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Topic: San Francisco Bay

Overview April 24, 2014

San Francisco Bay

The San Francisco Bay (Bay) drains water from 40 percent of California. This includes flows originating from the Sierra Nevada mountain range and the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers that make their way down through Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta through the Bay to the Pacific Ocean.

The Bay is the largest harbor on the U.S. Pacific Coast and covers about 400 square miles with an average depth of 14 feet. Its deepest point is 360 feet  at the Golden Gate.

Every year, more than 67 million tons of cargo pass through the Golden Gate. The Bay also supports commercial bait shrimp, herring and Dungeness crab fisheries.

The Bay is a vital estuary and a key link in the Pacific Flyway, and millions of waterfowl use the shallow portions of the bay as a refuge each year.

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Aquafornia news August 15, 2022 48 Hills

Opinion: Why CEQA matters

This year, 45 separate bills were introduced in the California State Legislature aimed at amending the California Environmental Quality Act. The sudden enthusiasm for changing CEQA appears to stem from the recent controversy related to UC Berkeley enrollment that erroneously blamed our state’s landmark environmental law for the university’s poor planning. … CEQA has also protected our region’s natural treasure, the San Francisco Bay itself, from being filled. In 2001, environmental review led the Board of Supervisors to reject a proposed runway expansion at SFO after analysis showed it would cause extensive harm to the Bay.
-Written by Aaron Peskin, San Francisco District 3 Supervisor and member of the Bay Conservation and Development Commission and the San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority. 

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Aquafornia news August 15, 2022 San Francisco Chronicle

Heat wave expected to bake inland region of the Bay Area this week

Forecasters expect a heat wave to bake the inland regions of the Bay Area this week, with temperatures pushing into the 90s and lower 100s. People living in the Central Valley and areas around Sacramento face the highest risk of dangerous, sweltering heat, according to a map tweeted Sunday by the National Weather Service. It shows hot spots along the eastern side of the Bay Area, and the weather becoming more moderate toward the coast. … This week’s broiling weather comes at the tail end of a ruthless summer in California, marked by persistent drought and rising temperatures. The season arrived with 100-degree heat and a string of wildfires.

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Aquafornia news August 12, 2022 Marin Independent Journal

Marin officials weigh planning changes to spur housing density

Marin officials might amend the county’s general plan to permit denser housing in environmentally sensitive areas and areas lacking water and sewer service. The Board of Supervisors and the Planning Commissioners held a joint meeting Tuesday to discuss changes to the general plan to allow more housing. The county is under a state mandate to zone for 3,569 more residences in the unincorporated areas over eight years, beginning in 2023. The general plan allows development to occur only at the lowest end of the density range in the Ridge and Upland Greenbelt, the Baylands Corridor, areas with sensitive habitat and areas without water or sewer connections.

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Aquafornia news August 11, 2022 San Francisco Chronicle

Erosion map shows where California’s cliffs are falling into sea

Coastal cliffs in California’s far northern counties are eroding faster than those elsewhere in the state, according to a new study that used high-resolution data to pinpoint hot spots where cliffs are receding rapidly along the state’s entire coast. In the Bay Area, locations with some of the highest rates of clifftop erosion include Daly City, Pacifica and Bodega Bay, according to the study published this month by researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego. The highest erosion rates were found near Humboldt Bay and in a few remote locations in Del Norte County.

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Aquafornia news August 11, 2022 NBC - Bay Area

Thursday Top of the Scroll: Newsom in Bay Area to announce new water supply strategy for California

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday will be in the Bay Area to announce a new water supply strategy for California as the state contends with a historic drought. Newsom is scheduled to be in Contra Costa County for a news conference detailing “water supply actions” California is taking to adapt to hotter, drier conditions caused by climate change, the governor’s office said. He also is expected to announce new leadership for California’s infrastructure efforts. Drought has been a major concern for Californians. A new study by the nonpartisan Public Policy Institute of California found that 68% of state residents say the water supply is a big problem where they live. 

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Aquafornia news August 10, 2022 CBS - San Francisco

Desalination plant construction underway in Antioch as drought worsens

The city of Antioch sits right next to the largest source of fresh water in Northern California. But it’s facing a water supply crisis because of changes to the Delta, both natural and man-made.  … So, they’re doing what a lot of other cities have only pondered–they’re building the first surface-water desalination plant in the Bay Area. The new facility, located at the city’s wastewater treatment plant, will use large reverse-osmosis filters to create 6 million gallons of fresh water per day–about a third of the city’s needs–but with room for expansion.

Related article:

  • Monterey County Weekly: Cal Am’s long embattled desalination plant proposed in Marina is very much a live wire.
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Aquafornia news August 10, 2022 KTVU - Los Angeles

Water tests show what’s causing the Oakland Estuary to be muddy brown and slimy green

People and pets are urged to stay out of the Oakland Estuary and away from Alameda’s shoreline after potentially harmful algae blooms were discovered, following several water tests. For weeks, the water has looked muddy and murky, prompting those who live on or near the water to question the unusual, dark brown color. … At times, a green slime or sludge appears near the surface of the water. Water samples were taken by several agencies following KTVU’s questions and reports about the water quality.

Related article: 

  • YES! Magazine: How Salt Marshes Prevented Development but Forever Changed Wetlands in the South Bay
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Aquafornia news August 9, 2022 San Francisco Chronicle

New river cruise out of S.F. Bay will tour Northern California for 8 days, with prices as high as $12,000

A new cruise will soon pamper passengers on a unique river journey from San Francisco to Stockton, Sacramento, Napa and back – for a hefty sum. With prices starting at $6,095, passengers will travel round trip from San Francisco to California’s capital city through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta on a eight-day voyage dubbed the “San Francisco Bay Cruise,” officials from American Cruise Lines said in a news release. The most luxurious accommodation – a grand suite with a private balcony – costs $11,680 per person. It’s the company’s first-ever cruise in California, officials said, with an itinerary along the San Joaquin, Napa and Sacramento rivers.

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Aquafornia news August 8, 2022 Stanford News

New research: Stanford-based initiative WastewaterSCAN will monitor wastewater for COVID-19, monkeypox, influenza A, and RSV genetic markers to help guide public health responses

Researchers at Stanford University and Emory University have launched a nationwide initiative to monitor monkeypox, COVID-19, and other infectious diseases in communities by measuring viral genetic material in wastewater. The effort will also provide health officials and the public with free, high-quality data, which is critical to informing public health decision making. The initiative is already producing data, including the first detections of monkeypox DNA in wastewater in the United States.

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Aquafornia news August 8, 2022 Marin Independent Journal

San Francisco Bay restoration plan updated amid funding surge

Proponents of a new plan to rehabilitate San Francisco Bay say they hope to make significant gains in the coming years because of millions of dollars in new federal funds. The estuary, the largest on the west coast of North America, covers 60,000 square miles from the foot of the Sierra Nevada to the Golden Gate, including the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. The estuary and the surrounding mountains, which hold about half of California’s water supply, are home to highly diverse ecosystems, including 100 endangered and threatened species, and support a multi-billion dollar economy.

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Aquafornia news August 3, 2022 San Francisco Estuary Partnership

Report: San Francisco Estuary Blueprint 2022

In the past few years, the San Francisco Estuary region has confronted epic wildfires, historic rainfall intensity and flooding, and chronic drought. The whiplash of these events has confirmed that climate change has already begun to impact human and wildlife communities from Sacramento to San Francisco, and beyond. [T]he pervasive, horrific violence against Black, Brown, and Asian and Asian-American people has amplified long-term calls for racial justice, galvanizing new commitments to address historic and present inequity through every thread of our social fabric. These events have set the context for the multi-stakeholder process that updates the San Francisco Estuary Blueprint.

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Aquafornia news August 3, 2022 Marin Independent Journal

Talks on Highway 37’s future underway as sea-level threat looms

For generations, the 21-mile route linking Marin County and Vallejo has been essential for commuters and travelers. Now Highway 37 has become something more — a centerpiece in a growing debate on how the Bay Area and California should respond to climate change and when politicians should bite the bullet to spend the billions of dollars needed to deal with it. Caltrans is studying a plan to widen a traffic-prone, 10-mile stretch of the highway at a cost of nearly half a billion dollars while it comes up with a longer-term fix. But some advocates say they should skip that step while significant funding is available and do what all parties agree will eventually need to be done by elevating the road.

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Aquafornia news August 3, 2022 San Francisco Chronicle

Wednesday Top of the Scroll: California drought: Summer is crucial for saving water, but conservation still ho-hum

Californians began paying more attention to their water use as summer arrived, but statewide conservation remains well short of what the governor has requested during the drought. In June, municipal water consumption dropped 7.6% compared to the same month in 2020, marking a second straight month of savings, according to state data released Tuesday, and parts of the Bay Area did considerably better. The four prior months, however, saw increases in water use, sometimes by double digits. … California has experienced three extraordinarily dry years, exacerbated by rising temperatures, that have left reservoirs low, groundwater diminished and alternative supplies like desalination pinched.

Related articles: 

  • Mercury News: California drought - Water conservation increasing statewide, Bay Area saving more than Southern California
  • KTLA – Los Angeles: What you need to know about water restrictions and fines in Southern California
  • Ventura County Star: Ventura County’s city-by-city guide to water-use restrictions amid California drought
  • CBS News: Drought-friendly lawn makeovers take root among Santa Clara County homeowners
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Aquafornia news August 1, 2022 San Francisco Chronicle

What’s with the bizarre rainfall in July? The weather forecast promises more

The Bay Area’s unusual drizzly weather is expected to continue through the weekend and could escalate into isolated thunderstorms late Sunday into Monday, according to the National Weather Service. The thunderstorms are expected to mostly affect the southern portions of the Bay Area and the central coast, according to Roger Gass, a meteorologist with the weather agency. Locally heavy rain is possible.

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Aquafornia news August 1, 2022 East Bay Times

Bay Area entrepreneur envisions new purposes for land, ways to save planet

One day while [civil engineer James Levine] was looking out at the bay from his Emeryville office, Levine was struck by the steep unnatural riprap shoreline surrounding most of the bay that discourage wildlife from gathering there. He also thought about the many tons of sediment that needed to be dredged from the bay so that big ships could pass — and what he could do with that fill to encourage wildlife habitat elsewhere. Thus was born the Montezuma Wetlands Project in Solano County, a private initiative begun in the early 2000s that addresses two problems: the historic loss of wetlands and how one can responsibly dispose of millions of cubic yards of sediments dredged annually from San Francisco Bay Area ports, harbors and channels.

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Aquafornia news July 28, 2022 Marin Independent Journal

San Anselmo flood protection project hits a roadblock

A plan to remove a more than 80-year-old bridge in downtown San Anselmo as part of a key flood control effort in the Ross Valley has hit a snag. The news came as part of a mandated, annual report on the use of funds generated by a stormwater drainage fee presented to the Board of Supervisors earlier this month. The fee was narrowly approved by voters in 2007 to do flood prevention projects in the Ross Valley. Its passage followed destructive storm-driven floods in 1982 and 2005 that damaged 1,200 homes and 200 businesses.

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Aquafornia news July 28, 2022 Marin Independent Journal

Bay Area ship removes 96 tons of trash from Pacific Ocean

Nearly 100 tons of sprawling fishing nets, piles of plastic toothbrushes, laundry baskets, yoga mats, freezers and even a laundry machine arrived at the Sausalito docks this week. Fortunately for all, this haul of garbage was stored aboard a 130-foot-long sailing cargo ship that had just returned from a cleanup mission in the sprawling garbage patch floating in the Pacific Ocean. The cleanup operation was the latest to be performed by the Sausalito-based nonprofit Ocean Voyages Institute. The firm has been journeying to the swirling mass of plastic and debris located between Hawaii and California since 2009 and has removed more than 692,000 pounds of trash.

Related articles: 

  • Capitol Weekly: Politically savvy surfers in California fight plastic pollution
  • San Francisco Chronicle: ‘Mysterious plastic items’ scooped up in 45-day sweep of Great Pacific Garbage Patch
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Aquafornia news July 25, 2022 Marin Independent Journal

Marin water officials scrutinize costs for bigger reservoirs, new pipelines

Marin Municipal Water District officials, continuing their quest to boost supply, met this week for a detailed cost assessment on expanding reservoirs and connecting to new sources. District staff stressed to the board that — unlike other options under review such as desalination and recycled water expansion that can produce a continual flow of water — enlarging reservoirs or building pipelines to outside suppliers does not guarantee water will be available when needed. 

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Aquafornia news July 22, 2022 Bay City News

Sunol sand-mining company Mission Valley Rock agrees to pay Water Resources Control Board fine

A company operating a sand-mining facility in Alameda County will pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to settle charges that it discharged untreated wastewater into Alameda Creek last year, officials with the state Water Resources Control Board (WRCB) said Thursday. Mission Valley Rock must pay nearly the statutory limit after it allegedly discharged 41,000 gallons of untreated wastewater from its Sunol facility in March. The total settlement is $368,940. According to the WRCB, Mission Valley Rock failed to properly decommission a pipeline, which then ruptured, depositing several inches of sediment in the creek bed and along the bank. 

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Aquafornia news July 22, 2022 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

News release: EPA announces unprecedented $29 million for San Francisco Bay watershed restoration grants

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is accepting applications for approximately $29 million in grants, the largest annual allocation ever, to protect and restore San Francisco Bay watersheds and wetlands. The agency is announcing two separate funding opportunities with a due date for applications of September 20, 2022. … The San Francisco Bay Water Quality Improvement Fund (SFBWQIF), a competitive grant program EPA has administered since 2008, has already provided $71 million over the years in 59 grant awards. 

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Aquafornia news July 21, 2022 Sonoma Index-Tribune

New rules for well permits in Sonoma County proposed

The Board of Supervisors will consider new standards for well permits at their meeting Aug. 9 in response to California case law to protect rivers and other “public trust resources,” according to a July 11 press release. The county will hold a public hearing on the proposed amendment to the county’s well ordinance, which would create new guidelines for Permit Sonoma’s evaluation of environmental impact to drill new or replacement groundwater wells. The ordinance may effect approximately one-third of well permit applications sent to Permit Sonoma and new wells may be subject to hundreds of dollars in fees and new equipment based on the proposal.

Related articles: 

  • Porterville Recorder: ETGSA approves amended groundwater sustainability plan
  • Ridgecrest Independent: Groundwater Authority clarifies well permit process 
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Aquafornia news July 21, 2022 JD Supra

Blog: Hexavalent chromium/RCRA – Federal appellate court reconsiders public water system liability

A citizen suit action was filed by an environmental organization alleging the public water system was potentially subject to the RCRA “imminent and substantial endangerment provisions” because the groundwater it utilized contained hexavalent chromium. The hexavalent chromium in the groundwater likely originated from a release at a wood treating facility known as the Wickes site. The environmental organization California River Watch (“CRW”) concluded that the hexavalent chromium from the Wickes site migrated through groundwater to the Elmira Well Field (“Well Field”). The City of Vacaville (“City”) allegedly drew a significant amount of its water from the Well Field.

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Aquafornia news July 20, 2022 Mercury News

Pittsburg’s Marsh Fire getting doused with 10 to 20 million gallons of water

Firefighters and air quality experts are cautiously optimistic that a plan to flood the stubborn Marsh Fire with 10 million to 20 million gallons of water could finally end a two-month nightmare for several eastern Contra Costa County cities perpetually shrouded in a fog of acrid smoke from the long-simmering blaze. ConFire crews flipped on three additional water pumps Wednesday, bringing to five the number of pumps pulling water from nearby Mallard Slough onto the 200-acre property outside Pittsburg, which has been burning since late May. 

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Aquafornia news July 20, 2022 Mercury News

East Bay city increases water rates

Pittsburg water customers will soon see a 5% increase in their water rates for each of the next five years as a result of council action this week. Paul Rodrigues, city finance director, cited increases in the cost of energy and raw water, and the need to make capital improvements – at a $76.5 million price tag – in the water treatment plant as reasons for the increases. Both commercial and residential customers will be affected, but seniors will pay less, seeing only a 2% increase each year. 

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Aquafornia news July 20, 2022 Mercury News

East Bay MUD to pay $816,000 penalty for releasing 16 million gallons of partially treated sewage into San Francisco Bay

The heavy storms that soaked the Bay Area last October ended fire season and brought hope — dashed during dry winter months later — that the state’s drought might be ending. But while millions of people were celebrating the downpour the week before Halloween, the rains also caused an environmental headache in the East Bay, overwhelming a wastewater treatment plant and sending 16.5 million gallons of partially treated sewage into San Francisco Bay. On Monday, state regulators and the East Bay Municipal Utility District, a government agency that operates the plant at Point Isabel in Richmond, agreed to settle the case in a deal that requires the district to pay $816,000 for violations of clean water rules.

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Aquafornia news July 19, 2022 Vallejo Sun

American Canyon sues Vallejo over water dispute

The city of American Canyon has filed a lawsuit asking a court to force the city of Vallejo to provide drinking water to certain areas of American Canyon under a 1996 service agreement that Vallejo has sought to limit because of severe drought. American Canyon filed its lawsuit last week in Napa County Superior Court, which alleges that Vallejo breached the water service agreement between the two cities by failing to provide water to the Canyon Estates development, a new water delivery location for Vallejo that American Canyon said was “designed and constructed with Vallejo’s oversight and approval.”

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Aquafornia news July 18, 2022 Marin Independent Journal

Marin water district vets desalination, recycled water cost

The Marin Municipal Water District took a deeper look at some of the more complex and expensive options on the table for new supply: desalination plants and recycled water. The district board and consultants with the Jacobs Engineering firm held discussion Tuesday on the preliminary cost estimates, water yields and challenges of building desalination plants and expanding the district’s recycled water system.

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Aquafornia news July 18, 2022 Nossaman

Blog: Ninth Circuit reverses previous decision on RCRA liability for water supplier

On July 1, 2022 a panel of the Ninth Circuit issued a superseding opinion in California River Watch v. City of Vacaville, Appeal No. 20-16605, withdrawing its previous opinion in the same case and reaching the opposite result. The case is a rare example of a court reversing itself, and has important implications for water suppliers in California and nationwide. In California River Watch, the plaintiff sought to impose RCRA liability on a water supplier based on the presence of hexavalent chromium in the water it supplied to customers, despite the fact that the water complied with the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for chromium established under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).

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Aquafornia news July 14, 2022 Eos

New research: Atmospheric rivers help coastal wetlands build up sediment

Extreme precipitation from hurricanes and atmospheric rivers can lead to increased flooding in the world’s coastal zones, where more than 630 million people reside. Tidal marshes act as important buffers in these areas, absorbing the initial impact of storm surges and strong winds. In addition, tidal marsh ecosystems rely on storm events to deposit sediments that help with marsh accretion. In a new study, Thorne et al. focused on tidal marsh accretion and elevation change in the San Francisco Bay after an atmospheric river event in 2016-2017. 

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Aquafornia news July 13, 2022 KALW - San Francisco

The ‘King Tides’ bringing minor coastal flooding to San Francisco

The National Weather Service has issued an advisory that King Tides will cause minor flooding to coastal areas of the San Francisco shoreline starting Monday night and will continue to Friday, with the highest tide expected after midnight on Thursday. The flooding is expected to begin tonight at 8 p.m. King Tides are the highest predicted tides of the year in a coastal region and normally occur only once or twice a year – when the moon is closest to the earth. The event usually takes place from January to December, but can also take place during the summer.

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Aquafornia news July 13, 2022 MSN.com

Bay Area water agencies set to discuss severe drought conditions

The Bay Area’s largest water agencies on Tuesday were expected to assess their current drought situations and possibly discuss further restrictions on water use. Valley Water in the South Bay, which supplies water for thousands in the Santa Clara Valley, will report that between June 2021 and May 2022, customers used 3% less water compared to 2019. That’s far short of the 15% reduction goal set by the district’s board.

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Aquafornia news July 12, 2022 Pleasanton Weekly

Sunol: Sand mining outfit fined for releasing untreated wastewater into Alameda Creek

A company operating a sand mining facility in Alameda County must pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to settle allegations it discharged untreated wastewater into Alameda Creek last year, officials with the State Water Resources Control Board said Thursday. Mission Valley Rock Company must pay nearly the statutory limit after it allegedly discharged 41,000 gallons of untreated wastewater from its Sunol facility in March 2021.

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Aquafornia news July 12, 2022 J. - Jewish News of Northern California

This ‘water warrior’ is walking 200 miles to trace East Bay water source

Where does your drinking water come from? Berkeley native and self-described “water warrior” Nina Gordon-Kirsch wants you to know. This month, Gordon-Kirsch, 33, is walking roughly 200 miles from her home in Oakland to the headwaters of the Mokelumne River, the source of drinking water for most of the East Bay. She aims to call attention to the knowledge gap between urban residents and their water, a resource she says is taken for granted.

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Aquafornia news July 7, 2022 Petaluma Argus Courier

Oak Hill neighbors express concerns as Petaluma plans for new well

Petaluma residents neighboring a planned groundwater well project in the Oak Hill Park area are asking city leaders for more transparency and review before approving its construction, following concerns that the area’s foundation may be too fragile. The Oak Hill Municipal Well Project would install a well on a 5.58-acre, city-owned property at 35 Park Avenue, as city officials look to offset the need for purchased water and increase the reliability and diversity of local water supplies during the ongoing drought. But neighbors are concerned the well will have a negative impact on the environment and make way for sinkholes.

Related article: 

  • Edhat: Groundwater sustainability fee adopted in Carpinteria
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Aquafornia news July 6, 2022 Marin Independent Journal

Marin highway flooding projects get $30M from state

As sea-level rise and flooding threaten to cut off Marin City from emergency services and block one of the busiest North Bay highways, the state Legislature and Gov. Gavin Newsom have allocated $30 million in the state budget to begin planning for defenses. The budget adopted on Tuesday provides $20 million to begin designing flood protections on Highway 37 and the Novato Creek Bridge. Another $10 million is for planning defenses for recurring flooding on Highway 101 that blocks the only road in and out of Marin City.

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Aquafornia news July 6, 2022 San Francisco Chronicle

Vacaville can’t be held responsible for polluted tap water, court rules

A lawsuit accusing Vacaville of endangering its residents with tap water polluted with hexavalent chromium — the cancer-causing chemical made infamous in the film “Erin Brockovich” — was dismissed Friday by a federal appeals court, which said the city merely carried the water in its pipes and isn’t responsible for contamination caused by others. The city was sued in 2017 by the environmental group California River Watch, which said Vacaville had failed to inspect or clean up the water it had piped in from wells near a former wood-processing plant whose owners had dumped the chemical into the ground for many years.

Related article: 

  • Courthouse News Service: Ninth Circuit reverses itself, upholds dismissal of lawsuit over tainted water
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Western Water July 25, 2019 California Water Map Gary Pitzer

A Study of Microplastics in San Francisco Bay Could Help Cleanup Strategies Elsewhere
WESTERN WATER NOTEBOOK: Debris from plastics and tires is showing up in Bay waters; state drafting microplastics plan for drinking water

Plastic trash and microplastics can get washed into stormwater systems that eventually empty into waterways. Blasted by sun and beaten by waves, plastic bottles and bags shed fibers and tiny flecks of microplastic debris that litter the San Francisco Bay where they can choke the marine life that inadvertently consumes it.

A collaborative effort of the San Francisco Estuary Institute, The 5 Gyre Institute, San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board and the regulated discharger community that aims to better understand the problem and assess how to manage it in the San Francisco Bay is nearing the end of a three-year study.

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Aquapedia background August 7, 2017 Layperson's Guide to the Delta

Estuary

Suisun Marsh, part of the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary, is the largest contiguous brackish water marsh on the West Coast of North America.Estuaries are places where fresh and salt water mix, usually at the point where a river enters the ocean. They are the meeting point between riverine environments and the sea, with a combination of tides, waves, salinity, fresh water flow and sediment. The constant churning means there are elevated levels of nutrients, making estuaries highly productive natural habitats.

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Western Water November 16, 2016 Gary Pitzer

Delta Report Highlights Need to Restore Legacy Processes

Understanding the importance of the Bay-Delta ecosystem and working to restore it means grasping the scope of what it once was.

That’s the takeaway message of a report released Nov. 14 by the San Francisco Estuary Institute.

The report, “A Delta Renewed,” is the latest in a series sponsored by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW). Written by several authors, the report says there is “cause for hope” to achieving large-scale Delta restoration in a way that supports people, farms and the environment. SFEI calls itself “one of California’s premier aquatic and ecosystem science institutes.”

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Aquapedia background September 8, 2016

Zooplankton

Examples of zooplanktonZooplankton, which are floating aquatic microorganisms too small and weak to swim against currents, are are important food sources for many fish species in the Delta such as salmon, sturgeon and Delta smelt.

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Tour June 24, 2015 - June 26, 2015 Go Deep into California's Water Hub Images from the Bay-Delta tour

Bay-Delta Tour 2015
Field Trip (past)

This 3-day, 2-night tour, which we do every year, takes participants to the heart of California water policy – the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and San Francisco Bay.

  • California Water Fix- Heiland
  • Climate Change and CA Water- Chappell
  • EBMUD Bay Delta Nexus- Bray
  • Delta Fish Ecology- Herbold
  • Delta Water Flow - Peltier
  • SDWA - John Herrick
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Aquapedia background February 11, 2014 California Water Map Layperson's Guide to California Water

Pacific Flyway

The Pacific Flyway is one of four major North American migration routes for birds, especially waterfowl, and extends from Alaska and Canada, through California, to Mexico and South America. Each year, birds follow ancestral patterns as they travel the flyway on their annual north-south migration. Along the way, they need stopover sites such as wetlands with suitable habitat and food supplies. In California, 90 percent of historic wetlands have been lost.

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Tour June 18, 2014 Images from the Bay-Delta tour

Bay-Delta Tour 2014
Field Trip (past)

The 2014 tour took place June 18 – 20.

This 3-day, 2-night tour takes participants to the heart of California water policy – the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and San Francisco Bay.

  • Keith Coolidge, Delta Stewardship Council: Delta Overview
  • Bryan Brock, DWR: Subsidence Mitigation
  • Bryan Brock, DWR: Sustainable Delta Farming
  • CCWD: Historical Freshwater and Salinity Conditions
  • CCWD: Protecting Delta Fisheries
  • CCWD: Canal Replacement Project
  • CCWD: Bay-Delta Tour Map
  • Erin Chappell, DWR: Climate Change Impacts Bay-Delta Region
  • Bruce Herbold
  • Jason Peltier
  • Caitrin Chapelle, PPIC: Stress Relief: Prescriptions for a Healthier Delta Ecosystem
  • John Herrick, South Delta Water Agency: BDCP: A Plan to Lose the Delta
  • Jacob McQuirk, DWR: Delta Water Conveyance
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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

Delta Warning

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.

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Video May 21, 2014

Water on the Edge (60-minute DVD)

Water truly has shaped California into the great state it is today. And if it is water that made California great, it’s the fight over – and with – water that also makes it so critically important. In efforts to remap California’s circulatory system, there have been some critical events that had a profound impact on California’s water history. These turning points not only forced a re-evaluation of water, but continue to impact the lives of every Californian. This 2005 PBS documentary offers a historical and current look at the major water issues that shaped the state we know today. Includes a 12-page viewer’s guide with background information, historic timeline and a teacher’s lesson.

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Maps & Posters May 20, 2014

Water Cycle Poster

Water as a renewable resource is depicted in this 18×24 inch poster. Water is renewed again and again by the natural hydrologic cycle where water evaporates, transpires from plants, rises to form clouds, and returns to the earth as precipitation. Excellent for elementary school classroom use.

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Maps & Posters May 20, 2014

Invasive Species Poster Set

One copy of the Space Invaders and one copy of the Unwelcome Visitors poster for a special price.

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Maps & Posters May 20, 2014

Unwelcome Visitors

This 24×36 inch poster, suitable for framing, explains how non-native invasive animals can alter the natural ecosystem, leading to the demise of native animals. “Unwelcome Visitors” features photos and information on four such species – including the zerbra mussel – and explains the environmental and economic threats posed by these species.

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Maps & Posters May 20, 2014

Space Invaders

This 24×36 inch poster, suitable for framing, explains how non-native invasive plants can alter the natural ecosystem, leading to the demise of native plants and animals. “Space Invaders” features photos and information on six non-native plants that have caused widespread problems in the Bay-Delta Estuary and elsewhere.

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Publication April 17, 2014

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

San Francisco Bay Model

Operated by the U.S. Army Corps of the Engineers, the San Francisco Bay/Delta Model is a hydraulic model of San Francisco Bay and the Delta and is housed in a converted World II-era warehouse in Sausalito in Marin County.

Stretching 320-feet  by 400-feet wide, the Bay Model features a replica of the Bay Delta watershed from the Golden Gate to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Pumping systems move hundreds of gallons of water throughout the display and create 14-minute tidal ebb and flow.

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Aquapedia background February 11, 2014

San Francisco Bay

San Francisco Bay and the inter-connected Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta form the largest estuary on the Pacific West Coast.

The estuary is shaped by water flows from two directions.

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Aquapedia background February 10, 2014 Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Map Layperson's Guide to the Delta

Invasive Species

Invasive water hyacinth surrounds docks and boats in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Invasive species, also known as exotics, are plants, animals, insects and aquatic species introduced into non-native habitats.

Often, invasive species travel to non-native areas by ship, either in ballast water released into harbors or attached to the sides of boats. From there, introduced species can then spread and significantly alter ecosystems and the natural food chain as they go. Another example of non-native species introduction is the dumping of aquarium fish into waterways.

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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 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 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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Water Academy

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