fresno Archives - SJV Water

“Too damn hot.” Farmers look for irrigation sweet spot to cool crops but there’s no beating this heat

July 9, 2024

• by Lois Henry

If the heat is sapping your will to live, most San Joaquin Valley crops are right there with you. The blast furnace weather has farmers irrigating in cycles, using more frequent bursts, taking advantage of the coolest part of the day; anything to get crops through to harvest But “it’s just too damn hot,” said…

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New program to help Kern residents with nitrate-tainted water

June 17, 2024

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

A new water quality initiative in Kern County is gearing up to go live in the next few months to help residents whose water is contaminated with nitrates. The state’s nitrate control program launched in 2021. It offers free well testing and water deliveries for residents whose wells test over the limit for nitrates. The…

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Fresno water district plans to use a $5 million federal grant to sink more water

May 17, 2024

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

Fresno Irrigation District (FID) received $5 million from the federal government for recharge projects. It’s the largest grant FID has ever received and staff were overjoyed when they heard the news. “We were elated,” said Bill Stretch, general manager of FID. “That’s a huge shot in the arm for the district. And it helps us…

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Fresno farmers have one more day to apply for irrigation project money

February 15, 2024

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

Farmers in the Fresno Irrigation District have through February 16 to apply for federal money to pay for irrigation projects on their land. The WaterSMART program, administered by the Bureau of Reclamation and the National Resources Conservation Service, is sending money to farmers to update water systems and make them more resilient and conservation-focused. The…

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San Joaquin Valley counties, some still drying out from last year’s floods, brace for another round of heavy rain, snow

February 2, 2024

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

As another storm barrels toward California, local officials are warning residents to stay up to date on weather conditions and be prepared in case of flooding, power outages or other emergencies. An atmospheric river will bring widespread rain and gusty winds throughout the San Joaquin Valley starting Saturday night. The storm will last into Monday,…

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MEETING NOTES: Westlands approves transfers and hears updates on water conditions

January 19, 2024

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

Meeting: Westlands Water District Board Meeting Date: January 18, 2023 Agenda: CLICK HERE Background: Westlands Water District is one of the largest agricultural districts in the country encompassing more than 600,000 acres in western Fresno County and Kings County. It receives surface water from the federal Central Valley Project via the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The…

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ROOTED IN THE VALLEY: The Hagopians escaped the Armenian Genocide to thrive in the San Joaquin Valley

January 1, 2024

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

Richard Hagopian’s family was one of thousands that escaped the Armenian Genocide in the early 1900s and forged a new path in the fertile San Joaquin Valley. It wasn’t an easy life, especially after his father died, leaving Richard the man of the family while still in his teens. But hard work, a successful music…

Floods • Uncategorized

Fresno hospital’s request for $1.23 million in flood relief funding for “X-Ray Rooms” remains unexplained

November 2, 2023

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

After this year’s historic storms and devastating floods, the federal government has been swamped with requests from agencies across the San Joaquin Valley seeking reimbursement for repair costs. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provided SJV Water a data sheet that enumerates more than 460 such requests from six counties, including Fresno, Madera, Merced, Kern…

dams • Uncategorized

One Central Valley dam project gets nearly $95 million in funding; two others still in proposal phase

October 20, 2023

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

Three dam expansion projects could increase water storage for use in the Central Valley by a whopping 304,000 acre feet. Each of the projects would raise existing dams, not build new ones. The project that is furthest along would raise the B.F. Sisk Dam in Merced County to expand San Luis Reservoir storage by 130,000…

Floods • Uncategorized

Fresno County agencies seeking $40 million – and counting – in federal funds to fix last winter’s flood damage and prep for upcoming El Niño

October 4, 2023

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water

Agencies in Fresno County, from small cities to irrigation districts, are hoping money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency arrives in time to help them fix damage from last winter’s battering storms as they scramble to get ready for another looming wet winter. Fresno County was slammed hard by storms in January and March. While…

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“Too damn hot.” Farmers look for irrigation sweet spot to cool crops but there’s no beating this heat

New program to help Kern residents with nitrate-tainted water

Fresno water district plans to use a $5 million federal grant to sink more water

Fresno farmers have one more day to apply for irrigation project money

San Joaquin Valley counties, some still drying out from last year’s floods, brace for another round of heavy rain, snow

MEETING NOTES: Westlands approves transfers and hears updates on water conditions

ROOTED IN THE VALLEY: The Hagopians escaped the Armenian Genocide to thrive in the San Joaquin Valley

Fresno hospital’s request for $1.23 million in flood relief funding for “X-Ray Rooms” remains unexplained

One Central Valley dam project gets nearly $95 million in funding; two others still in proposal phase

Fresno County agencies seeking $40 million – and counting – in federal funds to fix last winter’s flood damage and prep for upcoming El Niño

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