Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation for DWR personnel of significant news articles and comment
May 1, 2009
1. Top Item–
Final snow pack results: not good; drought persists
The
Low snow, reservoir levels force rationing
The San Francisco Chronicle
Commerce Dept. releases $53M for salmon disaster
The Associated Press
The Associated Press
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Final snow pack results: not good; drought persists
The
By Matt Weiser
The water content of the state's snowpack actually shrank in the final month of winter, from 80 percent of normal on April 1 to 66 percent of normal recorded Thursday in the state's final snow survey of the season.
The cause: a heat wave and high winds that essentially evaporated the
We?re also ending the winter in worse shape than 2008. The winter snowpack at this time last year was recorded at 72 percent of normal.
Elissa Lynn, senior meteorologist at the state Department of Water Resources, said
"We way missed that mark," she said. "Things actually got worse in April."
Instead, the period since 2007 will likely rank as the 10th-driest three-year stretch in state history, she said.
A number of critics lately have tried to make political waves by blaming
Some have even claimed the state would not be in a drought without court-ordered water-pumping restrictions to protect fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
But that is not true, Lynn and others said.
"We're actually in worse shape right now than we were last May 1 for snowpack, and that's not about fish, it's about snow," she said.
Fish protection rules have limited water deliveries somewhat this year. State Water Project deliveries from the Delta are expected to be reduced by 200,000 acre-feet this year, or 14 percent, because of protections for the threatened Delta smelt.
But Mother Nature is the real culprit.
"It stuns me to hear people try to deny we're in a drought," said Chris Brown, executive director of the California Urban Water Conservation Council. "We can blame the courts all we want, but we're under a shortfall of rain and snow and have been for three years. People who try to point the finger in other directions are ignoring the facts."
There are some bright spots.
Folsom Lake, for instance, has exceeded average capacity for the date due to adequate flow in the American River, and is expected to remain near full this summer. Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, which serves
These are relatively small reservoirs.
The state's biggest reservoirs, including Oroville and Shasta, are still well below normal at 70 and 76 percent of average storage for the date.
Most major reservoirs continue to release water because officials are required to maintain empty space for flood control. Those seasonal requirements, however, have begun to taper off.
An unusually strong late-season storm arrives today to confuse the picture further.
A winter storm watch is in effect across high elevations of the
These storms aren't likely to improve the drought picture.
"We definitely didn't accomplish the water wish this season,"
http://www.sacbee.com/ourregion/story/1825046.html
Low snow, reservoir levels force rationing
April's warm, dry weather melted the Sierra Nevada snowpack to two-thirds of normal, according to the last measure of the season Thursday, as agencies serving cities and farms across
State officials say this is shaping up to be the 10th-driest three-year period on record, based on the amount of meltwater expected to run from the mountains and into streams and reservoirs this spring.
A month ago, snowpack was 80 percent of normal. Now it is 66 percent, compared with 72 percent at this time last year.
"Normally, we would have kept more of (the snowpack), but April was sunny and windy, and so a lot of it melted into the ground," said Elissa Lynn, chief meteorologist with the state Department of Water Resources, which conducts the winter snow surveys. "We have the snowpack we're going to have."
The precipitation that is forecast this weekend isn't expected to add much to snow levels and reservoir levels hammered by three dry years in a row. Storage in
While those figures don't appear staggeringly low, such reservoirs are required to release certain amounts of water for flood control, recreation, power generation and fish-spawning - uses that don't always coincide with peak water urban and agricultural demand.
The water network is further impacted by federal orders to limit pumping through the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to protect the endangered delta smelt. The delta funnels water to about 25 million Californians.
As a result, water agencies that rely heavily on the state and federal systems are taking steps to protect dwindling supplies. Almost 30 water districts around the state have enacted some form of mandatory rationing, up from just over 20 last week,
The Santa Clara Valley Water District and city of
The state's water agency expects
For its part, the state has launched a $4 million "Save Our Water" public education campaign aimed at helping people gauge their water consumption and improve indoor and outdoor water efficiency.
Many experts agree that widespread use of drought-resistant landscaping and less-thirsty appliances is long overdue and offers the best chance of preserving a resource that will grow less plentiful as the population expands and climate change brings longer dry spells.
With cities, farmers and advocates for the environment increasingly vying for that resource, behaviors will probably change even more in the years ahead, according to Spreck Rosenkrans, an analyst at Environmental Defense Fund.
"
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/05/01/MNDM17CBMV.DTL
Commerce Dept. releases $53M for salmon disaster
The Commerce Department Thursday released $53 million to
Commerce Secretary Gary Locke declared the latest disaster in a letter to the governors of the two states. He cited continued low returns to the Sacramento River in
Locke released $53.1 million in unspent money from a fishery disaster declared last year. A total of $46.4 million will go to
Locke's decision opens the way for Congress to allocate more money for salmon fishermen. Congress appropriated $170 million in disaster aid in 2008 and $60 million in 2006.
"The extension of the disaster declaration will ensure that aid will be available to affected fisherman and their families to help offset the economic impact of the closure of the commercial fisheries," Locke said. "These funds can also aid fishing-related businesses, such as ice and bait suppliers, who may struggle with the financial effects of the closure."
Salmon fishing for chinook, also known as king salmon, has been closed for months off
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., hailed the decision, which he said will help keep fishing families afloat in the short term until efforts by the Obama administration to improve fish runs pay off.
"Secretary Locke's timely and appropriate response is a clear indication of how fishing communities in
West Coast salmon fishermen have been struggling since the mid-1990s, when cutbacks to protect threatened and endangered species allowed salmon farms to fill markets with low-priced fish.
Fishermen started handling their catch more carefully, offering a premium product, and prices rose until 2006, when returns to the Klamath River in Northern California plummeted, prompting the first fishery failure declaration for Oregon and California.
Seasons were generous in 2007, but catches were poor, and in 2008 forecasts up and down the coast were dire, prompting the second fishery failure declaration, this one covering California, Oregon and Washington. Fishermen, tribes and related businesses were eligible for federal money.
This year, the collapse focused on the
Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., called short-term assistance crucial to fishing families, so they can make payments for boats, insurance and mortgages, as well as keep food on the table in an economy already in a recession.
Rep. Kurt Schrader, D-Ore, said Locke's decision will ensure that Oregon fishers can receive some measure of immediate relief while Congress works to secure additional money for the 2009 disaster, while at the same time working to find a sustainable solution allowing fishing to continue.#
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/04/30/state/n151929D48.DTL
The Associated Press – 5/1/09
Commerce Secretary Gary Locke declared the latest disaster in a letter to the governors of the two states. He cited a continued low number of fish returning to the Sacramento River in
Locke released $53.1 million in unspent money from a fishery disaster declared last year. A total of $46.4 million will go to
Locke's decision opens the way for Congress to allocate more money for salmon fishermen. Congress appropriated $170 million in disaster aid in 2008 and $60 million in 2006.
Fishing for chinook salmon, also known as king salmon, has been closed for months off
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-salmon1-2009may01,0,1760451.story
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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