A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
December 5, 2007
2. Supply
WINTER WEATHER:
Typically wild Sierra weather tame so far; Current weather pattern gives little hope for storms - Nevada Appeal
WATER SHORTAGE:
Rain may help water crisis in RV - Ukiah daily Journal
WATER RECYCLING:
Editorial: Transforming wastewater; Thirsty
WINTER WEATHER:
Typically wild Sierra weather tame so far; Current weather pattern gives little hope for storms
By Tanya Camino, Sun News Service
However, weather in the Sierra is always a wild ride.
“We’re definitely way, way down. If December got zero precipitation, which would really be amazing in Tahoe, this would be the second driest year in 70 years (for
The driest year was 1976 with 9.34 inches of precipitation recorded at Lake Tahoe’s only outlet, the
But as weather watchers warn, you never know in the Sierra.
The average precipitation in
“The point is, it could happen, it could be a monster month,” Ashby said.
His cohort at the
“The types of patterns we are in is not conducive to bringing moisture to the Sierra,”
A strong La Nina is sending moisture north of
“The guts of winter is December, January and February,” he said.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released its three-month forecast for the Western United States on Nov. 15, showing
“It’s not looking good at the moment. There are no strong systems moving in to jolt us out of the doldrums,”
The start to the water year, which begins Oct. 1, was helped by storms in October, but November has been 17 percent of average precipitation.
“October contributed a little more than its share. November is falling down on the job. It may get its license revoked. We’re getting rid of it and we’ll try again in December,”
He said Northern Nevada and
Ashby said “there’s no doubt” we’re in a drought.
Federal Watermaster Garry Stone said the reservoirs in the
Yet, the Sierra’s reputation for the unpredictable could bode well.
“With a La Nina there is not a strong tendency to be wet or dry. But the only thing we can say with a little bit more certainty is that there is a somewhat higher chance of major events,”
Two of the more recent La Nina flooding events were 1985-86 and 1996-97.
“As far as the numbers are concerned, yeah, but to me we’re always in a drought even in a normal year,” Ashby said, adding that
However, drought is hard to quantify,
‘Drought is a touchy word in
Jay Lund, a
“For this climate, you don’t know if you’re in a drought for a couple of years. People sometimes talk about it being a creeping disaster,”
He said official droughts were 1928-34, 1976-77, and 1988-92.
“I think people are starting to wonder if this is the beginning of a drought,”
Last year was a dry year, but the impacts were not felt because the 2005-06 year was such a high water year. If this year is dry, the back-to-back dry years will make an impact.
Federal Watermaster Garry Stone said the reservoirs in the
“We had a reserve and it got pretty well used up. (The reservoirs) are going into the winter in a diminished capacity,”
Yet, the Sierra’s reputation for the unpredictable could predictably bode well.
“With a La Nina there is not a strong tendency to be wet or dry. But the only thing we can say with a little bit more certainty is that there is a somewhat higher chance of major events,”
Two of the more recent La Nina flooding events were 1985-86 and 1996-97.
There are some, however, who no longer wait for Mother Nature’s whims. Sierra ski resorts now rely on snowmaking for their winter coverage.
“We don’t get too worried for a drier winter, as long as the temperatures stay cool, we make snow,” said Kayla Anderson, marketing coordinator at Diamond Peak Ski Area. #
http://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/SS/20071203/NEWS/71203002/-1/REGION
WATER SHORTAGE:
Rain may help water crisis in RV
Ukiah daily Journal – 12/5/07
More than an inch of rain fell on the Ukiah area Monday night, raising hopes that a normal rain season will make emergency water conservation measures unnecessary.
"If things go well, we'll just squeak by another close call," said Bill Koehler, general manager for the Redwood Valley Water District.
The Redwood Valley Water District Board is planning to declare a water emergency next week because low water storage in
Despite Monday's rain, and more forecasted for the end of the week, Koehler said the board will still be holding it's emergency meeting and may still declare an emergency, even if rainfall raises the level of water in the lake.
Last month, storage in
As of 4 p.m. Monday storage in
Koehler said the week's rain would lend support to the board's decision to take a softer approach to the conservation problem in
If the board votes to declare an emergency Tuesday, it will have the power to activate an ordinance that allows for mandatory conservation measures, including setting a limit to the amount of water available to a household, and giving the district the option of shutting off water for violators.
"We're certainly hoping to not have to use those harsh measures," Koehler said.
Currently, the board is planning to shut off all agricultural water and ask residential consumers to increase their rate of conservation to 40 percent. The district has reached 30 percent conservation through voluntary measures.
According to the National Weather Service, 1.24 inches of rain fell on
http://www.ukiahdailyjournal.com/ci_7640952
WATER RECYCLING:
Editorial: Transforming wastewater; Thirsty
The Orange County Water District's new $480-million Groundwater Replenishment System is set to launch operations Dec. 15. It will take treated wastewater -- a.k.a. sewage -- from an adjacent treatment plant, force it through state-of-the-art microfiltration, reverse-osmosis and ultraviolet-ray purification systems, and then dump the resulting 70 million gallons of purified water a day into a system of ponds in
When Los Angeles tried to do something like this a decade ago, constructing a $55-million wastewater reclamation plant in the eastern San Fernando Valley, citizens flew off the handle, fretting about the prospect of water flowing from "toilet to tap." Politicians who had supported the project reversed course in 2000 and shut it down.
But
On Monday,
As the discussions proceed, Angelenos should resist false notions about fecal matter spewing from kitchen faucets and accept the basic truth about, well, fecal matter spewing from kitchen faucets. Water molecules are water molecules are water molecules. The same limited number of them have been recycled continuously for billions of years. Treated sewage already flows into the Colorado River, the
With supplies from the
####
No comments:
Post a Comment