Submitted by Pamela Martineau on Tue, 10/07/2014 – 12:01pm
Californians embraced water conservation in a big way in August – the state’s hottest month – cutting usage by 11.5% across-the-board over last year’s figures, with some areas seeing larger reductions.
The water usage data – presented today to the State Water Resources Control Board – was welcome news to state officials, indicating that Californians have heard the conservation message loud and clear and are answering the call.
Submitted by Emily Allshouse on Wed, 10/08/2014 – 10:05am
The State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) has released a revised notice for the Public Workshop and Adoption Meeting on Final Draft Statewide General National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit for Drinking Water Systems Discharges. Under the revised notice, the State Water Board will hold a public workshop on Oct. 21, 2014, while the adoption meeting for the permit is now scheduled for Nov. 4, 2014.
Submitted by Lisa Lien-Mager on Wed, 10/08/2014 – 5:00pm
ACWA has prepared a suite of informational materials on the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act of 2014, the legislative package enacted last month that provides a framework for sustainable groundwater management by local authorities.
The materials include a fact sheet, an FAQ, an implementation schedule, a detailed summary of the legislation and a four-page briefing piece.
Submitted by Lisa Lien-Mager on Wed, 10/08/2014 – 9:45am
ACWA members got an in-depth look at water project operations in a changing climate at the a recent event sponsored by Regions 2 and 4, Region 2 Chair Eric Larabee writes in the latest entry in the Voices on Water blog.
Submitted by Emily Allshouse on Tue, 10/07/2014 – 1:29pm
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation on Saturday began releasing additional water from PacifiCorp’s Iron Gate Dam near Hornbrook, California in an effort to combat a parasite outbreak in coho and Chinook salmon in the upper Klamath River.
Flows at the Iron Gam Dam will increase from 1,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) to 1,750 cfs. The 75% increase will continue for 10 days and is expected to make the river current too strong for the parasite to swim through to reach the salmon.
Submitted by Emily Allshouse on Tue, 10/07/2014 – 1:21pm
The Regional Water Authority has launched a new “Drought Champs” campaign to thank Sacramento area residents for their efforts in conserving 20 billion gallons of water since January. That’s enough to meet the drinking water needs for 150,000 families for a year.
“Residents and businesses here in the Sacramento region answered the call to conserve,” said RWA Water Efficiency Program Manager Amy Talbot. “They truly deserve to be called ‘Drought Champs’ for their outstanding efforts.”
Submitted by Emily Allshouse on Tue, 10/07/2014 – 9:44am
The State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) is now accepting public comments on its draft Safe Drinking Water Plan through Dec. 15, 2014.
The plan includes the State Water Board’s assessment of the overall quality of the state’s drinking water, analysis of specific water problems and known and potential health risks associated with contaminated drinking water, and recommendations for improving water quality. The State Water Board anticipates a series of workshops on the plan will be announced soon.
Submitted by Pamela Martineau on Mon, 10/06/2014 – 2:42pm
If significant early rains occur this fall or winter, curtailed water right holders in the Sacramento, San Joaquin, Russian and Eel river watersheds may be able to divert or store water on a temporary basis, according to an announcement Oct. 3 by the State Water Resources Control Board.
Submitted by Josh Abel on Mon, 10/06/2014 – 1:30pm
The Environmental Protection Agency has announced that it will extend the comment period for its controversial Clean Water Rule. The deadline, which had previously been October 20th, is now extended to November 14th.
The EPA, in a statement, said that they had extended the deadline in order to provide time for the public to comment on a study of the connectivity of streams and wetlands that is currently being peer reviwed by the agency’s scientific advisory board (SAB). The EPA expects the SAB to complete its review shortly.
Submitted by Pamela Martineau on Mon, 10/06/2014 – 11:36am
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s Central Valley Project began water year 2015 with 3.1 million acre-feet of water in its six key CVP reservoirs which is less than half of the 15-year average annual carryover of 6.4 million acre-feet and about 2 million acre-feet less than the amount at the start of WY 2014.
Federal water managers say they are working closely with regional partners to develop strategies to grapple with limited water supplies. The 2015 water year began Oct. 1.
Submitted by Emily Allshouse on Thu, 10/02/2014 – 1:34pm
U.S. EPA Regional Administrator Jared Blumenfeld today announced that the EPA has released $183 million in funding for statewide water infrastructure and water quality projects.
Join us Tuesday, October 14, 2014 at the Riverside Convention Center in Riverside for the 6th Annual OWOW Event
Convened by the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority (SAWPA) and coordinated by the Water Education Foundation
It’s up to us to make sure we keep our cool!
Our regional planning has served us well. We can continue to thrive even through tough times by working together. Join us for a dynamic discussion of the next chapter of water resources challenges and opportunities.
Orange County Sanitation District, 10844 Eillis Ave., Fountain Valley, CA 92708
The California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA) is offering seminars to explore available funding in the wastewater sector. the seminars are itnended to help guide agency staff and others through various mechanims for financing wastewater projects today, including: the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, the Integrated Regional Water Management Grant Program and Public Private Partnerships.
Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District, 10060 Goethe Rd., Sacramento
The California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA) is offering seminars to explore available funding in the wastewater sector. the seminars are itnended to help guide agency staff and others through various mechanims for financing wastewater projects today, including: the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, the Integrated Regional Water Management Grant Program and Public Private Partnerships.
The Biennial Bay-Delta Science Conference is a forum for presenting technical analyses and results relevant to the Delta Science Program’s mission to provide the best possible, unbiased, science-based information for water and environmental decision-making in the Bay-Delta system. The goal of the conference is to provide new information and syntheses to the broad community of scientists, engineers, resource managers, and stakeholders working on Bay-Delta issues.
2014 is being touted as California’s single driest year on record and severe drought conditions have brought the state to a crossroads. Is drought now going to be the new normal in California? This program will help attendees understand the impacts of drought on the competing needs of urban, agricultural and environmental water users.
This 2-day, 1-night tour explores challenges associated with restoring flows and a Chinook salmon fishery to the San Joaquin River from below Friant Dam to the confluence with the Merced River.
Byron Sher Auditorium, CalEPA Headquarters, Sacramento, CA
A Berkeley Law Symposium
2014 marks the 20th anniversary of the State Water Resources Control Board’s (SWRCB) landmark Decision 1631 to amend the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s water rights to protect Mono Lake and its tributary creeks. The decision was the first in the state’s history to integrate the Water Code, Fish and Game Code, and the common law of public trust, to achieve such a result.
