A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
January 23, 2009
2. Supply –
The Associated Press
Mandatory water rationing in Bay Area forecast
The San Francisco Chronicle
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Associated Press – 1/23/09
Some of the nation's largest farms plan to cut back on planting crops this spring over concerns that the drought plaguing
Farmers in the
As growers in
Computer models of the state's reservoirs and the year's patchy snowfall forecast water shortages so extreme that federal officials could cut allotments to zero, managers at the Westlands Water District told their members in an emergency conference call.
"We thought it was important to talk to our growers so they can make important planting decisions," said Sarah Woolf, a spokeswoman for Westlands, the coalition of giant agribusinesses in the state's fertile interior.
Officials with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and the state Department of Water Resources plan to announce next month how much water they'll speed to farms and cities.
But farmers say that's too late, since they need to decide what to plant now, as they negotiate with banks for crop loans.
"It's ugly," said Shawn Coburn, who grows 1,000 acres of almonds in
Coburn said he is abandoning tomatoes and will use his brackish well water to try to keep vineyards and almond orchards alive. Other growers are choosing to let their nut trees go dormant, which has meant less work for the beekeepers who travel to central
Farmers' decisions to fallow thousands of acres during last year's drought cost $260 million in crop losses statewide, as well as hundreds of jobs.
Elissa Lynn, a senior meteorologist with the state water agency, said the forecast so far suggests conditions will not improve this spring.
"It's pretty clear we're heading into the third dry year in a row,"
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/01/22/financial/f163602S93.DTL
Mandatory water rationing in Bay Area forecast
The San Francisco Chronicle – 1/23/09
By Kelly Zito
Flowers and kitchen gardens might look extra perky after this week's rains, but January's long dry stretch means Bay Area residents should prepare for baked lawns and stop-and-start showers this summer, water officials said Thursday.
The rainfall expected in the region through Monday will be too little, too late to turn around a month that usually delivers about 20 percent of the rain and snow needed for the year, officials added.
With no blockbuster storms on the immediate horizon and forecasters predicting a longer-term dry spell, water managers around
So far, two dozen
"These are going to be hard times for everybody," said Tim Quinn, executive director of the Association of California Water Agencies, which represents 450 public water agencies around the state.
For the season so far, precipitation totals around the Bay Area are 40 to 60 percent of normal, according to experts. While that doesn't sound catastrophic, it's not enough water to top off critically low reservoirs or soak parched farmland.
Sierra snowpack low
In the
"Projections for the state's water supply continue to look poorer as the water hasn't come down," said Elissa Lynn, the state's chief meteorologist.
In addition to the lack of rain, environmental disputes and legal rulings have curtailed water pumping from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, which funnels water to two-thirds of
Among the dozens of water agencies in the Bay Area, the picture varies widely depending on water source, reservoir levels and per-capita water consumption.
The East Bay Municipal Utility District called on customers to cut back water use by 15 percent last year, becoming the first agency in the region to require mandatory cutbacks. Its 1.3 million customers in
Still, the agency's water storage stands at 420,000 acre-feet - far below the optimal 600,000 acre-feet. One acre-foot is the equivalent of 326,000 gallons, enough to supply one to two families for one year.
"If we have a year of average precipitation, we'll be at the point where our customers don't have mandatory cutbacks," said Jeff Becerra, district spokesman. "But the further you get into winter (without rain), the harder it is to get to that point."
Voluntary cuts in S.F.
In
The hydrological gods also have been kind to the city. The watershed draining into the Hetch Hetchy reservoir is at a much higher elevation than the watershed that supplies the
"Our reservoirs are in pretty decent shape," said Michael Carlin, assistant general manager of water at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. "But over the next couple months, we'll be watching the storms coming through, the trajectories, the reservoirs. ... Based on that, we'll see if we can make it on voluntary conservation or if we have to go mandatory."
Managers at the Marin Municipal Water District like to say the district is "always two years away from drought," based on its heavy reliance on seven reservoirs around the county.
Decision on extent of cuts
In the midst of what appears to be a third dry year, the district has asked residents to conserve about 10 percent. If reservoirs fall much lower this spring and summer, residents could be asked - or told - to conserve up to 25 percent, said Paul Helliker, general manager of the district, which serves central and southern Marin.
It's a far cry from the drought of the late 1970s, which forced the district to build a temporary water pipeline to the
But it does raise the specter of the protracted drought of 1987-1992. Heading into the winter of 1991, the district raised water rates by 50 percent and cut water deliveries by half.
"It was pretty dire then, the way it is now," Helliker said.
But then came a meteorological event of near-biblical proportions - 40 days of rain known as the "March Miracle."
This time, however, the odds are stacked against it. In fact, state meteorologist Lynn called these storms only a "break" from the sunshine.
"You can make up (for low rainfall) in February and March,"
Water restrictions
Bay Area water users have been asked to reduce consumption to conserve supplies in the third consecutive year of drought.
Light rain
Current storms are expected to do little to bring Bay Area rainfall to normal levels. Some local rainfall totals (in inches):
5.98
6.69
6.39
3.73
Totals through 4 p.m. Thursday. Rainfall season starts July 1.#
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/01/22/MNRA15FELA.DTL
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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