Drought in California

[mvmac]

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/sep/05/fill-er-up/

Quote:

While the statewide drought withers farms, evaporates lakes, shortens showers and browns lawns, it’s having a surprising collateral effect in San Diego.

Water, literally, is building behind the dam.

There are real shortages elsewhere in the state, but not here. Water supplies are at 99 percent of normal.

So the result of state-mandated cuts in usage is an abundance of water supply — billions of gallons and growing. And rates are being forced up because water suppliers have fixed costs, while conservation is costing them revenue.

Since state-mandated conservation targets took effect in May, the county’s water providers have had to store some 13.7 billion additional gallons of water in reservoirs — enough to supply more than 100,000 typical homes for a year, according to data provided by the San Diego County Water Authority.

San Diego County reservoir storage levels

It’s all going into the San Vicente Reservoir, where ratepayers recently funded a $416 million expansion. When the new, $1-billion-dollar Carlsbad desalination plant comes online later this year, it will free up even more water to store in reserve, county water officials said.

Whether San Diego County gets to start using the supplies that are building up hinges on whether the state-mandated conservation targets imposed on urban suppliers this past May will continue past their expected end date of Feb. 29, 2016.

“Are we storing water? We’re absolutely storing water, and that’s a good thing,” said Dennis Cushman, assistant general manager of the San Diego County Water Authority. “There’s an open question about whether or not we would be able to use that water (in the next couple years).”

What about pumping the water to other jurisdictions, more in need, or selling the water to them? Not an option at this time, the authority says.

“The mechanisms aren't currently in place to allow for water transfers or sales,” spokesman Mike Lee said. “If a mechanism were in place, the water authority would make use of it as appropriate for the best interests of the region's ratepayers.”

The situation is frustrating to some local water agencies.

“We have to meet these conservation targets, and the way we’re doing it is bludgeoning and threatening my customers,” said Gary Arant, general manager at the Valley Center Municipal Water District. “And at the same time, I know that we have all the water we need.”

CALIFORNIA DROUGHT

• Latest headlines

• How you can save water

He said it makes no sense that water users who have funded billions of dollars of improvements to supplies and storage in San Diego County can’t take advantage of them.

“We don’t have the same degree of water supply shortages that the rest of the state does,” Arant said.

[Lihu]

[URL=http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/sep/05/fill-er-up/]http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/sep/05/fill-er-up/[/URL] [QUOTE]

While the statewide drought withers farms, evaporates lakes, shortens showers and browns lawns, it’s having a surprising collateral effect in San Diego.

Water, literally, is building behind the dam.

There are real shortages elsewhere in the state, but not here. Water supplies are at 99 percent of normal.

So the result of state-mandated cuts in usage is an abundance of water supply — billions of gallons and growing. And rates are being forced up because water suppliers have fixed costs, while conservation is costing them revenue.

Since state-mandated conservation targets took effect in May, the county’s water providers have had to store some 13.7 billion additional gallons of water in reservoirs — enough to supply more than 100,000 typical homes for a year, according to data provided by the San Diego County Water Authority.

San Diego County reservoir storage levels

It’s all going into the San Vicente Reservoir, where ratepayers recently funded a $416 million expansion. When the new, $1-billion-dollar Carlsbad desalination plant comes online later this year, it will free up even more water to store in reserve, county water officials said.

Whether San Diego County gets to start using the supplies that are building up hinges on whether the state-mandated conservation targets imposed on urban suppliers this past May will continue past their expected end date of Feb. 29, 2016.

“Are we storing water? We’re absolutely storing water, and that’s a good thing,” said Dennis Cushman, assistant general manager of the San Diego County Water Authority. “There’s an open question about whether or not we would be able to use that water (in the next couple years).”

What about pumping the water to other jurisdictions, more in need, or selling the water to them? Not an option at this time, the authority says.

“The mechanisms aren't currently in place to allow for water transfers or sales,” spokesman Mike Lee said. “If a mechanism were in place, the water authority would make use of it as appropriate for the best interests of the region's ratepayers.”

The situation is frustrating to some local water agencies.

“We have to meet these conservation targets, and the way we’re doing it is bludgeoning and threatening my customers,” said Gary Arant, general manager at the Valley Center Municipal Water District. “And at the same time, I know that we have all the water we need.”

CALIFORNIA DROUGHT

• Latest headlines

• How you can save water

He said it makes no sense that water users who have funded billions of dollars of improvements to supplies and storage in San Diego County can’t take advantage of them.

“We don’t have the same degree of water supply shortages that the rest of the state does,” Arant said.

[/QUOTE]

Sell water to LA. ;-)

[mvmac]

Sell water to LA.

Sure...but you won't like our prices.

And you better not steal it, stay out of South California you damn Western Californians!

[No Mulligans]

Sure...but you won't like our prices.

And you better not steal it, stay out of South California you damn Western Californians!

Yeah San Diego is the most eastern city in that illustration.

[Lihu]

[QUOTE name="Lihu" url="/t/81830/drought-in-california/54#post_1196207"] Sell water to LA. ;-) [/QUOTE] Sure...but you won't like our prices. And you better not steal it, stay out of South California you damn Western Californians! [URL=http://thesandtrap.com/content/type/61/id/131411/] [/URL]

I like the comment regarding the state split initiative not getting enough "valid" signatures. :-D

[Lihu]

Getting lots of rain tonight, and it seems to be quite a bit more than 1/4". I hope it's only the beginning of what's to come this year for us. :-) http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-rain-moves-into-southern-california-thanks-to-former-hurricane-linda-20150915-story.html

[misty_mountainhop]

Getting lots of rain tonight, and it seems to be quite a bit more than 1/4". I hope it's only the beginning of what's to come this year for us.

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-rain-moves-into-southern-california-thanks-to-former-hurricane-linda-20150915-story.html

This may be relevant:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-34226178

...or not, as the case may be.

[Lihu]

Bad for SE Asia, but at least we might get more rain here.

[Lihu]

Wow, more than 2" rain in my local region! I hope for 2 feet of rain in Northern California*** to fill up all our reservoirs, and sunny weather here this up coming week.

***You guys can play golf in the rain, right? Oops