1. CAGRD, GRIC and GRWS Celebrate Landmark Partnership
The Central Arizona Groundwater Replenishment District (CAGRD), the Gila River Indian Community (GRIC) and Gila River Water Storage LLC (GRWS) have forged an historic partnership that provides a renewable water supply to meet CAGRD’s statutory replenishment obligations for the next 25 years. This pioneering acquisition provides a substantial water supply that developers and home builders will rely on as part of the 2015 CAGRD Plan of Operation, as well as under its next Plan of Operation that will be due for submission to the Arizona Department of Water Resources in 2024.
This acquisition, with an initial cost of $97.5 million, involves water coming from three sources:
- 15,000 acre feet per year of high-priority Central Arizona Project (CAP) water through an exchange with the GRIC
- 18,185 acre feet per year of slightly lower priority CAP water through a lease with the GRIC
- 44,375 long-term storage credits in the Pinal and Phoenix Active Management Areas (AMAs) from GRWS
“We are excited about entering into this new and innovative partnership with CAGRD,” says GRIC Governor Stephen Roe Lewis. “Not only does our agreement provide water for sustainable future development, but it does so by supporting the Community’s goals of returning portions of the Gila River and reducing our irrigation costs. This is truly a win-win arrangement because much of the leased water will be stored on the Community’s lands and the exchange will help reduce the Community’s irrigation costs, while at the same time providing water to meet CAGRD’s needs. ”
As CAGRD is funded solely by its members, all acquisition costs will be paid through CAGRD fees, rates and membership dues.
“Last week, CAGRD participated in signing the agreement with the Gila River Indian Community, celebrating the substantial volume of water acquired that will allow CAGRD to meet its current and future replenishment obligations,” says Sharon Megdal, PhD, CAWCD board member and chair of CAP’s CAGRD and Underground Storage Committee. “We would like to commend the Gila River Indian Community for working with us to come up with a truly remarkable agreement that helps CAGRD meet its replenishment obligations.”
The next step is to obtain the necessary approvals and signatures from the federal government. It is anticipated this water will be available to CAGRD beginning in 2020.
2. Workshop -Monitoring and Reporting Drought in Arizona
Wed, March 6, 2019 – 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM MST – Scottsdale, AZ https://www.eventbrite.com/e/monitoring-and-reporting-drought-in-arizona-tickets54888614323
Join experts from the National Drought Mitigation Center, the Arizona Drought Monitoring Technical Committee, and the USDA for a one-day workshop to learn about and discuss: ·
The U.S. Drought Monitor · Drought Tools and Resources · Increasing the coverage of ground-measured precipitation data in AZ · Opportunities and Page 2 technologies for drought impact reporting
Our primary objectives are:
- To share how the Arizona Drought Monitoring Technical Committee (DMTC) gathers data about Arizona drought, climate and weather, what type of information goes into Arizona drought reports, who is contributing this information – and most importantly – where the DMTC needs more information about drought impacts. We need more people reporting drought impacts!
- To demonstrate how U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) maps are made, and how important DMTC information is to map accuracy.
- To discuss opportunities for improving the coverage of precipitation monitoring and drought impacts reporting in AZ. In previous workshops in other states, we have found that many folks are unaware that they can contribute drought impacts information to state agencies or directly to USDM maps. And that they can also join voluntary precipitation monitoring networks whose data are used in USDM decisionmaking.
The draft agenda can be found here: https://bit.ly/2T3t5eh Questions? Contact Caiti Steele: tel. (575) 646-4144, email. caiti@nmsu.edu
3. Why Are People Finally Believing in Climate Change? A climate communication expert talks bad weather, and young Republicans.
A record number of Americans—73 percent—now understand that global warming is happening. About 62 percent of them know that humans are mostly responsible. What is bringing this change in understanding? Is it a generational shift? Or just a whole lot of bad weather?
Anthony Leiserowitz is director of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication (YPCCC), which is behind this new data. Along with colleagues from George Mason University, the YPCCC has spent the last decade studying American awareness of climate change and how to shift that awareness. Leiserowitz spoke to Sierra about young Republicans, the weather report, and why it’s easier to explain climate change to a person in India than to a person in the US.
Sierra: The most recent survey that YPCCC has done shows awareness of climate change is Page 3 at its highest since you started collecting data. What is it about right now that is significant?
Anthony Leiserowitz: The number of Americans who think global warming is happening is at an all-time high. We saw an eight percentage point jump in Americans who were very worried about climate change. That’s a big surge. When you do these kinds of surveys twice a year, you’re used to seeing changes that are one, two, or maybe three percentage points. Very rarely do you see that kind of movement.
Questions like “When will climate change start to harm people in the United States?,” “When will it harm you, your family, your community?”—we saw a big jump in those numbers— much more than “How much will it harm future generations or other plant and animal species?,” which are more distant.
We think that in the end, this big jump from March to December 2018 has a few different things that have sort of converged. One is the extreme, record-setting weather— from Hurricane Michael destroying part of the Panhandle in Florida to the terrible wildfires that went on and on in California.
They still have a long way to go, but the media is beginning to use the words “climate change” when they are reporting those extreme events. That’s crucial, because there have always been fires and floods and droughts. Of course, all disasters cannot be connected to climate change, but many can. As the media begins to make that link for people, it helps solidify in people’s minds that this is happening and it’s not some far away, distant thing—it’s tearing apart communities right here, right now, in the United States.
The other thing that happened was the release of two major scientific reports—the IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] special report on what it would take to stay within 1.5 degrees of warming, which is a real wake-up call for the global community, saying that we’ve actually got about 12 years to very seriously bend the curves on our emissions if we are to have any hope of staying below 1.5 degrees. That got a fair amount of press coverage.
And the National Climate Assessment—the federal government report mandated to be released by Congress every four years—was also eye-opening about how climate change is affecting the United States now. The Trump administration tried to bury it by releasing it on the Friday after Thanksgiving, when people would pay the least attention to it. In this case Page 4 everybody saw exactly what they were doing and it had the opposite effect. It seems to have created a perfect storm of media attention, and as a result Americans’ awareness and concerns about this issue.
Who do you think has been good at drawing attention to climate change and its impacts, at connecting the dots?
I can give you two very clear examples. One is an effort called Climate Matters. We actually helped found it at the very beginning with George Mason University and then Climate Central and NOAA and NASA, and the American Meteorological Society and even the National Weather Association. It’s a project to empower broadcast meteorologists or weathercasters as climate change educators. That’s been going on now for about eight years.
We know that most Americans get their news and information from local television. Not The New York Times, not Sierra magazine, sadly. The main reason we tune in to local television news is for the weather report, and weather is directly related to climate. It offers many opportunities to bring climate change up in a way that the other local stories don’t.
We also know that weathercasters are very well liked in their communities, so these are trusted messengers. As a result we put together a network of weathercasters who are helping their local audiences connect the dots. When an extreme weather event happens, and it’s appropriate to talk about it in the climate context, they will do so.
The other is a project we run called Yale Climate Connections. These are radio stories that are broadcast nationally on over 430 stations across the country, usually played twice a day, during morning and afternoon drive times. These are first-person stories of people all over America who are experiencing the impacts of climate change now and people who are rolling up their sleeves and taking action: a local mayor who is doing what they can to move to 100 percent clean energy, a doctor who is taking on this issue and trying to educate their patients. Americans need to hear and see from people who look like them, talk like them, share their values.
Speaking of mayors trying to do some good, Republican office holders are trying to move away from a narrative that climate change isn’t happening to one of “Let’s fix this or innovate within our belief system.” Does this affect how people perceive climate change, especially the group you call the ‘Dismissives’?
Page 5 Yes, in fact. We’ve done lots of stories on Climate Connections about mayors and governors that are Republicans who are taking this issue on.
The evidence that we have indicates that the messenger is often more important than the message. If you’re a conservative, hearing about climate change from someone that you do identify with, and that you do like and share political views with, then you’re much more likely to say ‘Well, huh. Maybe this is a real problem.’ And then a conservative might say, ‘Well how do my conservative principles help solve this problem in a way that doesn’t require bigger government and more regulation and all the things I don’t like about Democrats?’
Hazardous Waste Rulemaking Update ADEQ’s Hazardous Waste rule was approved by the Governor’s Regulatory Review Council with an immediate effective date on Feb. 5, 2019. The requirement to submit a Facility Annual Report (FAR) to ADEQ was removed from the rule. There is no requirement to submit the FAR which was due on Mar. 1, 2019.
This does not apply to Tier 2 reports which are still due on March 1. In addition, EPA’s Generator Improvements rule is also immediately effective. Generators may take advantage of its new benefits immediately but must also comply with the new requirements. More information about the rules adopted and their effect can be found on ADEQ’s Hazardous Waste Stakeholder Engagement page.
5. What Not To Store In A Basement (If You Have A Basement).
Electronics: Stashing gadgets you might use in the future – an old gaming system, for example – in an unfinished basement may seem like a good idea, but evaluate how climate-controlled your space is. If you’ve not finished any of the space, bulky and pricey electric items such as power drills or kitchen stand mixers are better off on ground level or above. If your basement is finished, make sure that any TVs or other electronics are in a moisture-free space, off the ground.
Artwork: Still figuring out what to do with that painting you purchased on a whim? Don’t leave it in an unfinished basement. Humidity and poor ventilation can damage delicate paintings, photographs, and other items.
Flammables: Many DIY materials such as paint and other home supplies – think extra propane tanks – pose a fire risk, particularly if adjacent to gas-powered appliances. Follow manufacturer recommendations for storage.
Books and documents: Poor ventilation and humidity can wreak havoc on anything with a paper component. Unless your space is finished and not subject to big climate variations, store books above ground and in sturdy, leak-proof containers. Store hard-toreplace documents such as birth certificates and Social Security cards higher than the basement in a locked fire box.
How to store things in a basement
If your basement gets damp: Invest in mold-proof storage containers to store anything that might attract moisture, including books and clothing. If your basement is unfinished: Install shelving units so you can keep items you’re storing in the basement off the floor. Clothes: Keep extra or seasonal clothing in sealed containers off the basement floor, if possible. Furniture: Place foldable items stacked neatly against a wall so they’re accessible but retrievable. Any fabric or foam pieces, such as cushions, should be cleaned and stored off the basement floor. Bulk household and kitchen supplies: Larger quantities of necessities, including toilet paper, paper towels, disposable dishes, and any other household items, should be stored on shelving off the ground. That way, even if your basement floor does get damp, it won’t damage these items. Non-perishable food: As with bulk household supplies, stash the extras on shelves off the basement floor. Outdoor accessories: The basement is a good spot for yard accessories other gardening supplies. However, heavier outdoor furniture can remain outside under allweather covers. Tip: Keep a small donation bin in the basement to collect items such as old toys, clothes, and blankets that are ready to repurpose. When the bin is full, take it to a donation drop-off point.
6. Need An 8hr OSHA Refresher Class? In March, an 8 hr OSHA Class for $80 that includes a breakfast, lunch and a final certificate. Contact Dan at Sconflict@aol.com to register for a class registration.
