English | Español

Facebook-f Twitter Linkedin-in Instagram
Login
Donate

NEWS

Tiny Allensworth on the front lines of bad water and innovative solutions

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water
When it comes to finding innovative solutions to drinking water problems, the tiny community of Allensworth in Tulare county has long been on the front lines. This spring, community began testing a new technology that would “jolt” arsenic out of its groundwater. And since 2021, Allensworth has also been home to another new technology that…
Read More
•

Chuck Williams, longest-serving Kern River Watermaster, dies at 93

• by Lois Henry, SJV Water
Chuck Williams, the longest serving “interim, acting” Kern River Watermaster, died Friday. He was 93. Attorney Scott Kuney, who worked with Williams at North Kern Water Storage District, remembered Williams as a “man of great faith, integrity and a consensus maker. “And he was fun,” Kuney said Friday. “He had a thousand stories.” Kuney recalled…
Read More

Water districts bail on Kern’s largest groundwater agency; form their own group

• by Lois Henry
Fractures have appeared within Kern County’s largest groundwater agency as pressure mounts for it to show the state how it plans to address the region’s massive groundwater deficit. Four water entities recently notified the Kern Groundwater Authority they were pulling out of the 16-member group to write their own groundwater sustainability plan. That will add…
Read More
•

State funding helps pay for valley groundwater projects

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water
Multiple San Joaquin Valley groundwater projects got a significant shot of state funding this week to kickstart recharge, and other, projects. On Monday, the Department of Water Resources (DWR) announced $150 million was awarded to 20 agencies through its first round of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Grant Program. That includes almost $84 million for 11…
Read More

Kern River run off predicted to be downright miserly

• by Lois Henry
Kern River watershed watcher Scott Williams put out what will be his final Kern River Snow and Water Report May 3 and the news was grim. The predicted run off for the Kern River has dwindled from an already meager 33% of normal last month to a downright miserly 28% of normal this month. The…
Read More
•

SJV communities get state cash to plug leaks

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water
An infusion of state cash will plug several leaky drinking water systems that serve rural communities in the San Joaquin Valley in the near future. The money, $22 million, comes from the Small Community Drought Relief Program under the Department of Water Resources (DWR). That money will fund 17 projects throughout the state, with about…
Read More

Valley could see a “mass migration” of farmworkers as land is fallowed under state groundwater law

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water
Advocates are sounding the alarm for what they think could be the collapse of the San Joaquin Valley’s agriculture workforce. As drought continues to hammer the state and groundwater pumping restrictions take effect, farmland will need to be retired en masse.  While there have been many conversations, including legislation, on how to support farmers during…
Read More

Ag well drilling still under a cloud of confusion from Gov. Newsom’s drought order

• by Jesse Vad and Lois Henry, SJV Water
Gov. Newsom’s emergency drought order that singled out agricultural wells for extra scrutiny is continuing to cause confusion and angst in some parts of the San Joaquin Valley, while other areas are stutter-stepping forward. Selma raisin farmer Tony Panoo was happy to finally have his well drilled on Monday after several tense weeks when his…
Read More

Third year of drought pushes price of water to $2,000 an acre foot

• by Lois Henry
A sale of agricultural water within the Panoche Water District on the upper west side of the San Joaquin Valley hit the eye-popping price of $2,000 per acre foot recently. The buyer bought 668 acre feet in a deal that was brokered by Nat DiBuduo with Alliance Ag Services. The buyer, whose name was withheld,…
Read More

Kern River among top 10 “most endangered rivers” in the country

• by Lois Henry
The lower Kern River earned the dubious distinction of being named one of the country’s 10 “most endangered rivers,” according to American Rivers, a national environmental group that has highlighted rivers suffering pollution and other threats for the past 36 years. The group listed “excessive water withdrawls” as the main threat to the lower Kern,…
Read More
Receive Notifications

Enter your email address to receive INSTANT ALERTS of new articles.

NEWS SEARCH
Water Resources

Maven’s Notebook is an excellent daily accounting of California water happenings statewide.

Visit Site