While driving to and from Southern California this week, it was hard not to be thoroughly outraged by seeing the California Aqueduct bank to bank with water…while every other river in the state is at or near historic lows!
Apparently, we’re not holding a whole lot back when it comes to Southern water deliveries!
Here’s another unsettling visual: Pyramid Lake, just north of LA (which receives water from Nor Cal), brim-full…
Now, compare that to Folsom Reservoir on the American River system…
In review: CA Aqueduct…
And then you have the Sacramento River and all its salmon spawning beds left high and dry…
Something isn’t right here, folks! I’m just saying…
One thing we can all do to help is to join the Golden Gate Salmon Association which is fighting hard for us to keep enough water in Nor Cal so that our fish runs can flourish.
steelietom says
I don’t know what we all expect…..Gov. Moonbeam’s father, ex-Gov, Pat Brown, implemented the Central Valley Water Project to supply ‘much needed’ water to the arid south state….our current gov. hasn’t fallen far from the tree…quite frankly, I believe Moonbeam would prefer to send more water south…
Frank Alessio says
When the Flows are reduced to the American River, They should also be reduced to the Aqueduct….
Jeremiah says
Well I must say you sound really educated when you resort to name calling! Westlands and farmable acres in the same sentence is laughable. Those 100,000 acres are in a desert with such high salinity level nothing should ever of been planted there, let alone orchards. I’m suppose to feel sorry for a farmer who made the horrible business decission to plant orchards when he knows he has the most junior water rights in the state. Meaning, he won’t get any water during drought years and he plants orchards!? There is no better sight than seeing these orchards dead with the trees left on display, knocked over by escavators with signs crying about “the congress created drought”! That’s great news Westlands has lost 100,000 acres of farmland, I mean desert. That means common sense can prevail over evil gread. This is the best news I’ve heard in quite sometime. Let’s not stop there, let’s get that 100,000 acres up to 2,000,000 acres of land returned to it’s natural desert state. Then we might actually get to the point where we practice sustainable agriculture in California. There will be no increase in water deliveries unless we increase storage. The feds with the ESA won’t allow it, there is no way around that. So agriculture needs to get with the times, live within our means and become smarter business men.
james says
it says in the sac bee that they are going to close the american river to save the steelhead it is in our region section
Peter says
I have a friend who lives on the EAST side of the Rockies – he wanted to start doing rainwater catchment and was told that Colorado law makes it illegal to catch the water because it’s depriving it from those downstream who have signed contracts to get the water.
The punchline – he claims the water that falls at his house (east side of the Rockies) is contractually obligated to SoCal.
Bruce Ross says
Pyramid Lake is full, as it always is this time of year. It’s also tiny.
http://cdec.water.ca.gov/cdecapp/resapp/getResGraphsMain.action
Jim Petruk says
I have been on Pyramid Lake which holds 222,000 acre-feet of water, which is not tiny! A fair comparison is Lake Pardee which holds 210,000 acre-feet of water. It takes 20 minutes at 30mph to go from one end to the other.
Jeremiah says
People always miss the point when it comes to California water issues. This is not in any way, shape or form a north vs south fight. Other than the rediculous amount of energy it takes to pump SoCal’s water up over the grapevine there is nothing ecologically detrimental to the water deliveries going to the municipalities of the south. 80+% of that water in that aquaduct goes toward agriculture use in the southern valley. Some of this agriculture is unsustainable. The municipalities can save all the water they want by not watering lawns, not washing cars, using low flow faucets, etc. and it will make next to no difference. Water can be saved by altering our agricultural use of it. A fight between north and south is misguided and does nothing to solve the problem. In fact it pulls the wool over our eyes in terms of the real issue at hand.
Tim McCabe says
Those stupid farmers sold there water rights to the metropolitan water dist in . L.A. and now the are crying. We deed more water.
Jerry says
Typical non educated response to the water problems. Get your facts right about ag water. Tell that to the Westland Water District after they lost 100,000 farmable acres to non ag use. You people need to understand the importance of Agriculture in California. Quite bitching with you mouth full of food. It doesn’t come from Safeway. The real solution to the water division is desalination in the southern coast. We use less desal than any major country in the world just because the the coastal commission and other government agency tie it up with more regulations. Certainly more storage is needed and a better formula on the release of stored water. If we will spend the dollars planned for the pipeline in the delta for storage and desal,problem mostly solved.
Golden Gate Salmon Assoc says
We are for sure going lose a bunch of incubating salmon eggs buried in American River gravel right now just as we did on the upper Sacramento this year. Although southern Cal water managers stuffed their reservoirs while they could, keep in mind the urbanites down there only consume about 20 percent of what’s taken from northern CA in average years. The lion’s share usually goes to corporate ag operations in the San Joaquin Valley.
The Golden Gate Salmon Association is arguing for water releases that are cold enough for salmon spawning and steady enough to keep the eggs good until they hatch. We’re fighting an uphill battle and no one has good options in drought, but at least we’re at the table providing a voice for salmon. Big thanks to JD for keeping the issues out there because responding starts with first knowing what’s going on.
David Edmondson says
Seeing as the Upper Sacramento hasn’t had salmon since Shasta Dam was put in, I can’t imagine what you’re talking about. Are you maybe referring to the upper portion of the Lower Sacramento River?
JD says
Yes, the Sac near Redding. I never mentioned the upper Sac…
David Edmondson says
I was going off of this: “… as we did on the upper Sacramento this year.” I realize “upper” wasn’t capitalized, but I live on the Upper Sac and when I hear that…
Bruce Schneider says
For a long time this stuff has made me mad. When I was a kid growing up in Yuba City in the mid 1960,s the Feather and the Yuba had about 5 times the average flow that they have now.Check Wikopedia.No cal was a paradise back in the day. The Central valley water project as it was called that started all this was a disaster. Please join Golden Gate Salmon Assoc. Those guys are the only ones I see doing a lot of real good. Bruce.
S.Stokes says
Pull your heads out people. Most of so cal’s water comes from the Colorado River and the Owens valley. Not nor cal.
Tim McCabe says
Look what happened to the Owens valley. It used to be like the Sacramento Valley.
It is now a Desert. Rent the movie Chinatown. Those Idiots in L.A. are building golfcorses in the Desert. Go figure.
Megatron says
Open your eyes parasite. SoCal is taking water from BOTH. They don’t need it and would consequently be a desert without OTHERS water. Fuck SoCal. Quit building golf courses and new studios. The states Capital Needs the water, not some clown in the south. Stop stealing our water!!!!
Carson says
290 gallons a day for every man, woman, and child in Montecito,CA http://www.missionandstate.org/features/montecitos-scary-scarcity-water/
rickd says
Want to help? http://www.restorethedelta.org/. It takes $$$ to stop the lies of the water grabbers..
LloydC says
RickD is right thanks for sharing the link!
Jill Walton says
I was in SoCal over the holidays also, and when I asked family and friends what kind of water conservation methods they were employing, they said none! They were unaware of any conservation efforts taking place anywhere. Ugh!
CAL.NDN says
Makes me sick!!!!!!!! Pure greed and stupidity at its,finest. Something must change and fast.
Rick says
Southern California gets alot of it’s water from the Sacramento River system and that water comes from Lake Shasta north of Redding. Wish I took a picture of how low it is when I drove across the bridge on I-5 in December!
Scott Roller says
they have just posted pics of the lake lowest level in many years, an old town was exposed in the lakebed, and construction equipment visible at the dam.
http://www.krcrtv.com/news/local/low-water-levels-reveals-once-hidden-parts-of-shasta-lake/-/14322302/23802858/-/p0grld/-/index.html
David Edmondson says
Unless we have a lot of precip in Oct-Dec (rare), Lake Shasta is usually pretty low in December. They let a lot of water out to prepare for late winter and spring runoff.
JD says
Agreed. But we are well beyond normal drawdown levels. Closing in on historic lows…. :(
David Edmondson says
Lake Siskiyou too! Although I’ve seen it (Siskiyou) like this before and watched it fill in one wet weekend. Takes a bit more for Shasta, but we have a long season yet ahead of us. Time to get the rain-dance costumes out though.
Robert Saenz says
seriously? it amazes me how small town hickville these many sacramento residents are.
Oscar J S (@redhatchet) says
Only 2.5 Million people in the greater area of the Cowtown, such a small “town”. A “town” that’s built on two rivers, opposed to a city built in a desert with it’s 16 million+ geniuses.
Sam Thorne says
Sacratormento is where the ijit legislators are, who decided to do this to northern California. It’s just a spore cast by the Hellay fungus that drinks from the California Aquesuct: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=California%20Aquesuct
chuck says
it looks like someone is getting their pockets lined and it is not candy but the green stuff!, Lets keep our water and give the south all of the so called good drinkable piss water their is a lot of it!!!
Suzanne Thomas says
I noticed the same thing driving south on 1 -5 this past weekend. CA aqueduct full to the top on its concrete banks and yet a few weeks ago when I walked around Folsom it was bone dry. Thank you for documenting how water is being shipped around the state.
jenn says
Time for sac to take our waters back
Paul Underhill says
Southern California has had much closer to its normal rainfall this year than we have…but that said LA Municipal Water District has bought the water rights to tens of thousands of acres of land along the Sacramento River including in the bypass, and is shipping the water south. They have buckets of money and can raise more any time they like by increasing water fees on their 20 million customers. Eventually they will own all the water rights to all the Sacto River water.
Wolfeman13 says
And the Governor is determined to get those tunnels dug under the Delta. Note to the Governor; Your father was wrong to want to do this and so are you.
It's " Steve " says
Wow! This is way too funny…But in the wrong way! It goes to show, if you have enough money everything is for sale in California.
chuck says
even the government who said the people are smart in the government give them all of the piss water!!!!!
Mark says
That’s our government at work for you. They only think of themselves and don’t think about the consequences of the ecology.
hookpoint says
Here is some more info to reseach, most Northern California lakes above Backersfield is 20% to 30% full including Shasta and Oroville which keep the salt content from entering the Cal Delta. We’re in deep do do in Northern California if it doesn’t rain this month (Jan). All I can say to the ppl that moved here from another state and don’t know whats going on with the water is to vote no on the two tunnels that are designed to bypass the Cal Delta and going directly to Central Valley where Corporate farming is going on….Most of the Crops are sold overseas to Asian countries…..Just remember one thing if you happen to see your water bill go over the top…Your paying for THEIR Water so they can make a profit….Check out Stewart Resnick and just see how much he is worth….Millions and he could careless about you as an individual.
luis says
That’s bullish*t. Let so cal get their own water
Ken says
I’m speechless, these pictures do speak a thousand words and people wonder why there is a push for the state of “Jefferson”.
Virgil says
Bienvenido a California!
Troutzilla says
JD, I also drove down to Southern California over the Christmas break. I saw the same thing, Pyramid Lake and Castaic are at “normal high” water levels, where in Northern California all of our reservoirs and rivers are at record lows.
Thanks fore bringing it to everyone’s attention
Jeremy says
All because of those in Sac have signed off for water to go to farming land and LA