California leads effort to let rivers roam, lower flood risk
2 years, 8 months ago

California leads effort to let rivers roam, lower flood risk

Associated Press  

MODESTO, Calif. — Between vast almond orchards and dairy pastures in the heart of California’s farm country sits a property being redesigned to look like it did 150 years ago, before levees restricted the flow of rivers that weave across the landscape. The Dos Rios Ranch Preserve is California’s largest single floodplain restoration project, part of the nation’s broadest effort to rethink how rivers flow as climate change alters the environment. “It’s giving new life ecologically but in a way that’s consistent with, complementary to, the human systems that have developed over the 150 years since the Gold Rush,” said Julie Rentner, president of Rivers Partners. “Dos Rios is an amazing example, but we need like 30 more of those,” said Jane Dolan, chair of the Central Valley Flood Protection Board. “One of the things that drives me crazy about California water is that decision makers want to talk about floods in flood years and droughts in drought years,” said Barry Nelson, a water consultant who worked on the Dos Rios project.

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History of this topic

‘We can do better’: Western states divided over long-term plans for Colorado River water
9 months, 2 weeks ago

‘We can do better’: Western states divided over long-term plans for Colorado River water

LA Times  

With climate change compounding the strains on the Colorado River, seven Western states are starting to consider long-term plans for reducing water use to prevent the river’s reservoirs from reaching critically low levels in the years to come. In one camp, the three states in the river’s lower basin — California, Arizona and Nevada — say their approach would share …

How freeing rivers can help California ease flood risks and revive ecosystems
10 months ago

How freeing rivers can help California ease flood risks and revive ecosystems

LA Times  

Throughout the Central Valley, California’s rivers have long been held within their banks by levees and berms, artificially disrupting the natural cycles of flooding and preventing streams from meandering across the landscape. “Floodplains are this really important feature of rivers,” said Julie Rentner, president of the nonprofit group River Partners, which has led the restoration effort along with the Tuolumne …

California is still at risk of flooding. Maybe rivers just need some space
1 year, 6 months ago

California is still at risk of flooding. Maybe rivers just need some space

NPR  

California is still at risk of flooding. "We love to see the floodwater on our property," says Jon Carlon, co-founder of River Partners, as he looks across the water from an aluminum boat. "Rivers move and that's a really hard concept for us with property rights and roads and infrastructure," Carlon says. toggle caption Lauren Sommer/NPR Regulations are for levees …

Explainer: What does the latest Colorado River proposal mean for California, Arizona, Nevada?
1 year, 7 months ago

Explainer: What does the latest Colorado River proposal mean for California, Arizona, Nevada?

Associated Press  

LAS VEGAS — Facing the future with a dwindling Colorado River supply and intense pressure from the federal government, Arizona, California and Nevada have offered a plan to cut their water use significantly. Metropolitan will turn to other sources of water and leave about 250,000 acre-feet in Lake Mead this year, said Bill Hasencamp, the district’s manager of Colorado River …

Explainer: What does the latest Colorado River proposal mean for California, Arizona, Nevada?
1 year, 7 months ago

Explainer: What does the latest Colorado River proposal mean for California, Arizona, Nevada?

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Facing the future with a …

Flush with rain, California plans to replenish drought-depleted groundwater with floodwaters
1 year, 9 months ago

Flush with rain, California plans to replenish drought-depleted groundwater with floodwaters

LA Times  

The Delta-Mendota Canal, part of the federal Central Valley Project, runs along the western edge of the San Joaquin Valley. California water officials have approved a plan to divert more than 600,000 acre-feet of floodwaters from the San Joaquin River to recharge groundwater and supply wildlife refuges. “We are taking steps to maximize groundwater recharge in a way that the …

California debates what to do with water from recent storms
1 year, 10 months ago

California debates what to do with water from recent storms

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Weeks after powerful storms dumped 32 trillion gallons of rain and snow on California, state officials and environmental groups in the drought-ravaged state are grappling with what to do with all of that water. “This governor is the most anti-environmental governor, with respect to endangered species and California water, that we’ve had in my lifetime,” said Jon …

California releases its own plan for Colorado River cuts
1 year, 10 months ago

California releases its own plan for Colorado River cuts

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California released a plan Tuesday detailing how Western states reliant on the Colorado River should save more water. Unlike the other states’ plan, California’s does not factor the roughly 1.5 million acre feet of Colorado River water lost to evaporation and transportation. “That was the issue over the summer, that was the issue over the fall, that’s …

Battling to avoid massive water cuts, California offers proposal on Colorado River crisis
1 year, 10 months ago

Battling to avoid massive water cuts, California offers proposal on Colorado River crisis

LA Times  

California has given the federal government its own proposal for making cuts in Colorado River water use, saying a plan offered by six other states would disproportionately burden farms and cities in Southern California. In the proposal letter, J.B. Hamby, chair of California’s Colorado River Board, said the state’s alternative “provides a realistic and implementable framework to address reduced inflows …

New push to shore up shrinking Colorado River could reduce water flow to California
2 years, 1 month ago

New push to shore up shrinking Colorado River could reduce water flow to California

LA Times  

Water flows down the Colorado River at the Glen Canyon Dam near Page, Ariz. White surfaces along the banks of the river and lake show previous water levels in the second-largest reservoir in the U.S. With the nation’s two largest reservoirs continuing to decline, federal officials announced plans Friday to revise their current rules for dealing with Colorado River shortages …

California agencies float Colorado River water cuts proposal
2 years, 2 months ago

California agencies float Colorado River water cuts proposal

Associated Press  

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California water agencies that rely on the parched Colorado River said Wednesday they can reduce their use by one-tenth starting in 2023 in response to calls for cuts from the federal government. The proposal to cut 400,000 acre feet annually marks the first time California water agencies are publicly and formally indicating what they’re willing to give …

More water restrictions likely as California pledges to cut use of Colorado River supply
2 years, 2 months ago

More water restrictions likely as California pledges to cut use of Colorado River supply

LA Times  

With the Colorado River in crisis and reservoir levels continuing to decline, some California water agencies are planning to significantly reduce the amount they take from the river starting next year. Four water districts and the state’s Colorado River Board said in a letter to the federal government on Wednesday that they are proposing to reduce water use by up …

California water agencies brace for Colorado River cuts
2 years, 3 months ago

California water agencies brace for Colorado River cuts

LA Times  

California water districts are under growing pressure to shoulder substantial water cutbacks as the federal government pushes for urgent solutions to prevent the Colorado River’s badly depleted reservoirs from reaching dangerously low levels. They include improving water efficiency in agriculture, creating a regional program to help people with the costs of removing grass, and redefining “beneficial use” to eliminate “wasteful …

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