Thursday, January 31, 2013

News articles and links from January 31, 2013


WATER SUPPLY

Opinion
By Jeff Thompson
From Sacramento Bee - Thursday, Jan. 31, 2013

Opinion
By Assemblyman Adam C. Gray
From Modesto Bee - Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013

Story
From Merced Sun-Star - Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013

Editorial
From Marysville Appeal-Democrat - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013

GROUNDWATER

Blog
By Jay R. Lund & Thomas Harter
From California WaterBlog - Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013

DELTA

Blog
From State Water Contractors - Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013

Blog
From Valley Economy Blog - Monday, Jan. 28, 2013
From YubaNet - Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013

COURTS

Story
From Stockton Record - Thursday, Jan. 31, 2013

Story
From Fresno Bee - Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2013

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

News articles and links from January 30, 2013


Water supply

Blog
By Kate Poole
From NRDC - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013

Coalition response...The "effective, affordable solutions" to the Delta that the author refers to is a recycling of ideas that have been studied for years. Along with other groups who have been critical of the current proposal from BDCP that includes an improved conveyance with two tunnels through the Delta, a portion of the new solutions features a single tunnel with a capacity of only 3,000 cfs. The Bay Delta Conservation Plan studied this proposal a year ago and the results of that study can be found here.

No one disagrees that something needs to be done to improve a water infrastructure that was built when the population of our state was millions less. But the 3,000 cfs tunnel would not provide sufficient water to meet both urban and agricultural needs south of the Delta. Adopting this smaller proposal would either leave millions of acres of productive farmland without a reliable water supply, or it would require continued reliance on moving water through the Delta. Continuing the status quo is not a solution because it doesn't help fish and it doesn't deliver enough water - the two reasons why a BDCP project is even considered in the first place.

Other elements of the "solutions" offered by the author include development of regional supplies, decreased reliance on the Delta, conservation efforts and more. BDCP does not prohibit these efforts from being undertaken. In fact, others have advocated these measures for years.

Delta

Blog
By Alex Breitler
From esanjoaquin - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013

Coalition response...It is important that individuals and groups use updated information when referring to the conveyance tunnels within the proposed BDCP. Too often a capacity of 15,000 cfs is still being attributed to the tunnels but that is outdated information. The most current proposal includes a 9,000 cfs capacity for the tunnels. Further information can be found on the BDCP website by clicking here.

WATER SUPPLY 

Story 
From Oroville Mercury-Register - Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013

Story
From Sacramento Bee - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013

Story
From Contra Costa Times - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013
From Merced Sun-Star - Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013 
From Oakland Tribune - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013 
From San Jose Mercury News - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013 

Story
From San Diego Union-Tribune - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013

Story
From Fresno Bee - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013
From Stockton Record - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013 

Story
From LA Times - Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013

Story
From Fresno Bee - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013

Story
From Hanford Sentinel - Monday, Jan. 28, 2013

DELTA

Editorial
By Harry Cline
From Western Farm Press - Friday, Jan. 25, 2013

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

News articles and links from January 29, 2013



Courts
Blog
By Mark Grossi
From Fresno Beehive - Monday, Jan. 28, 2013

Coalition response... Pumping restrictions to protect the smelt began Dec. 7, 2012, and they are still continuing. According to the biological opinions that govern the rate of pumping, these restrictions will continue into June. And they could get worse.  From the day the restrictions first went into place through Jan. 26, 2013, almost 632,000 acre-feet of water was lost to California's farms, families and businesses and allowed to flow to the ocean. At a replacement cost of $150 per acre-foot that equates to about $95 million, and that's just the beginning.  The lost economic opportunity of putting that water to work, according to economists, is in the range of $3.5 - $4.5 billion.  And that number is going up every day. Allowing actions in the biological opinions written years ago, and which have been found unlawful by a federal judge, to continue to hammer California's struggling economy without demonstrating a measurable benefit to fish is a waste we should no longer tolerate.  The time is now to make immediate changes in interim actions that are more reasonable and broad-based while comprehensive solutions to improve the ecosystem in the Delta and restore water supplies vital for California's economy are finalized in the Bay Delta Conservation Plan.

WATER SUPPLY
Story
From Sacramento Bee - Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013

Story
From Hanford Sentinel - Monday, Jan. 28, 2013
Story
From Modesto Bee - Monday, Jan. 28, 2013

DELTA
Letter
From Sacramento Bee - Monday, Jan. 28, 2013

MEETINGS
Feb. 4-5, 2013
California Resources Deputy Secretary Jerry Meral will be the luncheon speaker on the second day of the 51st Annual California Irrigation Institute Conference next week in Sacramento. With a theme of "Embracing Innovation: The Next Generation," the conference will include urban and agricultural water managers in discussions focused on new irrigation technology and regional solutions to water issues. The conference is Feb. 4-5, 2013, at the Sacramento Arden Hilton. Registration and more information are available at www.caii.org .

Monday, January 28, 2013

News articles and links from January 28, 2013


Delta

Blog
By Donald W. Blount
From Stockton Record - Monday, Jan. 28, 2013

Coalition response...Claiming that water users south of the Delta do not care what happens in the Delta region is a fact less statement that only serves to heighten the rhetoric surrounding efforts to reach a solution to California's water dilemma. These water users have spent more than $150 million to fund the studies and research that includes Delta ecosystem restoration. California's water future is deserving of a continuing dialogue but it must be one that is reasonable and absent of statements that serve no purpose.

Story
From Davis Enterprise - Sunday, Jan. 27, 2013

Coalition response...Despite what Rep. Garamendi would have people believe, the current Bay Delta Conservation Plan includes more than a "plumbing system." It is the result of years of study and research that features Delta ecosystem restoration, an improved conveyance system, restored habitat and more. He also incorrectly cites 15,000 cfs as the size of the proposed conveyance when that number is much smaller at only 9,000 cfs. Recent calls to consider an even smaller conveyance at 3,000 cfs fail to recognize that this lower size has already been studied by BDCP.

Critics of the current BDCP proposal continually raise the rhetoric that the Sacramento River and Delta will be drained. Nothing is further from the truth. Diversions will be closely governed and increased or decreased according to the amount of water available in the system. To view how the system will work, click here.

Securing a reliable water future for our State and at the same time protect the Delta requires thoughtful discussions and committed individuals and organizations seeking the best for all California.

WATER SUPPLY

Story
From ACWA - Friday, Jan. 25, 2013

Report
From PPIC - January 2013

DELTA

Editorial
From Riverside Press-Enterprise - Sunday, Jan. 27, 2013
  
Column
By Michael Fitzgerald
From Stockton Record - Sunday, Jan. 27, 2013

Story
From Desert Sun - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013
From Fresno Bee - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013
From Merced Sun-Star - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013
From Modesto Bee - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013
From Monterey County Herald - Sunday, Jan. 27, 2013
From Redding Record Searchlight - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013
From Sacramento Bee - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013
From CBS 27 - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013
From KCRA - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013
From News 10 - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013

Story
From Modesto Bee - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013
From Sacramento Bee - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013

Story
From Stockton Record - Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013

Letter
From Sacramento Bee - Friday, Jan. 25, 2013