groundwater Archives - Page 18 of 20

Double blast of lawsuits fired at proposed Kern groundwater bank

February 12, 2021

• by Lois Henry

A major water banking proposal northwest of Bakersfield that won coveted Proposition 1 funding in 2018, was hit by two lawsuits earlier this month, one claiming it is nothing more than a wolf in sheep’s clothing intent on selling Kern River water to southern California. The City of Bakersfield and the Kern County Water Agency…

Personalities

Longtime Kern water leader leaving for private sector

January 21, 2021

• by Lois Henry

Kern County’s water community had a shake-up Tuesday when longtime Rosedale-Rio Bravo Water Storage District General Manager Eric Averett announced he is leaving to take a private sector job. This comes on top of the pending retirement of another key local water manager. Richard Diamond, General Manager of North Kern Water Storage District, announced he…

Groundwater • Water Markets

Water games: Madera farmers set to test market

January 20, 2021

• by Lois Henry

Madera County farmers are getting ready to play what could be the “game” of their livelihoods. The county groundwater sustainability agency will launch a groundwater market simulation, or game, next month as a way for growers to see if selling and trading their groundwater helps make the most of what will become a severely limited…

Rivers

Secret Kern River talks underway

January 16, 2021

• by Lois Henry

It’s hard to say what spurred “confidential mediation” over the Kern River that began last week. Could it be the relentless “Bring Back the Kern!” campaign by a group of young, Bakersfield residents? Could it be a sentence in a recent letter from the State Water Resources Control Board that said, in part, it “will…

Drinking Water

Clean water plans need more public involvement, activists say

January 13, 2021

• by Lois Henry

The stage is finally set for years of talking to be translated into actual clean drinking water for potentially thousands of San Joaquin Valley residents. But activists fear the effort will flop before the curtain rises if more isn’t done to engage the people who are drinking that water. The issue is nitrate, which is …

Drought • Groundwater • State System

Valley groundwater may get (small) slice of state’s $15 billion surplus

January 13, 2021

• by Lois Henry

The Governor’s proposal for how to spend California’s $15 billion surplus includes $60 million in direct grants to help replenish groundwater in the valley’s most depleted basins. The measure specifies the money is to be used in “critically over-drafted basins,” which lie mostly in the San Joaquin Valley. Water managers were pleasantly surprised, but not…

Federal System • Friant-Kern Canal • Groundwater • Rivers

California water “stockings” stuffed with federal money

December 23, 2020

• by Lois Henry

Christmas appeared to come early for California water interests with more than $1 billion in federal funding for a variety of projects packed into the recent federal funding bill that included COVID-19 relief. At the top of the list for the San Joaquin Valley is $206 million to aid in repairing the Friant-Kern Canal. The…

Friant-Kern Canal

Proposed agreement could boost funds to fix Friant-Kern Canal

December 16, 2020

• by Lois Henry

In what was hailed as a “landmark agreement,” farmers in an area of southern Tulare County blamed for sinking the Friant-Kern Canal from excessive groundwater pumping will chip in a hefty amount to help pay for a fix. How hefty could be decided by their payment choice. A longer term payment option would be $200…

Conservation • Groundwater

New land trust focused on groundwater aims to give farmers options

December 2, 2020

• by Lois Henry

Southern Tulare County farmers inching toward a cliff of groundwater restrictions that could dry up tens of thousands of acres have joined with conservationists to potentially soften their own landing and help improve wildlife habitat at the same time. At least that’s the goal of the newly formed Tule Basin and Water Conservation Trust. “Land…

Groundwater

Madera groundwater plan accepted by state

November 11, 2020

• by Lois Henry

The public can finally get a look at how Madera officials plan to correct severe groundwater over pumping and replenish aquifers in that area. For some farmers, that correction will mean pumping limits of up to 50 percent from what’s allowed today. Water budgets and water markets will also likely become the norm. That information…

NEWS

Double blast of lawsuits fired at proposed Kern groundwater bank

Longtime Kern water leader leaving for private sector

Water games: Madera farmers set to test market

Secret Kern River talks underway

Clean water plans need more public involvement, activists say

Valley groundwater may get (small) slice of state’s $15 billion surplus

California water “stockings” stuffed with federal money

Proposed agreement could boost funds to fix Friant-Kern Canal

New land trust focused on groundwater aims to give farmers options

Madera groundwater plan accepted by state

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