In California water news this weekend, Can California fish catch a break with the tunnels? It depends; A snapshot of the State Water Board’s Cal Water Fix water rights change hearing; Shoring up the state: Is California’s response to sea level rise enough?; Shifting sands: The struggle to save California’s washed up beaches; Snow coverage of Sierra Nevada is crucial to water conservation, according to expert; Mapping the potential economic effects of climate change; Trump’s EPA wants to focus on Superfund cleanups. Will its plans take climate change into account?; Lois Henry: Is John Vidovich planning to sell off the Valley’s lifeblood? Or is he just the newest water baron on the block?; Jacob Katz is in an upstream battle to save California fish; Water use restrictions imposed in Jones Valley; water availability not the problem; and more … In the news this weekend … Can California fish catch a break with the tunnels? It depends: “Gov. Jerry Brown’s plan to route much of California’s mightiest river into two massive tunnels poses new perils for salmon and other struggling native species, but could give them a couple of breaks as well, experts and project supporters and opponents say in the wake of two newly issued wildlife rulings on the $16 billion project. Ultimately, water experts say, whether Brown’s two 35-mile (55-kilometer) tunnels hurt salmon, whales and other imperiled species depends, as always, on the intent and smarts of the officials who manage the Sacramento River’s delta with the San Joaquin River, that fought-over, over-tapped spigot for the U.S. state with the most people, most crops and the biggest estuary on the West Coast. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle here: Can California fish catch a break with the tunnels? It depends A snapshot of the State Water Board’s Cal Water Fix water rights change hearing: ” … This article provides a brief summary and status update of the ongoing administrative proceedings before the California State Water Resources Control Board (“Water Board”), in which the Petitioners seek to modify their water permits in order to allow construction of the WaterFix intake facilities and tunnels. Before it may approve the petition, the Water Board must find that Petitioners have satisfied their burden of proof in demonstrating that the changes will not cause injury to other legal users of water. In addition to the “no injury” rule, the Water Board must find that the project as approved will not unreasonably adversely impact fish, wildlife, public interest, or the Public Trust. … ” Continue reading at JD Supra here: A snapshot of the State Water Board’s water rights change hearing Shoring up the state: Is California’s response to sea level rise enough? “For Will Travis, it began 12 years ago, with an eye-opening article in the New Yorker magazine about rising seas and the widespread flooding and dislocation that would bring. As the executive director of the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, the region’s coastal management agency, he needed to know more. Travis had his staff research the issue. In 2007 they handed him a report that foretold catastrophe. The agency produced maps with colorful, frightening flood projections and shared it with local policymakers. Trillions of dollars in public and private infrastructure were at risk, Travis told them. The time to prepare was now. … ” Read more from Cal Matters here: Shoring up the state: Is California’s response to sea level rise enough? Shifting sands: The struggle to save California’s washed up beaches: “C’mon, really? Within California’s gargantuan bureaucracy there is a group of experts that more or less counts the grains of sand on state beaches? Pretty much. The scientists and agency officials work from a statewide ‘sand budget’ that determines the volume of sand that should reside on the beach. These are not people with rakes, bagging the red cups from last night’s party. Or the guys in small tractors smoothing the beach in front of luxury hotels. No, this is the California Coastal Sediment Management Working Group. … ” Read more from Cal Matters here: Shifting sands: The struggle to save California’s washed up beaches Snow coverage of Sierra Nevada is crucial to water conservation, according to expert: “As water levels recover from the most recent drought, California may have successfully dodged a bullet. However, the next bullet may hit too close for comfort. Lack of snow atop the Sierra Nevada mountain range in Northern California could lead to severe climate shifts and higher temperatures in the region, according to Dr. Alex Hall, who spoke about climate change during a presentation at the Aquarium of the Pacific on June 22. Dr. Hall is a professor at UCLA’s Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences and Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. … ” Read more from the Signal Tribune here: Snow coverage of Sierra Nevada is crucial to water conservation, according to expert Mapping the potential economic effects of climate change: “Climate scientists agree that this century is getting much warmer and that such warming will likely bring economic pain to the U.S., but economists aren’t sure how much….