Sunday, February 2, 2014

Syria chemical weapons: Kerry asks Russia to hasten removal

Syria chemical weapons: Kerry asks Russia to hasten removal

BBC News - ‎8 hours ago‎
US Secretary of State John Kerry has asked Russia to press its ally Syria into speeding up the removal of chemical weapons.
US accuses Syria of stalling on chemical plan
Are Syria, Iran playing Obama for a fool?
Clamor Grows for Syria to Deliver on Chemical Arms Pledge
 
1 February 2014 Last updated at 00:05 ET

Syria chemical weapons: Kerry asks Russia to hasten removal

Norwegian frigate Helge Ingstad in Latakia Norway and Denmark are providing transport to take the weapons from the port of Latakia

Syria conflict

US Secretary of State John Kerry has asked Russia to press its ally Syria into speeding up the removal of chemical weapons.
The US says only about 4% of chemical weapons declared by the Syrian government have so far been removed.
Mr Kerry raised the issue with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, officials said.
Syria's chemical weapons are due to be removed and destroyed by 30 June.
Under the terms of the UN-backed plan, Syrian authorities are responsible for packing and safely transporting the chemical weapons to the Mediterranean port of Latakia.
The first consignment of 16 tonnes, from two Syrian sites, left Latakia on 7 January.
A further shipment left on 27 January, according to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW).
"Secretary Kerry pressed Foreign Minister Lavrov to push the regime for more progress on moving the remaining chemical weapons within Syria to the port in Latakia," the US State Department official said.
Washington considered progress so far to be "unacceptable", the official added.
The OPCW, which is overseeing the destruction of Syria's chemical arsenal, has been meeting in The Hague to discuss the operation's progress.
US Secretary of State John Kerry (file image) John Kerry met his Russian counterpart at the Munich Security Conference
Earlier this week, the US ambassador to the OPCW, Robert Mikulak, said "the effort to remove chemical agent and key precursor chemicals from Syria has seriously languished and stalled".
"The spotlight now is on Syria to proceed without further delay to comply with its obligations and make this effort a success," he added.
Denmark and Norway are providing cargo ships and military escorts to take them to Italy, where they will be loaded onto a US Maritime Administration cargo ship, MV Cape Ray.
The materials will be destroyed in international waters.
Correspondents say failure to eliminate the weapons could expose Syria to the threat of sanctions, although these would have to be supported in the UN Security Council by Russia and China which have so far refused to back such measures.
Map of the Mediterranean
  • 1. The Syrian authorities are responsible for packing and safely transporting the chemical weapons from 12 sites across the country to the port of Latakia. Russia has supplied large-capacity and armoured lorries, while the US has sent container drums and GPS locators.
  • 2. Russia is providing security for loading operations at Latakia, for which the US has supplied loading, transportation and decontamination equipment. China has sent 10 ambulances and surveillance cameras, and Finland an emergency response team in case of accidents.
  • 3. Denmark and Norway are providing cargo ships and military escorts to take the chemicals to the container port of Gioia Tauro in Italy. Russia and China are also providing naval escorts and the first consignment of 16 tonnes left Latakia on 7 January.
  • 4. In Italy, the "most critical" chemical agents will be loaded onto the US Maritime Administration cargo ship, MV Cape Ray, to be destroyed by hydrolysis in international waters. Less-toxic chemicals will be shipped by Norwegian and Danish vessels for disposal at commercial facilities.
Peace talks Also in Munich, Mr Kerry and Mr Lavrov met UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and UN envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi to discuss the lack of progress in the Syria peace talks in Geneva.
The talks ended on Friday with rival Syrian delegations trading insults.
Mr Brahimi later told a panel on Syria at the conference: "We have failed somewhere.
"We can say it is an intractable problem, it is difficult. But somewhere there is a failure."
However, Mr Brahimi said he hoped the talks would resume in Geneva on 10 February in a "more constructive" mood.
The Munich Security Conference is an annual event held to discuss military and political affairs.
end quote from:

Syria chemical weapons: Kerry asks Russia to hasten removal


Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Syrian government non-committal on more talks

Syrian government non-committal on more talks

CNN International - ‎Jan 31, 2014‎
(CNN) -- A first round of Syrian peace talks didn't go too well, and now the government delegation won't commit to a second round.
Washington denies pressing for direct talks with Syrian government
Syria crisis: Geneva peace talks end in recriminations
Syria must stop stalling on its delivery of chemical weapons

Syrian government non-committal on more talks

By Tom Cohen, Laura Smith-Spark and Nic Robertson, CNN
updated 2:10 PM EST, Fri January 31, 2014
Watch this video

Satellite photos show Syrian devastation

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • NEW: Secretary Kerry says Syria is failing to comply with chemical weapons deal
  • U.N. mediator Lakhdar Brahimi calls peace talks a "modest beginning"
  • Negotiations on halting Syria's civil war are supposed to resume Feb. 10
  • Meanwhile, Syria has failed to hand over known chemical weapons on time
(CNN) -- A first round of Syrian peace talks didn't go too well, and now the government delegation won't commit to a second round.
Meanwhile, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime has failed to turn over its known chemical weapons stockpiles on time, causing U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to warn on Friday that all options remain available to force compliance.
The dual developments showed the challenges facing efforts by the international community to halt the Syrian civil war through talks intended to set up a transitional government, and rid Syria of its chemical weapons that already have been used in the conflict.
President Barack Obama threatened a military response last year when U.S. authorities determined the al-Assad regime attacked its own people with chemical weapons. However, Obama failed to secure backing from Congress or key ally Great Britain.
Brahimi: What's the vision for Syria?
Playing for time with human lives
Instead, Syrian ally Russia stepped in to persuade al-Assad to hand over the chemical weapons stockpiles to the international community in order to be destroyed.
That process started on schedule, but the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons that is overseeing Syria's handover of its stockpiles said Friday that Syrian officials need to speed things up.
"While the two shipments (of chemicals) this month represent a start, the need for the process to pick up pace is obvious," Director-General Ahmet Uzumcu said.
Kerry to Syria: all options on the table
In Germany, Kerry said al-Assad "needs to understand that he agreed to an international U.N. Security Council Resolution which has reinforced a requirement that he remove all of those weapons and that he do so in a specific period of time."
"Every indication we have is there is no legitimate reason that that is not happening now," Kerry said, noting that an international military response remained a possibility. "And therefore, we call on Bashar al-Assad to live up to his obligations or we will join together with our friends and talk about which, if any, of the options we deem necessary at this point to proceed forward."
In Geneva, the initial talks involving al-Assad's government and the Syrian opposition came to a quiet close on Friday, a week after they started with much fanfare.
"This is a modest beginning, but it is a beginning on which we can build," U.N. special envoy Lakhdar Brahimi told reporters.
He said the peace talks were scheduled to resume in Geneva on February 10. While the opposition has agreed to the date, the Syrian government delegation said it must first consult with Damascus, according to Brahimi.
Noting that "the gaps between the two sides remain wide; there's no use pretending otherwise," he said that "nevertheless, during our discussions I observed a little bit of common ground -- perhaps more than the two sides themselves realize or recognize."
The more than two years of fighting have embittered both sides to the point that reconciliation seems unreachable, particularly involving the opposition demand -- backed by the United States -- that al-Assad can't be part of any future transitional leadership.
"We felt like we were drinking from a poisoned chalice while the criminal was killing our women, children, young men and women, and elderly," said a statement released Friday by Syrian National Coalition leader Ahmad Jarba after the close of the first round of talks. "The only consolation that we had was that the regime which had been oppressing us for more than 50 years had arrived in Geneva to dig its own grave with its own hands."
Brahimi focuses on tiny steps forward
Emphasizing the positive, Brahimi said that over the past eight days, the two sides at least became used to being in the same room, and that moments occurred when one side acknowledged the concerns of the other.
Both sides understand that Syria's civil war has caused immense suffering, recognize the urgent need to bring the violence to an end and are committed to discussing the full implementation of the so-called Geneva I communique to achieve a political solution, he said.
They also understand the need to rapidly address the humanitarian situation in Syria, wherever that need exists in the country, Brahimi added. However, he acknowledged no breakthrough so far on delivering aid to the besieged city of Homs.
"Some good news came yesterday with the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the Yarmouk camp for Palestinian refugees," he said. "But so much more is needed."
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem said the government was still "hopeful" and wanted to engage in dialogue, but that the differences between the two sides had been very apparent.
"They are not in touch at all with what is happening on the ground in Syria," he said, adding that Syria rejects outside interference in its affairs.
Opposition spokesman Louay Saif said just starting the talks with the government represented progress in the fight.
"We believe the only way to stop violence and to ... end the work of any group that is part of a terrorist agenda is to start the transition," he said.
A call for constructive engagement
The U.S. State Department was critical of the Syrian government's delay in confirming the date for the start of the next round of talks.
"The opposition has once again shown a seriousness of purpose in these negotiations by quickly committing to participate in the next round of talks, while the regime continues to play games," said Edgar Vasquez, a State Department spokesman.
Heading to a security conference in Munich, Kerry described the Syrian conflict as a destabilizing factor in the region.
The Munich Security Conference also will be attended by Brahimi, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Syrian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif -- all major players in the Syrian situation.
The Geneva I communique of June 2012 called for a transitional government and for al-Assad to step down. The government has said that is not an option.
More than 100,000 Syrians have been killed in the conflict, which has forced more than 2 million people to become refugees.
Opposition groups have long called on the Syrian government to halt its relentless attacks on rebel-controlled areas. The government argues that it is fighting terrorism backed by outside parties.
The conflict has also been mired by accusations that the Damascus government used chemical weapons and that the opposition includes al Qaeda-affiliated groups.
CNN's Salma Abdelaziz and Jason Hanna contributed to this report.

end quote from:

Syrian government non-committal on more talks


Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

In US Tradition, Groundhog Predicts Winter Will Linger

In US Tradition, Groundhog Predicts Winter Will Linger

Voice of America - ‎21 minutes ago‎
PUNXSUTAWNEY, PA - It has been a brutally cold and snowy winter in much of the United States, and now a groundhog, a famed rotund rodent with an even more famous shadow, is predicting it is going to last another six weeks - much to the chagrin of ...
Rival groundhogs differ on winter forecasts
Groundhog prediction: Six more weeks of winter
Groundhog Day comes to DC, courtesy of a stuffed beast called Potomac Phil
Groundhog Day

News / USA

In US Tradition, Groundhog Predicts Winter Will Linger

Related Articles

TEXT SIZE
VOA News
February 02, 2014
PUNXSUTAWNEY, PA — It has been a brutally cold and snowy winter in much of the United States, and now a groundhog, a famed rotund rodent with an even more famous shadow, is predicting it is going to last another six weeks - much to the chagrin of those hoping for an early spring.

In an annual wintertime amusement on February 2, the famed groundhog named Punxsutawney Phil peaked his head out of his burrow at Gobblers Knob in the western Pennsylvania town of Punxsutawney around 7:30 a.m. on Groundhog Day.

Weather forecasters mock his predictions, but legend has it that if Phil sees his shadow on Groundhog Day there will be another six weeks of winter. But if not, spring will come early.

On Sunday, as 20,000 people watched and cheered his name in a tradition made popular by the 1993 film comedy “Groundhog Day” starring Bill Murray. This year, Phil saw his shadow.

And that, or so the legend says, heralds more frigid temperatures and snow shoveling for Americans.

Groundhogs have been offering weather predictions in the tiny town of Punxsutawney since 1887. After the movie was released, record crowds numbering as many as 30,000 have been drawn to the event, according to groundhog.org

With a shadow powerful enough to lift spirits - or dash them - Phil has met with Pennsylvania governors and appeared on national television talk shows and New York City's Times Square JumboTron. In 1986, he even traveled to Washington to meet with President Ronald Reagan, the website said.


Some information for this report was provided by Reuters.
 end quote from:

In US Tradition, Groundhog Predicts Winter Will Linger

Posted by at No comments:
Labels: ,

Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman found dead in New York apartment

Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman found dead in New York apartment: police



  • Email







    Pinterest

    0
Philip Seymour Hoffman found dead in his Manhattan apartment
Tribune wire reports
1:22 p.m. CST, February 2, 2014
NEW YORK—
Award-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, who was found dead in his apartment in New York City on Sunday, died of an apparent drug overdose, a New York city police source said.
The source said Hoffman was found dead in his Manhattan apartment after a 911 emergency call from a friend of his. The New York City Police Department confirmed to the LA Times that the “Capote” actor was discovered with a hypodermic needle in arm.
Hoffman had completed a detox program for substance abuse, including snorting heroin, in May, according to Variety.
Hoffman won the Academy Award for Best Actor for the 2005 biographical film Capote, and received three Academy Award nominations as Best Supporting Actor.





Reuters, The Los Angeles Times, and Variety contributed to this report
end quote from:


Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Rain in California offsetting the drought

I woke up in the middle of the night to something that sounded like rain on the window skylight above my bed. I said to my wife, "Is that rain?" And she being more awake than I said, "Yes. It's rain!"

So, as I check online this morning at radar maps it is raining all the way from San Luis Obispo to Eureka which is a really good thing. Though it is raining lightly where I live it is consistent for many hours now and as I look at the radar maps it is raining really really hard over hundreds of square miles in some areas from San Luis Obispo to Eureka as well. This is a very good thing for Coastal California reservoirs so maybe people will have enough water this summer and fall until the next rainy season that usually starts in October or November here in California.

However, the other way to look at this was what one reporter said recently which is: "Even if it rained every other day from now until May California would still be in trouble in regard to water. Which means even rain every other day likely wouldn't allow farmers to plant new crops in most of California and possibly in Southern Oregon either.
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Saturday, February 1, 2014

Volcanic eruption kills 14

Volcanic eruption kills 14

Watch this video

Ash columns more than a mile high

Some of the victims were checking on their homes in North Sumatra or were there just to watch the eruptions, a government official said. FULL STORY
  • Photos: Volcano's threat grows  Photos: Volcano's threat grows
  • Photos: Recently active volcanos  Photos: Recently active volcanos
  • See giant hot ash cloud
    SHARE THIS




    14 dead as Indonesian volcano erupts

    By Kathy Quiano and Mark Morgenstein, CNN
    updated 4:42 PM EST, Sat February 1, 2014
    Mount Sinabung fills the sky over Karo, North Sumatra, Indonesia, with smoke and ash as it erupts on Saturday, February 1. The volcano has been erupting since September. Mount Sinabung fills the sky over Karo, North Sumatra, Indonesia, with smoke and ash as it erupts on Saturday, February 1. The volcano has been erupting since September.
    HIDE CAPTION
    Volcano erupts in Indonesia
    <<
    <
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10
    11
    12
    13
    14
    >
    >>
    STORY HIGHLIGHTS
    • The incident occurred in North Sumatra
    • The victims were hit by hot ash clouds
    • A recovery operation was set for Sunday
    Jakarta, Indonesia (CNN) -- Plumes of ash spewed more than a mile into the sky and descended in superheated clouds impossible for those too close to the volcano to escape. By the time the latest eruption ended at Mount Sinabung in North Sumatra, at least 14 people had been killed, a government official told CNN.
    The victims, and at least three other injured people, were all found in Sukameriah, a village close to the volcano's crater, disaster mitigation agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told CNN.
    Indonesia volcano erupts
    Photos: Recently active volcanos Photos: Recently active volcanos
    Local search and rescue teams were scheduled to go on a recovery operation Sunday morning, he said.
    Eruptions at Mount Sinabung are becoming common. After about 400 years of minimal volcanic activity there, Sinabung erupted in 2010. It has been spewing gas since September.
    The English-language Jakarta Post said while 31 people previously had died from eruption-related illnesses such as depression, asthma and hypertension, Saturday's deaths were the first ones directly attributed to volcanic output.
    Last month, intensifying volcanic activity displaced 22,000 people who live nearby.
    The evacuees had been moved to temporary camps, and more than half were allowed to return home on Friday.
    Saturday's victims lived within a 3-kilometer radius of the volcano. Some were there checking on their homes or were there just to watch the eruptions, Nugroho said.
    The government issued the highest level of alert for the latest eruptions.
    The newest volcanic activity has forced people to evacuate 16 villages, the Jakarta Post reported.
    Live video of the volcano end quote from:

    Volcanic eruption kills 14

  • See giant hot ash cloud
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Applying Efficiency to Compassion

In the 1980s after I had decided that "An attitude of compassion towards all life in the universe including myself was not only a useful thing to do but would automatically lead to my enlightenment and eventually (over time) to the enlightenment of all life in the universe."

So then, as I listened to Tibetan Lamas both in the U.S. and India and Nepal when I was there, there was a point of view of "Right mindful compassion" which I discerned was "The efficient use of Compassion" or "Compassionate Engineering".

If I were to show you examples of compassionate engineering in action a good one would be the checks and balances of the United States Government, and then we could likely take this all the way back to the Magna Carta in England when King John was forced to sign this or die by his people.

Another example of "Compassionate engineering" would be the "Clinton Global Initiative" where Bill Clinton and his family get rich well educated people and companies to pledge to do specific things for mankind with their resources.

Another example of "Compassionate Engineering" is the Gates Foundation and when Bill Gates and his wife started this foundation it was so efficiently run as a non-profit that Buffet donated and incredible amount of money to it as well because it is very efficient in helping certain segments of mankind.

So, though efficiency of compassion might be as simple as marrying your girlfriend if she gets pregnant and starting a family and supporting her through the whole thing financially or emotionally or in all ways.

It might be as simple as deciding that you are a householder yogi and realizing your particular yoga is to help you family in all ways that you can ongoing. So, your enlightenment is based upon your life long dedication to your family and to whatever business endeavors you create or become a part of in order to support your family better ongoing.

Or, compassion might be keeping yourself off of drugs and alcohol so you don't die and so you can work and stay functional and not get so crazy you die accidentally (like the two girls in the commercial who dance drunk right in front of a bus and are no more).

So, Compassionate engineering can be just helping yourself stay alive without being addicted to anything so you can hold down a job or start a business to support you and your family. Or Compassionate engineering might be to start a non-profit or something like the Gates Foundation which is based upon sound business principles combined with compassion and business like efficiency in the use of it's funds.

Compassionate engineering is what the founders of the U.S. did to create the potential for unending freedom of expression, the right to own land, the right to assemble, freedom of speech etc. By lending your support to creating further compassionate engineering in the U.S. and worldwide that allows people to grow up, to live, to express themselves in beautiful ways further allows humans to become more than they ever once believed they could. It eventually leads to the enlightenment of all life on earth and beyond if carried out far enough through time.
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Scientists Unlock Riddle Behind Planet Orbiting Two Stars


Tech
|
2/01/2014 @ 12:39AM |4,400 views

Scientists Unlock Riddle Behind Planet Orbiting Two Stars


1 comments, 1 called-out
Comment Now

Artist's conception of Kepler-34b. Credit: David A. Aguilar, Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics
Over the past few years, astronomers have discovered several planets that are circumbinary. That is, they are planets that actually orbit two stars. Just like Tatooine in the Star Wars movies. One of those planets discovered is Kepler-34b, which was discovered in 2012.
One puzzle about Kepler-34b, and other planets like it, is that they challenge theories that astronomers have adopted as to how planets form in the first place. That’s because for the planet to have evolved where it is seems next to impossible based on our current understanding of the forces involved in the creation of early systems.

But according to research recently published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, a team of researchers may have found the solution to the problem, using a set of complex computer models.  Their answer? Kepler-34b didn’t form in the same spot it is now.
“We find that super-catastrophic erosion events are the dominant mechanism up to and including the orbital radius of Kepler-34(AB)b, making in situ growth unlikely,” they wrote in the paper. In other words, the gravitational forces would have caused lots of debris to constantly hit and erode any planet that tried to form in that orbit.
Instead, the astronomers suggest, it’s more likely that the planet was actually formed over 120 million miles away, and slowly migrated into its current orbit. What’s more, this same process likely happened in other (thought not all) known circumbinary solar systems as well.
“Circumbinary planets have captured the imagination of many science-fiction writers and film-makers – our research shows just how remarkable such planets are,” said lead author Stefan Lines in a statement. ” Understanding more about where they form will assist future exoplanet discovery missions in the hunt for earth-like planets in binary star systems.”
It’ll be fascinating to see how this research helps to guide future research in observing how planets, both in our solar system and out of it, evolved to become the way they are now.
Follow me on Twitter or Facebook. Read my Forbes blog here.

Planets Outside Of Our Solar System

1 of 9
NASA/JPL-Caltech Super Earth 55 Cancri e

Super Earth 55 Cancri e

55 Cancri e is a super-Earth - more massive than the Earth but lighter than a gas giant. This planet is so close to its Sun that it orbits every 18 hours. Its light was detected by the Spitzer Space Telescope.


Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

California officials forecast “zero” water deliveries

California officials forecast “zero” water deliveries

Modesto Bee - ‎52 minutes ago‎
Sun and cloudscombine to provide contrast to an almond orchard north of Orange Blossom Road near Oakdale on Thursday. The state water agency has told local agencies serving 25 million people to expect no deliveries.
Water Delivery Cut Off As California Drought Continues To Worsen
California drought could force key water system to cut deliveries
California Warns Water Delivery Will Be Cut to Zero Amid Drought

California officials forecast “zero” water deliveries

By Matt Weiser
The Sacramento BeeJanuary 31, 2014 Updated 58 minutes ago
JJ Drought 3
Sun and cloudscombine to provide contrast to an almond orchard north of Orange Blossom Road near Oakdale on Thursday. The state water agency has told local agencies serving 25 million people to expect no deliveries.
JEFF JARDINE<252> — jjardine@modbee.com Buy Photo
State officials announced Friday that 29 water agencies serving 25 million people across California can expect “zero” water deliveries from the State Water Project this summer because of the worsening drought.
Although that delivery projection could change, it is the first time a “zero allocation” forecast has been made in the 54-year history of the State Water Project, which is operated by the California Department of Water Resources and typically delivers Sierra snowmelt to cities and farms throughout the state.
The decision was among several emergency measures announced Friday to deal with a persistent statewide drought that has left the California mountain snowpack at just 12 percent of the January average.
The “zero” forecast affects urban and agricultural areas from San Jose to San Diego that depend in part on water diverted from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Most of these areas have other water sources to draw from, including local reservoirs and groundwater wells.
The State Water Project serves about 750,000 acres of farmland. Most farmers have access to surface water and groundwater, including private wells, and it’s common for them to be given short allotments in drought years. Before Friday’s announcement, the State Water Project delivery forecast was only 5 percent of the maximum amount allotted in its contracts with water agencies.
Even so, the announcement assures further conservation measures will be required, and may press some farmers to fallow land. Farms consume about three-fourths of California’s freshwater supply.
The federal government operates a separate Delta water diversion system, the Central Valley Project, which is not affected by the state forecast. Its delivery forecast is expected later this month.
“This is the most serious drought we’ve faced in modern times,” said Felicia Marcus, chairwoman of the State Water Resources Control Board, which approved the emergency measures. “We will have to collaborate our way through this as never before.”
State and federal officials announced that starting today, water diversions from the Delta, a crucial wildlife habitat and California’s largest freshwater source, will be minimized to serve only urban areas and health and safety purposes. No water will be diverted for farms.
In addition, some 5,800 junior water rights holders across the state – mainly farms – will receive notices next week that they must reduce their water diversions from streams. And water quality rules in the Delta will be adjusted, which will increase salinity for some water users in the region and may affect wildlife.
“It’s a very serious situation,” Terry Erlewine, general manager of the State Water Contractors, said in a statement. “Across the board, water districts are ramping up conservation and efficiency efforts to go beyond the conservation achievements already made.”
The zero delivery forecast does not affect water users in the Sacramento region, who are not served by the State Water Project. But the capital area faces its own shortages and is enacting broad conservation measures.
On Thursday, for instance, the board of directors of the Placer County Water Agency will vote on an emergency declaration and call on customers to reduce water consumption by 35 percent. It will also consider an emergency public works project to install temporary pumps and piping to improve access to water from two existing wells.
The Delta water quality rules are being adjusted so that state and federal agencies can preserve water stored in reservoirs, primarily in the Sacramento River watershed. This will ensure that water is available, in the event the drought continues, to deliver to people in the hot months ahead and to ensure salmon and other fish can survive in the rivers.
“Today’s action means everyone will get less water as a result,” said DWR director Mark Cowin. “There’s simply not enough to go around.”
Another change allows water agencies to open the Delta Cross Channel Gates near Walnut Grove. Those gates divert a portion of Sacramento River flows into the interior Delta, where it is then diverted by state and federal pumps. Open gates mean less fresh water will flow out of the Delta to San Francisco Bay, and portions of the western Delta will become saltier. But officials said they expect those western Delta waters will still meet drinking water standards.
The gates are normally closed at this time of year to ensure that young salmon migrating downstream to the ocean are not sidetracked. Opening them now means those salmon are more likely to be eaten by predators in the interior Delta or killed in water diversion pumps.
Officials may adjust the gates daily to avoid harm to salmon. Juvenile salmon are prone to migrate during daylight hours, then seek protected areas and stay in place at night. So the gates may be opened only at night, when salmon are less active.
The water board, which oversees water quality and water rights statewide, plans to review all the changes on an ongoing basis and amend them as necessary. It also plans to beef up its enforcement reach. Tom Howard, water board executive director, said some employees would be retrained to do inspection work in the field to ensure junior water rights holders heed the curtailment order.
Local agencies that depend on the State Water Project greeted Friday’s news with alarm. Many expected a low allocation, but zero was a shock.
“I never though in my entire career I’d see a zero allocation,” said Jim Beck, general manager of the Kern County Water Agency.
Beck has worked for the agency for 30 years. It is the largest agricultural water contractor in the State Water Project system and also serves urban areas including Bakersfield, Taft and Tehachapi. He said farmers will be able to draw from a vast groundwater banking system operated by the agency and, in some cases, from private wells.
But that water won’t go far enough, he said, and many farmers will be in “survival mode” this year.
“Our growers are going to have to make really tough decisions on which crops they can fallow and which trees or vines they can take out of production,” Beck said.
Marty Lugo, spokeswoman for the Santa Clara Valley Water District, said her district was hurting even before the announcement. The district holds State Water Project contracts for as much 100,000 acre-feet of water each year. Until today, its allocation for this year was 5,000 acre-feet – about 1 percent of the water distributed by the district.
“We already expected we would get a small amount, if any at all,” Lugo said, adding that annual water demand for the district is 365,000 acre-feet.
The district has taken steps to cut water usage by 10 percent. Its groundwater supplies are expected to drop below 300,000 acre-feet by the end of the year.
At nearby Alameda County Water District, about 40 percent of water supplies typically come from state allocations, said assistant general manager Robert Shaver. “Obviously, it’s a pretty serious situation whether it’s at 5 percent or zero percent,” he said. “We had kind of been expecting that it would go to zero percent.”
To make up for the lack of water from the state, Shaver’s district will rely more heavily on groundwater. Those supplies will be tight, he said, as the year progresses. The district has asked customers to cut water use by 20 percent.
Bill Jennings, executive director of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, worries that the emergency changes, along with the drought itself, could push some imperiled Delta fish species toward extinction.
“Yes, fish are going to suffer. Population crashes occur during these periods,” Jennings said. “We can cast blame, but we’re in this situation and they don’t have a lot of leeway. Everybody’s going to pay a price this year.”
Call The Bee’s Matt Weiser at (916) 321-1264. Follow him on Twitter @matt_weiser. Staff writer Phillip Reese contributed to this report.
end quote from:

Read more here: http://www.modbee.com/2014/01/31/3164427/california-officials-forecast.html#storylink=cpy
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)