san joaquin valley Archives - Page 27 of 27

Putting farmland out to pasture not an easy task

June 7, 2021

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water reporting intern

Not all farmland in the San Joaquin Valley will survive in a post-SGMA world. Estimates are that the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act will force between 500,000 to one million acres of land that’s currently farmed to be taken out of production to save groundwater. Which lands and what will become of those lands are major…

No cut to Friant water users – so far

June 3, 2021

• by Lois Henry

Though questions remain about whether San Joaquin Valley towns and farms that rely on water from Millerton Lake could be cut to zero, as they were in the last drought, water managers are moving ahead as if that won’t happen. In 2014 and 2015, the federal Bureau of Reclamation wasn’t able to get enough water…

Drought

San Joaquin River flows halted to protect salmon

June 3, 2021

• by Lois Henry

Flows into the San Joaquin River under a program to bring back native salmon will be stopped now through early September to try and protect fish already upstream. The flow reduction being instituted by the San Joaquin Restoration Program is in reaction to rapidly dwindling runoff coming out of the Sierra Nevada mountains this year….

Drought

California’s mountains are dry. Now we know how dry

June 2, 2021

• by Lois Henry

In a pitifully dry year like 2021, understanding the state’s skimpy snowpack is critical. Multi-million dollar decisions can hinge on even the smallest amounts of snow melt squeezed out of the Sierra Nevada mountains. Which makes information provided by Airborne Snow Observatories, Inc. flights vital, according to water managers. “Right now, there’s still 10,000 to…

SGMA • State System • Water Markets

The sinking Central Valley town

May 25, 2021

• by Lois Henry

Editor’s note: This article was produced by SJV Water, the Center for Collaborative Investigative Journalism (CCIJ) and the New York Times. The collaboration between SJV Water and CCIJ was led by the Institute for Nonprofit News as part of a project called “Tapped Out: Power, justice and water in the West.” This story was written with funding from the…

Drinking Water

Money for water debt may be available but can California get it to those in need?

May 20, 2021

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water reporting intern

As pandemic restrictions begin to ease in California, a race is on to get money in place to help with massive and growing household water debt before the statewide moratorium on shutoffs for non-payment is lifted. Some observers are looking at June 15, when Gov. Newsom said he’ll lift the state’s mask mandate, as a…

Drinking Water

Fail: Tule Basin drinking water plan kicked back for a redo

May 11, 2021

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water reporting intern

When Sandra Chavez’ mother discovered she had stage four cancer last year, one of Sandra’s first thoughts was about their water. Her family’s private well is contaminated with nitrates and Chavez wondered if years of drinking the water could have caused her mother’s sickness. Chavez and her family have relied on bottled water since they…

Drinking Water

Public slow to respond to new drinking water program for rural San Joaquin Valley residents

May 6, 2021

• by Jesse Vad, SJV Water reporting trainee

The state is finally beginning to address a decades-long problem of dangerous drinking water in parts of the San Joaquin Valley under a new “management zone” program but hardly anyone is paying attention. Even the prospect of free water testing and free water hasn’t garnered much enthusiasm. Regardless of the lackluster response, program managers will…

Drinking Water

Last minute loan keeps drinking water projects afloat

September 22, 2020

• by Lois Henry

Small, failing drinking water systems got a funding life preserver among a flurry of budget bills at the chaotic end of the California legislative session. Drinking water advocates had fretted the Safe and Affordable Funding for Equity and Resilience (SAFER) program, intended to help struggling water systems in mostly poor, rural areas, would fall victim…

NEWS

Putting farmland out to pasture not an easy task

No cut to Friant water users – so far

San Joaquin River flows halted to protect salmon

California’s mountains are dry. Now we know how dry

The sinking Central Valley town

Money for water debt may be available but can California get it to those in need?

Fail: Tule Basin drinking water plan kicked back for a redo

Public slow to respond to new drinking water program for rural San Joaquin Valley residents

Last minute loan keeps drinking water projects afloat

Don't miss a drop of water news!