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Topic: Sacramento River

Overview June 25, 2014

Sacramento River

The Sacramento River is California’s largest river, providing 35 percent of the state’s developed water supply. The river helps support the valley’s millions of acres of irrigated agriculture and is home to wildlife and a range of aquatic species, including rearing habitat for 70 percent of all salmon caught off the California coast.

Once called “the Nile of the West,” the Sacramento River drains the inland slopes of the Klamath Mountains, the Cascade Range, the Coast Ranges and the western slopes of the northern Sierra Nevada. The river stretches some 384 miles from its headwaters near Mount Shasta to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

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Aquafornia news May 30, 2023 CBS - Sacramento

Plan underway to raise Folsom Dam to store more water in the lake

There’s now a plan underway to store more water in [Folsom Reservoir], and that involves raising Folsom Dam. It was a Memorial Day sight not seen in years. Folsom Lake is currently at 116% of its historical average. … Now, efforts are underway to help store more of this water during wet years. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is working to raise Folsom Dam by three and a half feet. The plan also requires raising eight earthen dikes that surround the lake’s perimeter. Work has already been completed on one of the dikes, and this year, construction is beginning along the western shoreline. The project’s primary goal is to increase the Sacramento region’s flood protection, but it will also allow Folsom Lake to store an extra 42,000 acre-feet of water.

Related articles: 

  • Fox 26 – Fresno: Millerton Lake can drain, fill six times over with registered snowpack, officials say
  • Marysville Appeal-Democrat: Oroville, Bullards Bar continue water releases
  • Active NorCal: Shasta Dam Sits at the Center of California’s Water Wars. So Will They Raise It?
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Aquafornia news May 25, 2023 KRCR - Redding

New salmon restoration project in Redding creates hope for the endangered fish

A new salmon habitat has been created on the Sacramento River in Redding thanks to an improvement act providing millions and partnerships between state, local, and tribal partners. The Kapusta Open Space Side Channel Project was built on the Sacramento River near the Kapusta Open Space to protect the endangered chinook salmon. Wednesday representatives from all over came to celebrate. The channel will provide a year-round spawning habitat for the fish where they are protected from prey. The channel is about a half-mile long and was excavated this winter and completed this spring. This is just the first of five projects Chico State Enterprise has received $27 million through the Central Valley Project Improvement Act to create.

Related article: 

  • NOAA Fisheries Blog: Saving Central California Coast Coho - Celebrating People and Partnerships Behind Recovery
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Aquafornia news May 24, 2023 California Fisheries Blog

Blog: Yuba River – plan for new fish facilities at Daguerre Point Dam

On May 16, 2023, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, National Marine Fisheries Service, and Yuba Water Agency announced a plan to design and build a fish bypass at Daguerre Point Dam on the lower Yuba River (see Figure below). At present, the dam has fish ladders on both ends of the dam that don’t work well.  The plan’s conceptual design is for a bypass channel that would allow fish to circumvent the existing dam; the plan would retain the dam.  The plan would reconfigure the diversion works at the dam’s south end and add effective fish screens to the agricultural diversion infrastructure at both ends of the dam. Essentially, the bypass would operate as a long, high-capacity fish ladder that would also allow passage of sturgeon and lamprey, which cannot use the existing fish ladders.  

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Aquafornia news May 19, 2023 Daily Kos

Blog: Groups, Tribes left out of Yuba River fish passage plan as salmon-killing water projects forge ahead

In a widely-broadcasted press conference held on the banks of the lower Yuba River yesterday, Governor Gavin Newsom, the Yuba Water Agency, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) announced a controversial plan to build a fish passage canal around Daguerre Point Dam and begin a reintroduction trap-and- haul effort around New Bullards Bar Dam. Shockingly, no representatives of fishing groups, environmental groups and Tribes were invited to be part of the negotiations for the restoration effort nor invited to the press conference by a state government that has constantly gushed about “inclusion” and “diversity” but has done the very opposite in practice.

Related article: 

  • Northern California Water Association: Partnering to restore the Yuba River for native fish and water supply
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Aquafornia news May 19, 2023 WESTERN WATER-As Climate Change Erodes Western Snowpacks, One Watershed Tries A 'Supershed Approach' To Shield Its Water Supply ABC 10 - Sacramento

Proposed reservoir could help Folsom Lake water storage

No matter if it’s a dry year or wet year, there are continued pleas for more water storage. Now, an American River Basin study is showing how a strategically placed high Sierra reservoir might be part of the water solution. The concern to capture Sierra runoff is seeing increased interest as California experiences even bigger climate whiplash years - going from droughts to floods. The big snowpack in the Sierra this year stands out as an anomaly with climate models forecasting more rain than snow falling in the lower mountains by the end of the century. The other concern is the earlier runoff and having to store and manage reservoir water over a longer period of time through the dry summer months. To help ease that tension, a new reservoir is being considered near Alder Creek in the Sierra. 

Related articles: 

  • Western Water Rewind: As climate change erodes Western snowpacks, one watershed tries a ’supershed’ approach to sheild its water supply
  • Santa Maria Sun: Reservoir project for Cuyama vineyard falls through
  • Record Searchlight: With a fuller Lake Shasta, more water seeping from front of Shasta Dam
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Aquafornia news May 18, 2023 Los Angeles Times

Thursday Top of the Scroll: Newsom touts $60-million plan for ‘fishway’ along Yuba River; critics say it falls short

Citing the need to boost survival rates for imperiled salmon and sturgeon along the heavily dammed Yuba River, state, local and federal officials have announced a $60-million plan to build a channel that will allow fish to swim easily around a dam that has impeded their passage for more than a century. … Already, some environmentalists and fishing advocates have blasted the Yuba River plan, saying it was the result of closed-door haggling between government agencies and doesn’t do enough to protect threatened species. Some say that a better solution would be removal of the dam.

Related articles: 

  • Yuba Net: Mixed Reactions to the Closed-Door Yuba River Negotiations
  • NBC – Bay Area: California Pledges to Build Channel for Threatened Fish to Bypass Gold Rush-Era Dam
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Aquafornia news May 17, 2023 Regional San

News release: Regional San’s monumental wastewater treatment plant expansion project delivered on schedule, under budget

The Sacramento region can expect to see big changes related to how wastewater is treated and reused with the completion of Regional San’s $1.7 billion, decade-long expansion. Named the EchoWater Project, the immense upgrade was completed in spring 2023—on schedule and under budget. The result is a safe and reliable supply of treated water for discharge to the Sacramento River, which will also be used for recycled water purposes—like irrigating local agriculture and supporting habitat conservation land. The expanded tertiary treatment facility is now the second largest treatment plant of its kind in the nation, and the expansion project was among the largest public works projects in the Sacramento region’s history. Regional San treats an average of 135 million gallons of wastewater each day from 1.6 million people throughout Sacramento County and West Sacramento.

Related articles: 

  • Imperial Valley Press: Preliminary engineering report to be done for New River wastewater treatment plant
  • Manteca Bulletin: Better treatment for what is flushed down Bay Area toilets can help ease California’s perennial water crisis
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Aquafornia news May 17, 2023 Plumas News

Opinion: Asphalt plant threatens Feather River, communities

According to a public notice published May 10th, 2023, Hat Creek Construction Company, contractor for Caltrans, is planning to construct a “temporary” asphalt plant directly adjacent to the Feather River in Delleker, 2000 feet south (and upwind) of the Delleker residential area, and only 500 feet from homes in the Iron Horse community across the river. The operation would run from April to November, from 6am to 6pm, up to 24 hours/ day for 3 years (but probably longer) mainly to supply Caltrans with asphalt for its Highway 70 repaving project. The project would generate at least 150 round trip truck trips per day, all crossing the railroad at an uncontrolled crossing, risking accidents and derailments, including possible oil spills directly into to the river. 
-Written by Feather River Action.

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Aquafornia news May 17, 2023 Courthouse News Service

California touts $60 million plan to revive Yuba River for salmon

California’s Yuba River, a vital breeding ground for salmon and other fish, could enjoy a new chapter as an expanded habitat under a new $60 million federal and state replenishment project.  Governor Gavin Newsom joined several state and federal leaders at Daguerre Point Dam in Marysville, to announce the new plan to remove obstacles and expand vital fish habitats in the river. Chuck Bonham, director of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, said at a briefing in front of the dam that the structure has not evolved since 1910, and is currently a complete barrier to sturgeon and lamprey that need more miles of habitat.

Related articles: 

  • San Francisco Chronicle: California to invest $60 million to move threatened salmon to cooler waters
  • Fox 40 – Sacramento: Yuba River project to allow salmon, other endangered fish to swim closer to the Sierra Nevada
  • Office of Gov. Gavin Newsom: Governor Newsom Announces Agreement to Reopen Yuba River to Salmon and Launch River Restoration
  • KCRW – Los Angeles: Bring the trout home - Will steelhead return to Malibu Creek?
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Aquafornia news May 15, 2023 Record Searchlight

Why Shasta Lake is nearly full but Trinity Dam’s water level is so low

While Lake Shasta is brimming with water, Trinity Lake is less than half full. There are several reasons why that happened this year, according to the Bureau of Reclamation, and why the situation at Trinity Dam may not be as dire as it sounds. Winter rainstorms filled Lake Shasta to 98% of its capacity, 116% of its historic average for this time of year, according to the California Department of Water Resources. The water level at the dam is lapping a little more than three feet from the top, Bureau of Reclamation Area Manager Donald Bader said.

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Aquafornia news May 9, 2023 San Bernardino Sun

Opinion: Southern California’s historic rivers offer wildlife habitat, recreation

The rivers in Southern California are an enigma, and by some observer’s standards, their meager, seasonal flows wouldn’t even qualify as a “real river.” But few places in the world have captured, managed, channeled, and fought over their water resources with more necessity and ingenuity than the cities of Southern California. Southern California rivers are unique for several reasons; they are short by normal standards, their flows are comparatively low, their origins can reach lofty alpine elevations over 9,000 feet, and the area they collect their water from, or “watershed,” is small in comparison to other major rivers. As an example, the Sacramento River in Northern California is four times longer and has a watershed 10 times larger than the Santa Ana River, which is the largest river in Southern California.
-Written by freelance writer Mark Landis.

Related article: 

  • The Revelator: Making Shift Happen - Momentum Grows for New Thinking About River Restoration 
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Aquafornia news May 5, 2023 Associated Press

River rafters say big California snowmelt means epic season

Triple Threat. Deadman’s Drop. Satan’s Cesspool. After years of drought, the rapids along California’s American River are truly living up to their names. As a historic snowpack starts to melt, the spring runoff is fueling conditions for some of the best whitewater in years on the American River and its forks, which course through the Sierra Nevada northeast of Sacramento. 

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Aquafornia news May 4, 2023 JDSupra

Blog: That dam case (again) – Third district upholds Oroville hydropower facilities relicensing EIR against numerous CEQA challenges

On April 7, 2023, the Third District Court of Appeal filed a lengthy published opinion – the latest installment in one of the longer ongoing CEQA battles in recent memory – affirming a judgment finding an EIR for the Federal relicensing of Oroville Dam and related hydropower facilities legally adequate.  County of Butte and County of Plumas, et al v. Dept. of Water Resources  (2023) ___ Cal.App.5th ___. … This case’s remarkably extensive litigation history has resulted in no fewer than four published decisions, three from the Third District and one from the California Supreme Court (aka “SCOCA”).  (Of the three Third District opinions, only this case (Butte IV) is good authority, the other two having been abrogated by SCOCA’s grants of review.)

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Aquafornia news May 4, 2023 Los Angeles Times

Seeking to save salmon, tribe signs pact with California

A California tribe has signed agreements with state and federal agencies to work together on efforts to return endangered Chinook salmon to their traditional spawning areas upstream of Shasta Dam, a deal that could advance the long-standing goal of tribal leaders to reintroduce fish that were transplanted from California to New Zealand more than a century ago and still thrive there. Members of the Winnemem Wintu Tribe have long sought to restore a wild salmon population in the McCloud River north of Redding, where their ancestors once lived. The agreements that were signed this week for the first time formally recognize the tribe as a partner participating in efforts to save the endangered winter-run Chinook salmon.

Related articles: 

  • Daily Kos: Winnemem Wintu and state and federal partners join to return endangered salmon to historic habitat
  • NOAA Fisheries news release: Central California Coast Coho Salmon Need Restored Habitat to Improve Resilience to Climate Change
  • NOAA Fisheries news release: South-Central California Coast Steelhead Maintain Threatened Listing Status
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  • View Original Article
Aquafornia news May 3, 2023 CBS - San Francisco

Historic partnership penned to help save endangered salmon

Over the past year we’ve been showing you California’s effort to save the winter run chinook salmon – a fish that has almost been lost to dammed rivers and warming waters. It’s part of a growing partnership between state and federal wildlife agencies – and a small California tribe that’s been fighting to save those fish for years, and bring them back home. On Monday, a historic pact was signed to expand on those efforts … For Sisk and the Winnemem Tribe this day would have seemed improbable, or impossible, just a few years ago. A tiny California tribe without federal recognition, signing a formal agreement with state and federal partners. When the moment arrived to actually sign the documents, the tribe’s spiritual leader couldn’t help but acknowledge generations of mistrust.

Related articles: 

  • Northern California Water Association: Ricelands Salmon Project Update
  • Record Searchlight: California, federal agencies and Native tribe sign agreement
  • KPCW – Park City, Utah: Healing the Eel River
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Aquafornia news May 2, 2023 CA Department of Fish and Wildlife

News release: Tribe, state and federal partners join to return endangered salmon to historic habitat

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife, NOAA Fisheries and the Winnemem Wintu Tribe signed agreements to restore Chinook salmon to the mountains north of Redding, California, on May 1, 2023. The agreements support a joint effort to return Chinook salmon to their original spawning areas in cold mountain rivers now blocked by Shasta Reservoir in northern California. The goal is ecological and cultural restoration which will one day renew fishing opportunities for the tribe that depended on the once-plentiful salmon for food and much more. The tribe signed a co-management agreement with CDFW and a co-stewardship agreement with NOAA Fisheries, reflecting the way the two agencies describe accords with tribes. This three-way collaboration is a historic achievement that advances our common goals.

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Aquafornia news April 28, 2023 CBS Sacramento

Lake Oroville at 91% capacity, DWR increases water releases

The heavy snow melt has triggered more water releases from Lake Oroville this week. The first release through the Spillway in four years happened in March with 15,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) were released. The California Department of Water Resources upped this amount this week. On Wednesday, 18,000 cfs were released — and 20,000 cfs on Thursday…. As of Thursday, Lake Oroville was at 91% capacity….The DWR said despite the increase, the Sacramento River will remain at its normal conditions, so there is no concern for flooding.

Related article:

  • KRNV – Reno: Snowpack, reservoirs contain enough water to supply Reno-Sparks area for up to 3 years
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Aquafornia news April 27, 2023 KCRA - Sacramento

Here’s where Northern California reservoir levels stand

Snowmelt season is well underway, and as water flows down the west slope of the Sierra, some of it is destined to end up in Northern California’s reservoirs. Here’s an update on water storage around the region. … Lake Shasta is currently at 96% of capacity. At the start of April, the reservoir was at 83% of capacity. As of Wednesday afternoon, inflow from runoff is estimated to be around 12,000 cfs. … Lake Oroville is also nearing capacity. On April 1, storage was at 82%. As of Wednesday, storage is up to 90% with 19,000 cfs of runoff inflow. Water is being released at about 15,000 cfs to maintain space in the lake.

Related articles: 

  • Patch – Petaluma: Drought Update From The City Of Petaluma - What To Know
  • ABC News: This year’s 100% water allocation in California does not mean the water crisis is over, experts say
  • Foothills Sun-Gazette: Feds top off water allocations for Central Valley Project
  • Ag Alert: Two key projects to give full water supplies to farms
  • Mercury News: Peak snowpack - PG&E measures 211 inches of snow in final Lassen Peak survey
  • Read more
  • View Original Article
Aquafornia news April 26, 2023 NOAA Fisheries

News release: Sacramento River pulse flow expected to increase survival of juvenile salmon traveling to the ocean

Researchers from NOAA Fisheries and University of California Santa Cruz will tag several groups of juvenile salmon in the Sacramento River system. The tags will help us measure the benefits from the river’s first “pulse flow.” A pulse flow is a rapid increase and decrease in dam released water designed to resemble natural spring runoff. The researchers want to know if the pulse flow increases the survival of juvenile salmon and improves their chances of returning to the river as an adult to spawn. They plan on measuring this by implanting tags into juvenile salmon migrating downriver before, during, and after the pulse. They will compare their speed and survival on the way to the ocean.

Related articles: 

  • KEZI – Eugene: Low Chinook Salmon numbers lead delegates to request federal disaster declaration 
  • KRCR – Redding: Increased releases at Keswick Dam part of spring pulse flows
  • US Bureau of Reclamation: Federal agencies announce schedule for Clear Creek spring pulse flows
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Aquafornia news April 21, 2023 U.S. Bureau of Reclamation

News release: Federal agencies announce schedule for Sacramento River spring pulse flows

The Bureau of Reclamation, NOAA Fisheries, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced the plan for two pulse flow releases from Keswick Dam into the Sacramento River. Pulse flows are rapid increases and decreases in dam-released flows, occurring over a short time frame. The release of water helps improve survival rates for out-migrating juvenile spring-run Chinook salmon smolts through the Sacramento River in addition to the planned releases of more than 10 million fall and winter-run Chinook salmon from the Coleman National Fish Hatchery. Pulse flows releases from Keswick Dam will be targeting flows at Wilkins Slough of 11,000 cubic feet per second. The flow release for the first pulse is scheduled to begin around April 24 and reach a peak of around 9,000 cfs. Flow rates will reduce to around 7,000 cfs by April 29. The second pulse flow will begin on or around May 8 and may reach a peak of around 12,000 cfs. 

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Western Water January 13, 2023 Nick Cahill Layperson's Guide to Water Conservation WESTERN WATER-In One of the Snowiest Places in the West, A Scientist Hunts for Clues to the Sierra Snowpack’s Future By Nick Cahill

In One of the Snowiest Places in the West, A Scientist Hunts for Clues to the Sierra Snowpack’s Future
WESTERN WATER Q&A: Central Sierra Snow Lab Manager Andrew Schwartz Aims to Help Water Managers Improve Tracking of Snowpack Crucial to California's Drought-Stressed Water Supply

Photo of Andrew Schwartz, manager and lead scientist at the Central Sierra Snow Laboratory.Growing up in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains, Andrew Schwartz never missed an opportunity to play in – or study – a Colorado snowstorm. During major blizzards, he would traipse out into the icy wind and heavy drifts of snow pretending to be a scientist researching in Antarctica.  

Decades later, still armed with an obsession for extreme weather, Schwartz has landed in one of the snowiest places in the West, leading a research lab whose mission is to give California water managers instant information on the depth and quality of snow draping the slopes of the Sierra Nevada.

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Tour October 12, 2022 - 7:30am - October 14, 2022 - 6:30pm Nick Gray Northern California Tour Explores Water Resources Across Sacramento Valley to Shasta Dam

Northern California Tour 2022
Field Trip - October 12-14

This tour explored the Sacramento River and its tributaries through a scenic landscape while learning about the issues associated with a key source for the state’s water supply.

All together, the river and its tributaries supply 35 percent of California’s water and feed into two major projects: the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project.

Water Education Foundation
2151 River Plaza Drive, Suite 205
Sacramento, CA 95833
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Western Water February 25, 2022 Alastair Bland Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Map Layperson's Guide to the Delta WESTERN WATER-With Delta Smelt Virtually Gone in the Wild, A "Hatch-and-Release" Program Aims to Save Them From Extinction By Alastair Bland

With Delta Smelt All But Gone in the Wild, A First-Ever “Hatch-and-Release” Effort Aims to Save Them From Extinction
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: Experimental releases of finger-size fish into Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta inspires hope, but also skepticism, about the smelt's future

Crew releases hatchery-raised Delta smelt into the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. In the vast labyrinth of the West Coast’s largest freshwater tidal estuary, one native fish species has never been so rare. Once uncountably numerous, the Delta smelt was placed on state and federal endangered species lists in 1993, stopped appearing in most annual sampling surveys in 2016, and is now, for all practical purposes, extinct in the wild. At least, it was.

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Western Water November 19, 2021 Alastair Bland California Water Map WESTERN WATER-California Spent Decades Trying to Keep Central Valley Floods at Bay. Now It Looks to Welcome Them Back By Alastair Bland

California Spent Decades Trying to Keep Central Valley Floods at Bay. Now It Looks to Welcome Them Back
WESTERN WATER IN-DEPTH: Floodplain restoration gets a policy and funding boost as interest grows in projects that bring multiple benefits to respond to climate change impacts

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.

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Tour October 14, 2021 - 2:30pm - 5:30pm Nick Gray Jenn Bowles

Northern California Tour 2021
A Virtual Journey - October 14

This tour guided participants on a virtual exploration of the Sacramento River and its tributaries and learn about the issues associated with a key source for the state’s water supply.

All together, the river and its tributaries supply 35 percent of California’s water and feed into two major projects: the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project.

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Tour September 9, 2021 - 2:30pm - 5:30pm Nick Gray Jenn Bowles Layperson's Guide to the Delta

Bay-Delta Tour 2021
A Virtual Journey - September 9

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.

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Aquafornia news December 21, 2020 Army Corps of Engineers

Blog: Sacramento District quick to adapt in face of COVID

USACE Sacramento District has a proven track record of facing challenges head-on. When 2020 brought with it the Novel Coronavirus, the District responded quickly to address the needs of a rapidly changing work environment…This year marked the start of major construction on the [American River Common Features] project, and the pandemic hit just as crews were mobilizing, meaning both USACE and its contractors faced unexpected public impacts.

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Western Water April 17, 2020 Gary Pitzer

Framework for Agreements to Aid Health of Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is a Starting Point With An Uncertain End
WESTERN WATER IN-DEPTH: Voluntary agreement discussions continue despite court fights, state-federal conflicts and skepticism among some water users and environmental groups

Aerial image of the Sacramento-San Joaquin DeltaVoluntary agreements in California have been touted as an innovative and flexible way to improve environmental conditions in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and the rivers that feed it. The goal is to provide river flows and habitat for fish while still allowing enough water to be diverted for farms and cities in a way that satisfies state regulators.

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Western Water October 24, 2019 California Water Map Gary Pitzer

Understanding Streamflow Is Vital to Water Management in California, But Gaps In Data Exist
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: A new law aims to reactivate dormant stream gauges to aid in flood protection, water forecasting

Stream gauges gather important metrics such as  depth, flow (described as cubic feet per second) and temperature.  This gauge near downtown Sacramento measures water depth.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.

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Announcement September 11, 2019

Northern California Tour to Include Update on Camp Fire Impacts to Paradise Water System
Paradise Irrigation District general manager will discuss the challenges to recovery on Oct. 2-4 tour

The deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history had a severe impact on the water system in the town of Paradise. Participants on our Oct. 2-4 Northern California Tour will hear from Kevin Phillips, general manager of Paradise Irrigation District, on the scope of the damages, the obstacles to recovery and the future of the water district.

The Camp Fire destroyed 90 percent of the structures in Paradise, and 90 percent of the irrigation district’s ratepayer base. The fire did not destroy the irrigation district’s water storage or treatment facilities, but it did melt plastic pipes, releasing contaminants into parts of the system and prompting do-not-drink advisories to water customers.

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Announcement September 4, 2019

Northern California Tour Explores Water Resources Across Sacramento Valley to Shasta Dam
Examine state and federal water projects key to California's urban and agricultural supplies on Oct. 2-4 tour

Get an up-close look at some of California’s key water reservoirs and learn about farming operations, salmon habitat restoration, flood management and wetlands on our Northern California Water Tour Oct. 2-4.

Each year, participants on the tour enjoy three days exploring the Sacramento Valley during the temperate fall. Join us as we travel through a scenic landscape along the Sacramento and Feather rivers to learn about issues associated with storing and delivering the state’s water supply.

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Western Water April 25, 2019 California Water Map Gary Pitzer

California’s New Natural Resources Secretary Takes on Challenge of Implementing Gov. Newsom’s Ambitious Water Agenda
WESTERN WATER Q&A: Wade Crowfoot addresses Delta tunnel shift, Salton Sea plan and managing water amid a legacy of conflict

Wade Crowfoot, California Natural Resources Secretary.One of California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s first actions after taking office was to appoint Wade Crowfoot as Natural Resources Agency secretary. Then, within weeks, the governor laid out an ambitious water agenda that Crowfoot, 45, is now charged with executing.

That agenda includes the governor’s desire for a “fresh approach” on water, scaling back the conveyance plan in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and calling for more water recycling, expanded floodplains in the Central Valley and more groundwater recharge.

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Western Water April 11, 2019 Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Map Gary Pitzer

Bruce Babbitt Urges Creation of Bay-Delta Compact as Way to End ‘Culture of Conflict’ in California’s Key Water Hub
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: Former Interior secretary says Colorado River Compact is a model for achieving peace and addressing environmental and water needs in the Delta

Former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt gives the Anne J. Schneider Lecture April 3 at Sacramento's Crocker Art Museum.  Bruce Babbitt, the former Arizona governor and secretary of the Interior, has been a thoughtful, provocative and sometimes forceful voice in some of the most high-profile water conflicts over the last 40 years, including groundwater management in Arizona and the reduction of California’s take of the Colorado River. In 2016, former California Gov. Jerry Brown named Babbitt as a special adviser to work on matters relating to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and the Delta tunnels plan.

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Western Water January 4, 2019 Douglas E. Beeman

Women Leading in Water, Colorado River Drought and Promising Solutions — Western Water Year in Review

Dear Western Water readers:

Women named in the last year to water leadership roles (clockwise, from top left): Karla Nemeth, director, California Department of Water Resources; Gloria Gray,  chair, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California; Brenda Burman, Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner; Jayne Harkins,  commissioner, International Boundary and Water Commission, U.S. and Mexico; Amy Haas, executive director, Upper Colorado River Commission.The growing leadership of women in water. The Colorado River’s persistent drought and efforts to sign off on a plan to avert worse shortfalls of water from the river. And in California’s Central Valley, promising solutions to vexing water resource challenges.

These were among the topics that Western Water news explored in 2018.

We’re already planning a full slate of stories for 2019. You can sign up here to be alerted when new stories are published. In the meantime, take a look at what we dove into in 2018:

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Tour October 2, 2019 - 7:30am - October 4, 2019 - 6:30pm Nick Gray Northern California Tour Explores Water Resources Across Sacramento Valley to Shasta Dam

Northern California Tour 2019
Field Trip - October 2-4

This tour explored the Sacramento River and its tributaries through a scenic landscape as participants learned about the issues associated with a key source for the state’s water supply.

All together, the river and its tributaries supply 35 percent of California’s water and feed into two major projects: the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project. Tour participants got an on-site update of Oroville Dam spillway repairs.

  • David Guy Presentation
  • Willie Whittlesey Presentation
  • Kevin Phillips Presentation
  • Mark Oliver Presentation
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Western Water September 21, 2018 Colorado River Basin Map California Water Map Gary Pitzer

Despite Risk of Unprecedented Shortage on the Colorado River, Reclamation Commissioner Sees Room for Optimism
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: Commissioner Brenda Burman, in address at Foundation’s Water Summit, also highlights Shasta Dam plan

Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Brenda BurmanThe Colorado River Basin is more than likely headed to unprecedented shortage in 2020 that could force supply cuts to some states, but work is “furiously” underway to reduce the risk and avert a crisis, Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner Brenda Burman told an audience of California water industry people.

During a keynote address at the Water Education Foundation’s Sept. 20 Water Summit in Sacramento, Burman said there is opportunity for Colorado River Basin states to control their destiny, but acknowledged that in water, there are no guarantees that agreement can be reached.

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Western Water September 7, 2018 Enhancing California’s Water Supply: The Drive for New Storage Is California's Water Supply Resilient and Sustainable? Water Education Foundation

ON THE ROAD: Picturesque Northern California Valley Could Become the State’s Next Major Reservoir
Sites Reservoir site is a stop on our Northern California Tour Oct. 10-12

The proposed Sites Reservoir is in a rural cattle-grazing area west of the Sacramento Valley town of Maxwell. An hour’s drive north of Sacramento sits a picture-perfect valley hugging the eastern foothills of Northern California’s Coast Range, with golden hills framing grasslands mostly used for cattle grazing.

Back in the late 1800s, pioneer John Sites built his ranch there and a small township, now gone, bore his name. Today, the community of a handful of families and ranchers still maintains a proud heritage.

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Western Water August 24, 2018 California Water Map Gary Pitzer

When Water Worries Often Pit Farms vs. Fish, a Sacramento Valley Farm Is Trying To Address The Needs Of Both
WESTERN WATER SPOTLIGHT: River Garden Farms is piloting projects that could add habitat and food to aid Sacramento River salmon

Roger Cornwell, general manager of River Garden Farms, with an example of a refuge like the ones that were lowered into the Sacramento River at Redding to shelter juvenile salmon.  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.

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Announcement August 8, 2018

Examine Key California Rivers on the Last Two Water Tours of 2018
Join us as we explore the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers; hear from farmers, water managers, environmentalists

Northern California Tour participants pose in front of Shasta Dam.The Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers are the two major Central Valley waterways that feed the Delta, the hub of California’s water supply network. Our last water tours of 2018 will look in-depth at how these rivers are managed and used for agriculture, cities and the environment. You’ll see infrastructure, learn about efforts to restore salmon runs and talk to people with expertise on these rivers.

Early bird prices are still available!

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Announcement July 25, 2018

Northern California Tour Explores Water Resources Across Sacramento Valley
Examine key state and federal water projects, habitat restoration, irrigation and groundwater

Get an up-close look at some of California’s key water reservoirs and learn about farming operations, habitat restoration, flood management and wetlands in the Sacramento Valley on our Northern California Water Tour Oct. 10-12.

Each year, participants on the Northern California Water Tour enjoy three days exploring the Sacramento Valley during the temperate fall. Join us as we travel through a scenic landscape along the Sacramento and Feather rivers to learn about issues associated with storing and delivering the state’s water supply.

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Western Water June 29, 2018 California Water Map Gary Pitzer

As Decision Nears On California Water Storage Funding, a Chairman Reflects on Lessons Learned and What’s Next
WESTERN WATER Q&A: California Water Commission Chairman Armando Quintero

Armando Quintero, chair of the California Water CommissionNew water storage is the holy grail primarily for agricultural interests in California, and in 2014 the door to achieving long-held ambitions opened with the passage of Proposition 1, which included $2.7 billion for the public benefits portion of new reservoirs and groundwater storage projects. The statute stipulated that the money is specifically for the benefits that a new storage project would offer to the ecosystem, water quality, flood control, emergency response and recreation.

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Western Water June 1, 2018 Space Invaders Gary Pitzer

It’s Not Just Nutria — Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta has 185 Invasive Species, But Tracking Them is Uneven
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: Delta science panel urges greater coordination, funding of invasive species monitoring

Water hyacinth choke a channel in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.For more than 100 years, invasive species have made the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta their home, disrupting the ecosystem and costing millions of dollars annually in remediation.

The latest invader is the nutria, a large rodent native to South America that causes concern because of its propensity to devour every bit of vegetation in sight and destabilize levees by burrowing into them. Wildlife officials are trapping the animal and trying to learn the extent of its infestation.

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Western Water March 23, 2018 Layperson's Guide to the Delta

ON THE ROAD: Park Near Historic Levee Rupture Offers Glimpse of Old Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
Big Break Regional Shoreline will be a stop on Bay-Delta Tour May 16-18

Visitors explore a large, three-dimensional map of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta at Big Break Regional Shoreline in Oakley. 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.

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Western Water February 23, 2018 Gary Pitzer

SPOTLIGHT: Putah Creek, Yuba River and environmental water for fish
Two legal settlements are cited as examples where water was set aside for environmental needs

Lower Yuba RiverDespite the heat that often accompanies debates over setting aside water for the environment, there are instances where California stakeholders have forged agreements to provide guaranteed water for fish. Here are two examples cited by the Public Policy Institute of California in its report arguing for an environmental water right.

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Western Water February 23, 2018 Layperson's Guide to Water Rights Law Gary Pitzer

Does California’s Environment Deserve its Own Water Right?
IN-DEPTH: Fisheries and wildlife face growing challenges, but so do water systems competing for limited supply. Is there room for an environmental water right?

Sunset in Sacramento-San Joaquin DeltaDoes California need to revamp the way in which water is dedicated to the environment to better protect fish and the ecosystem at large? In the hypersensitive world of California water, where differences over who gets what can result in epic legislative and legal battles, the idea sparks a combination of fear, uncertainty and promise.

Saying that the way California manages water for the environment “isn’t working for anyone,” the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) shook things up late last year by proposing a redesigned regulatory system featuring what they described as water ecosystem plans and water budgets with allocations set aside for the environment.

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Tour October 10, 2018 - October 12, 2018 New Stop Announced for Northern California Tour: Salmon Rearing Structures in the Sacramento River

Northern California Tour 2018

This tour explored the Sacramento River and its tributaries through a scenic landscape as participants learned about the issues associated with a key source for the state’s water supply.

All together, the river and its tributaries supply 35 percent of California’s water and feed into two major projects: the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project. Tour participants got an on-site update of repair efforts on the Oroville Dam spillway. 

  • David Guy
  • Christopher Williams
  • Carson Jeffres
  • Curt Aikens
  • Kelly Peterson
  • Mark Oliver
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Announcement September 14, 2017

Explore Key California Rivers on the Last Two Water Tours of the Year
Join us as we meander along the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers

The Sacramento and San Joaquin are the two major rivers in the Central Valley that feed the Delta, the hub of California’s water supply network.

Our last two water tours of 2017 will take in-depth looks at how these rivers are managed and used for agriculture, cities and the environment. You’ll see infrastructure, learn about efforts to restore salmon runs and talk to people with expertise on these rivers.

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Announcement August 24, 2017

Northern California Tour Highlights Water Infrastructure
Visit key components of state and federal water projects

Each year, participants on the Northern California Water Tour enjoy three days exploring the Sacramento Valley during the temperate fall. Join us as we travel along the Sacramento and Feather rivers through a scenic landscape and  learn about issues associated with storing and delivering the state’s water supply.

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Western Water May 23, 2017 Gary Pitzer

Habitat Renewal Project Aims to Boost Sacramento River Salmon
Salmon shelters installed in early May to help fry and juvenile salmon

Before dams were built on the upper Sacramento River, flood water regularly carried woody debris that was an important part of the aquatic habitat.

Deprived of this refuge, salmon in the lower parts of the upper Sacramento River have had a difficult time surviving and making it down the river and out to the ocean. Seeing this, a group of people, including water users, decided to lend a hand with an unprecedented pilot project that saw massive walnut tree trunks affixed to 12,000-pound boulders and deposited into the deepest part of the Sacramento River near Redding to provide shelter for young salmon and steelhead migrating downstream.

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Western Water Excerpt February 15, 2017 Jenn Bowles

Preservation and Restoration: Salmon in Northern California
Winter 2017

Protecting and restoring California’s populations of threatened and endangered Chinook salmon and steelhead trout have been a big part of the state’s water management picture for more than 20 years. Significant resources have been dedicated to helping the various runs of the iconic fish, with successes and setbacks. In a landscape dramatically altered from its natural setting, finding a balance between the competing demands for water is challenging.

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Aquapedia background September 1, 2016

Butte Creek

Less than 50 miles northeast of Chico, California, begins the 93-mile Butte Creek – a tributary of the Sacramento River. It is named after Butte County, which was in turn named for the nearby volcanic plateaus, or “buttes,” and travels through a massive canyon on its way southwest to the Sacramento Valley. 

As a watershed, it drains about 800 square miles, both for agricultural and residential use. The upper watershed is dominated by forests, while the lower watershed is primarily agricultural. 

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Aquapedia background August 30, 2016

Whiskeytown Lake

Photo Credit: Jenn Bowles, Executive Director

Whiskeytown Lake, a major reservoir in the foothills of the Klamath Mountains nine miles west of Redding, was built at the site of one of Shasta County’s first Gold Rush communities. Whiskeytown, originally called Whiskey Creek Diggings, was founded in 1849 and named in reference to a whiskey barrel rolling off a citizen’s pack mule; it may also refer to miners drinking a barrel per day. 

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Aquapedia background August 25, 2016 Layperson's Guide to California Water California Water Map

Headwaters

Sierra Nevada headwaters streamHeadwaters are the source of a stream or river. They are located at the furthest point from where the water body empties or merges with another. Two-thirds of California’s surface water supply originates in these mountainous and typically forested regions.

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Aquapedia background August 25, 2016

American River

American RiverThe American River, with headwaters in the Tahoe and Eldorado national forests of the Sierra Nevada, is the birthplace of the California Gold Rush. It currently serves as a major water supply, recreational destination and habitat for hundreds of species. The geologically diverse North, Middle and South forks comprise the American River or the Río de los Americanos, as it was called during California’s Mexican rule.

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Tour October 21, 2015 - October 23, 2015 Images from the Northern California Tour

Northern California Tour 2015
Field Trip (past)

This 3-day, 2-night tour traveled the length of the Sacramento Valley, a major source of water for California.

  • Draft Itinerary
  • Tour Brochure - Learn More
  • Presentation: Butte County and SGMA
  • Presentation: Iron Mountain. Superfund Site
  • Presentation: Sacramento Valley
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Tour October 22, 2014 Images from the Northern California Tour

Northern California Tour 2014
Field Trip (past)

The 2014 tour took place October 22-24.

This 3-day, 2-night tour travels the length of the Sacramento Valley, a major source of water for California.

  • Curt Aikens, Yuba County Water Agency
  • Curtis Anderson, DWR, maps
  • Curtis Anderson, DWR, Integrating Water Management
  • Thad Bettner, Glenn Colusa ID
  • Peter Buck, SAFCA, Habitat Mitigation
  • Peter Buck, SAFCA
  • Jeff Davids Sac Valley Groundwater
  • Michelle Dooley, DWR, Groundwater
  • Steve Emmons, USFWS
  • Ron Ganzfried, USBR, Shasta Enlargement
  • David Guy, NCWA, Overview
  • David Guy, NCWA, Informational Posters
  • Diana Jacobs, Sacramento River Preservation Trust
  • Kisanuki and Brown, Clear Creek
  • David Vogel, Natural Resources Scientists Inc.
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Video May 27, 2014

Restoring a River: Voices of the San Joaquin

This 30-minute documentary-style DVD on the history and current state of the San Joaquin River Restoration Program includes an overview of the geography and history of the river, historical and current water delivery and uses, the genesis and timeline of the 1988 lawsuit, how the settlement was reached and what was agreed to.

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Video May 27, 2014

A Climate of Change: Water Adaptation Strategies

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.

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Video May 22, 2014

Shaping of the West: 100 Years of Reclamation

30-minute DVD that traces the history of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and its role in the development of the West. Includes extensive historic footage of farming and the construction of dams and other water projects, and discusses historic and modern day issues.

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Maps & Posters May 20, 2014

California Water Map, Spanish

Spanish language version of our California Water Map

Versión en español de nuestro mapa de agua de California

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Publication May 20, 2014

Layperson’s Guide to the State Water Project
Updated 2013

The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the State Water Project provides an overview of the California-funded and constructed State Water Project.

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Publication May 20, 2014

Layperson’s Guide to Flood Management
Updated 2009

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. 

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Publication May 20, 2014

Layperson’s Guide to the Central Valley Project
Updated 2021

The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the Central Valley Project explores the history and development of the federal Central Valley Project (CVP), California’s largest surface water delivery system. In addition to the project’s history, the guide describes the various CVP facilities, CVP operations, the benefits the CVP brought to the state and the CVP Improvement Act (CVPIA).

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Photo gallery May 16, 2014

Images from the Northern California Tour

Shasta Dam
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Publication April 17, 2014 Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Map

Layperson’s Guide to the Delta
Updated 2020

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.

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Maps & Posters April 17, 2014 California Water Bundle

California Water Map
Updated December 2016

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.

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Aquapedia background February 11, 2014

Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Cross Channel

The 6,000-foot Delta Cross Channel diverts water from the Sacramento River into a branch of the Mokelumne River, where it follows natural channels for about 50 miles to the Jones Pumping Plant intake channel. Located near the State Water Project’s Harvey O.

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Aquapedia background February 11, 2014

Sacramento River

California’s largest river, the Sacramento, provides 31 percent of the state’s surface water runoff. 

Once called “the Nile of the West,” the Sacramento River drains the inland slopes of the Klamath Mountains, the Cascade Range, the Coast Ranges and the western slopes of the northern Sierra Nevada. The river stretches some 384 miles from its headwaters near Mount Shasta to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

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Aquapedia background February 3, 2014

Delta-Mendota Canal

Delta-Mendota Canal

The117-mile long Delta-Mendota Canal in central California delivers water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to the San Joaquin Valley. It is part of the Central Valley Project.

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Western Water Magazine May 1, 2013

Meeting the Co-equal Goals? The Bay Delta Conservation Plan
May/June 2013

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.

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Western Water Magazine July 1, 2012

How Much Water Does the Delta Need?
July/August 2012

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.

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Western Water Magazine March 1, 2009

Delta Conveyance: The Debate Continues
March/April 2009

This printed issue of Western Water provides an overview of the idea of a dual conveyance facility, including questions surrounding its cost, operation and governance

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Western Water Magazine January 1, 2009

Making a Future for Fish: Preserving and Restoring Native Salmon and Trout
January/February 2009

This printed copy of Western Water examines the native salmon and trout dilemma – the extent of the crisis, its potential impact on water deliveries and the lengths to which combined efforts can help restore threatened and endangered species.

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Western Water Magazine March 1, 2008

Finding a Vision for the Delta
March/April 2008

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.

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Western Water Magazine September 1, 2004

Flood Management 2004: A System in Peril
September/October 2004

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.

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Western Water Magazine May 1, 2004

Mercury Rising Tackling the Legacy of the Gold Rush
May/June 2004

This issue of Western Water examines the presence of mercury in the environment and the challenge of limiting the threat posed to human health and wildlife. In addition to outlining the extent of the problem and its resistance to conventional pollution remedies, the article presents a glimpse of some possible courses of action for what promises to be a long-term problem.

  • Read more

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