Focus
Southern California counties reach most intense drought category
Los Angeles Times – August 23
As drought conditions continue to worsen throughout California, Ventura and other Southern California counties have shifted from “extreme” to “exceptional” drought conditions, the most intense category of drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor Report, a nationwide drought tracking database. Northwest Los Angeles County, most of Kern County, and the eastern portion of San Bernardino County also are in the highest drought category. Last week, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California issued a supply alert, a move that brings the state’s largest population center closer to tough water restrictions that have already been imposed on communities elsewhere.
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News
EPA loosens rule limiting states' ability to reject pipelines
The Hill – August 20
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last Friday issued a joint memo with the U.S. Department of the Army allowing states and tribes to extend the finalization process for permits required under the Clean Water Act for oil and gas project permitting, after a Trump-era rule imposed a window of only one year to make a final decision. The memo now directs the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to wait the maximum amount of time to finalize 41 Nationwide Permits proposed under the act in September. The EPA Assistant Administrator for Water stated that the memo “provides guidance to maximize flexibilities and support the authority of states and Tribes to protect their waters.”
San Diego launching Pure Water, largest infrastructure project in city’s history
The San Diego Union-Tribune – August 20
San Diego last Friday formally launched the largest infrastructure project in city history, a sewage recycling system that will boost local water independence in the face of more severe droughts caused by climate change. Dubbed “Pure Water,” the multibillion-dollar project is the culmination of a lengthy process featuring thorny lawsuits, complex labor deals, and an aggressive public education campaign to fight the derogatory early nickname “toilet to tap.” Together, the two phases of Pure Water are expected to shrink the share of San Diego’s water that is imported from about 85 percent down to less than 50 percent.
Santa Clara County Supervisors approve measure to close San Jose Reid-Hillview Airport due to lead pollution
San Jose Inside – August 18
Santa Clara County Supervisors last Wednesday unanimously approved a measure to close the Reid-Hillview Airport, two weeks after the release of a study that found elevated lead levels in children living near the airport. The soonest the airport could close is January 2022, pending the approval of the Federal Aviation Administration, according to the office of Supervisor Cindy Chavez, who represents the area. The facility is much closer to homes than most airports and serves small, private planes, which produce far more lead pollution than larger commercial aircraft.
Ninth Circuit orders EPA to require real backup plan for air quality shortcomings
Courthouse News Service – August 26
The U.S. EPA must require states to have meaningful contingency plans in place for when efforts to reduce air pollution to safe levels fail, a Ninth Circuit panel ruled Thursday. A California nonprofit challenged the EPA’s 2018 approval of an emissions-reducing contingency plan for the San Joaquin Valley, one of the most air-polluted areas in the United States. The state proposed repealing a rule that legalized selling small containers of paint, which the EPA estimated would reduce emissions by one ton per day, far less than the 11.4 tons per day that would be required if other emissions-reducing measures fail to curtail smog in the valley. On a related legal issue, the Ninth Circuit ruled in favor of the EPA, ruling that the agency could approve the state’s plan to step up enforcement of air polluters as a “strengthening” measure for improving air quality.
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