California would not exist as it does today were it not for the
extensive system of levees, weirs and flood bypasses that have
been built through the years, particularly in the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Delta.
A single Cosumnes River levee sustained $1.5 million in damage
after recent winter storms tore out a hole the size of a
football field. But the federal government’s emergency
management has not yet agreed to give local officials the money
to fix that embankment. The agency has refused to fund this
stretch of the river for years, saying the barriers do not meet
the criteria for intervention because they were not built to
meet the agency’s standards. It regards them as “levee-like”
structures, not levees. The policy has had lasting
repercussions in this corner of south Sacramento County, where
certain parts of flood infrastructure stay broken for years. In
2017, for instance, storms battered levees along a 15-mile
stretch of the Cosumnes. Local officials asked the Federal
Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, for help fixing 16 pieces
of infrastructure damaged during the floods.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Sacramento District awarded a
$27.575 million construction contract on January 20, 2023, to
Maloney Odin Joint Venture of Novato, for more than 2.6 miles
of levee improvements at five locations along the Sacramento
River East Levee between the I Street Bridge and just south of
the town of Freeport. Work is scheduled to begin this spring
and is expected to be complete in December 2023. USACE is
planning to host an informational meeting in March to discuss
what this construction work will look like, including trail
access, haul routes, and staging areas. Details for this
meeting are still being finalized and will be posted
to www.sacleveeupgrades.com prior to the
meeting.
What’s worse? Horrifying killer storms or slow death by
drought? California’s climate can be extreme — drought or
deluge. Both are deadly, each exacerbating damage caused by the
other. Fortunately, some people are doing the necessary,
innovative and difficult work to combat drought and deluge at
the same time. Infuriatingly, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s budget
proposal abandons some of the most important flood-control,
drought-fighting measures taking place in our state. He removed
a $40 million allocation approved last year for floodplain
restoration — work designed to reduce lethal flooding, store
water underground, remove carbon from the atmosphere and create
wildlife habitat. This comes on top of a decision two years ago
to remove $60 million for other San Joaquin Valley floodplain
projects. -Written by Adam Gray, formerly
representing Merced County and part of Stanislaus County
in the California Assembly.
Multiple flood protection projects in California are on hold
after Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed cutting their funding to help
cover a $22.5 billion budget deficit — a decision disappointing
environmental advocates as weeks of powerful storms have caused
widespread flooding that damaged homes and washed away roads.
Newsom’s budget proposal, released last week, cuts $40 million
that had been pledged for floodplain restoration projects along
rivers in the San Joaquin Valley, an area at high risk of
catastrophic flooding. Those projects would allow for rivers to
flood in strategic places during winter storms or the spring
Sierra Nevada snowmelt, reducing the risks for populated areas
downstream while also benefiting environmental ecosystems.
As damaging as it was for more than 32 trillion gallons of rain
and snow to fall on California since Christmas, a
worst-case global warming scenario could juice up
similar future downpours by one-third by the middle of this
century, a new study says. The strongest of California’s
storms from “atmospheric rivers,” long and wide plumes of
moisture that form over an ocean and flow through the sky over
land, would probably get an overall 34% increase in total
precipitation, or another 11 trillion gallons more than just
fell.
The storms that have been battering California offer a glimpse
of the catastrophic floods that scientists warn will come in
the future and that the state is unprepared to endure. Giant
floods like those that inundated the Central Valley in 1861 and
1862 are part of California’s natural cycle, but the latest
science shows that the coming megafloods, intensified by
climate change, will be much bigger and more destructive than
anything the state or the country has ever seen. A new state
flood protection plan for the Central Valley presents a stark
picture of the dangers. It says catastrophic flooding would
threaten millions of Californians, putting many areas
underwater and causing death and destruction on an
unprecedented scale. The damage could total as much as $1
trillion.
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Jan. 10 unveiled his proposed budget for
the next fiscal year … [T]he governor has proposed
timely new funding for flood risk reduction and protection, as
well as several other important water management issues.
Specifically, the governor’s proposed budget calls for funding
in the following categories. Urban Flood Risk Reduction —
$135.5 million over two years to support local agencies working
to reduce urban flood risk. Delta Levee — $40.6 million
for ongoing Delta projects that reduce risk of levee failure
and flooding, provide habitat benefits, and reduce the risk of
saltwater intrusion contaminating water supplies. Central
Valley Flood Protection — $25 million to support projects that
will reduce the risk of flooding for Central Valley communities
while contributing to ecosystem restoration and agricultural
sustainability.
A powerful winter storm unleashed heavy rain and
strong winds across Northern California on Wednesday,
triggering evacuations and power outages, and heightening fears
of widespread flooding and debris flows. … Wednesday’s
storm is the third atmospheric river that’s hit California in
the last two weeks. The successive storms have brought a deluge
of water to the drought-stricken state, prompting Gov. Newsom
to declare a state of emergency to “support response and
recovery efforts.” … The series of atmospheric rivers that
started toward the end of December was somewhat surprising
after one of California’s driest years on record, which left
reservoirs drained and soils parched.
A successive series of powerful atmospheric river storms poses
a growing threat to California as the ground becomes more
saturated, river levels rise and heavy winds threaten the power
infrastructure. This week’s storms are expected to dump intense
levels of rain in a fairly short period of time. The greatest
potential for disaster is in Northern California, which has
already been battered by several destructive storms — including
one this weekend that caused a deadly levee breach. But each
new storm, including one set to arrive Wednesday, adds new
pressure.
Land and waterway managers labored
hard over the course of a century to control California’s unruly
rivers by building dams and levees to slow and contain their
water. Now, farmers, environmentalists and agencies are undoing
some of that work as part of an accelerating campaign to restore
the state’s major floodplains.
This tour guided participants on a virtual journey deep into California’s most crucial water and ecological resource – the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The 720,000-acre network of islands and canals support the state’s two major water systems – the State Water Project and the Central Valley Project. The Delta and the connecting San Francisco Bay form the largest freshwater tidal estuary of its kind on the West coast.
Many of California’s watersheds are
notoriously flashy – swerving from below-average flows to jarring
flood conditions in quick order. The state needs all the water it
can get from storms, but current flood management guidelines are
strict and unyielding, requiring reservoirs to dump water each
winter to make space for flood flows that may not come.
However, new tools and operating methods are emerging that could
lead the way to a redefined system that improves both water
supply and flood protection capabilities.
Farmers in the Central Valley are broiling about California’s plan to increase flows in the Sacramento and San Joaquin river systems to help struggling salmon runs avoid extinction. But in one corner of the fertile breadbasket, River Garden Farms is taking part in some extraordinary efforts to provide the embattled fish with refuge from predators and enough food to eat.
And while there is no direct benefit to one farm’s voluntary actions, the belief is what’s good for the fish is good for the farmers.
Along the banks of the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in Oakley, about 50 miles southwest
of Sacramento, is a park that harkens back to the days when the
Delta lured Native Americans, Spanish explorers, French fur
trappers, and later farmers to its abundant wildlife and rich
soil.
That historical Delta was an enormous marsh linked to the two
freshwater rivers entering from the north and south, and tidal
flows coming from the San Francisco Bay. After the Gold Rush,
settlers began building levees and farms, changing the landscape
and altering the habitat.
15-minute DVD that graphically portrays the potential disaster
should a major earthquake hit the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
“Delta Warning” depicts what would happen in the event of an
earthquake registering 6.5 on the Richter scale: 30 levee breaks,
16 flooded islands and a 300 billion gallon intrusion of salt
water from the Bay – the “big gulp” – which would shut down the
State Water Project and Central Valley Project pumping plants.
The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to
Flood Management explains the physical flood control system,
including levees; discusses previous flood events (including the
1997 flooding); explores issues of floodplain management and
development; provides an overview of flood forecasting; and
outlines ongoing flood control projects.
The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the Delta explores the competing
uses and demands on California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Included in the guide are sections on the history of the Delta,
its role in the state’s water system, and its many complex issues
with sections on water quality, levees, salinity and agricultural
drainage, fish and wildlife, and water distribution.
A new look for our most popular product! And it’s the perfect
gift for the water wonk in your life.
Our 24×36 inch California Water Map is widely known for being the
definitive poster that shows the integral role water plays in the
state. On this updated version, it is easier to see California’s
natural waterways and man-made reservoirs and aqueducts
– including federally, state and locally funded
projects – the wild and scenic rivers system, and
natural lakes. The map features beautiful photos of
California’s natural environment, rivers, water projects,
wildlife, and urban and agricultural uses and the
text focuses on key issues: water supply, water use, water
projects, the Delta, wild and scenic rivers and the Colorado
River.
With the dual threats of obsolete levees and anticipated rising sea levels,
floodplains—low
areas adjacent to waterways that flood during wet years—are
increasingly at the forefront of many public policy and water
issues in California.
Adding to the challenges, many floodplains have been heavily
developed and are home to major cities such as Sacramento. Large
parts of California’s valleys are historic floodplains as well.
Roughly 1,115 miles of levees protect farms, cities, schools and
people in and around the Sacramento-San Joaquin
Delta, a crucial conduit for California’s overall water
supply. But the Delta’s levees are vulnerable to failure due to
floods, earthquakes and rising sea levels brought about by
climate change. A widespread failure could imperil the state’s
water supply.
California would not exist as it does today were it not for the
extensive system of levees, weirs and flood bypasses that have
been built through the years, particularly in the Sacramento-San Joaquin
Delta.
These levees have been in place dating back to 1850, when
California first joined the union.
This issue of Western Water looks at the BDCP and the
Coalition to Support Delta Projects, issues that are aimed at
improving the health and safety of the Delta while solidifying
California’s long-term water supply reliability.
This printed issue of Western Water examines the issues
associated with the State Water Board’s proposed revision of the
water quality Bay-Delta Plan, most notably the question of
whether additional flows are needed for the system, and how they
might be provided.
This printed issue of Western Water discusses several
flood-related issues, including the proposed Central Valley Flood
Protection Plan, the FEMA remapping process and the dispute
between the state and the Corps regarding the levee vegetation
policy.
Levees are one of those pieces of engineering that are never
really appreciated until they fail. California would not exist as
it does today were it not for the extensive system of levees,
weirs and flood bypasses that have been built through the years.
This printed copy of Western Water examines the Delta through the
many ongoing activities focusing on it, most notably the Delta
Vision process. Many hours of testimony, research, legal
proceedings, public hearings and discussion have occurred and
will continue as the state seeks the ultimate solution to the
problems tied to the Delta.
This printed copy of Western Water examines climate change –
what’s known about it, the remaining uncertainty and what steps
water agencies are talking to prepare for its impact. Much of the
information comes from the October 2007 California Climate Change
and Water Adaptation Summit sponsored by the Water Education
Foundation and DWR and the November 2007 California Water Policy
Conference sponsored by Public Officials for Water and
Environmental Reform.
This issue of Western Water examines the extent to
which California faces a disaster equal to or greater than the
New Orleans floods and the steps being taken to recognize and
address the shortcomings of the flood control system in the
Central Valley and the Delta, which is of critical importance
because of its role in providing water to 22 million people.
Complicating matters are the state’s skyrocketing pace of growth
coupled with an inherently difficult process of obtaining secure,
long-term funds for levee repairs and continued maintenance.
This issue of Western Water analyzes northern California’s
extensive flood control system – it’ history, current concerns,
the Paterno decision and how experts are re-thinking the concept
of flood management.
