The Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce had come to Washington to lobby for levee repairs. What they got Monday instead was an earful from key Republicans who were pushing their own plan for flood protection - a new Auburn dam.  »

When it comes to farming, rain is typically a good thing. The rains this year, especially in Central and Northern California, are turning out to be a different story.  »

The state of California and various agencies of the federal government have signed an agreement to speed up repairs to some of the levees protecting the Central Valley.  »

Without mentioning the Auburn dam by name, House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis, R-Redlands, told the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce on Monday that the era of big dams is not over.  »

[Press release] Gov. Schwarzenegger and the Bush Administration finalized an agreement yesterday that provides an expedited permitting process to allow California to fix the critical levee sites by the end of the year.  »

An Oklahoma Republican senator, facing certain defeat on an amendment to strip levee-repair money along the Sacramento River from an emergency spending bill, abruptly withdrew it Wednesday as California's two Democrats announced that they had secured another $13 million in the measure. »

The Northern California snowpack is, state hydrologists say, nearly twice as heavy as its historic average. In the main, that's a good thing. It means, for instance, that the State Water Project can do something it can't do very often: deliver 100 percent of the water its customers seek.  »

State water-quality regulators hit builder JMC Homes with a $500,000 fine for allegedly allowing sediment from a Roseville construction site to repeatedly run off into a creek near a wetlands preserve. »

Agreement will speed up environmental review necessary to begin work on Sacramento River tributaries -- not Delta  »

An agreement announced Tuesday between state and federal agencies ensures that 29 eroding levees will be fixed by Nov. 1, officials said, and it also ensures the state gets credit for its share of the costs. »

California's levees will be repaired with a little help from the feds, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced Wednesday.  »

With the somewhat-milky Sacramento River glistening in the background, a delegation of project planning students, program managers and engineers from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers got a peek at the J levee on Wednesday.  »

The California Supreme Court could decide next month whether to hear a case that claims a Siskiyou County Superior Court judge may have improperly voided a water contract for a proposed $120 million Arrowhead spring water bottling plant here.  »

Volunteers and people interested in understanding more about creek ecology are being recruited for the Big Chico Creek Watershed volunteer monitoring program.  »

Included in the state's $37.3 billion public works bond passed by lawmakers Thursday is some $500 million for levee repair work in Yolo County.  »

Butte County is one of 18 in California that might benefit by a $5.5 million grant that seeks to create temporary jobs for workers dislocated by floods.  »

The Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency wants to double flood protection in the region. Studying and shoring up levees would cost hundreds of millions of dollars. Strengthening levees in just the Natomas area would cost $300 million, according to a recent report.  »

The recently released California Water Plan (Bulletin 160) has emphasized the importance and value of regional planning for water throughout the State of California. This panel discussion will provide information on some case studies and address some of the necessary components of regional planning for water supplies and the environment.  »

The cities of Woodland and Davis and UC Davis are taking the first step towards securing a new surface water supply to improve long-term water quality for those communities. The proposed Davis-Woodland Water Supply Project is intended to help the commuities meet current and future water demands and wastewater treatment requirements.  »

A discussion about the move to regionalism in water will take place Thursday with a lineup of some of the state's top water leaders planned to appear.  »

Irrigation district declares state of emergency in hopes of finishing repair work by next winter  »

Yolo County continues to move toward its first regional water plan, a document that could be drafted by the end of the year.  »

An American River water pumping station under construction for as much as $55 million will be transferred to Placer County Water Agency upon completion under legislation approved Tuesday by the House.  »

[Commentary] The Reclamation Board voted to allow the developer of an immense subdivision on a Delta island south of Stockton to begin widening the existing levee and - ignoring warnings from the board's attorney that it was violating state open-meeting laws - expanded the developer's permit to indirectly allow construction of luxury, riverview homes atop the widened levee.  »

Even a moderate earthquake could cause California's aging levee system to collapse, flooding 400,000 homes and sending brine into the drinking water of homes across Northern California.  »

The assessment evaluates the watershed's condition and offers recommendations of how to better understand it. The assessment will be used by the district as it puts together a management plan for the watershed, in which officials will identify resource problems.  »

The plan now is for Davis, Woodland and UCD to draw water from the Sacramento River, send it through pipes to a shared treatment plant they would build, then distribute it to the three areas.  »

Spilled reservoir water would almost certainly send pike into the Feather River and downstream to the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, said George Heise, a senior hydraulic engineer with the department.  »

A key House committee revived hopes for an Auburn dam Thursday, tucking $3 million for a new study of the controversial project into a sweeping $187 million allocation for flood-control work throughout the Sacramento region. »

How the region will handle water supply, water quality and the environment is shaping up as the Northern Sacramento Valley approaches a regional water plan.  »

The preserve used to be an orchard, but the trees were pulled out and the area is being gradually restored to its natural state under the care of Sacramento River Partners, a nonprofit organization that creates wildlife habitats.  »

Legislation aimed at improving the water supplies and environmental restoration in the vast Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta no longer contains secrecy provisions that could have obscured some of the government's activities from the public.  »

Development is coming to Isleton, and some locals fear levees won't be only thing to erode -- so will a way of life  »

A beaver dam blew out with the recent high water on Salmon Creek-- the beavers don't appear inclined to rebuild it, but suburban neighbors insist that the Department of Fish and Game "help" the beavers, and rebuild the scenic pond in their backyards. »

The Supreme Court says states may protect the waterways by requiring a steady flow at hydroelectric plants, which tend to harness it  »

The American River Authority voted Monday to begin investigating what its duties would be as a local sponsor of the controversial Auburn dam project.  »

Backups for dozens of agencies stored in flood-prone Natomas basin  »

[Editorial] In defiance of basic common sense, cities and counties in the Central Valley continue to approve development in flood-prone areas – places where the levees are designed to protect farmland, not subdivisions.  »

Yolo Supervisors sparred over a project that would create protective setback levees along Cache Creek before voting unanimously for it.  »

The battle over Conaway Ranch's future, flood control and growth are the issues at the forefront as 3rd District voters in Yolo County voters decide June 6 who should represent them on the Board of Supervisors.  »

Sutter County and Yuba City will share the cost of a consultant who will help design and construct Yuba City basin flood control projects expected to cost about $254 million.  »

From Fresno to Chico, communities throughout California are bracing for a harsh new federal assessment that could conclude the levees they rely on for protection aren't up to the job.  »

After years in the works, guidelines for how to be a good neighbor when it comes to agriculture, development and wildlife habitat have been completed and are up for approval later this month. The Sacramento River Conservation Area Forum has been working on the good neighbor policy, sometimes with people disagreeing on what should or shouldn't be included in the guidelines  »

Costly studies for big federal water projects are supposed to be funded partially by local governments that would benefit from the projects, but the studies planned for a multipurpose dam at Auburn may turn out to be an exception.  »

[Editorial] This is not an inherently evil idea nor the single solution to all the Delta's ills. What is downright scary, however, is the constant warring among the water interests and the inability to logically confront the Delta's challenges.  »

A new study with new estimates this summer could arm both proponents and detractors with updated perspectives on important issues like costs if an Auburn dam project were to again start rumbling forward. The study is to be released in August, with a new price tag estimated likely in the multi-millions.  »

At least 20 years ago, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommended states set limits on dissolved gases in waterways. But the issue is new to California, coming to the fore only since workers at Nimbus Hatchery began in the past week to remove dead salmon by the tens of thousands a day from their concrete troughs on the American River.  »

The project was to identify, review and develop current data and information about the area which includes the watersheds of Thomes Creek, Elder Creek, Red Bank Creek and Reeds Creek.  »

When the dam was completed in 1956 after eight years of construction, an enormous storm filled it up in just one week -- rather than the year that engineers had expected. Sacramento was saved from a flood.  »

[Press release] On Saturday, nearly 60 hardworking community members volunteered with the South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) in a day devoted to restoring native wildlife habitat throughout the South Yuba River watershed. »

In recent committee hearings, the California Senate and Assembly Budget Committees have added $2.5M to the CDFA budget to support Weed Management Area programs. This budget still requires approval by the governor, but is a major step forward in efforts to renew funding for the program. This success is due to the many letters received from over 100 organizations statewide, including preserves, conservancies, land trusts, agricultural commissioners, resource conservation districts, and native plant society chapters. Legislators commented about the obvious grassroots support for the program. »

The facility would utilize water from the Upper Centerville Canal between the De Sabla and Centerville power plants owned by PG&E.  »

John Paul Woodley, Jr. is spending two days looking at some of the 29 levee sites in the Sacramento Valley and Delta that have been deemed in critical need of repair. Woodley's Army Corps of Engineers is working with state and local officials in preparation of repairing those levees.  »

That canal and the DS Canal eventually feed about 25,000 NID drinking-water users in Grass Valley and Nevada City. Up to 2,000 raw or irrigation water connections could be affected if use constraints are taken.  »

Seven months after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger swept aside members of a state panel who were slowing housing construction, the new members of the state Reclamation Board granted a key permit to an 11,000-unit subdivision in the Delta over the objections of its lawyer and chief engineer.  »

The state Reclamation Board plans to reconsider an April vote that moved toward allowing luxury homes to be built on top of levees on a Delta island.  »

Four environmental groups on Monday appealed a California agency's approval of a huge levee to protect part of a proposed 11,000-home development in the flood-prone Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, saying the decision was made illegally and will put thousands of residents at risk.  »

Providing drinking water to housing subdivisions in the foothills of Yuba County was not the original purpose of the Browns Valley Irrigation District. But with developers of the Spring Valley subdivision project knocking on the district's door looking for 4,000-acre feet of drinking water for the estimated 3,500 homes proposed for construction, the district is looking into the issue.  »

Browns Valley residents expressed concern Tuesday that their voices will be drowned out if the Spring Valley project is built. Developers want 4,000 acre-feet of potable water for the 3,500-home development along Spring Valley Road.  »

Sacramento County should not impose any delay on development behind potentially questionable levees, because it doesn't know enough about how strong levees might be or who would be affected, county supervisors agreed Tuesday. »

Department of Fish and Game officials set up two checkpoints for six hours at the Plumas County reservoir, stopping anglers to inspect their catch. They caught five fishermen removing a pike each, and two of those fish were still alive. »

[Press release] The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) today unveiled a new Web site that will provide up-to-date levee repair progress for 29 critical erosion sites. The California Emergency Levee Repair Web site will enable the public to access information regarding the state's ongoing levee restoration efforts.  »

A 2007 spending bill that delivers record funds for Sacramento-area flood control was nearing completion in the House of Representatives late Wednesday.  »

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is adding its weight to findings that the Natomas Basin's flood-control levees are not very flood-proof after all -- a pronouncement that could temporarily squelch development in one of the region's largest planned-growth areas.  »

The Assembly rejected legislation Thursday that would require local government to assume liability when it approves new development on flood-prone agricultural land.  »

Congress passed a bill this week that could benefit Yuba-Sutter flood control by almost $2 million.  »

A postage stamp depicting the Lake Oroville Dam will be unveiled today at the observation area on top of the dam. The stamp is on a sheet with 39 other gargantuan wonders in the United States.  »

Scientists are studying whether the pumps that are so essential to Californians' everyday existence also may be one of the main culprits in an unprecedented die-off of fish species that are considered indicators of the delta's environmental health.  »

State officials have unveiled a new Web site and plan a series of meetings to inform the public about emergency levee repairs throughout the Central Valley. »

Sen. Dean Florez, D-Shafter, wrote the bill after the board took action to favor a developer seeking authority to build 11,000 homes on a flood-prone Delta island. The board also was accused of violating open-meeting laws in a related action. Florez has called on state Attorney General Bill Lockyer to investigate.  »