Los Angeles Times, 4/26/23 - Water lapped Tuesday at the edges of 6th Avenue, where thousands of acres of once-fertile farmland sat sodden beneath several feet of stagnant floodwater.
The problem, state officials said, is only going to get worse in the days and weeks to come as temperatures rise and record-deep snowpack in the southern Sierra Nevada begins to melt and make its way downhill.
San Joaquin Valley Water, 4/25/23 - The Army Corps of Engineers will temporarily drop outflows from Isabella Dam to zero starting at midnight Wednesday so the power plant at the dam can shut down, according to Kern River Watermaster Mark Mulkay.
Once the power plant, run by Isabella Partners, is down, water will be routed through the dam’s gates and outflows into the Kern River will ramp back up through Thursday to 6,100-6,200 cubic feet per second.
Capital Public Radio, 4/25/23 - When rain storms pummel Sacramento, a city surrounded by levees, crews work all hours of the night to prevent flooding.
They monitor, control and maintain the city’s more than 100 stormwater lift stations, which residents depend on to pump water into creeks, canals, or the Sacramento or American Rivers.
The San Francisco Chronicle, 4/26/23 - Tulare Lake, the long dormant lake that made a surprise comeback in California’s San Joaquin Valley this year, has gotten so big with the wet weather that water experts say it won’t drain until at least next year, and maybe well after that.
More than 100 square miles of roads, farms and homes in the formerly dry lakebed between Fresno and Bakersfield remain submerged in the entrenched floodwaters.
Cal Matters, 4/26/23 - Good news: California has a near-record snowpack in the Sierra, which could ease the impact of our deep drought. Bad news: There’s a heat wave coming this week. Really bad news: If the snow melts too fast, it could help cause devastating floods in the Central Valley.
Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom went to Tulare Lake to survey the damage, speak to officials about safety plans and address potential threats from an issue he called “profound and existential.”
ABC News, 4/26/23 - Communities in California are bracing for substantial flooding as near-record high temperatures threaten to melt record amounts of heavy snowpack.
Surface levels in bodies of water all over California are the highest they have been in decades since the start of the mega drought due to several rounds of atmospheric rivers that walloped the West Coast during the wet season.
The New York Times, 4/25/23 - Global warming is making dangerously hot weather more common, and more extreme, on every continent. A new study by researchers in Britain takes a unique approach to identifying which places are most at risk.
KTLA (Los Angeles), 4/25/23 - The beautiful array of nighttime colors called the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, was visible above Mammoth Lakes on Sunday, according to KTLA sister stations KSEE/KGPE.
Pictures shared to YourCentralValley.com by photographer Carter Murphy show the ordinarily dark night sky lit up with purple and blue hues with streaks of light interspersed creating an utterly unique image.
KCRA (Sacramento), 4/25/23 - Fire crews are testing their skills this week to make sure they are prepared for peak California wildfire season. Tuesday was Cal Fire's annual crew preparedness drill, Capt. Dan Collins said, explaining that this drill "is a very vital part of getting ready."
They gathered at the Reader Ranch in Nevada County, about five miles south of North San Juan, aiming to get the highest level of certification as part of a Cal Fire Type I Fire Crew.
CBS News, 4/26/23 - There's a new nugget to this winter's historic storms in California: All the runoff is exposing more gold, CBS Sacramento's Steve Large reports. Albert Fausel is a third-generation owner of the Placerville Hardware store, which opened in 1852.
The Sacramento Bee, 4/25/23 - As temperatures continue to heat up, it may be tempting to take a dip in the many rivers throughout the Sacramento region — but think again. California rivers are expected to rise this spring to levels not seen in years, according to a California Department of Water Resources news release.
Los Angeles Times, 4/25/23 - A gray whale has been in the San Francisco Bay since early February, a record amount of time that could put the animal at risk of being struck by a ship, according to the Marine Mammal Center.
The whale, which arrived Feb. 9, was spotted Monday — 75 days later — by a research team on a boat, according to Bill Keener of the cetacean conservation biology team at the Marine Mammal Center, a nonprofit rescue organization.
Sierra Sun Times, 4/26/23 - U.S. Representatives Jim Costa (CA-21) and John Curtis (UT-04) have introduced the Restoring WIFIA Eligibility Act, which would provide flexibility for San Joaquin Valley water users to meet water quality standards and improve water storage.
Reuters, 4/25/23 - Most of the vast, scenic valley at the heart of Yosemite National Park in California will close to visitors this weekend in a rare shutdown prompted by forecasts of floods from rapid snowmelt.
The closure will start at 10 p.m. on Friday and last at least until Wednesday, May 3, possibly longer, depending on how swiftly melting mountain snow runs off into the Merced River through Yosemite Valley, the National Park Service said on Tuesday.
California just saw one of the driest and warmest three-year periods on record end in an epic wet season. As we head into spring, when snow melts and demand skyrockets, it’s a good time to take stock. Is the drought over? Did we sock away some water for the next dry period? Where are we most vulnerable to flooding? And what might we do better? Join us for a panel discussion with three experts who can speak to all these issues—and more.
The California Water Plan describes and updates a broad set of resource management strategies (RMSs) that help local agencies and governments manage their water and related resources. Every RMS can be a technique, program, or policy that can be used to meet water-related management needs of a region and the state as a whole.
During this workshop, the Water Plan Team will gather comments on the draft Reservoir Reoperation RMS.
This will be an online only workshop, please register to receive the link.
Join DWR’s California Water Plan Team for a workshop webinar that will share and discuss water balance data - data foundational to building the state’s water resilience.
The California Financing Coordination Committee (CFCC) conducts free funding fairs statewide each year to educate the public and offer potential customers the opportunity to meet with financial representatives from each agency to learn more about their available funding. CFCC members facilitate and expedite the completion of various types of infrastructure projects by helping customers combine the resources of different agencies.
University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources - This online short course will review the fundamental principles of groundwater and watershed hydrology, water budgets, water quality, and water law and regulation in an intuitive, highly accessible fashion. Through real world examples, participants learn about the most common tools for measuring, monitoring, and assessing groundwater and surface water resources. We then review the key steps and elements of planning for groundwater sustainability and implementing projects and management actions.
Series: May 4, 19, and June 1 | 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
The California Water Plan describes and updates a broad set of resource management strategies (RMSs) that help local agencies and governments manage their water and related resources. Every RMS can be a technique, program, or policy that can be used to meet water-related management needs of a region and the state as a whole.
During this workshop, the Water Plan Team will gather comments on the draft Water Use Efficiency RMS.
The California Financing Coordination Committee (CFCC) conducts free funding fairs statewide each year to educate the public and offer potential customers the opportunity to meet with financial representatives from each agency to learn more about their available funding. CFCC members facilitate and expedite the completion of various types of infrastructure projects by helping customers combine the resources of different agencies.
This tour explores the heart of California water policy – the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and San Francisco Bay – to learn about the critical role the Delta plays in the state, Delta planning initiatives, water project operations, fish passage, ecosystem restoration, levees and flood management, Delta agriculture and water supply reliability.
The California Water Plan describes and updates a broad set of resource management strategies (RMSs) that help local agencies and governments manage their water and related resources. Every RMS can be a technique, program, or policy that can be used to meet water-related management needs of a region and the state as a whole.
During this workshop, the Water Plan Team will gather comments on the draft Desalination RMS.
The California Financing Coordination Committee (CFCC) conducts free funding fairs statewide each year to educate the public and offer potential customers the opportunity to meet with financial representatives from each agency to learn more about their available funding. CFCC members facilitate and expedite the completion of various types of infrastructure projects by helping customers combine the resources of different agencies.
Groundwater Resources Association of California - The popular Annual GSA Summit is getting revamped in collaboration with the ACWA Groundwater Committee and SGMA Implementation Subcommittee. This is a once-a-year get-together to foster progress on SGMA implementation, collaborating with ACWA members and implementers and GRA technical experts.
When: June 7 - 8, 2023 Where: Kimpton Sawyer Hotel in Sacramento
DWR is responsible for managing and protecting California’s water resources and works with others to benefit the State’s people and to protect, restore, and enhance the natural and human environments. DWR operates and maintains the State Water Project, oversees dam safety, provides flood protection, helps in emergency response, assists regional and local water agencies, promotes water conservation and safety, and plans integrated watershed management – in all to advance water resource sustainability.
The California Water News is distributed to California Department of Water Resources (DWR) management and staff, for information purposes, by the DWR Public Affairs Office. Inclusion of materials is not to be construed as an endorsement of any program, project, or viewpoint. If a link doesn’t work, entering the headline into Google News should locate the original news story.
