Quote of the Week:
"Tell me and I'll forget,
show me and I may remember,
 involve me and I'll understand."
(Chinese proverb)

Born on this Day:
Clara Bow, Leonard Bernstein, Monty Hall, Sean Connery,
Regis Philbin, Tom Skerritt, David Canary, Marshall Brickman,
Anne Archer, Gene Simmons, Elvis Costello, Tim Burton,
Ally Walker, Billy Ray Cyrus, Blair Underwood,
Joanne Whalley-Kilmer, Albert Belle, Robert Horry,
Jo Dee Messina, and Kel Mitchell .

On this Day in 1941:
U.S. President Roosevelt signed the bill
appropriating funds for construction of the Pentagon.

 

Do you have a photo you'd like to submit?
Send us an e-mail.

Arizona News

—  Water

• Agreement for the Ariz. Water Settlements Act applauded
  (Douglas Daily Dispatch, 8/23) "U.S. Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ) today applauded the signing of the Master Agreement for the Arizona Water Settlements Act of 2004 by Interior Department Secretary Dirk Kempthorne."
  
  
• Desert Hills water firm faulted for lack of service
  (Arizona Republic, 8/22) "The state agency that regulates privately owned utilities concluded its first day of a hearing to determine why the Desert Hills Water Co. cannot provide its customers with full water services."
  
  
• July Rose Valley bacteria levels tested high
  (News Zap, 8/22) "Memories of two deaths in Peoria were brought to the forefront of residents’ minds last week when the Rose Valley Water Co. distributed a notification of high bacteria levels in their water to consumers."
  
  
• UA lab seeks clean water
  (Arizona Wildcat News, 8/22) "A UA research lab is testing a product that could allow people to decontaminate poisonous water in their own homes during emergencies such as hurricanes, earthquakes or even bioterrorist attacks."
  
  
• Arsenic removal system selected by Tucson
  (Market Wire, 8/21) "Aquacell Water has been selected to provide its arsenic removal system to the Rancho Del Conejo Community Water Co-Op in Tucson."
  
  
• Think beyond today to secure water for the future
  (Arizona Republic, 8/20) "Should there be a statewide water-management policy? Yes. Our most precious resource is water as we live in a desert environment, the arid Southwest. Most of us just turn the faucet and we expect water to flow, but there is a whole working system behind the faucet."
  
  
• Simple water fee could salvage ecosystems
  (Arizona Republic, 8/20) OPINION: "Arizonans know the value of water. We drink it, we swim in it, we wash with it. Water supplies our farms and industries and carries away our wastes. Arizona's growing economy thrives on water diverted from nature for our human needs."
  

—  Water Resources

• 'Water grab' could threaten Verde River
  (New Standard, 8/22) "The river was named the Verde, or 'green,' for a reason – meandering through arid land in central Arizona, the waterway has carved out a contrasting corridor of vegetation and created an oasis for wildlife."
  
  
• Conserving our resources, ensuring our future
  (National Ledger, 8/22) COLUMN: "In a recent column, I wrote about the Colorado River’s importance to Arizona. This week, I turn to an unprecedented, joint federal and non-federal effort to protect the environmental splendors of the lower Colorado River."
  
  
• Don't we already have enough studies on the Verde River?
  (Verde Independent, 8/22) EDITORIAL: "It should not come as any surprise that the first action of the Upper Verde River Watershed Resource Protection Coalition is to authorize another study on the connection between the Big and Little Chino aquifers and the base flow of the Verde River."
  

—  Wastewater

• Town's view on Sahuarita wastewater
  (Arizona Daily Star, 8/24) EDITORIAL: "Let's work together and not against each other. The Arizona Daily Star invited the town of Sahuarita to write a guest opinion regarding the recent article by Tim Ellis (Builder Against Sewer Hookups, Aug. 10, 2006)."
  
  
• Safford prepares for sewer growth
  (Eastern Arizona Courier, 8/22) Thanks to Sue Shimer for this one. "Even as the Safford Council discusses expanding its wastewater services to Pima and Thatcher, the city is taking another look at the impact fees of transportation, sewer and water for the present and future growth in the area."
  

—  Everything Else

• Gilbert searching for water mascot
  (Arizona Republic, 8/24) "Got what it takes to wear a blue costume and promote water conservation? Then you may be what the town is looking for. Gilbert is seeking volunteers to lend a hand in its water conservation department, and that includes donning a costume as "H{+2}0," the water conservation mascot."
   

From Around the Southwest

—  Water

• San Clemente well not contaminated
  (Los Angeles Times, 8/24) "The leak of radioactive material that contaminated groundwater beneath the San Onofre nuclear power plant has not reached a drinking-water source in San Clemente, according to test results announced Tuesday."
  
  

• Texas drought losses top $4 billion mark
  (Southeast Farm Press, 8/24) "Texas’ drought losses have reached an estimated $4.1 billion, eclipsing the $2.1 billion mark set in 1998, according to Texas Cooperative Extension economists."
   

• Study boosts case for Los Vaqueros expansion
  (Contra Costa Times, 8/24) "Nearly tripling the size of Los Vaqueros Reservoir appears worth the more than $500 million cost, according to a study released Wednesday."
  
  

• Region D water planning group ok’s work plan
  (Sulphur Springs Country World, 8/24) "A main order of business for the Northeast Texas Regional Water Planning Group (NETRWPG for Region D) on Aug. 16 was to approve their next step in the state’s development of the 'Water for Texas - 2007' plan."
  
  

• Imperial Valley district could ration water
  (MSNBC, 8/24) "Water was the lifeblood that gave birth to the Imperial Valley more than 100 years ago, and from one decade to the next the Colorado River seemed to offer a boundless supply to satisfy the Valley’s needs."
  
  

• Drought, water worries cloud skies for U.S. farmers
  (Reuters, 8/23) "As the United States bakes in one of the hottest summers since the Dust Bowl years of the 1930s, drought from the Dakotas to Arizona through Alabama has sharpened the focus of farmers on their lifeline: water."
  
  

• Tri-Valley water board OKs demineralization project
  (Contra Costa Times, 8/23) "The Zone 7 water agency board approved plans to reduce salts and minerals from underground drinking water supplies in Pleasanton and Dublin, adopting plans and environmental documents last week for its proposed Mocho Groundwater Demineralization Plant in north Pleasanton. Construction is expected to begin early next year, and the plant will be in service by early 2009."
  
  

• Utah groups join Nevada water rights fight
  (KUTV Salt Lake City, 8/23) "Nearly 50 ranchers and business owners from Nevada and Utah, joined by state and national public interest groups, sued Wednesday to allow more protests of plans to pump millions of gallons of rural Nevada water to the booming Las Vegas area."
  
  
• Austin water plant plan moves ahead
  (Austin American Statesman, 8/23) "A City of Austin plan to build a water plant in a Northwest Austin nature preserve is moving forward despite objections from biologists and environmental groups."
  
  
• DeBerry gets money to aid with water woes
  (Shreveport Times, 8/23) "The Sabine River Authority of Texas has given $10,000 to an east Texas community that is still fighting to get clean, safe drinking water to some of its residents."
  
   
• Coughing fish could protect water supplies
  (NC Times, 8/22) "A San Diego County-based company Tuesday announced that two cities have bought their system to protect drinking water from contamination by using fish to monitor toxins in the water supply." 
  
  
• New Mexico warns of lasting changes to supplies
  (New Mexican, 8/22) "Damaging floods, seen recently from Hatch to San Jose, N.M., won’t be unusual in years to come. Nor will the absence of snowpack in the mountains or warmer overall temperatures across the state."
   

• Monterey water-injection well EIR approved
  (Monterey Herald, 8/22) "Pumping water in the wintertime from the Carmel River to the Seaside Aquifer won't hurt the environment and will help prevent drying up the river in summer and hold back seawater intrusion, according to a final environmental impact report on the project adopted unanimously Monday by the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District board."
  
  

• Fires, rain contaminate Navajo Mountain water
  (Associated Press, 8/21) "Fires and floods caused by heavy rains have contaminated the single water source for about 1,200 residents of the Navajo Nation in Utah's far southeastern corner."
  
  
• Severe water shortage forecast for Texas agriculture
  (Southwest Farm Press, 8/21) "Texas agricultural research scientists face a daunting task: By the year 2050 farmers will need cropping systems that require significantly less irrigation water than producers use today."
  
  
• Texas water plan ready for review
  (Amarillo News, 8/21) "Austin officials issued the draft version of the latest state water plan last week just as local officials started their next round of planning."
  
  
• Water awareness is goal of Albuquerque restaurant ordinance
  (Albuquerque Tribune, 8/21) "If you've ever wondered what a $20, $50 or $100 glass of water tastes like, head to your kitchen and turn on the tap. The stuff coming out, when served in a specific fashion at a dining establishment, can cost that much under a 2001 city ordinance that has yet to mete out any financial punishment to local restaurants."
   
• Planning for the future: Texas water conservation
  (University Star, 8/21) "It has been said water is power and money in Texas — supply is limited and the demand is steadily growing — leaving many to wonder where their primary source of water will be coming from in the future."
  
• Las Vegas water plan is all wet
  (Boston Globe, 8/20) "Las Vegas is a parched desert city in a four-year drought, with new residents pouring in at a rate of at least 5,000 per month. So water officials plan to tap a great system of aquifers that form underground lakes in a swath across the state, some of them hundreds of miles away." 
  
  
• LDS church seeks delay in Nevada water plan
  (Associated Press, 8/20) "The LDS Church says groundwater should not be pumped from Nevada's Spring Valley area to Las Vegas until it is determined that it will not harm the church and other water-rights holders."
  
  
• Southern Nevada: Universal vision for water
  (St. George Daily Spectrum, 8/20) "As Southern Utah water districts vie for regional water solutions they must recognize that the lack of plentiful surface and ground water basins is a shared problem with Southern Nevada, which is using 90 percent of its urban water supply from the Colorado River. That's partially why the Southern Nevada Water Authority filed for its water rights in a shared basin with Millard County in the Snake Valley to build a pipeline from Spring Valley to Las Vegas."
  
  
• Underground water will be valuable commodity, some say
  (San Antonio Express, 8/19) "When it comes to the future of water, this is how Texas has decided to grow — through the unseen hand of the marketplace, with private business people working the space between those who have water and those who don't."
  
  
• Boil-water advisory issued for downtown San Marcos
  (Austin American Statesman, 8/19) "A water main break Friday afternoon in San Marcos dropped water pressure in the downtown area near Interstate 35 and Wonder World Drive and led the city to advise 20 affected businesses to boil any water they use through Monday."
  
  
• Water in Kempner in bad condition
  (KCEN Temple, 8/18) "A number of Lampasas County residents who live in Kempner turned on the faucet this week to find discolored and stinky water."
  
  
• More reasons to protect our Steptoe water
  (Ely Times, 8/18) "Anyone who doubts that Ely needs to seek its own protection from the Southern Nevada Water Authority should read Wednesday's edition of the Las Vegas Sun."
  
  
• Vidler turned huge profit in ranch sale to SNWA
  (Ely Times, 8/18) "Three appraisals performed between 1994 and 1999 placed the value of the ranch, one of the largest in the vast and sparsely populated Spring Valley, at $10 million to $14 million. Vidler fixed the fences and the irrigation system at the ranch, then sold the whole thing after six years to the water authority for $22 million."
  

—  Water Resources

• Rain-swollen reservoirs prompt water release plans
  (New Mexican, 8/24) "In a rare late-summer event, the Santa Fe River could start flowing regularly for a few weeks as city utility staff gear up to release water from near-capacity reservoirs east of the city."
  

• Ambitious wetlands project in California draws to an end
  (Associated Press, 8/24) "More than a century ago, duck hunters blocked the ocean from flowing into the marshes here, slowly strangling a network of tidal wetlands. Now the sea is coming back."
  
  

• Watershed rules enacted in Central Valley
  (Record-Bee, 8/23) "Because of a newly enacted Central Valley Water Control Board regulation, a handful of Lake County growers and farmers will be required to enroll in a watershed group by Dec. 31 or deal with the board directly on a much more expensive and difficult basis."
  
  

• IID backs sea plan, sort of
  (Imperial Valley Press, 8/24) "Imperial Irrigation District President Andy Horne found himself at odds Tuesday with the district’s lead attorney over how strongly IID should back a Salton Sea Authority plan to save the dying sea."
  
  

• Water can't reach Meredith
  (Amarillo News, 8/24) "Paul Eubank, chief of resource management for Lake Meredith National Recreation Area, said he has not seen any measurable increase in lake levels. While it might pour in Amarillo, Eubank said the watershed that feeds Lake Meredith is in eastern New Mexico."
  
• Rain replenishing Conchas Lake
  (Clovis News Journal, 8/22) "Fueled by monsoon rains, the water level at Conchas Lake is the highest it’s been in at least five years, according to officials with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers."
  
   
• Harrison Ford jumps into fray over Hetch Hetchy
  (SF Chronicle, 8/20) COLUMN. "Can Indiana Jones rescue Hetch Hetchy Valley from its watery Temple of Doom?"
  
  
• Company proposes water investigation at former Laguna mine
  (Cibola County Beacon, 8/18) "Sohio Western Mining Company (SWMC) recently submitted a proposal to the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) to conduct a ground water investigation at a former Laguna mine."
   

—  Conference

• 51st Annual New Mexico Water Conference
  (WRRI, 8/18) October 3-4 "One topic will include 'Coordination of Water Quality and Water Quantity Issues in New Mexico Perspective of State Engineer John D’Antonio, NM Office of the State Engineer Perspective of Secretary Ron Curry, NM Environment Department.'"
  

— Wastewater

• Sewage spills into Lake Hodges
  (NC Times, 8/24) "Most of a 780-gallon sewage spill that started in Escondido went into a creek that empties into Lake Hodges, but much of that sewage flow was trapped later, authorities said Wednesday."
  
  

• Los Osos sewer bill moves closer to passage
  (SLO Tribune, 8/24) "Despite letters of both support and opposition from the Los Osos services district's board president to state lawmakers, a plan to give the county control of the town's sewer project has taken one step closer to becoming a law."
  
  

• Sewage, storm water runoff can make beaches dangerous
  (Ventura County Star, 8/24) "The surf at the border of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties is sometimes too good to pass up, so he gets shots for hepatitis A and B just to hang 10 without getting sick."
   

• Silver Springs sewer district to pursue new attorney
  (Reno Gazette-Journal, 8/22) "Saying they need an attorney to represent them in 'all aspects', the Silver Springs General Improvement District Board voted to 'research and retain' an attorney for the district in matters the Lyon County District Attorney’ Office cannot undertake."
  

—  Toxic Waste

• Group says mines need to clean act on mercury
  (Scripps News, 8/22) "Residents of Utah and Idaho worry that unregulated mercury from the Nevada mines has wound up in the air and eventually in water and wildlife."
  

—  Everything Else

• FEMA Nixes Alamogordo Plea
  (Albuquerque Journal, 8/24) "Gov. to appeal denial of flood-disaster aid to individuals. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has denied New Mexico's request for federal flood-disaster aid to Alamogordo, according to a news release from Gov. Bill Richardson's office."
  
   
• Southern Nevada water official criticized for comments
  (Las Vegas Sun, 8/18) "A White Pine County commissioner and activists worried about a plan to pump ground water from rural Nevada to Las Vegas say they're outraged over what they term a threat to oust the state engineer if he doesn't approve a key part of the plan."
  
  
• Water, sewer bills have more than doubled for Dayton
  (Reno Gazette-Journal, 8/18) "After receiving some of the largest water bills residents in Dayton and Mound House have ever seen, many people are looking for ways to cut their water use and cut their bills."
  

International and National News

—  Water

• Alarm bells sound as China goes dry
  (India E-news, 8/24) "China’s worst drought in half a century is putting the spotlight on a far larger problem: its water is running out. The 1.3 billion people of the world’s most populous country have at their disposal only a quarter of the water per person that is available on average around the world."
  
  

• Water bottled in New York bottled eyed for bromate
  (Beverage Daily, 8/24) "A number of private-label US bottled water brands obtained from the Springbrook Springs source in Concord, NY, are expected to be pulled from shelves amid concerns about excessive bromate."
  
  
• Ancient biblical waterworks found in Israel
  (Reuters, 8/23) "Archaeologists in Israel have unearthed an ancient water system which was modified by the conquering Persians to turn the desert into a paradise. The network of reservoirs, drain pipes and underground tunnels served one of the grandest palaces in the biblical kingdom of Judea."
  
  
• New Alliance seeks to fight water sector corruption
  (Reuters, 8/23) "Water experts and businesses teamed up on Tuesday to fight corruption feared to be siphoning off billions of dollars from projects to supply drinking water to the Third World."
  
  
• Fixing leaks can avert world water woes, expert says
  (Reuters, 8/22) "Fixing leaky pipes in conurbations from Mexico City to New Delhi is a better way to avert water shortages as the world population grows than costly schemes such as dams, a leading expert said on Monday."
  
  
• Drought, water worries cloud skies for US farmers
  (ABC News, 8/22) "As the United States bakes in one of the hottest summers since the Dust Bowl years of the 1930s, drought from the Dakotas to Arizona through Alabama has sharpened the focus of farmers on their lifeline: water."
  
  
• Dry is the new wet
  (The American Daily, 8/22) OPINION: "The Clean Water Act is out of touch with local conditions. This probably won’t surprise you: Arizona is hot and dry. In fact, much of Arizona is coping with the 11th straight year of drought."
  
  
• Arsenic, nitrates, atrazine plague private wells
  (AWWA, 8/21) "Water quality monitoring data from thousands of domestic wells across the United States indicate that the top contaminants found include three organic pesticides, with arsenic and nitrate topping the list of contaminants exceeding their federal drinking water standards."
  
  
• Scientists call for water conservation
  (Seattle Post Intelligencer, 8/21) "Scientists on Monday called for radical action to improve global water management, saying one-third of the world's population faces water scarcity."
  
  
• Some Katrina victims still without water
  (KATC Acadiana, 8/21) "Almost a year after Hurricane Katrina, the hardest-hit area of New Orleans is still without drinking water."
  
  
• South Florida water wars continue
  (WEF, 8/21) "State planners worried about water supplies said last week the southern Miami exurb of Florida City shouldn't add four housing developments for 3,000 new residents —but a federal judge on the same day eliminated one roadblock for another, much larger project that would have doubled demands on Florida City's water."
  
  
• Peddling fortified water to moms-to-be
  (Delaware Journal, 8/21) "Might pregnant and nursing women benefit from water that 'nurtures life by delivering high-impact hydration with ... safe, doctor-recommended vitamins and minerals'? That's what Saphia Lifestyle Beverages of Silver Spring, Md., is selling."
  

—  Water Resources

• China Says Contains Chemical Spill in River
  (Reuters, 8/24) "China has contained a chemical spill that threatened water supplies for millions and triggered panic buying of bottled drinking water, state media said on Thursday. The pollution occurred in the northeastern province of Jilin in a tributary of the Songhua River, contaminated in November with toxic benzene after a blast at a chemicals plant."
  
  
• Fish help detect water contamination
  (Business Wire, 8/23) "Two cities on opposite ends of the country plan to use fish as biosensors to protect their public drinking water supplies from contamination and potential terrorism incidents."
  
  
• Water filtration technique removes dangerous algae toxins
  (Newswise, 8/23) "A water filtration technique that normally cleans up agricultural chemicals is also effective at removing a toxin secreted by algae found in lakes and rivers, a new study has found."
  
  
• Ecosystems sourced as key to water security
  (NZZ Online, 8/21) "Swiss officials attending the World Water Week opening on Monday in Stockholm will insist on the importance of protecting terrestrial ecosystems. These systems help ensure the quality and quantity of water available. The Swiss will be presenting a code of conduct on payments for ecosystem services in water management."
  
  
• Water tests empty 48 Montreal pools
  (CBC News, 8/21) "Forty-eight of Montreal's 73 public swimming pools were closed after tests found E. coli, C. difficle, Legionella, hepatitis A, Giardia, fecal matter and urine in the water."
  
  
• If we take plunge, water quality won't
  (Cincinnati Enquirer, 8/21) "The rivers of the United States are held by our government in public trust. They are ours to enjoy, protect and exploit. When used with care, they provide us with renewable sources of food, recreation and transportation."
  
  
• Ruling befouls clean water efforts
  (Eugene Register Guard, 8/20) OPINION: "On June 19, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision involving the definition of 'waters of the United States' under the Clean Water Act that shows the clear lines between the factions of the new court."
  

—  Wastewater

• China's $125 billion wastewater budget
  (Forex Global News, 8/23) "As of 2005, 279 cities in China had no wastewater treatment facilities, one fact behind a new government initiative to spend $125 billion over the next five years to save and improve its wastewater infrastructure."
  
  
• Researchers learn to extract crude oil from pig manure
  (KRT Wire, 8/18) "Yuanhui Zhang has smelled the future of oil, and it stinks. The pungent, earthy scent emanates from swine pens that professor Zhang's graduate students visit regularly at the University of Illinois."
  
  

—  Warming

• Climate change linked to mercury emissions
  (Science Now, 8/23) "Climate change appears to be awakening a toxic Rip van Winkle in North America's northern peatlands. A new study concludes that more frequent fires promoted by the warming atmosphere are releasing mercury sequestered in the soils at levels up to 15 times greater than previous estimates."
  
  
• California on brink of global warming breakthrough
  (Reuters, 8/18) "California is forging ahead with the most aggressive U.S. program to reduce global warming -- a plan that pits Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger against fellow Republican George Bush."
  
  
• Governors' seven-state emissions pact takes big step forward
  (NRDC, 8/18) NEWS RELEASE: "The pioneering bipartisan agreement by seven Northeast state governors to limit heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions from power plants in the region took an important step toward final implementation this week with the release of detailed rules that are to be adopted in each state."
  

—  Meetings

• 2006 Water Security Congress
  SEPT. 10-12, WASHINGTON, D.C.
  
• Stars of the Future: Reuse and Desalination
  SEPT. 10-13, HOLLYWOOD, CA

• AWWA conference for water plant pros
  SEPT. 17-20, PHOENIX

• 30th annual Public Land Law Conference
  SEPT. 25-27, MISSOULA, MT

• Pacific Northwest Pretreatment Conference
  SEPT. 27-29, VANCOUVER, WA

• Community Action, Innovation for Watershed Sustainability
  OCT. 16-20, WALLA WALLA, WA

• Coastal and Estuarine Habitat Restoration
  DEC. 9-13, NEW ORLEANS

• NACWA 2007 Winter Conference
  JAN. 30-FEB. 2, ST. PETERSBURG
  

—  Everything Else

• Which political party is best for water?
  (Water Tech Online, 8/24) "There are only a few more days to respond to the August Water Tech Online® poll, which asks which of the two major political parties would do a better job on water/wastewater issues in Congress."
  
  
• Machine makes water from air
  (Palm Beach Post, 8/22) "With a bit of hocus-pocus and a dash of Science 101, David Richards showed off his company's 'cloud in a box,' making water out of air."
   

• AWWA new edition of manual "M20: Water Chlorination/ Chloramination Practices and Principles, 2nd Edition"
  (AWWA, 8/24) "Completed updated from the 1973 edition, this brand new edition provides the latest on chlorination practices and strategies. Its covers distribution system chlorination, equipment, chlorination principles and safe handling practices. The manual includes numerous tables, figures, references and a glossary of common terms."
  

About the Arizona Water News

The Arizona Water News is a weekly e-mail with links to current news stories in the Arizona water resources industry.  Subscription is free to qualified persons!  Please go to our subscription page to subscribe.  For more information, you can also see some frequently asked questions.

Referrals to new subscribers are welcome, as are suggestions for new links, news stories, opinion pieces, and your agency's press releases.   Any documents you e-mail me may be published on our web site and linked to from the News, subject to editorial discretion.