Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation for DWR personnel of significant news articles and comment
July 28, 2008
1. Top Items -
Lake Oroville
Chico
Editorial
THE GREAT THIRST: Oceans of water, Although desalination is costly and energy intensive, it should be part of our long-term strategy.
The
Editorial
Bad Timing: Economic problems get in way of water bond
Vacaville
Editorial
Delta canal still our best option
Daily Bulletin- 7/26/08
Without dam, S.J. is next in line for water
The
Will there be a wave of the future for the Salton Sea
The Desert Sun- 7/26/08
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Lake Oroville
Chico
By ALLISON WHITE, Staff Writer
OROVILLE — Fire, smoke and record low lake levels have made for a slightly slower season at
The drought had lowered the lake elevation to 709.52 feet on Sunday — a record low for the date — making it more like a river than a lake, said John Prieto, operations manager for Lake Oroville Marina, previously known as Lime Saddle.
The lake is considered full at 900 feet.
"As
It is one of the biggest resources for the state's water needs and so the water is in high demand.
With such low lake levels, Prieto has found different parts of the lake that hadn't been seen in 20 years due to high lake levels.
"We have nice beaches popping up," he said.
His marina can still operate until the elevation level gets down to 705 feet. That may happen within the next week, and many people with houseboats will have to put them in "dry storage," propped up with stacks of wood and away from the lake.
However, fewer people are making it out to the lake while they still can, he said.
"The people who have come out and enjoyed the lake find it nice and quiet," he said. The fishing has actually been better with the lower levels. With less water to swim in, the fish are more concentrated, which makes catching salmon, bass, catfish or anything else easier, Prieto said.
The biggest deterrent for people to come in the past few weeks has been road closures and smoky atmospheres due to the fires, he said. The marina has been hurt by those just coming in for the day, but the marina has given gas credit to renters who had already scheduled to come up but would have to go another dock.
Those who stayed to enjoy the lake were met with a clear, blue sky Sunday afternoon.
Monica Morgan of Oroville spent the night with her friend on a houseboat for the weekend. She enjoyed that it wasn't crowded, but didn't like the water level.
"Still, it's sad to see the water so low," she said. "It's heartbreaking."
She was surprised to see all the houseboats on dry land on the way to the lake, especially since her brother's, the one she stayed in, was still on the lake, she said. The smoke made her hesitant to come to the lake and it was an issue Saturday morning, but she said skies cleared up and they were able to swim and relax.
"I made the best of it," she said. "I don't know the next time I'll be able to enjoy it."#
http://www.chicoer.com/news/oroville/ci_10019337
Editorial
THE GREAT THIRST: Oceans of water, Although desalination is costly and energy intensive, it should be part of our long-term strategy.
The
It's easy to understand why so many of us, hearing of threats from climate change and shrinking water supplies, turn our gaze west to the mighty Pacific. The
The ocean practically is endless. As
So why not,
Desalination, as the process of removing salt from water is known, will be an important part of
Desalinating ocean water could provide cities with new "local" water sources that, unlike the imported water that currently slakes our thirst, wouldn't be affected by problems in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta or fights over water rights on the
But as attractive as it sounds, desalination won't be the saving hand that pulls our lush lawns and alfalfa fields from the jaws of arid reality. It is, and probably will remain, too expensive, too energy intensive and potentially too harmful to the environment to provide most of the water our state needs. By 2030, state water planners predict, desalination is likely to generate just a small portion -- less than 10% -- of
Desalination plants employ a process called reverse osmosis, which forces a liquid through a filtering membrane to purify it. Unfortunately, the process is very, very energy intensive -- using about 30% more power than the energy-intensive systems already in place. To put this in perspective: The purification systems and massive pumps that today movewater throughout the state use almost 20%of all the energy consumed in
There are other environmental impacts to consider too. Like the intakes of water-cooled power plants, which also suck inwater from the ocean, desalination facilities can trap fish and larvae, harming marine life. Every two gallons of seawater processed create one gallon of potable water and another of double-strength brine, which must be diluted before it can be dumped (usually, discharged back into the ocean).
Because of strict development regulations on the coast, acquiring permits for desalination plants is a complicated and expensive process. Poseidon Resources Corp., a water infrastructure development company based in
These costs add up -- and get passed on to consumers. Today, treated water purchased from the Metropolitan Water District costs about $500 per acre foot (an acre foot, or 326,000 gallons, is enough water to supply two families for one year). Because the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is able to supplement MWD water with groundwater at $200 to $250 per acre foot and imports from the
In the short term, desalinated water is unaffordable for
Because cities must develop local water supplies, we urge the Coastal Commission to grant final approval for the Poseidon plant in
But desalination is just one in a broad portfolio of technologies and strategies that
Desalination isn't some kind of magic that will allow us to continue sprinkling our sidewalks, hosing down our driveways and taking hourlong showers. Its modest promise cannot become an excuse to waste water. It must be a complement to conservation -- not an alternative to it.#
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-ed-desal28-2008jul28,0,5751229.story
Editorial
Bad Timing: Economic problems get in way of water bond
Vacaville
It may be putting the cart before the horse, but the recent agreement between Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and California Sen. Diane Feinstein to support a $9.3 billion bond to begin assuring the state's water supply is a step in the right direction.
Certainly there are plenty of alarms going off about the longterm ability of Californians to count on anything coming out of their taps when they turn on their faucets. The traditional water sources are drying up.
There has been less snow in the Sierras in recent years, and the winter rains are ending earlier, making for longer dry summers. Last month, the governor used the "D" word - drought - in describing the state's current condition.
Meanwhile, a federal court has ordered cuts in the amount of water farmers and urban residents can take out of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, in hopes of restoring health to that ecosystem and stem the loss of smelt and salmon.
The Delta - the heart of
None of these problems are new. But dealing with them in a comprehensive fashion is. To his credit, the governor got that ball rolling a couple of years ago, appointing a Blue Ribbon Commission to come up with an all-encompassing vision for how the state should handle the many problems facing the Delta, which forms the southern and eastern borders of Solano County.
That commission produced its vision last fall, recommending a multi-pronged approach. It is now working out the details of implementation, in a report that is due in October.
The governor and Sen. Feinstein took a cue from that vision and put together a funding proposal to pay for some of the expected suggestions.
There would be money to restore the Delta ecosystem and to improve the way water gets moved around. There would be incentives for conservation, which Democrats favor, and funds to establish new water storage systems, both underground facilities and the dams that Republicans have been pushing.
Sure, offering something for everyone sweetens the pot, but more important is that it does take a comprehensive approach to a complicated matter.
The problem is the timing.
The state is almost a full month into the new fiscal year and still there is no budget. When one finally emerges, it is sure to contain drastic cuts in service and/or increases in fees or taxes, since those are the only two ways to handle a $15.2 billion deficit.
Californians are already reeling from the mortgage industry meltdown and the ripple effect it has had on jobs and the economy. People are struggling to make ends meet in a state that can't afford much in the way of a social safety net.
So just how likely is it that voters will feel like signing off on another big loan when the state can't pay the bills it's already got?
It's too bad, really. This bond does represent a major step forward in gaining bipartisan support to deal with problems that will affect everyone in
But it's a matter of timing, and this time, it's just off. The governor and Sen. Feinstein should shelve this proposal for now, but bring it back as soon as the state gets its finances in order.#
http://www.thereporter.com/opinion/ci_10013776
Editorial
Delta canal still our best option
Daily Bulletin- 7/26/08
A new research report attests that a Peripheral Canal, proposed a quarter-century ago by then state Sen. Ruben Ayala of Chino, is the best way to avert potential environmental and water-supply disasters centering on the Delta region.
The governor's Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force posited in a December report that a "dual conveyance" system might be best for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, which provides much of the state's fresh water. That is, a system whereby some water would be pumped out of the Delta as is done now, and some would be diverted around the Delta and transferred directly to cities and farms.
But researchers with the Public Policy Institute of California, an independent research organization, found that a version of the old
The PPIC study considered four options: continue to pump water through the Delta; build a peripheral canal to convey water around the Delta; combine the two in a "dual conveyance" strategy; or end water exports, weaning much of the state from the Delta as a water source.
Instead, the PPIC suggests that some of the economic benefits of a peripheral canal be used to support ecosystem investments in the Delta. Researchers found that the canal could be more responsive to the Delta's changes over time than would through-Delta pumping alone or combined with a canal. Their costs-benefits analysis showed the canal to be a clear winner.
In other words, dump the fish-swallowing pumps and divert a portion of the rivers' waters before they flow into the Delta. The portion diverted would have to be managed to balance water-supply needs with the Delta's ecology.
Considering the danger of earthquake-caused collapse of the old earthen levees around the Delta - which would disastrously mingle saltwater with the Delta's fresh water and leave much of the state without potable water - there's little question that a canal is the way to secure the state's lifeline.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger hopes to put a $9.3 billion water bond measure on the November ballot.
Unfortunately, that proposal does not include money to build a canal.
It should.#
http://www.dailybulletin.com/ci_10008712
Without dam, S.J. is next in line for water
The
By Bill Jennings, executive director, California Sportfishing Protection Alliance
The Record's otherwise excellent coverage Tuesday of the State Water Board's proposed revocation of the U.S. Bureau or Reclamation's water rights for Auburn Dam implied that revocation threatens
This is simply not the case. The county cannot obtain any of that water from the bureau unless Auburn Dam is actually constructed.
Water rights are assigned to a specific purpose, and it has become clear that Auburn Dam will never be completed.
Construction stopped in 1975 because of seismic problems and congressional opposition; costs have escalated to an estimated $8 billion or $9 billion; expected project yield has been reduced; and the anticipated price of delivered water has skyrocketed.
The key fact that was missed in The Record article is that if the bureau's water rights at
Unfortunately, the fundamental problem facing the county is that, regardless of whether any new water comes from Auburn Dam or pursuant to its own application, the county must have an approved project to divert and put that water to beneficial use.
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080726/A_OPINION02/807260308/-1/A_OPINION
Will there be a wave of the future for the Salton Sea
The Desert Sun- 7/26/08
Sen. Denise Moreno Ducheny, D-San Diego, Special to the Desert Sun
Restoration efforts for the
There have been recent articles on the issue of the
After the Quantification Settlement Agreement was signed in late 2003, the state took responsibility for the sea and began the process of developing a preferred alternative through a Programmatic Environmental Impact Report.
In May 2007, California Secretary of Resources Michael Chrisman announced the results of the environmental study and I was happy to put that framework into Senate Bill 187. SB 187 made it through the Senate and over to the Assembly, but it stalled in the Assembly Appropriations Committee and remains there today. I have every intention of trying to get SB 187 signed into law this year.
While the legislative agenda stalled last year, I still wanted to ensure that our efforts at the sea continued. In last year's budget, I was able to secure funding to allow the Department of Water Resources and the Department of Fish and Game to begin early monitoring and assessment. This was vital in allowing the departments to assess and begin prioritizing projects related to habitat restoration and air quality.
First steps of restoration
During the fall of 2007, working with our many stakeholders, we drafted language to address the formation of a much needed governance structure that would shepherd the restoration process into the future. In February 2008, the
With the help and assistance of all of our stakeholders, we have built a broad coalition of support that has been critical to presenting a unified message to my colleagues in
Educate new lawmakers
The
We always knew it would be a challenge to convince folks statewide to implement our vision. The fight for the sea is not over.
Sen. Denise Moreno Ducheny, D-San Diego, represents the 40th District, which includes
http://www.mydesert.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080726/COLUMNS26/807260314/-1/RSS01
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