Tag Archive for: Water cuts

Calif. Businesses and Residents to Cut Water Use by 15%

/in , /by /Environment and Energy Leaderby Harun Asad

Signing an Executive Order on July 8, California (CA) Governor Gavin Newsom has asked Californians to voluntarily cut their water use by 15% to mitigate severe drought conditions across the state, and to protect water reserves and help maintain critical flows for fish and wildlife.

During the last drought from 2012 to 2016, Californians were ordered to cut their water use by an average of 25% statewide. With the new drought emergency declarations, there is still no statewide emergency or mandate to reduce water use.

The request applies to businesses and agriculture as well as residents. Meeting the target could save enough water to supply 1.7 million average households for one year, according to state officials. Fifty counties, about 42% of the state’s population, are now under drought emergencies — essentially everywhere except San Francisco and urban Southern California.

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Drought Forces Drastic Water Cuts to Valley Towns, Farmers

/in , , /by /GV Wireby Bill McEwen

It’s not yet Memorial Day weekend, but the Bureau of Reclamation is taking drastic measures because of the California drought. On Wednesday, the Bureau announced that farmers north and south of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta would receive no water from the Central Valley Project. Municipal, Industrial Water Deliveries Cut 30%. In addition, municipal and industrial water-service contractors north and south of the Delta will see their allocations cut from 55% of their historic use to 25%.

 

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Farmers Grapple with Implications of Water Cuts

/in , /by /AgAlertby Christine Souza

In water-stressed farming areas of California, farmers removed productive trees and idled other land to divert what little water they have to other crops, as the reality of the 2021 drought became ever more apparent.

“We’re removing 15-year-old, prime-production almond trees,” said Daniel Hartwig of Woolf Farming in Fresno County. “We’re pulling out almost 400 acres, simply because there’s not enough water in the system to irrigate them, and long term, we have no confidence that there would be water in the future.”

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Marin County is First in Region to Limit Outdoor Watering with Mandatory Rules

/in , , /by /SF Gateby Amy Graff

The Marin Municipal Water District is imposing more mandatory water restrictions on residents, with the goal of reducing overall water use in the district by 40%.

The water district’s board voted Tuesday night to limit spray irrigation to two days per week and drip irrigation to three days per week. All swimming pools and spas must be covered to limit evaporation.

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Here’s how Arizona is Preparing for 1st Cuts to Colorado River Allocation

/in , , /by /AZ Big Mediaby Ted Cooke

Arizona is gearing up for the first-ever “Tier 1” shortage on the Colorado River in 2022, which will trigger significant cuts to the state’s annual allocation from its most important water resource. As daunting as it sounds, the vast majority of citizens and businesses will not be affected, state water leaders said during a Colorado River Preparedness briefing last week.

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US West Faces Reckoning Over Water but Avoids Cuts for Now

/in , , /by /AP Newsby Sam Metz

The white rings that wrap around two massive lakes in the U.S. West are a stark reminder of how water levels are dropping and a warning that the 40 million people who rely on the Colorado River face a much drier future.

Amid prolonged drought and climate change in a region that’s only getting thirstier, when that reckoning will arrive — and how much time remains to prepare for it — is still a guess.

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