California Water Digest — 2026-07-18

19 item(s) from 8 source(s); 10 flagged (🔔) for your blog keywords.

📰 News & Policy

BOOK REVIEW: Blue Gold: The Fight to Stop the Corporate Theft of the World’s Water

Maven’s Notebook — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 19:53:16 +0000

Visit the Water Shelf main page First published on the To Know Water Is To Love Water blog March 3, 2026 By Jim Lauria When Maude Barlow and Tony Clarke published Blue Gold: The Fight to Stop the Corporate Theft of the World’s Water (The New Press) in 2002, the idea that water could become the next oil seemed provocative, maybe even alarmist. More than two decades later, with water futures trading…

🔔 State poised to nix pumping along Friant-Kern Canal in Tulare County by early 2027

SJV Water — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 00:37:10 +0000

Reading Summary: State Poised to Nix Pumping Along Friant-Kern Canal

Key Facts

Growers within two miles of the Friant-Kern Canal in southern Tulare County face a pumping moratorium as early as April 2027
Subsidence damage to the canal already exceeds $797 million; the greatest subsidence in California since 2015 — 7.7 feet — has occurred in the Lower Tule River GSA
The Tule subbasin failed twice to write a compliant groundwater plan and was placed on probation in 2024, triggering well metering fees ($300/well) and a $20/acre-foot pumping fee
The Phase I plan timeline was accelerated by six months: public release in January 2027, notices in February, final version in March, board approval likely April 2027
A Phase II plan would expand pumping reductions subbasin-wide and raise fees from $20 to $35/acre-foot

Who Is Affected

Farmers with citrus and pistachio orchards near the Friant-Kern Canal (heading into growing season spring 2027)
Delano-Earlimart Irrigation District GSA (GM: Eric Quinley)
Porterville GSA and its districts Saucelito and Porterville (GM: Sean Geivet)
Lower Tule River and Pixley GSA (GM: Alex Peltzer)
11 of 12 GSAs in the Tule subbasin currently drafting a unified groundwater plan

Policy/Legal Angle

Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), now 11 years old, is the governing framework
The State Water Resources Control Board holds authority to impose the moratorium and approve Phase I/II plans
DWR subsidence guidelines (released last year) are being used to justify intervention
Probation status under SGMA triggers state oversight and fee requirements; the subbasin has less than one year to produce an acceptable local plan to avoid the moratorium

Blog Angles

Who pays, who decides? The shift from $20 to $35/acre-foot fees and the $300/well metering requirement raises the question: are probation-era costs falling disproportionately on smaller family farms versus large agricultural operations in the Tule subbasin?
Can 11 GSAs agree in time? With a unified plan being drafted across 11 agencies and a hard deadline of early 2027, what are the real odds of producing a state-acceptable plan — and what happens to the one holdout GSA not participating?
Subsidence as a legal liability: With $797 million in documented canal damage, is the state or Friant Water Authority laying groundwork for cost recovery litigation against pumpers or GSAs that failed to act?

Full text ->

🔔 Conservation Groups Tour Feather River Watershed - The Placer Sentinel |

Google News — CA water — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 17:09:10 GMT

Conservation Groups Tour Feather River Watershed The Placer Sentinel |

UC Davis: Winter Grains Could Help Keep Farmland Productive - AG INFORMATION NETWORK OF THE WEST

Google News — groundwater/SGMA — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:03:04 GMT

UC Davis: Winter Grains Could Help Keep Farmland Productive AG INFORMATION NETWORK OF THE WEST

🔔 As reservoirs dry up, state takes steps towards saving Colorado River water - Colorado Public Radio

Google News — Colorado River — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 18:40:43 GMT

As reservoirs dry up, state takes steps towards saving Colorado River water Colorado Public Radio

🔔 DELTA CONVEYANCE PROJECT: Notice of intent to submit Delta Conveyance Project revised certification of consistency with the Delta Plan on remanded items - Maven’s Notebook

Google News — state agencies — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 15:57:12 GMT

DELTA CONVEYANCE PROJECT: Notice of intent to submit Delta Conveyance Project revised certification of consistency with the Delta Plan on remanded items Maven’s Notebook

WEEKLY WATER NEWS DIGEST for July 12-17: State poised to nix pumping along Friant-Kern Canal by early 2027; Dr. Swain: California could collide with a “very significant El Niño event”; Water managers may have a new way to fight golden mussels; CA agencies advance strategy for emerging contaminants and tire-derived 6PPD-quinone; and more …

Maven’s Notebook — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 16:00:38 +0000

A wrap-up of posts published on Maven’s Notebook this week … Note to readers: Sign up for weekly email service and you will receive notification of this post on Friday mornings. Readers on daily email service can add weekly email service by updating their subscription preferences. Click here to sign up! [cmtoctableofcontents] In California water news this week … State poised to nix pumping along F…

How Western Utilities Are Rethinking Leak Detection Before California’s Water Loss Deadline - waterworld.com

Google News — CA water — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 19:00:48 GMT

How Western Utilities Are Rethinking Leak Detection Before California’s Water Loss Deadline waterworld.com

Could bioeconomy unlock new value from existing resources? - UC Agriculture and Natural Resources

Google News — groundwater/SGMA — Thu, 16 Jul 2026 22:14:14 GMT

Could bioeconomy unlock new value from existing resources? UC Agriculture and Natural Resources

Southern California water giant strikes $65 million deal to help prop up Lake Mead - Imperial Valley Press Online

Google News — Colorado River — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 07:00:00 GMT

Southern California water giant strikes $65 million deal to help prop up Lake Mead Imperial Valley Press Online

🔔 DWR publishes draft revised Certification of Consistency for Delta water tunnels - thepress.net

Google News — state agencies — Thu, 16 Jul 2026 19:46:00 GMT

DWR publishes draft revised Certification of Consistency for Delta water tunnels thepress.net

🔔 DAILY DIGEST, 7/17: Dr. Daniel Swain: CA could collide with a “very significant El Niño event”; How a potential hurricane 1,200 miles away could affect the California coast; State poised to nix pumping along Friant-Kern Canal in Tulare County by early 2027; A major Colorado River reservoir is getting ‘perilously’ low; and more …

Maven’s Notebook — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 16:00:20 +0000

[cmtoctableofcontents] Several news sources featured in the Daily Digest may limit the number of articles you can access without a subscription. However, gift articles and open-access links are provided when available. For more open access California water news articles, explore the main page at MavensNotebook.com. On the calendar today … MEETING: Drought Resilience Interagency & Partners (DRIP) C…

🔔 Tulare water managers brace for state action on excessive groundwater pumping - SJV Water

Google News — groundwater/SGMA — Thu, 16 Jul 2026 01:11:20 GMT

Tulare water managers brace for state action on excessive groundwater pumping SJV Water

SJV WATER: State poised to nix pumping along Friant-Kern Canal in Tulare County by early 2027

Maven’s Notebook — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 15:56:44 +0000

By Lisa McEwen, SJV Water Growers who farm within two miles of the Friant-Kern Canal in southern Tulare County should be prepared for a pumping moratorium as early as April 2027, water managers learned Thursday. The move is part of Phase I of the state Water Resources Control Board’s proposed pumping plan, which zeroes in on damage to the canal caused by overpumping. The cost of that damage alread…

🔔 UC IRVINE: As snowpack shrinks, Sierra Nevada mountain ponds undergo dramatic change

Maven’s Notebook — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 15:55:56 +0000

From UC Irvine: On a summer afternoon in the Sierra Nevada, a mountain pond can look calm and still, reflecting granite peaks and alpine sky. But beneath the surface, these small, shallow waters are anything but stable. In fact, they are among the most thermally variable aquatic ecosystems on Earth, with water temperatures sometimes swinging more than 20°C (68°F) in a single day. According to new …

🔔 DWR releases onboarding tutorial video for Groundwater Sustainability Agencies

Maven’s Notebook — Fri, 17 Jul 2026 15:55:25 +0000

From the Department of Water Resources: The Department of Water Resources (DWR) has developed GSA Onboarding Resources including an Onboarding Checklist and a Handbook Template, to support Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs) as they welcome new board members and staff into their roles under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). These materials are designed to help orient new te…