Tag Archive for: Water Quality

Long Beach Gears Up to Fight Upstream Sewage Spills That Pollute Its Coastline

/in , /by /Long Beach Post by Maison Tran

Long Beach had to close its coastline for 63 days over the last five years because of upstream sewage spills, but city staff told council members Tuesday that the total amount of economic or environmental damage caused by the recurring spills is hard to estimate.

Beach closures caused by raw sewage are a perennial problem in Long Beach because the city is downstream from much of Los Angeles County. The Los Angeles and San Gabriel rivers carry debris and pollutants into the ocean, which can make bacteria levels in Long Beach’s water unsafe for use.

Full Story

Survey: 66% of Americans Say Water Requires More Federal Funding

/in , /by /Water Finance and Management by WFM Staff

The American Business Water Coalition (ABWC), a national organization comprised of water-reliant businesses, has released a “U.S. Water Infrastructure Funding and Business Risks Survey,” examining voter opinions across a wide spectrum of water issues.

The survey focused on water issues such as water quality, federal infrastructure funding and perceived risk to U.S. businesses and local communities from potential water-related crises.

Full Story

Plans for Urgent South Bay Wastewater Plant Repairs Revealed

/in , , /by /10 Newsby Madison Weil

As calls to fix the sewage crisis in the South Bay continue to intensify, there were some heated moments inside Wednesday morning’s Regional Water Quality Control Board meeting.

“We continue to be woken up by the smell of chemicals and sewage in the middle of the night,” said Paloma Aguirre, Imperial Beach’s mayor, as she read an emotional letter from one of her constituents to the board.

Full Story

Water Quality Expected to Decline as Extreme Weather Becomes More Common, New Study Says

/in , , /by /Forbesby Mary Whitfill Roeloffs

The increasing frequency of droughts, heatwaves, storms and floods is threatening the availability of water and its quality across the world, a study released Tuesday said, heightening scientist’s existing concerns that climate change poses a severe threat to human health.

Full Story

The World’s Largest Dam Demolition Has Begun. Can the Dammed Klamath River Finally Find Salvation?

/in , , /by /Cal Mattersby Rachel Becker

Oshun O’Rourke waded into the dark green water, splashing toward a net that her colleagues gently closed around a cluster of finger-length fish.

The Klamath River is wide and still here, making its final turn north to the coast as it winds through the Yurok reservation in Humboldt County. About 150 baby chinook salmon, on their long journey to the Pacific, were resting in cool waters that poured down from the forest.

Full Story

San Diego Researchers Work on Forecasting Tool for Ocean Pathogens

/in , , /by /KPBSby Erik Anderson

California is investing $3 million in an effort to allow researchers to predict when and where ocean waters near Imperial Beach may be contaminated.

The ocean off the coast of Imperial Beach has suffered decades of contamination which includes trash, toxic chemicals and untreated sewage runoff.

Full Story

Feinstein, Padilla Ask Senate for $310 Million to Address Border Pollution

/in , , /by /Times of San Diego by Elizabeth Ireland

California Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Alex Padilla Tuesday called on U.S. Senate leadership to include $310 million in an upcoming emergency supplemental bill — money that would be used to repair infrastructure to treat raw sewage spilling across the border from Mexico.

Full Story

Federal Judge Denies Request for Temporary Block of Water Testing Rules in California

/in , /by /Courthouse News Serviceby Alan Riquelmy

Two associations that represent the interests of wastewater treatment and water reclamation plant operators are unlikely to succeed on their claims challenging the federal government’s approval of California’s new water quality standards, a federal judge in the state ruled Monday. On May 22, Clean Water SoCal and the Central Valley Clean Water Association — groups with member agencies that own and operate wastewater treatment and water reclamation plants — sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Tomas Torres, director of EPA’s Region IX, over the approval of California’s new water toxicity provisions.

Full Story

Supervisors Declare State of Emergency on Cross-Border Pollution, Sewage

/in , , /by /Times of San Diegoby Elizabeth Ireland

San Diego County supervisors unanimously approved a proclamation Tuesday declaring a state of emergency due to pollution and sewage flowing across the U.S.-Mexico border.

Board Chairwoman Nora Vargas and Vice Chair Terra Lawson-Remer introduced the proclamation, which asks Gov. Gavin Newsom and President Joe Biden to issue similar declarations, “suspend red tape that may hinder response efforts, and expedite access to federal resources for San Diego County.”

Full Story

Supreme Court Scales Back Clean Water Protections. What Does It Mean for California?

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Ian James

The Supreme Court’s landmark decision scaling back federal protections for many wetlands and streams has drawn criticism from scientists and environmental advocates, who say the gutting of safeguards will jeopardize water quality throughout the arid West.

California’s water regulators say the ruling will be harmful for protections nationwide, but the more stringent state protections of wetlands won’t be affected.

Full Story