SACRAMENTO – With the Sierra snowpack’s water content above average, the Department of Water Resources (DWR) today increased its State Water Project (SWP) allocation to 20 percent.
“As the water picture for this year becomes clearer, we can increase our deliveries to farms and communities throughout the state,” said DWR Director Mark Cowin. “But the aftermath of three years of drought and regulatory restrictions on Delta pumping to protect fish species will keep this year’s allocation far below normal. This underscores, once again, the need to implement long-term solutions to improve water supply reliability.”
Manual and electronic snow survey readings today indicate that statewide, snowpack water content is 106 percent of normal for the date. This time last year, the reading was 81 of normal.
Electronic sensors show northern Sierra snow water equivalents at 126 percent of normal for the date, central Sierra at 92 percent, and southern Sierra at 105 percent.
Snowpack water content normally is at its peak the first of April, although DWR makes a final manual survey the first of May, and electronic readings report conditions daily. DWR may be able to increase the State Water Project allocation to above 20 percent as hydrologists refine runoff projections from today’s snowpack readings and conditions continue to develop.
Lake Oroville, the State Water Project’s principal reservoir, is recovering slowly after three consecutive dry years. Its storage level today is at only 47 percent of capacity, 60 percent of normal for the date. In addition, fishery agency restrictions on Delta pumping continue to reduce the amount of water that can be delivered to contractors and customers in the Bay Area, San Joaquin Valley, Central Coast and Southern California. The final State Water Project allocation, to be set later this spring, will partially depend on how the pumping restrictions to protect fish including Delta smelt, salmon and longfin smelt are applied.
In 2009, the State Water Project delivered 40 percent of customer requests. The average of Project deliveries over the past 10 years is 68 percent of the amount requested by the 29 public agencies with long-term contracts to buy SWP water. The 29 contractors deliver water to more than 25 million Californians and 750,000 acres of irrigated farmland.
DWR, in partnership with the Association of California Water Agencies, will continue to run the Save Our Water program. The program, which was created by Gov. Schwarzenegger’s 2009 drought declaration, aims to educate Californians about easy ways to conserve water indoors and outdoors. Vists the website at www.saveourh2o.org
Friday, April 16, 2010
Monday, February 22, 2010
Stratospheric Water Vapor is a Global Warming Wild Card
A 10 percent drop in water vapor ten miles above Earth's surface has had a big impact on global warming, say researchers in a study published online January 28 in the journal Science. The findings might help explain why global surface temperatures have not risen as fast in the last ten years as they did in the 1980s and 1990s.
Observations from satellites and balloons show that stratospheric water vapor has had its ups and downs lately, increasing in the 1980s and 1990s, and then dropping after 2000. The authors show that these changes occurred precisely in a narrow altitude region of the stratosphere where they would have the biggest effects on climate.
Water vapor is a highly variable gas and has long been recognized as an important player in the cocktail of greenhouse gases- carbon dioxide, methane, halocarbons, nitrous oxide, and others- that affect climate.
"Current climate models do a remarkable job on water vapor near the surface. But this is different - it's a thin wedge of the upper atmosphere that packs a wallop from one decade to the next in a way we didn't expect," says Susan Solomon, NOAA senior scientist and first author of the study.
Since 2000, water vapor in the stratosphere decreased by about 10 percent. The reason for the recent decline in water vapor is unknown. The new study used calculations and models to show that the cooling from this change caused surface temperatures to increase about 25 percent more slowly than they would have otherwise, due only to the increases in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
An increase in stratospheric water vapor in the 1990s likely had the opposite effect of increasing the rate of warming observed during that time by about 30 percent, the authors found.
The stratosphere is a region of the atmosphere from about eight to 30 miles above the Earth's surface. Water vapor enters the stratosphere mainly as air rises in the tropics. Previous studies suggested that stratospheric water vapor might contribute significantly to climate change. The new study is the first to relate water vapor in the stratosphere to the specific variations in warming of the past few decades.
Observations from satellites and balloons show that stratospheric water vapor has had its ups and downs lately, increasing in the 1980s and 1990s, and then dropping after 2000. The authors show that these changes occurred precisely in a narrow altitude region of the stratosphere where they would have the biggest effects on climate.
Water vapor is a highly variable gas and has long been recognized as an important player in the cocktail of greenhouse gases- carbon dioxide, methane, halocarbons, nitrous oxide, and others- that affect climate.
"Current climate models do a remarkable job on water vapor near the surface. But this is different - it's a thin wedge of the upper atmosphere that packs a wallop from one decade to the next in a way we didn't expect," says Susan Solomon, NOAA senior scientist and first author of the study.
Since 2000, water vapor in the stratosphere decreased by about 10 percent. The reason for the recent decline in water vapor is unknown. The new study used calculations and models to show that the cooling from this change caused surface temperatures to increase about 25 percent more slowly than they would have otherwise, due only to the increases in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
An increase in stratospheric water vapor in the 1990s likely had the opposite effect of increasing the rate of warming observed during that time by about 30 percent, the authors found.
The stratosphere is a region of the atmosphere from about eight to 30 miles above the Earth's surface. Water vapor enters the stratosphere mainly as air rises in the tropics. Previous studies suggested that stratospheric water vapor might contribute significantly to climate change. The new study is the first to relate water vapor in the stratosphere to the specific variations in warming of the past few decades.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Water Supply is Great Shape in Phoenix
You may have seen the 2008 water supply ratings recently reported by Sustain Lane. They did not give Phoenix a favorable rating for reliability of water supplies. They are mistaken.
Although we should use water wisely, Phoenix has ample water supplies for years to come:
In the last 20 years, Phoenix's per person usage of water has dropped 20 percent. Total water use in Phoenix is no higher today than ten years ago.
Phoenix has gone even further than the sustainability requirements of the State of Arizona. The city has reduced its groundwater use to a minimum and is planning for a sustainable yield, as well as its assured 100 year supply, under conditions of long-term drought and global climate change — not just under normal conditions. And, Phoenix recycles 90 percent of its wastewater, using it in agriculture, energy production, urban irrigation of golf courses and cemeteries, aquifer recharge and riparian wetland maintenance.
Water conservation is promoted as a lifestyle, asking customers to think about water every time they use it.
Through these efforts, Phoenix water supplies have kept pace with demand. The City continues to plan for future growth.
Although we should use water wisely, Phoenix has ample water supplies for years to come:
- Phoenix does not depend upon the rainfall that occurs in the Valley for its water. Over one hundred years, the City has developed multiple water sources to create a diversified water portfolio.
- In recent years, water conservation efforts, efficient use of reclaimed water for non-potable use, extensive groundwater management, and aggressive leak detection have stretched our available water supplies.
- The City conducts effective drought management planning that ensures reliable supplies.
In the last 20 years, Phoenix's per person usage of water has dropped 20 percent. Total water use in Phoenix is no higher today than ten years ago.
Phoenix has gone even further than the sustainability requirements of the State of Arizona. The city has reduced its groundwater use to a minimum and is planning for a sustainable yield, as well as its assured 100 year supply, under conditions of long-term drought and global climate change — not just under normal conditions. And, Phoenix recycles 90 percent of its wastewater, using it in agriculture, energy production, urban irrigation of golf courses and cemeteries, aquifer recharge and riparian wetland maintenance.
Water conservation is promoted as a lifestyle, asking customers to think about water every time they use it.
Through these efforts, Phoenix water supplies have kept pace with demand. The City continues to plan for future growth.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
NASA Radar Captures its 1st Haiti Image
JPL’s Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar (UAVSAR) captured this false-color composite image of the city of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and the surrounding region on Jan. 27, 2010. Port-au-Prince is visible near the center of the image. The large dark line running east-west near the city is the main airport. UAVSAR left NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center in Edwards, Calif., Jan. 25, 2010, aboard a modified NASA Gulfstream III aircraft on a three-week campaign that will also take it to Central America.
For more info http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/haiti20100201.html
For more info http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/haiti20100201.html
Monday, January 18, 2010
President Barack Obama Pledges Continued Commitment to Haiti
President Barack Obama Jan 15th pledged America’s continued commitment to the government and people of Haiti in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake and in recovery efforts.
Speaking from the White House, the president singled out the men and women in uniform who “have moved so swiftly” to help Haitians and thanked troops and search and rescue teams.
“I want you to know that you demonstrate the courage and decency of the American people, and we are extraordinarily proud of you,” Obama said.
With the arrival of the USS Carl Vinson in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, Obama said, a distribution plan for food, water and medical aid is being developed, and will be coordinated among the United States, the government of Haiti, the United Nations and other international partners and aid organizations.
Meanwhile, resources are continuing to move to Haiti from the United States, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, France, Colombia and the Dominican Republic and others, Obama said. The president is scheduled to meet tomorrow with former presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush to discuss ways to enlist the American people in recovery and rebuilding efforts going forward.
For more http://www.defense.gov
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