Water News Roundup – July 28, 2010

Deseret News: Strawberry River restoration project brings promise – Along a section of the Strawberry River, the bare earthen bank tells the story of man’s meddling gone wrong, of ripping away vegetation that once held together the soil.

Provo Daily Herald: Pleasant Grove officially joins aquifer study – Hoping that the city may someday be able to store water for future use, the Pleasant Grove City Council has agreed to join other north county cities in the North Utah County Aquifer Association.

Salt Lake Tribune: Groups challenge plans for Utah tar sands mine – A small Canadian company, in need of millions for its ambitious plans, also is facing stiff opposition from two Utah environmental groups that are trying to thwart its efforts to build one of the first commercial tar sand mines in the country.

MSNBC: Pipeline leak pollutes major Michigan river – Crews were working Tuesday to contain and clean up more than 800,000 gallons of oil that poured into a creek and flowed into the Kalamazoo River in southern Michigan, coating birds and fish.

HCN: It’s getting warmer and drier – A new report from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) offers a mixed picture of how climate change will affect Western water supplies.

Water News Roundup – July 12, 2010

Salt Lake Tribune:  Questions linger a year after Logan canal burst – …Today, the property still looks like a disaster zone. The hillside is a jumble of dirt and tree limbs beneath the cracked edges of the empty canal.

High Country News:  Calm before the storm – Late last month, the Western Governors’ Association, a nonpartisan organization that works with the governors of 19 western states and three U.S. territories, took a step to prepare for the impending hail with the publication of their new report, “Climate Adaptation Priorities for the Western States.”

KSL:

Salt Lake residents speak out on Red Butte oil spill – Exactly one month after Utah’s biggest oil spill in memory, the residents most affected are speaking out — but not with a single voice.

Law lets raindrops keep falling in Utah buckets – Utahns can now legally collect rainwater, and at least a few are taking advantage of the freebie.

As mentioned last week in the Daily Herald’s article on BYU joining the Western Waters Digital Library, here’s a link to the library itself – seems like a useful and searchable resource for historical photos and documentation.  I’m sure everyone already knew about the collection, but it was news to me!

Water News Roundup – January 17, 2010

Deseret News: Two bills on stream access pass committee – Like that pesky carp that keeps returning to your fishing line, the controversial issue of accessing public streams on private property is presenting lawmakers with a boatload of debate.

Salt Lake Tribune: Two bills on stream access pass House panels – Two different Utah House committees passed separate stream access bills Friday.  The bills and the debate are the result of a 2008 Utah Supreme Court decision called the Conaster Ruling that gave anglers and river enthusiasts the right to access waterways on private property as long as they stayed in the riverbed and entered the river on public property.

The Spectrum: Local water district bill put on hold – Proposed by Sen. Dennis Stowell, R-Dist. 28, Senate Bill 20 focuses on creating a special local district to help develop and execute a groundwater management plan throughout the state.

Courtesy of Jeffrey Gittens at Utah Water Law: Water Rights Deed Addendum Bill – Representative Ben Ferry has introduced House Bill 314 (HB 314) entitled “Water Rights Addendums to Deeds.” The bill would require a water rights addendum (i.e., a “deed rider”) to be included with every deed that conveys land or water rights.

NPR: Warming planet can mean more snow – With snow blanketing much of the country, the topic of global warming has become the butt of jokes.  For scientists who study the climate, it’s all a bit much. They’re trying to dig out.  Most don’t see a contradiction between a warming world and lots of snow. That includes Kevin Trenberth, a prominent climate scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado.

Technorati Tags: Climate Change,groundwater management,precipitation,public access,snow,stream access,Utah Legislature 2010,Water Rights