The News Review:

- Climate change accelerates water hunt in US West
- Water supply looks solid for ‘09
- State agencies promote ground water awareness

Climate change accelerates water hunt in US West
Reuters
California Department of Water Resources Director Lester Snow says two things keep him up at night: drought and flood. “It isn’t that drought is the new norm” said Snow. “Climate change is bringing us higher highs and lower lows in terms of water supplies. Take Los Angeles which had its driest year in 2006-2007 with 3 inches (7. nly two years earlier more than 37 inches (94 cms) fell barely missing the record. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a drought emergency last month and Los Angeles plans to ration water for the first time in 15 years.
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Water supply looks solid for ‘09
Yakima Herald-Republic
That was the case on Monday when the Central Cascades were forecast to receive up to 8 inches of new snow by this morning. Chuck Garner the bureau’s river operations supervisor in Yakima said the timing of when the snow melts will have some impact on the season’s outcome. But even so Garner said all users will have an adequate water supply. Spring weather is expected to feature below-normal temperatures that should hold the snowpack in the mountains. No clear trend exists for precipitation. The national Climate Prediction Center said precipitation could be average above average or even below average. A lagging snowpack has been a concern throughout the winter.

State agencies promote ground water awareness
Fremont News Messenger
Almost five million people in the state drink ground water provided by community public water systems and nearly one million more meet their water needs using ground water from private wells. Ground water resources can become compromised in areas where there is poor land use planning and poor water resource management. This causes costs for water to increase including the cost for water treatment monitoring remediation and finding alternate water supplies. In addition lack of good water supplies can impact human health ecological systems and a community’s economic success. It is simpler less expensive and more reliable over the long term to protect ground water. Here are some ways to protect ground water:Minimize or eliminate the use of pesticides fertilizers and other lawn and garden chemicals avoiding over-application. Properly dispose of hazardous substances such as motor oil or household chemicals instead of dumping on the ground pouring down the drain or flushing down the toilet.