, the flows in the Noyo River began dropping faster than in any other summer on record. The river flow is below 2015 low flows, when the entire state was in a drought emergency. John Smith, director of Fort Bragg Public Works, said staff had never before seen water levels in the Noyo drop so precipitously.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 YubaNet.com

Study: Climate change could deliver more sediment and pollution to the San Francisco Bay-Delta

Climate change could deliver more silt, sand and pollution to the San Francisco Bay-Delta, along with a mixed bag of other potential consequences and benefits, according to a new study in the AGU journal Water Resources Research, which publishes research articles and commentaries providing a broad understanding of the role of water in Earth’s natural systems.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 Siskiyou Daily News

Big Springs residents: Water trucking for illegal marijuana grows hasn’t stopped

At their regular meeting Tuesday, Sept. 1, the Siskiyou County Board of Supervisors discussed issues that Big Springs area residents are still facing regarding alleged privatized water sale for illegal marijuana grows. Despite an urgency ordinance prohibiting the trucking of water and a rally near one of the alleged extraction sites on Aug. 22, residents say they’re still noticing trucking going on.

Related article:

  • Siskiyou Daily News: Opinion: Unlimited water in Big Springs?
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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 Hakai Magazine

Coming home to the Klamath

Four aging dams on the Klamath River are coming down. Their completion between 1921 and 1964 brought hydroelectric power to Northern California. It also blocked hundreds of kilometers of fish habitat, causing Chinook salmon to effectively disappear from the upper river basin. But the removal of dams is no guarantee the fish will return, so a team of wildlife researchers hopes it can coax the fish to repopulate the river by exploiting a new discovery about salmon genetics.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 CBS San Francisco

Muddy Petaluma River dredged with hopes of reviving once-thriving waterway

For the first time in years, boats will soon be able to travel freely again down the Petaluma River. … Once a vibrant waterway, Petaluma River is now silted in, full of mud. Lt. Colonel John Cunningham says the river hasn’t had a full cleaning by the Army Corps of Engineers for nearly 20 years.

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Aquafornia news September 8, 2020 Bloomberg Law

Judge considers freezing ‘political’ environmental review rule

A federal judge took a no-nonsense approach Friday to a hearing on the White House’s rewrite of the National Environmental Policy Act, grilling conservation groups on how they’ll be harmed and chiding the Justice Department for glossing over the political motivations behind the rules.

Related articles:

  • E&E News: Judge questions motivation behind NEPA overhaul
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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 Associated Press

Judge says owner of Suisun Bay island broke law

The owner of a Suisun Bay island violated the federal Clean Water Act when he destroyed marshland by building a levee and dumping dredged material while building duck-hunting ponds, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. The ruling is the latest in a years-long battle between regulators and John Sweeney, who owns an island in Suisun Bay, a tidal channel and marsh area northeast of San Francisco.

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 Maven's Notebook

EcoRestore update: Five years in, program makes big gains on Delta habitat restoration

California EcoRestore is an initiative started in 2015 under the Brown Administration with the ambitious goal of advancing at least 30,000 acres of critical habitat restoration in the Delta and Suisun Marsh by 2020. … At the August meeting of the Central Valley Flood Protection Board, Bill Harrell, gave an update on the Eco Restore program and the progress that has been made over the past five years.

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 The Willits News

California Water Justice and Tribal Advocates announce week of action

The organizers of the Advocacy and Water Protection in Native California Speakers Series are hosting a new webinar series aimed at taking action against environmental racism and for water justice in California. Humboldt State University Native American Studies and Save California Salmon are organizing the “Mobilizing for Water Justice in California” Webinar Series on Sept. 14-18.

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 E&E News

Trump ‘anarchist’ order would hit cities’ enviro programs

President Trump’s memo that would stop the flow of federal dollars to “anarchist jurisdictions” could hamstring cash-strapped cities’ Superfund cleanups and other environmental programs.

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 SFGate.com

Cause of ‘unprecedented’ power failure that led to sewage dump into SF Bay still unknown

In the Aug. 14 outage, multiple redundant power sources failed at the plant in West Oakland, something that hasn’t happened since the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Major flooding at the pump station led sewage to flow from an outlet into the estuary more than nine hours later. The incident occurred amid hot weather when people like to swim in the estuary running between Oakland and Alameda,

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 KGO TV

Experts question impact of North Bay wildfires on endangered Coho salmon

As the North Bay continues to deal with thick smoke from still-smoldering wildfires, some experts are already beginning to wonder about this winter. They’re concerned about endangered salmon in the Russian River watershed. Ground zero is the Warm Springs Fish Hatchery just below Lake Sonoma, at the top of the Dry Creek Valley.

Related article:

  • FishBio: Blog: Help needed for Scotts Creek Coho in wake of fire
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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 California Natural Resources Agency

News release: California/Nevada Tahoe Science Advisory Council elevates efforts to protect and restore Lake Tahoe

Nevada and California joined forces last week at the 24th annual Lake Tahoe Summit to advance the states’ shared priorities to protect and restore Lake Tahoe. … There is a long history of collaboration between Nevada and California to restore and protect the spectacular natural treasure of Lake Tahoe and its surrounding environment. This spirit of collaboration was a pillar of the 24th annual Lake Tahoe Summit

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 American Chemical Society

News release: Regional variations in freshwater overconsumption

With an ever-increasing human population, water shortages already occurring in many areas are only expected to get worse. Now, researchers reporting in Environmental Science & Technology have estimated the freshwater supply and demand of about 11,000 water basins across the globe, determining that one-fourth of freshwater consumption exceeds regional capacities.

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 CalMatters

Opinion: New approach needed to protect health of California’s rivers

Dams, diversions, and land conversion have substantially altered California’s rivers and disrupted the processes that sustain ecosystem health. The result is a crisis for native fish and wildlife and the loss of many benefits we derive from river ecosystems.

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 Union Pacific

Blog: UP water train fights California wildfires

As wildfires roar across Northern California, a team of Union Pacific Engineering employees are on the front lines, battling hot spots along tracks, bridges and tunnels. Their equipment of choice? A water train consisting of two rail cars, each holding 12,500 gallons of water and a pumper. The crew has been out in force recently on UP’s Canyon Subdivision near Quincy, Calif.

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 San Francisco Chronicle

Friday Top of the Scroll: Boulder Creek water problems highlight growing California wildfire threat

Drivers entering town these days pass a sign with an urgent message: Do not drink or boil the tap water in your home. It may not be safe. This town in the heart of the Santa Cruz Mountains is the latest California community to grapple with water problems because of a wildfire.

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 Modesto Irrigation District

News release: Documentary explores the past, present and uncertain future of San Joaquin Valley rivers and water supplies

“Until the Last Drop,” a feature-length documentary filmed along the banks of the Merced, Tuolumne, Stanislaus and San Joaquin Rivers is scheduled for virtual release Labor Day weekend 2020. In this probing film, Modesto Irrigation District along with Final Cut Media examine the rivers that have transformed the San Joaquin Valley, helped create cities and nourish the world.

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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 CBS Sacramento

State officials warn boaters and swimmers of toxic algal blooms in California’s waterways

With thousands of Californians hitting the state’s waterways this Labor Day, officials are warning of algae blooms in the water that are harmful to humans and animals.

Related articles:

  • Santa Rosa Press Democrat: Algae report prompts notice at Santa Rosa lake, coastal lagoon
  • Klamath Falls Herald & News: It’s algae season on the Klamath River — again
  • The Press: Load study may offer insight to harmful algae blooms in Discovery Bay
  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Blog: CyAN app used for early detection of harmful algal blooms in communities across the nation
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Aquafornia news September 4, 2020 Bloomberg Law

EPA to pay for cleaning Mexican sewage mucking up U.S. beaches

EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said Wednesday the agency would pay for more water treatment south of the border, and work with San Diego to control trash coming into the United States from Mexico by way of the Tijuana River. Wheeler made the announcement during a visit to Southern California, a region long plagued by sewage, water, trash, and other contaminants flowing from Mexico.

Related articles:

  • Associated Press: Work starts to stop sewage flows into California from Mexico
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