The Klamath, Trinity, Eel, Russian
and Smith rivers are the major northern streams that drain this
sparsely populated, forested coastal area that stretches from San
Francisco to the Oregon border. These rivers and their
tributaries flow west to the Pacific Ocean and account for about
40 percent of the state’s total runoff.
A wildfire in far northern California, near the border with
Oregon, grew from ignition on Friday afternoon to become the
state’s biggest fire so far this year, at nearly 52,500 acres
by Sunday evening. The latest: At least two people were found
dead in a car in a residential driveway on Sunday morning in
the town of Klamath River, the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office
wrote on Facebook on Monday. … The big
picture: The McKinney Fire is affecting an area
that is experiencing a drought, heat wave and
dangerous weather conditions with dry thunderstorms Sunday and
Monday. These storms will spark lightning strikes but little
rain.
Land use changes in watersheds often lead to ecological
degradation, but with degradation comes great opportunity for
restoration. With the release of a new recovery plan,
California Trout and our partners are actively pursuing
restoration opportunities in the Elk River watershed. …
Once a complex tapestry of forest, wetland, and aquatic
ecosystems, the watershed has since been transformed into a
patchwork of working landscapes providing timber resources,
agricultural and grazing lands, and homes to many residents.
North Coast conservation groups are offering renewed criticism
of Pacific Gas & Electric this week after the utility argued
against a request from the National Marine Fisheries Service
(NMFS) aimed at protecting threatened fish in the Eel River.
Three species of fish in the Eel — coho salmon, California
Coastal Chinook salmon and Northern California steelhead — are
listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
Their populations have been impacted by PG&E’s Potter
Valley Project, a hydroelectric facility that diverts water
from the Eel to the Russian River.
There have been two developments in the ongoing saga of the
Potter Valley hydropower project this week. The 20-year license
has expired, but PG&E still owns and operates the project
on an annual license. On Monday, PG&E submitted a rough
schedule to surrender the license to the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission (FERC). In a separate filing, PG&E
argued that it should be allowed to continue operating the
project under the biological protections that were attached to
the license when it was issued in 2002.
Between talk of a widely reviled Coal Train and continued
uncertainty over Pacific Gas & Electric’s Potter Valley
hydroelectric plant, the future of the Eel River has been a
source of profound anxiety over the past year. But there’s some
good news with the announcement that 5,620 acres of remote
wilderness along 11 miles of the river between Lake Pillsbury
and the Potter Valley Project are now permanently under a
conservation easement held by the Mendocino Land Trust.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW),
Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) and State Water Resource
Board (SWRCB) announced in a press release on July 1 that it
would be collectively authorizing enforcement teams for the
2022 cannabis growing season. … This effort is funded by
Proposition 64 which enables these government agencies to focus
on protecting “priority watersheds and areas with sensitive
habitat and/or threatened or endangered species.” … The water
streams of California, and the wildlife that depends on them,
suffer when illegal cannabis grow operations divert
water.
California’s largest lumber company is closing public access to
its vast holdings of forestland in the state, citing wildfire
concerns. Sierra Pacific Industries last week said concerns
over extreme drought conditions and increasing wildfire risks
are prompting the company to close its forests to public access
starting July 1. The closures could last through fall 2022.
… California is currently under drought emergency
orders, as the state recently saw its driest January, February
and March on record in 100 years, according to state officials.
Three cannabis cultivators in Humboldt County are facing a
$209,687 fine in connection with sediment discharged into
tributaries of the Mad River that posed a risk to water quality
and aquatic life, according to a formal complaint signed last
week by staff of the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control
Board. Szagora LLC, Toshko Toshkoff and Rudy Chacon (the
“cultivators”) commercially cultivated cannabis on a 100-acre
property along the Humboldt-Trinity County line between the
towns of Dinsmore and Mad River.
California is chock full of rivers and creeks, yet the state’s network of stream gauges has significant gaps that limit real-time tracking of how much water is flowing downstream, information that is vital for flood protection, forecasting water supplies and knowing what the future might bring.
That network of stream gauges got a big boost Sept. 30 with the signing of SB 19. Authored by Sen. Bill Dodd (D-Napa), the law requires the state to develop a stream gauge deployment plan, focusing on reactivating existing gauges that have been offline for lack of funding and other reasons. Nearly half of California’s stream gauges are dormant.
The Eel River flows from the
Mendocino National Forest to the coast a few miles south of
Eureka, traversing a topographically diverse
area of mountains, canyons and redwood forests in Northern
California. Including its tributaries, it
drains more than 3,500 square miles and is the state’s third
largest watershed.
For over a century, the Klamath River Basin along the Oregon and
California border has faced complex water management disputes. As
relayed in this 2012, 60-minute public television documentary
narrated by actress Frances Fisher, the water interests range
from the Tribes near the river, to energy producer PacifiCorp,
farmers, municipalities, commercial fishermen, environmentalists
– all bearing legitimate arguments for how to manage the water.
After years of fighting, a groundbreaking compromise may soon
settle the battles with two epic agreements that hold the promise
of peace and fish for the watershed. View an excerpt from the
documentary here.
This 25-minute documentary-style DVD, developed in partnership
with the California Department of Water Resources, provides an
excellent overview of climate change and how it is already
affecting California. The DVD also explains what scientists
anticipate in the future related to sea level rise and
precipitation/runoff changes and explores the efforts that are
underway to plan and adapt to climate.
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.
