June 23, 2020 | Written by Michelle E. Chester On June 18, 2020, the Third District Court of Appeal affirmed the lower court’s determination that the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) lawfully adopted emergency regulations and curtailment orders during the State’s most recent drought emergency. The regulations and orders at the center […]
Read MoreCalifornia Appellate Court Upholds Water Board’s Broad Drought Response Authority California’s Court of Appeal for the Third Appellate District recently upheld the State Water Resources Control Board’s temporary emergency drought response regulations–enacted in 2014-15–as well as related curtailment orders the Board issued to specific water users to implement those regulations. In doing so, the Water […]
Read MoreWide-scale cannabis cultivation is causing environmental damage. Federal regulations could change this. By Jodi Helmer Thanks to the legalization of recreational cannabis in 10 states and the District of Columbia, sparking up a joint in these areas is as easy as ordering a glass of wine. Spending on legal cannabis, which includes 33 states and the […]
Read MoreIf Trump’s Dirty Water Rule is finalized it will leave millions of acres of wetlands without clear Clean Water Act safeguards, along with streams throughout the nation. This will jeopardize the sources of drinking water and create uncertainty for the communities and businesses that rely on access to clean water and the protections that wetlands […]
Read MoreCourt Rejects Claim That SGMA “Displaces” Public Trust’s Application to California Groundwater RICHARD FRANK, August 29, 2018 The California Court of Appeal for the Third Appellate District has issued an important decision declaring that California’s powerful public trust doctrine applies to at least some of the state’s overtaxed groundwater resources. The court’s opinion also rejects […]
Read MoreWhat has been described as “America’s most-important conservation program” is set to expire Sept. 30. Established in 1964, the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) has provided—at no cost to U.S. taxpayers—millions of dollars for conservation, land acquisition, park access, infrastructure improvements, and much more. But in December 2015 Congress struck a deal to reauthorize the LWCF […]
Read MoreWhat has been described as “America’s most-important conservation program” is set to expire Sept. 30. Established in 1964, the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) has provided—at no cost to U.S. taxpayers—millions of dollars for conservation, land acquisition, park access, infrastructure improvements, and much more. But in December 2015 Congress struck a deal to reauthorize the LWCF […]
Read MoreAB 2889 I have submitted a letter to the Natural Resources Committee (attached) and added sections from the Forest Practice Act (the proposed leg. language makes the review team (interagency review process noted in the Act and the Forest Practice Rules)) process + plus public comment and Calfire review impossible). After re-reading #5 in the […]
Read MoreTo All, March 1st, we have a true water wizard joining us: Brock Dolman of OAEC. Brock is a biologist who’s spend decades of his life researching and campaigning for restoring watersheds and beavers across California. He brings a true understanding of water dynamics, and will show how we can protect our watersheds, and restore […]
Read MoreNew York City’s water system moves over a billion gallons a day, nearly all of it unfiltered. A major investment aims to keep it that way. By WINNIE HU New Yorkers like to brag about their tap water. Not only is it safe to swill, but it has even been called the “champagne of drinking water.” […]
Read MoreTo All, April 29 – May 2, 2018 | Olympic Valley, California River Rally, hosted annually by River Network, is a national conference for river and water champions. Unique in its focus on providing practical education, inspiring courage, and celebrating achievements, River Rally brings together hundreds of people from across the United States and the […]
Read MoreSix western states now allow recreational use of marijuana, creating a huge new legal market for cannabis farmers. But the implications for water supplies remain a big unknown. “It looks like a mess right now,” one expert says. Written by Matt Weiser Published on Jan. 3, 2018 Read time Approx. 10 minutes States throughout the West have rushed to legalize […]
Read MoreTo All, As California and other Western states begin to measure the (so far slowly) accumulating snowpack, we’re turning our attention to some of the biggest water issues that will be facing the region in 2018. What’s the fate of California WaterFix? Will California decide to allocate money to build its first big dam in […]
Read MoreCalifornia’s State Water Board recently passed new policies that will regulate water impacts from marijuana growing operations. Erin Ragazzi and Scott Couch of the Water Board discuss the challenges. Written by Ian Evans Published on Nov. 7, 2017 On October 17, the California State Water Resources Control Board adopted new environmental policies to regulate how marijuana growing […]
Read MoreTo All (from Water Deeply), When you sit down to eat dinner, it might not be obvious how much water went into making your meal. But our kitchen tables are flooded with hidden water costs. According to the Los Angeles Times, a pound of beef requires more than 1,700 gallons of water to produce and […]
Read MoreTo All, This is a short policy forum piece from Science worth reading to see the arguments fabricated by the Trump administration to overturn the 2015 Waters of the United States rule. This is the rule that addresses the reach of the Clean Water Act. How far does it extend into wetlands, if at all. […]
Read Moreby onthepublicrecord The California Water Blog recently created a list of “dangerous ideas in California water”. Here are a few additional dangerous ideas in CA water management. That conventional growth predictions are immutable and will pose new demand that we must meet. There are a few predictions for the mid-century that I hear often. The top […]
Read MoreTo All, An important film that gives the little known state of California’s water is Water & Power: A California Heist. Here is a link to see it: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt6290202/ Larry
Read MoreDear Larry, Every so often, I’ll receive a call or email from a Sierra Club member asking what Sierra Club California’s position is on the proposed Delta tunnels. The number of inquiries has increased lately because the tunnels have been in the news more than usual. Let me say at the top: Sierra Club California […]
Read MoreIt is notoriously difficult to access and interpret information on water rights. Water Sage, a new web-based service now offered in California, aims to take the sting out of this task for individuals and institutions alike. Written by Matt Weiser Published on Apr. 11, 2017 Who owns the water? And how much do they use? These are simple questions. […]
Read MoreCelebrating the end of the drought will be short-lived, as state officials stressed that California continue along its course to improve conservation and efficiency to prepare for future droughts. Written by Tara Lohan Published on Apr. 9, 2017 As Northern California inched closer on Friday to breaking the record for the wettest water year in California’s recorded history, Gov. […]
Read MoreWHO: Speakers will include Heather Govern from the National Environmental Law Center and Whitey Markle from the Suwannee/St. Johns Sierra Club Group. WHAT: An educational webinar on how to use the Clean Water Act to file and win a citizen lawsuit! WHEN: Tentative date is Tuesday, 6/27. Time will be confirmed at a later date. […]
Read MoreTo All, Join the California Water Boards for an engaging conversation on “Enhancing Groundwater Recharge with Stormwater” with Andrew T. Fisher, Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences, UC Santa Cruz. This event will be held on Tuesday, May 30, 2017 from 130pm to 230pm at 1001 I Street, Sacramento, CA 95814 (Klamath Room) and via […]
Read MoreMarch 7th, 5am Over the last 18 months, California has experienced one of the driest, wettest and wildest rides in its recorded water history. As the 2015-16 water year opened in October 2015, drought had driven the state’s reservoir and groundwater levels to all-time lows. Entire towns were left without water. Reports of lakes turned […]
Read MoreThe California Water Commission is now accepting applications for the Water Storage Investment Program. The application period will be open from March 14, 2017 to August 14, 2017. The Commission recently launched an Application Resources page which contains a link to the Department of Water Resources submittal site GRanTS, a web-based tool for managing funding applications and related […]
Read MoreFrom SF Chonicle March 12, 2017 Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle Botanist, Rhiannon Korhummel, (left) and Biologist Stephanie Freed, with WRA Environmental Consultants assess the quality of the wetlands habitat neat the Sears Point Restoration site on the edge of San Pablo Bay in Novato, California on Tues. April 19, 2016. When the president made […]
Read Moreby Stett Holbrook December 07, 2016 Sonoma and Napa counties respond differently to new groundwater law Call it a tale of two counties. A new state law requires that local governments regulate groundwater for the first time. Sonoma County has begun a lengthy process to create long-term sustainable groundwater management plans for its at-risk water […]
Read MoreFrom Restore the Delta: Today, the Delta Tunnels Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS) was released online. As we mentioned yesterday, this document is not a green light for the Delta Tunnels but rather should be understood as the submission of homework by sponsoring agencies (California Department of Water Resources and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation) […]
Read MoreSource watersheds will now be acknowledged as infrastructure By Pacific Forest Trust – September 28, 2016, 08:27:08 AM SACRAMENTO, California September 27, 2016 – Governor Jerry Brown took a significant step today to preserve and maintain the key sources of the state’s water supply. With his signature, Assembly Bill 2480 became law, requiring recognition of […]
Read MoreTo All, This Lawsuit Has Put Big Ag On The Defensive In A Major Way A pending Iowa case could set a new national precedent for water pollution stemming from farms. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/des-moines-water-iowa-farm-lawsuit_us_579a4957e4b0d3568f867e28?section= Three highly agricultural counties — Buena Vista, Calhoun and Sac — named in a controversial lawsuit brought by the Des Moines Water Works. […]
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