Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation for DWR personnel of significant news articles and comment
October 2, 2008
1. Top Items -
DWR calls drought ‘most significant in state’s history’
Mount Shasta News – 10/2/08
By Tony D'Souza
A drive along the I-5 corridor between Mount Shasta and
In a statement on its website, the Department of Water Resources calls the drought of the past two years, “the most significant water crisis in
Intensifying disputes over bottling plants and dam removal in our area are symptoms of water, climate change, and drought, local environmentalists say; these issues will become increasingly important to planning decisions in
The severity of the current water crisis was first outlined by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on June 5, when he declared the drought official, and underscored in early September when state officials unveiled a “drought water bank” to prepare for the possibility of a third dry year in a row.
In declaring the drought, Gov. Schwarzenegger said, “This drought is an urgent reminder of the immediate need to upgrade
Driest spring in 88 years
The drought declaration was the first since 1991. This year saw the driest spring in 88 years, with many of the state’s largest reservoirs currently nearing a third of their capacity. Not only was rainfall slight this year, but according to the DWR, the final survey for 2008 conducted in May measured snow levels at “just 67% of normal for the date, statewide.”
“Snow depth and water content have declined since April,” the DWR statement accompanying the survey results continued. “Much of the water content is being absorbed by parched soil as a result of last year’s extremely dry weather. March and April 2008 combined are the driest in the northern Sierra since 1921, the first year that records were kept. Water runoff into streams and reservoirs is only 55 to 65 percent of normal... Storage in
In releasing the survey results back in early May, DWR director Lester Snow said, “Today’s conditions further underscore the need for immediate action to solve
The summer only saw a continued lack of precipitation, and the eventual rationing of water by some downstream and southern
Drought water bank
To prepare for the possibility of a dry 2009, the DWR announced the “drought water bank,” which will facilitate the relocation of 600,000 acre feet of water from the north of the state to the south. Under the program, water-rich sellers in the north, including
The DWR will also “...rank buyers according to need. Cities with water related health and safety problems will get first dibs, with farm crops a lower priority. To qualify, urban buyers must have a conservation program adopted to cut normal water use by 20 percent.”
This is to avoid a situation where, as the DWR’s Snow explained, “...farmers selling water so people can hose off their sidewalks.”
By moving pro-actively and quickly to address the drought – Schwarzenegger declared the drought this year when water levels were still higher than at Governor Pete Wilson’s 1991 declaration – state officials hope to staunch some of the losses suffered by the economy this summer in the form of “plowed-under” crops and delayed housing and business projects.
Sheri Harral, the Bureau of Reclamation’s Public Affairs Specialist at Shasta Dam, while conceding that BOR officials are “concerned” with the situation in a phone call last week, also was eager to let people know that not everything is as troubling as it may seem at first glance.
“We’re at 147.23 feet from the crest at
“What people don’t understand is that when we get average rainfall, the reservoir fills quickly,” Harral continued. “It kind of looks like something from a space movie right now, the emptiness of it, all that red dirt. We get a lot of questions whenever the water level falls this low. For the last 16 years we have had excess water. People have gotten used to seeing that. When the reservoir looks like this, people start to panic a little because they don’t remember 1977. The purpose of this facility is to prevent flooding, but we’re also here for years like this. The dam is doing it’s job...We still have 1.5 million acre feet, there is still a lot of water here... 90% of our water is from rain, 10% is from snowmelt. We’re hoping for an average rainfall. Even in 1977, the reservoir filled the very next year.”
In a call just before press-time on Tuesday, Frank Christina, National Weather Service observer in Mount Shasta, said that the seven consecutive months of drought conditions experienced locally are scheduled to get a reprieve as early as this Thursday, with rain forecast through the weekend, he said. #
http://www.mtshastanews.com/news/x1424439446/DWR-calls-drought-most-significant-in-state-s-history
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
DWR's California Water News is distributed to California Department of Water Resources management and staff, for information purposes, by the DWR Public Affairs Office. For reader's services, including new subscriptions, temporary cancellations and address changes, please use the online page: http://listhost2.water.ca.gov/mailman/listinfo/water_news. DWR operates and maintains the State Water Project, provides dam safety and flood control and inspection services, assists local water districts in water management and water conservation planning, and plans for future statewide water needs. Inclusion of materials is not to be construed as an endorsement of any programs, projects, or viewpoints by the Department or the State of
No comments:
Post a Comment