Drought

The California Natural Resources Agency and the California Environmental Protection Agency released a framework for potential voluntary agreements to improve river flows and habitats in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta last week. The framework, which expands on previous commitments, outlines a 15-year program that would provide substantial new flows for the …

The board of directors of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) formed a special committee to provide input on how the region’s water supplies will be developed and managed over the next two decades. After hearing from staff and experts, the committee will be making recommendations to the …

The Department of Water Resources (DWR) conducted the second manual snow survey of 2020 at Phillips Station yesterday and the results are somewhat less than stellar. The survey showed the snowpack 40.5 inches deep and a snow water equivalent (SWE) of 14.5 inches. This is 79 percent of average for …

Earlier this month the Alliance for Water Efficiency (AWE) released their study on municipal drought response and water demand. The study titled, Use and Effectiveness of Municipal Irrigation Restrictions During Drought, explores how drought response measures have been implemented and how water demand reductions have been achieved across different water suppliers …

Earlier this week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of the Army (Army) finalized the Navigable Waters Protection Rule to define “Waters of the United States” and thereby establish federal regulatory authority under the Clean Water Act. The revised definition identifies four categories of waters that are federally regulated …

The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) has announced an increase in 2020 State Water Project (SWP) allocations to 15 percent of requested supplies, up from the year’s initial 10 percent allocation announced on December 2. The Statewide snowpack is 76 percent of normal for this time of year and …