Cibola, a small town in Arizona’s Sonoran Desert, is experiencing a land and water rights conflict as East Coast investment firms, including MassMutual subsidiary Greenstone Management Partners, purchase land in the region. Critics argue that these firms are exploiting Cibola’s limited water resources for profit, especially during a period of...
It’s Raining Now, but How Can California Boost Its Water Supply Later?
Lea este artículo en español. Over and over again, drought launches California into a familiar scramble to provide enough water. Cities and towns call for conservation and brace for shortages. Growers fallow fields and ranchers sell cows. And thousands of people discover that they can’t squeeze another drop from their wells. So where can California get enough water...
Pumping Mississippi River Water West: Solution or Dream?
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Waves of torrential rainfall drenched California into the new year. Snowpacks in the Sierra Nevada Mountains have swelled to more than 200% their normal size, and snowfall across the rest of the Colorado River Basin is trending above average, too. While the much-needed water has improved...
New Desalination Plant Will Boost California’s Drought-Depleted Water Supplies
DANA POINT — With California struggling through historic drought, the state's Coastal Commission on Thursday approved a desalination plant that could turn up to 5 million gallons of seawater a day into drinkable water. The commission voted 11-0 to approve the proposed Doheny Ocean Desalination Project in Dana Point, southeast...
Walters : Drought Hits California — and Newsom
By any standard, California is experiencing one of its periodic droughts after two successive years of below-normal precipitation. “We are now facing the reality that it will be a second dry year for California and that is having a significant impact on our water supply,” state water resources director Karla...
Parched Vegas Wants to Outlaw ‘Nonfunctional’ Grass to Conserve Water
LAS VEGAS — A desert city built on a reputation for excess and indulgence wants to become a model for restraint and conservation with a first-in-the-nation policy banning grass that nobody walks on. Las Vegas-area water officials have spent two decades trying to get people to replace thirsty greenery with...
‘Farmers vs Fish’ Tensions Rise in Water Battle Along Oregon-California Line
PORTLAND, Ore. — One of the worst droughts in memory in the massive agricultural region straddling the California-Oregon border could mean steep cuts to irrigation water for hundreds of farmers this summer to sustain endangered fish species critical to local tribes. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which oversees water allocations...
Newsom Rejects Valley Lawmakers’ Request for Statewide Water Emergency Declaration
With California in drought conditions amid the third-driest precipitation totals in state history, Valley lawmakers want Gov. Gavin Newsom to take immediate action. On Wednesday, a bipartisan group asked Newsom to declare a statewide water emergency. The governor's office responded by saying Newsom will take action "if it becomes necessary."...
As Drought Warnings Rise, Will Local Water Restrictions Return?
California's drought continues after a relatively dry winter failed to replenish the snowpack that is the state's biggest source of fresh water, prompting water agencies to warn of tightened supplies and the need to impose restrictions. But for this year anyway, home owners in Fresno and Clovis can keep watering...
North Fresno Water Agency Struggles with High Board Turnover
Pinedale County Water District will try for a second time to appoint Amanda Castro to fill vacancy on its five-member board. An attempt to appoint Castro last week hit a snag because of residency issues that have seemingly been resolved. The board will hold a special meeting Monday evening to...