The State of the Colorado River Basin: Negotiating Water Cuts in the Cold War and Implications for Valleys Like Lake Mead and Powell

Over time, demand for the river’s water has more than doubled its supply. In 2023, federal and state officials must find a way to keep as much as 4 million acre-feet of water in Lakes Mead and Powell – 30% of what the Colorado River states have historically used.

If nothing is done, both lakes will reach a dead pool in the next two years, where the water is too low to flow through the dams and into the communities that need it.

The Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner gave states a deadline of January 31 to cut usage. If they can’t do it on their own, top federal water officials have said they would step in and make mandatory cuts to save the system.

Western state officials wrote a letter in May agreeing to leave 1 million acre-feet of water in Lake Powell. They watched the same amount of water disappear because of system losses and evaporation.

Tom Buschatzke, the top Arizona water official, told CNN that everything was wiped out by Mother Nature. “We have to understand that could happen to us again. It’s been happening to us almost every year for the past few years.”

There is increasing anxiety in the West. Negotiations between the states on voluntary water cuts have been tense and closely watched, particularly between the Lower Basin states of California, Arizona and Nevada.

Those talks have stalled amid disagreement on how much water each state should sacrifice and how much money farmers, tribal nations and cities should be paid to reduce their water consumption.

State negotiators are themselves waiting for the feds to decide how it will dole out $4 billion in drought relief money, which the Biden administration fronted from the Inflation Reduction Act to essentially pay people to not use water.

But, he says, “it makes it a little more difficult because of the uncertainty and not knowing” what the difference will be between the money the federal government is offering, and the voluntary cuts districts are willing to make.

Other important deals have been struck. In November, the Biden administration pledged to spend millions of federal dollars to help restore California’s endangered Salton Sea – a key demand from the powerful Imperial Irrigation district in Southern California. With that funding, other states like Arizona are hoping Imperial and other California water users agree to put more cuts on the table.

There is also a distinct possibility that the federal government will step in if voluntary cuts don’t come close to what’s needed. That plan would almost certainly be challenged in court.

First Season Colorado River Valley Winter Storms During the First Year of Snow and Rain: A Statewide Approach in the Elliptical Valley

At a December conference of Colorado River water users, Assistant Secretary of the Department of the Interior Tanya Trujillo addressed that likelihood, according to Porter.

Overall, the outlook from the National Weather Service’s River Forecast Center for the Colorado River Basin suggest springtime snow melt will be close to average.

Climate change has increased the potential for sudden shifts in the weather, where a lack of rain and snow can cause a whiplash effect.

This storm will make a difference to the situation in California, which began the year on a dry run and ended it with rivers swelling and flooded roads.

Dry air removes water from the soil. Water shortages on the Colorado River are being caused by the amount of rain that falls and the air that leaves behind, as well as the fact that the air has sucked water from what is left of them.

She said that there is a high chance that the lack of rain and low snow cover will persist. La Niña is expected to persist through the winter, which typically causes the jet stream – upper-level winds that carry storms around the globe – to shift northward. A region that desperately needs it is going to get less rain.

This winter, California was hit with 11 different atmospheric rivers – long, narrow bands of moisture that can carry saturated air thousands of miles like a fire hose. Many have been affected by the storms, from losing their homes to forcing evacuations, but they have also helped to put an end to the historic drought.

The Sierra Snow Lab recorded a total of 29.95 inches of snow, Bear Valley Ski Resort recorded 21 inches, Boreal Ski Resort received 40 inches and Soda Springs got 40 inches.

Just over 70,000 homes and businesses remained without power early Thursday, days after the first round of winter storms hit California, according to PowerOutage.us. And while the state is getting a brief reprieve from the snow through the end of the week, another system is expected to move into Northern California this weekend.

The day before, rising flood waters forced evacuations in Wilton, California, as well as three communities near the city of Watsonville in Santa Cruz County.

The National Weather Service reported that since December 26, there have been more than 25 inches of rain and over 10 feet of snow in the Eastern Sierra.

Sacramento County Sheriff’s Depth, Highway 99 Closures, and Sacramento County Emergency Preparedness After a Supersonic Earthquake

Flooding from the Cosumnes River forced the closure of Highway 99 south of Elk Grove in Sacramento County, the California Department of Transportation tweeted. It says thatSR 99 is a heavily traveled, and commercially important, corridor.

Weather service meteorologist Courtney Carpenter said the storm could drop over an inch of rain in the Sacramento area before moving south. The ski resort south of Lake Tahoe had to close chair lifts because of flooding and operational problems, and posted a photo on social media showing the lift tower surrounded by water.

The map shows a wide range of totals in the region between less than an inch (2.54 centimeters) in some areas and over 5 inches (12.7 centimeters) in the Sierra foothills.

The Stockton Police Department posted photos of a flooded railroad underpass and a car that appeared stalled in more than a foot (30 centimeters) of water.

While the boost in water levels in Lake Oroville presents good news for California residents and farmers who rely on the reservoir, experts have said the state is going to need a lot more precipitation to make up for the yearslong deficit from the historic Western drought.

A flood watch was in effect for Northern California through New Years Eve. Officials warned that rivers and streams could overflow and urged residents to get sandbags ready.

Humboldt County, where a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck on Dec. 20, also saw roadways begin to flood, according to the National Weather Service’s Eureka office. A bridge that was temporarily closed last week due to earthquake damage may be closed again if the Eel River, which it crosses, gets too high, officials said.

Thousands of People Rescued after a New Year’s Day Flood Event in Los Angeles, Calif., during a Superheavy Shower on Monday

It was the first of several storms expected to roll across California over the next week. The current system is expected to be warmer and wetter, while next week’s storms will be colder, said Hannah Chandler-Cooley, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Sacramento.

The weather service said strong winds could cause tree damage as well as power outages, and high waves on Lake Sierra could capsize small vessels.

On the Sierra’s eastern front, flood watches and warnings were issued into the weekend north and south of Reno, Nevada, where minor to moderate flooding was forecast along some rivers and streams.

The California Department of Transport said that a lot of drivers were rescued on New Year’s Eve after spun out in the snow on I-80. The key route from the San Francisco Bay Area to the mountains is open to passenger vehicles with chains.

In Southern California, several people were rescued after floodwaters inundated cars in San Bernardino and Orange counties. There were no major injuries reported.

With the region drying out on New Year’s Day and no rainfall expected during Monday’s Rose Parade in Pasadena, spectators began staking out their spots for the annual floral spectacle.

Another round of heavy showers was also forecast for Southern California on Tuesday or Wednesday, the National Weather Service’s Los Angeles-area office said.

The storm claimed the lives of two people, both of whom died when a tree fell on them at a Santa Cruz park.

On Monday, May 14-15, a U.S. Flood Warning Warning for Sacramento County, California, During the Fourth Day of Winter Storms

On Monday, snow is expected to fall across the Rockies, northern Plains, and eventually into parts of the Midwest where winter storm alerts are posted.

There is a chance of tornadoes, damaging winds and hail on Monday for parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana. The storms are expected to last through the night.

The Sacramento County area was particularly hard hit, with emergency crews spending the weekend rescuing multiple flood victims by boats and helicopter and responding to fallen trees and disabled vehicles in the flood waters, the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District said.

The rural areas of Point Pleasant and Glanville Tract in the Sacramento County were under an order to leave on Sunday.

“It is expected that the flooding from the Cosumnes River and the Mokelumne River is moving southwest toward I-5 and could reach these areas in the middle of the night,” the agency tweeted.

The event this week is likely to intensify at a rapid rate of at least 24 microbars of pressure in 24 hours, which is similar to what’s known as a bomb cyclone. The storm is expected to affect the California coast from the San Francisco Bay Area to Southern California.

“This [storm] is going to bring a whole litany of concerns that are probably greater than we had initially anticipated a few days ago,” Swain said. Flood conditions in some places will be worsened by widespread moderate rain at this point, so not the best news.

California has seen a dozen atmospheric rivers so far this season but the center has recorded 29 so far including some weaker systems and systems, according to Chad Hecht. Hecht said there were six storms that were classified as severe or extreme.

As wells run dry and reservoirs drain, Julie Kalansky, a climate scientist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego, said these storms are desperately needed more than ever to alleviate the drought, despite the hazards they bring in some areas.

Experts have also been thinking about how California could harness all of the rainfall to help replenish groundwater. The best way to let the land flood in a controlled way would be to allow it to absorb into the Aquifers, instead of being taken by levees, rivers, and storage tanks and ultimately lost.

Clark said that about 4% of the U.S. is at risk for flooding this spring. “California’s historic snowpack, coupled with spring rain, is heightening the potential for spring floods.”

Although we haven’t seen the mega floods, we have seen hints of increasingly extreme precipitation even in the middle of what has otherwise been a periods of severe and persistent lack of precipitation.

State climatologist Michael Anderson said at the news briefing that officials were keeping an eye on three other systems farther out in the Pacific and that they would be closely monitoring Monday’s storm.

The Boost of Oroville’s Water Levels in 2022 and 21st Century: State Water Project Water Project Contributions to the Sierra Nevada

Although Oroville’s water levels remained well below average in 2022, storms last winter brought record-breaking precipitation to the Sierra Nevada, which gave the lake’s levels a much-needed boost.

Before-and-after photos show incredible improvement at the reservoir, which as of this week stood at 115% of the historical average for the date — a notable jump from just 61% in February 2021 and 77% in 2022.

There is abathtub ring of dirt at the edge of the lake, marking how far the water levels had fallen. The bathtub ring was once again submerged in late January.

Brad said the end of February storage in the state’s 154 primaries is essentially normal at the end of winter. “But storage does not yet include the amazing snowpack that will melt in coming months,” he told CNN.

The total capacity was less than a quarter of what it was in 2011. The intake pipes are exposed and used to send water to power the plant, which is below the water level.

The plant is the fourth-largest hydroelectric energy producer statewide, according to the California Energy Commission, with the ability to power up to 800,000 homes when operating at full capacity. About 13% of the state’s electricity was generated by hydroelectric power plants as of 2018.

To address these growing challenges, California has so far invested $8.6 billion to boost water supplies and storage, with another $327 million proposed to develop flood protection and drought resiliency projects. Government officials are also exploring ways to capture and store more water during storms to prepare for future droughts.

The State Water Project’s two largest reservoirs — Lake Oroville and San Luis — gained a total of 1.62 million acre-feet of water, which is roughly enough water for 5.6 million households for an entire year. A foot deep is the amount of water needed for one Acre-foot.

A State of Emergency in San Bernardino County, Calif., During a Wet April Snow Event as Observed by the Department of Water Resources

The department’s director warned that this month’s survey was not looking promising for rain and snow.

She stated that this is a typical wet month that is already very dry and that it is expected to continue.

While the record-high California’s snow total and nearly full reservoirs are good news for the state, snow measurement on April 1 is what is most important when it comes to forecasting the year’s water resources. DWR plans to host its April snow survey on April 3 at Phillips Station, where officials expect further adjustments to water allocations.

The Colorado River feeds Lake Mead and Lake Powell, the two largest reservoirs in the country. Record-low water levels in both lakes have triggered mandatory water cuts for some Western states in the last year. Lake Powell hit a new record-low this month, and Lake Mead has been hovering just above its record low set last year.

Human-caused climate change is affecting water systems around the world as it cranks up temperatures and makes fires more frequent.

Some California residents remain trapped inside their homes after a winter storm dumped feet of snow across the Golden State, prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom to issue a state of emergency in 13 counties, including hard-hit San Bernardino County.

Authorities there had conducted almost 100 rescues by Wednesday evening, San Bernardino County Fire Chief Dan Munsey said in a news conference, though authorities have not learned of any serious injuries or deaths.

We are responding to medical calls. These vehicles have fires in them. We are going to people’s houses where they’ve had trees through their houses or some sort of roof collapse and we are evacuating them to our evacuation shelters,” Munsey said.

Snow Plows and Road Crews in San Bernardino County, Calif., during the Wednesday Night Out of Emergency During the First Snow Shower

A significant number of state staff had responded to support San Bernardino County, after the state of emergency for the county was declared late Wednesday.

Cal Fire and the CaliforniaNational Guard are prepared to support operations, as the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services works to bring additional snow plows and road crews to the county.

It could take a week to 10 days to dig out the mountain communities hampered by the heavy snow, officials warned in a news conference Wednesday. Mountain residents were still unable to access roads Wednesday, per fire department spokesperson Eric Sherwin. The county has about 500 miles of tight, winding roads throughout the mountain areas that need to be plowed, county Public Works Director Brendon Biggs said.

Many parts of California were buried under a significant amount of snow in recent days, and some places received more than 100 inches in the last week, according to the National Weather Service, leading authorities to warn residents about possible avalanches. The building in Olympic Valley had to be evacuated after it was struck by an slide late Tuesday, the sheriffs office said on Facebook. The building’s occupants were uninjured.

Huntington Lake in the Sierra Nevada saw 144 inches of snow, per a report from the Fresno County Office of Emergency Services, which reported 10 to 12 feet of snow near China Peak, leading to the closure of Highway 168.

The Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab, which is located near the lake, has gotten 661 inches of snow this winter, which is second behind the winter of 1952.

Unusual Number of Atmospheric Rivers and Storms in the Valley During the First Day of Winter Snowpacking in California

Thousands of people were under an order to leave Alpaugh and Allensworth as officials worried that roads could become impassible, the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office stated. First responders from dozens of agencies, including the California National Guard, were out Sunday afternoon helping residents evacuate – a sight that has become familiar in the flood-ravaged state this winter season.

“The devastation is indescribable,” Tulare County farmer Brandon Mendonsa told CNN affiliate KFSN. This is far from being finished, the water is still coming.

There are powerful winds that are also a concern. It is possible for winds to reach up to 80 mph and down trees and power lines from the central California coast to southern California, according to the Weather Service.

Many welcomed this winter’s heavy rain and snow since it was so desperately needed to replenish the state’s severely drained reservoirs and depleted groundwater.

Climate scientist for the University of California at Los Angeles, Daniel Swain, said that this winter in California is an unusual number of storms. This is an unusual number no matter how you slice it, or how you make these formal definitions.

Weak and low-end moderate storms tend to be less impactful and primarily bring beneficial precipitation to the state, he said. Meanwhile, the high-end atmospheric rivers are the big rain and snow producers, which lead to more severe impacts.

Hecht said that this year is already past the average number of atmospheric rivers. Many of them came in a rapid series of storms in early January.

Hecht told CNN that the rivers were typically referred to as anar families. The stretch of nine we had around the New Year was a more active family than we typically see, as we don’t see them every year.

Atmospheric River Water Recovery in California during the Recent Atmosphere-River Storms: State of the Art and Forecasts for 2023

The official record-keeping began in the 1950’s and the Southern Sierra has never been higher. The Central Sierra is at 231% of normal, which is almost at record high, and may reach that point soon after this most recent atmospheric river storm.

The storms have boosted soil hydration, which is good news for California where the vegetation is so dry. April 1 is when the highest fuel content is usually found in California, and it’s a good time to plant because of the high amount of plants that have moist leaves.

Brad Rippey, meteorologist with the US Department of Agriculture, said the acres of land that have been fallowed due to the drought should decrease in California for the 2023 growing season due to improved water allocations. Land for rice production in the Central Valley, for example, decreased from 517,000 acres in 2020 to 256,000 acres last year, according to the USDA.

But “those gains may be partially offset in areas where levee breaches caused extensive flooding,” Rippey said. Areas along the Salinas and Pajaro River may not be planted in 2023 due to soil contamination or missing the appropriate window for planting.

The snow that has fallen this season will help the state’s low levels of water in the short-term.

Andrew Schwartz, Lead scientist at the Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab, told CNN he was cautiously optimistic that the snow would alleviate the state’s concerns.

Even though it is a large winter like this, it won’t solve the groundwater problem, according to a University of California in Los Angeles climate scientist. That’s partly because they expect drought conditions to return as the West’s climate changes, but also because there’s just too much demand on the system.

“This is not nearly enough, partly because it’s a supply and demand problem. A lot of straws are still in the ground. You need multiple years like this to really move the needle on the recharging of the aquifers.

According to the US Geological Survey there are nearly 200 monitoring sites in California which show a wide variety of conditions from full recovery to partial recovery of reserves.

Source: https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/23/us/atmospheric-river-winter-california-drought-climate/index.html

A call to reinvigorate the fight against climate change: The challenges of California agriculture, stormwater capture, recycling and groundwater replenishment

Peter Gleick, a climate scientist and co-founding member of the Pacific Institute in Oakland, told CNN that we needed to let our rivers flow differently, and let the rivers flood a little more. “Instead of thinking we can control all floods, we have to learn to live with them.”

The Dunnigan Hills in Yolo County are being used to channel water off of the farmland and back onto the ground to replenish the atmosphere, which in turn is being used to limit outdoor irrigation.

Newsom is also rolling back his 2021 order, urging residents and businesses to cut back their water consumption use by 15%, even though urban water usage was actually up by 19% months later.

“It’s incumbent upon us to continue to maintain our vigilance and maintain some provisions of the executive order to allow for fast tracking of groundwater replenishment projects, stormwater capture and recycling programs here in the state of California,” he added.