The News Review:

- State water issues discussed at forum
- $250000 Wal-Mart Donation Supports Water for Texas
- Most state native game fish face extinction
- Coalition formed to protect Boone County water resources
- Top five ways to conserve water during the holidays

State water issues discussed at forum
Pinedale Roundup, WY 
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The Green River is a primary headwater for the Colorado River system, meandering down the Upper Green River Valley. These waters ultimately flow into the Fontenelle Reservoir before continuing their journey into Utah, where they join the Colorado River and continue south through the reservoirs of Lake Powell and Lake Mead. Due to the magnitude of this water supply, intrastate water rights have been hotly contested for decades, resulting in the formation of water compacts that dictate water consumption for the seven states that share in the supply. While states in the lower basin, including Arizona, California and Nevada, share about 7. 5 million acre-feet of water, the four states in the upper basin split around 4 million a-f. “The fundamental issue that we deal with in this day in age on the Colorado is that the water supply that we are experiencing in recent years is not what we saw in the years from 1906 to 1922,” said Pat Tyrrell, the Wyoming State Engineer, “which was the historic record available to the crafters of the compact. ”
During that time period, water flow was at higher levels than is seen today.

$250000 Wal-Mart Donation Supports Water for Texas
Environment News Service 
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The Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation is the official non-profit partner of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. It provides private support to the department to manage and conserve the natural and cultural resources of Texas and to provide hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation opportunities. Both foundations expect that this initial $250,000 donation will attract other partners to contribute to improving the supply and quality of water in Texas. “By itself, this grant from Wal-Mart Foundation is significant,” said Will Beecherl, chairman of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation’s Board of Directors. “Not only is this the first time private funding has made such a watershed initiative possible in Texas, it is also a statement and commitment by a major corporation to help protect the unique natural resources of Texas. ”

“It will enable the leveraging of other contributions, recruit many partners and multiply the conservation impact to reach heretofore unattainable goals. With the help of other stakeholders, this will easily be a million-dollar plus project every year,” said Beecherl.
Related from Acnemonster: Medicated Acne Gel Recall: Sold at Wal-Mart, Kroger and Dollar General

Most state native game fish face extinction
San Francisco Chronicle,  USA 
Decades of lax controls on farming, logging, grazing, mining and road-building have filled and polluted streams, the study said, while the removal of streamside vegetation on the North Coast, in Sierra creeks and on inland lagoons has warmed the water and harmed fish. For the past 50 years, ocean salmon that spawn in rivers from the Klamath south to the Sacramento have been blocked by dams and other barriers and deprived of water diverted to farms and cities by state and federal water projects. In some recent years, salmon returning to the ocean to feed and grow have found a poor food supply of krill, squid and smaller fish caused by higher water temperatures that could be related to global warming. “Our fish need cold, clean water to survive, but they’re getting less and less of it,” Moyle said. “Dams block access. Climate change is now looming to exacerbate the threat, and it increases the urgency. All of these things are pushing our fish toward extinction.

Coalition formed to protect Boone County water resources
Rockford Register Star, IL 
Boone County Board members resolved last week to create the Water Preservation and Protection Alliance, which will bring together representatives of the different county groups that watch over water supplies. As demand for Boone County water increases, officials wanted to lay the foundation for protecting the surface and groundwater residents and businesses use daily. Continued pressure on water resources in the Chicago urban area may lead to conflicts between water supply users and affect the environment, the county’s resolution says. “The importance on oil today is going to be the importance on water in the future,” said board member Fred Genrich, who sponsored the resolution. The goal for the alliance is to collect and combine existing regulations on water preservation into a comprehensive document. The group won’t have any regulatory or authoritative power, but will serve as an advisory body. “Maybe down the road there will be the potential to strengthen some rules if it seems appropriate, but that won’t be (this group’s) call,” said Jim Mulcahy, soil scientist with the Boone County Soil and Water Conservation District.

Top five ways to conserve water during the holidays
Naples Daily News, FL 
The South Florida Water Management District is a regional, governmental agency that oversees the water resources in the southern half of the state – 16 counties from Orlando to the Keys. It is the oldest and largest of the state’s five water management districts. The agency mission is to manage and protect water resources of the region by balancing and improving water quality, flood control, natural systems and water supply. A key initiative is cleanup and restoration of the Everglades.