A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
June 29, 2009
2. Supply –
A climate change for
Tracy Press
Another dry year on the
El Nino…realities and myths
S.F. Examiner-
Water rates up, but not for Littlerock
One more time: Recycled water project makes debut
It’s Now Legal to Catch a Raindrop in
New York Times
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A climate change for
Tracy Press-6/26/09
by Eric Firpo
It’s too early to say what those changes will look like exactly, and what global warming will ultimately mean for development.
But it’s not too early to state that Tracy and other cities are coming under intense pressure to move away “from ‘business as usual’ and toward a low-carbon future,” as Attorney General Edmund G. Brown said in a state document describing how cities must aim to cut greenhouse gases at the very earliest stages of planning for growth.
Brown’s office, in fact, recently made an example of
Brown and others in his office agreed with the Sierra Club that
Now, as
Evans lists dozens and dozens of shortcomings with changes
But it still leaves thousands of acres slated for sprawling growth that the center argues falls far short of new requirements to cut greenhouse gases, save water and energy, and shrink commuter miles, to name a few.
Among many suggestions, the center urges the city to embrace “smart growth,” building up instead of out.
Since the settlement,
A “climate action plan” advisory committee has met once a month since January, said Barbara Berlin, deputy director for community development and planning in
The city also must find a way to have people drive less, including commuters, and come up with green building techniques for the Stockton City Council to adopt,
Some requirements must be finished by an October deadline that
And
“Tough stuff,” said
But for a while now, the city has seen greenhouse-cutting laws and regulations coming, and several months ago talked about teaming up with the state’s department of conservation and a company called Town Green.
The Tracy City Council didn’t jump at the chance when plans were presented last year, but that was before
“What that might do is accelerate the approach we’re moving on,” said Andrew Malik, the head of the city’s planning and engineering department.#
Another dry year on the
By Sally Cappon
Call it a lull before the storm.
For the third straight year,
Assuming there is no more rain between today and Tuesday — and forecasters say there won’t be —
Normal rainfall is 14.01 inches. Rainfall records here are tabulated from July to June since little rain normally falls in summer months.
But hold on your rain hats. Dust off those boots.
The government’s
El Ninos occur when ocean temperatures heat up in the tropical Pacific Ocean, causing shifts in weather patterns, and typically bring wetter years to
When Southern California experienced its last major El Nino in 1997-1998,
The new El Nino watch, a first for the
“It’s a brand-new thing,” added the Weather Service’s Bill Hoffer who said center meteorologists expect a moderate El Nino to last through the end of the year, though it’s too early to predict how strong it will be.
Typically, El Nino effects are greatest in fall and winter when most rains fall here.
Meanwhile, 2008-2009 will be remembered in
More than half the city’s final total, 4.68 inches, fell in February, with rain being reported every day but one between Feb. 5 and 17. Then the heavenly spigot fizzled and turned off, with just 0.69 of an inch recorded in March, 0.10 in April, 0.08 in May and a trace in early June. The last measurable rain came May 5, when 0.02 of an inch fell.
Only two days had more than an inch of rain — Nov. 26, when an inch and quarter fell, and Feb. 16, which saw 1.10 inches.
This year’s low total comes after two straight years of below normal rainfall — 11.58 inches in 2007-2008, and a measly 5.11 inches in 2006-2007. The last time the city had a wetter than normal year was 2005-2006, with 15.72 inches.
Local reservoirs reflect the low totals. While as of Friday,
The area will also get less state water than they’d like this year. The current allocation is 40 percent which, though slightly up from last year, is “pretty darned bad,” said Bill Brennan, executive director of the Central Coast Water Authority in Buellton.
“Ideally we’d like to see 75 to 80 percent,” he added.
After three years of drought, he said, reservoirs around the state are low. However, he was cheered by reports of a return of El Nino and the fact that ground water supplies here are in good condition.
Temperature-wise, several records were set — some of them shattered — here in the past year. Temperatures ranged from 30 degrees on Jan. 5 to a scorching 98 degrees on April 20 in the midst of a record-breaking heat wave throughout
91 degrees from 1986, while a 95 degree reading the next day broke the old record of 90 set back in 1918. On April 19 the temperature hit 94, three degrees above the former mark set in 1938.
The year may be remembered for three major county wildfires in 11 months — the Gap, Tea and Jesusita fires, all affecting the
But
Noting that the three-year drought has had an impact on vegetation, he said. “If we get more moisture, the brush and vegetation in the mountains would benefit. It would help us.”
On the downside, with barren hillsides after the recent fires and the possibility of rains, he warned, “We’d have the potential for flooding.”#
http://www.santamariatimes.com/articles/2009/06/28/news/news02.txt
El Nino…realities and myths
S.F. Examiner-6/27/09
By Jan Null
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) recently issued an El Nino Watch about the possible return of El Niño later this summer. And even before the ink was dry on the release, yet another round of El Niño hype was beginning, with the media expectation that California was about to be washed into the Pacific.
But what really is El Niño, and what does it really mean for Californians? Let's try to put some of these myths about this weather phenomenon into perspective.
Myth 1: El Niño will come to
Myth 2: All El Niños are the same. While El Niño only occurs in the tropics, its impact is felt in many parts of the world. This happens because the location of the huge mass of warm water causes the location of the jet stream, or storm track, to shift. As a consequence some regions are warmer or colder, or wetter or drier, than normal. However, not all El Niños have the same strength or location, and consequently their impacts can vary significantly. In general, the larger the area and the greater the warming of the eastern Pacific's equatorial waters, the greater the impact on other regions. Since 1950 there have been eighteen years with during which the equatorial Pacific has warmed enough to be classified as an El Niño. There have been a total of eight seasons beginning in years (1951, 1963, 1968, 1969, 1976, 1977, 2004, 2006) classified as “weak” El Niños, four years (1986, 1987, 1994, 2002) as “moderate” and six years (1957, 1965, 1972, 1982, 1991, 1997) as “strong” El Niños.
Myth 3: There are El Niño-spawned storms. No, El Niño does not actually create any storms over
Myth 4: We will see the impacts from El Niño any day now. No, the long-range ocean and atmosphere forecasts from NOAA and other agencies are just that, forecasts. If the forecast warm-up does occur in the tropical Pacific later this summer and fall, the earliest effects on
Myth 5: When there is an El Niño, there is lots of rain in
Over the same span,
Myth 6: El Niño means disastrous flooding for
The major weather pattern that causes flooding in
The last strong El Niño in the winter of 1997-1998 is a good case study of a wet El Niño year, but one with no major flooding. Despite nearly double normal rainfall over most of
Compare this with the flooding that took place around New Year of 1997, a period with no El Niño, when a week's worth of warm pineapple-connection rain resulted in $1.8 billion in damage statewide.
So, what does it all mean? From the current forecast there is a possibility of an El Niño later this summer that might have some impact next winter, depending on whether it is a weak or strong event and what else might be occurring at the same time. Stay tuned.#
http://www.examiner.com/x-4109-SF-Weather-Examiner~y2009m6d27-El-Ninorealities-and-myths
Water rates up, but not for Littlerock
General manager: We have not increased bills in 12 years
By Alisha Semchuck
In the midst of a flood of water rate increases, one purveyor has managed to keep its customers' costs down.
Board members of Littlerock Creek Irrigation District unanimously approved two resolutions Wednesday night: one keeps customer fees for the State Water Project agreement as well as property tax assessments at the existing rate. The second resolution maintains water usage and meter service charges the same as in prior years.
"We haven't raised water rates in 12 years," Littlerock Irrigation District General Manager Brad Bones said.
He attributes part of the reason to a static population inside the district, which covers 10,700 acres and has about 1,100 customers.
"We've had very small growth in the last 10 years," Bones said.
That there is no sewer system and homes and businesses all use septic tanks has kept developers away, according to Bones. And residents prefer life that way, he said.
"We like our rural atmosphere," he said.
For the State Water Project agreement, customers will be charged $30 per acre of land or parcel smaller than an acre and assessments of $45 per acre or parcel smaller than an acre for capital improvements - annual fees that appear on the property tax bill. Additional charges are levied for each quarter-acre in excess of one acre.
The minimum bimonthly domestic meter service charge is $23.65 for a single dwelling that has a three-quarter-inch meter, and that includes 1,000 cubic feet of water. Every 100 cubic feet equals 748 gallons. A single dwelling with a 1-inch meter pays $42.57 every other month, which includes 1,800 cubic feet of water. Single dwellings that have 1½-inch meters pay $94.58 for two months, which includes 4,000 cubic feet of water. The single dwellings that have 2-inch meters pay $118.19 for two months, a rate that includes 5,000 cubic feet of water.
Water use that exceeds those amounts costs an additional 71 cents for every 100 cubic feet. Those rates apply to three of the district's four zones. Bones said the rates in Zone O cost a bit more because "we have to pump (the water) to a higher elevation," and that takes more electricity for customers in the hills at the southern part of the water district.
Bones said seven residential and two agricultural connections are in that area.
The vote to set the rates occurs annually, officials said.
"We do this each year, whether there's any need to look at (the rates) or not," board President Leo Thibault said.
Although a resolution to reaffirm existing rates is not required by law, "it's good to do" for two reasons, said Chad Reed, general manager at the Quartz Hill Water District.
"It lets your ratepayers know that you're being financially responsible," Reed said. And, he added, "it keeps the board aware" of the district's cash flow. "It makes everything transparent, which it should be. It's just good management."
As Littlerock Creek Irrigation District did not raise rates, a public hearing was unnecessary, said irrigation district attorney Keith Lemieux. State law mandates agencies that provide property-related services such as water and sewage to conduct public hearings for rate increases, providing the property owners an opportunity to protest.
The district's 1,100 customer connections are a mix of residential, commercial and agricultural users, Bones said. In all, the district supplies consumers with a total of 1,900 acre-feet of water a year, "give or take a little," he added.
"Agriculture makes the difference. That usage varies with weather conditions and the amount of crop," Bones said.
The district's southernmost boundary is Avenue W, between
Though the agency is a state water contractor with rights to draw water from the California Aqueduct, it mainly pumps groundwater from its five wells - four that provide potable, or drinking-quality water, and one designated for irrigation.
Aside from nominal population growth, Bones said other factors that help the district keep costs down include the installation of efficient motors that don't put a drain on electricity and storage tanks "that allow for off-peak pumping."
"We try to fill our tanks (during) the off-peak rates," Bones said. "When the tanks are full, gravity feeds throughout our service area."
"The whole district is run with conservation (in mind), not just conservation of water," Bones said. "We're very conscious of our spending and try to keep all costs to a minimum."
"We pride ourselves in being economical," irrigation district director Barbara Hogan said. "We do our best."#
http://www.avpress.com/n/27/0627_s7.hts
One more time: Recycled water project makes debut
Friday, June 26, 2009.
By Daisy Ratzlaff
After years of planning and construction, city officials, along with Los Angeles County Public Works and sanitation district representatives, announced the completion of the first segment of a project to use recycled, disinfected sewage water for watering lawns and other uses.
The 24-inch "purple pipe" - so named for the distinctive color that signals its water is not drinkable - runs from Avenue E down Division Street to Lancaster Boulevard, and has been serving recycled water to the Lancaster University Center for more than a month.
"Eight hours ago this was raw sewage; now it is tertiary water. It's just amazing," Lancaster Vice Mayor Ron Smith said while holding up a clear glass flask. "The successful implementation of the recycled water process here at the
Some 642,000 gallons of recycled water - called "tertiary" because it goes through three levels of treatment - has been used at the
Tertiary treated and reclaimed water is oxidized, filtered and disinfected and can be used on golf courses, parks or in lakes where people may come into contact with it.
During Thursday's ceremony at the university center at
The Los Angeles County Sanitation District treatment plant that serves
"It is exciting," he said. "Overall, it is all part of being responsible stewards of our world. Recycled water, recycling your garbage, green energy. All these things. It takes our responsibility of changing our lifestyle instead of being so wasteful, because we have become a wasteful society."
Smith added that treated sewage will continue to flow to Piute Ponds, a wildlife habitat of ponds fed for decades by the plant's outflow.
"They are all these different types of birds that are really important that we maintain," he said, adding with a smile, "it is a great place to go bird watching, too."
Besides the
The
The city is also lining up future customers, including Lancaster Parks, Recreation and Arts facilities, school districts, the eSolar solar energy plant, BlueFire Ethanol and Waste Management's landfill as well as industrial users near Division Street.
"We have a lot of stuff going on with this corridor, this green corridor," said Randy Williams, director of Public Works. "We have also received $7 million that the (Army) Corps of Engineers has allocated from the $1 billion that they got from the stimulus money. We didn't apply for it. They've just been working with us about six years. They decided that the water project was so great, they were going to put $7 million against us in order to extend our very large 24- inch diameter pipe all the way to the city park."
Williams added the city is going to put up another $2.3 million to extend the pipeline to various locations.
On top of irrigating parks and school yards, public works and city officials are working on a groundwater recharge field that would allow recycled water to percolate through the soil and back into the Valley's aquifer.
"It is a pilot study. And right now we are doing environmental reports," Williams said. "A number of things have to happen along the way before it can start."
Smith said the
"We've said it time and time again;
http://www.avpress.com/n/26/0626_s3.hts
It’s Now Legal to Catch a Raindrop in
New York Times-6/28/09
By Kirk Johnson
For the first time since territorial days, rain will be free for the catching here, as more and more thirsty states part ways with one of the most entrenched codes of the West.
Precipitation, every last drop or flake, was assigned ownership from the moment it fell in many Western states, making scofflaws of people who scooped rainfall from their own gutters. In some instances, the rights to that water were assigned a century or more ago.
Now two new laws in
“I was so willing to go to jail for catching water on my roof and watering my garden,” said Tom Bartels, a video producer here in southwestern
Who owns the sky, anyway? In most of the country, that is a question for philosophy class or bad poetry. In the West, lawyers parse it with straight faces and serious intent. The result, especially stark here in the Four Corners area of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah, is a crazy quilt of rules and regulations — and an entire subculture of people like Mr. Bartels who have been using the rain nature provided but laws forbade.
The two Colorado laws allow perhaps a quarter-million residents with private wells to begin rainwater harvesting, as well as the setting up of a pilot program for larger scale rain-catching.
Just 75 miles west of here, in
And in
Here in
“It’s like being able to sell things like smoking paraphernalia even though smoking pot is illegal,” said Laurie E. Dickson, who for years sold barrel-and-hose systems from a shop in downtown Durango.
State water officials acknowledged that they rarely enforced the old law. With the new laws, the state created a system of fines for rain catchers without a permit; previously the only option was to shut a collector down.
But Kevin Rein,
“It’s not going to be a situation where we’re sending out people to look in backyards,” Mr. Rein said.
Science has also stepped forward to underline how incorrect the old sweeping legal generalizations were.
A study in 2007 proved crucial to convincing
But the deeper questions about rain are what really gnawed at rain harvesters like Todd S. Anderson, a small-scale farmer just east of
Mr. Anderson, a former national park ranger who worked for years enforcing rules and laws, said: “I’m conflicted between what’s right and what’s legal. And I hate that.”
For the last year, Mr. Anderson has been catching rainwater that runs off his greenhouse but keeping the barrel hidden from view. When the new law passed, he put the barrel in plain sight, and he plans to set up a system for his house.
Dig a little deeper into the rain-catching world, and there are remnants of the 1970s back-to-land hippie culture, which went off the grid into aquatic self-sufficiency long ago.
“Our whole perspective on life is to try to use what is available, and to not be dependent on big systems,” said Janine Fitzgerald, whose parents bought land in southwest
Ms. Fitzgerald, an associate professor of sociology at
Rain dependency has its ups and downs, Ms. Fitzgerald said. Her home is also completely solar-powered, which means that the pumps to push water from the rain tanks are solar-powered, too. A cloudy, rainy spring this year was good for tanks, bad for pumps.
The economy has turned on some early rainwater believers, too. Ms. Dickson’s company in
“We were ahead of our time,” she said.#
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/29/us/29rain.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss
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