A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
September 25, 2008
2. Supply –
Study subtly aimed at getting more water for environment
The
Opinon
Celebrating with sips: We're starting to conserve, but not nearly enough for the shortages ahead.
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Study subtly aimed at getting more water for environment
The
The Pacific Institute study detailing agricultural water use in
One fact continuously misrepresented by study co-author Peter Gleick is the amount of water leaving the delta and how it is used ("Study sees more profit in drier farms," Sept. 8, Page A-1). Looking at the Sept. 15 data from the state's Delta Operations Summary, the total water flow into the delta is 13,000 cubic feet per second. Of that, only 3,350 cfs is being exported for agriculture, urban and environmental uses south of the delta; another 3,350 cfs is being used in-delta; and, 6,300 cfs (about half of the water flowing through the delta) is being forced out to the ocean for water quality-environmental purposes.
In other words, while only 25 percent of the water released from upstream reservoirs is being exported today, a full 50 percent of the water released from reservoirs is being routed to the ocean in the name of the environment.
This summer was even worse. In order to comply with the decision of federal Judge Oliver Wanger, total export pumping in June was limited to around 2,200 cfs, while flows wasted to the ocean averaged about 7,700 cfs. That's about 3.5 to 1.
The problem is that food doesn't come from the supermarkets. If we can't honestly assess our situation and devise real solutions, then nuts, fruits and milk could disappear from supermarket shelves. These high-value foods require water to produce.
Farmers are businessmen and businesswomen. At the end of the day, the farmer needs to make a profit in order to meet a goal that should be tops on the list of all Americans: feeding the people of
Gleick's estimate of water conservation is grossly overreaching, especially since he doesn't consider improvements already achieved by agriculture alone over the past 10 to 20 years.
He estimates that an additional 3.4 million acre-feet can be manufactured from crop changes and improvements in irrigation systems, then an additional 3.9 million acre-feet can be found if we just force a small fraction of irrigated agriculture with drainage problems out of business. (Gee, what could be simpler?)
While there might be some additional gains available in some of these areas, let's keep this in perspective: 7.5 million acre-feet is about double the amount of water exported from the delta this year for agriculture, urban and environmental uses combined. As my granddaughter would say, "Get real!"
For the sake of our local economies and to ensure that safe, reliable food arrives on
In our great free-market economy, shouldn't we let farmers choose which crops they should grow with their limited resources to meet the demands of consumers? As we read these kinds of reports, it is easy to see an organization's agenda to grab water from agriculture and dedicate more to the environment. That may be a justifiable debate -- let's at least be honest about it.
O'Banion is chairman of the San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors Water Authority.#
http://www.modbee.com/opinion/community/story/441485.html
Opinon
Celebrating with sips: We're starting to conserve, but not nearly enough for the shortages ahead.
Thanks to drought-conscious consumers, water usage in
You won't be surprised to learn that there isn't going to be enough water to go around despite our best efforts so far. Water experts, who met this week at a conference at the Aquarium of the Pacific, offer a variety of solutions, but they all agree that shortages are worsening.
Charles Keine, a manager with the California Department of Water Resources, said state and local agencies must increase water storage capacity and repair dams and levees that bring water to farms and cities. But that won't be enough.
Ryan Alsop, government and public affairs director of the Long Beach Water Department, said there has to be a paradigm shift throughout the region in our relationship with water. In other words, we need an attitude adjustment.
If we don't do it, somebody else will do it for us, and it won't be cheap. Water and sewer rates in
Water people suggest several ways householders can cut down on water usage enough to offset the next rate increase. They range from the minor, such as shutting off the water when we brush our teeth (three gallons a day) to sweeping the driveway and patio instead of washing it down (150 gallons each time).
But none on the list can compare with watering the lawn and garden.
That's how most of the water we buy goes down the drain and off toward the ocean, carrying all manner of nasty street stuff with it.
Each of us, who use something like 37,000 gallons a year, can save many thousands of gallons just by not overwatering the landscape.
We can save still more by planting specimens that can actually survive in our dry climate without heavy doses of drinking water.
That's the right attitude shift. Tap water has been treated and purified to levels higher than most bottled water. It's meant for drinking, cooking and, to a modest extent, bathing and cleaning. We don't need drinking water to hose the walks or sprinkle the cactus.
We exaggerate, but only a little. Population is increasing and water availability is decreasing. Prices will rise, and tap water will grow scarcer.
Wrap your attitude around that.#
http://www.presstelegram.com/opinions/ci_10550411
By Greyson Howard, Bonanza News Service
Heading into fall, Lake Tahoe and other area lakes and reservoirs are dipping, and may leave the
Two slow winters in a row — feeding 31 percent and 32 percent of normal runoff into Tahoe — mean the lake could drop below its natural rim unless precipitation shows up this fall. This means the top of the
“At this point it looks like we will get very close to Tahoe’s natural rim,” said Chad Blanchard, chief hydrologist for the U.S. District Court Water Masters Office.
Currently the lake is at 6223.80, within 8 inches of the natural rim and down to just 15 percent of the dam’s total storage capacity, he said.
“As the lake drops, the amount going over the dam drops and the amount going down river drops, so we have to supplement that with others. We’re using Boca right now,” Blanchard said. “By the end of the year Boca could be very low also.”
Bill Hauck, the water supply coordinator for the Truckee Meadows Water Authority, said Boca Reservoir could empty to 5 percent of its top capacity.
Windy weather has played a major role in lake levels, especially on the enormous surface area of Tahoe, Blanchard said.
“If it is windy it creates huge amounts of evaporation off the lake,” Blanchard said.
Right now, the
Blanchard said the flow could slow beyond that minimum rate, but said water demand in
“We’re hoping for a great winter, but even if we don’t have a great winter we have adequate drought supplies in place,” Hauck said.
And as for predicting what winter will bring, Blanchard said it’s too early to make any meaningful predictions.
The real forecasting for water supply happens when precipitation is actually on the ground, he said.
“I talk to the weather service and the
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