La Niña coming? Deep pool of cool water is making its way across tropical Pacific

One of the strongest El Niños on record has been dominating the tropical Pacific Ocean for the past year. But beneath the surface, a deep pool of cool water has been sliding slowly eastward for the past couple of months. This massive, slow-motion wave is a favorable sign that La Niña—the cool phase of the ENSO climate pattern—might develop.


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California water regulators propose major shift in drought conservation rules

Sacramento Bee
In a major shift in California’s urban water policy, state regulators Monday issued proposed conservation rules that would lift the mandatory 25 percent statewide water cuts in place since last June.
Instead, urban water agencies across the state would be required to conserve on a sliding scale tailored to their unique water supply conditions. A draft of the new targets released Monday by the State Water Resources Control Board would allow districts to “self-certify” how much water they expect to have in their supply assuming three additional years of drought, and the level of conservation necessary to ensure they do not run out of water.
The release of the draft rules came on the same day Gov. Jerry Brown issued a new executive order declaring that drought conditions persist and that the state must take permanent action to mitigate the likelihood of more frequent droughts.Districts would be required to reduce water use by an amount equal to their projected shortfall. For example, in a district where three more dry years would leave a district 10 percent short of anticipated supply, the mandatory conservation target would be 10 percent.
In the short term, the order tells the State Water Resources Control Board to adjust water conservation targets through January 2017.
The order also dictates that the water board and Department of Water Resources create new, permanent water use targets across California. Rather than the sweeping regulations in place over the last year, the order says those goals should be tailored to “the unique conditions of each water agency.
“It’s time for the state to “recalibrate our habits,” and change them “into an abiding ethic,” said Mark Cowin, director of the state Department of Water Resources.
Under the governor’s order, urban water districts will be required to report water use monthly to the state, extending a mandate that has been in place for more than a year. It permanently bans practices deemed wasteful, including hosing off sidewalks or driveways, washing cars with hoses that don’t have a shut-off nozzle, irrigating lawns in a way that causes runoff and irrigating lawns within 48 hours of precipitation.
“Californians stepped up during this drought and saved more water than ever before,” Brown said in a written release. “But now we know that drought is becoming a regular occurrence and water conservation must be a part of our everyday life.”
An El Niño weather pattern delivered more rain this water year than during any other year of the drought, but not as much as state officials had hoped. About three quarters of the state remains in severe, exceptional or extreme drought, according to the National Drought Mitigation Center.
Even so, the state’s two largest reservoirs –Shasta and Oroville – stand well above historic levels for this point in the year, as does Folsom Reservoir, leading some water districts to gripe the conservation targets currently in place are too high.
California water districts have faced mandatory conservation targets since June. From June to February, districts across the state were required to cut water use by 4 to 36 percent, depending on how much water per capita their residents used in 2014. All but a handful of districts in the Sacramento region were mandated to cut water use by 28 percent or more.
The targets were controversial. Soon after they were proposed, Sacramento area water districts began complaining that the one-sized-fits-all rules were onerous, didn’t account for variances in regional climate, and didn’t give enough credits to improvements some districts had made to shore up local water supplies.
In February, the State Water Resources Control Board relaxed the conservation mandates for many inland communities, where hot, dry summers make it harder to keep lawns and trees alive. Many of the water agencies in greater Sacramento saw their targets fall by 3 percentage points.
“We don’t want to cry wolf and we also don’t want to put our heads in the sand,” said water board chair Felicia Marcus.

Inevitable changes in California’s water supply – from the Sacramento Bee

California faces major changes in its water supply. The sooner everyone realizes these changes are coming, the better the state will be able to cope with what lies ahead.

Today’s changes are driven by efforts to end groundwater depletion, by sea level rise and loss of snowpack, salts and nitrate accumulating in groundwater, new invasive species, population growth and California’s globalized economy and agriculture.

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April 2016 Update

Dear Member:

April Weather

Although we were viewing ancient Inca waterworks and other sights, while touring in Peru, we heard that April was once again a very pleasant month at Belmont Country Club Estates. Temperatures were right at the normal 77 degrees F.  Rainfall of 1.05" was just slightly higher than normal.  Our lawns and gardens were not taxed by high heat, which we all know is now just around the corner.

This video shot in Tambomachay in the mountains above Cuzco illustrates an Inca water system. Due to water scarcity in the Andean region, advanced water management allowed the Inca to thrive and expand along much of the Pacific coast of South America. Serviving structures such as this one built in the 13 to 14th century, show the advanced hydraulic and civil engineering capabilities of the Inca.

Water Sharing

The pump in the Belmont Country Club well supplying drinking water to the club and restaurant stopped working on April 22.  BWC opened the interconnection between the two water systems and began shipping water to BCC until the pump can be repaired and is again functioning properly.  We will keep you apprised of the progress and will report when the cross connection is once again closed.

Neighborhood News

Returning from vacation in mid-April, we learned of he passing of David Callahan on April 4 at the age of 77.  David and his wife had only lived in the neighborhood for a short time prior to his passing.  Our condolences go out to MaryAnn and his family.

We have new faces in the neighborhood.  John and Trina Jensen purchased and will move in soon to Kelly and Monica Strickland's former home.  Also, Juan and Eneida Flores have moved into Chris Souza's former home.  Welcome to Belmont Country Club Estates.

Watering Rules

With the warming weather, it's time to start increasing the watering time for our lawns and gardens.  Once again, we will only be watering three days per week, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. If you have a seasonal adjustment on your sprinkler controller, it's time to move to the 80% level. 

Water Conservation

Water usage in April was trending up with the warmer weather. Usage was 28% worse than the target but 11% better than last year. For the year, we are 14% better than the target and 27% better than last year. Click here for a larger view.