Category: Water

Butte County water levels at critical low point

Major crop loss expected in some areas
by Natalie Hanson | Posted September 9, 2022

photo courtesy of DWR
Aerial drone view of West Branch Feather River in May of this year.

Butte County faces a worsening drought and a dim outlook for water supplies amid another year of extreme heat and little rain, as pressure on local water management to conserve grows.

The Butte County Water Commission met Sept. 7 to discuss current groundwater supply and drought levels, led by Vice Chair Matt Tennis filling in for the chair. County officials reported a dire situation that has been worsened due to low precipitation and snowpack and reduced reservoir conditions, which combined with higher temperatures puts more pressure on groundwater demand. As a result, over the last 20 years, data shows the majority of all local basins are in an ongoing decline, according to Kelly Peterson, county water resources scientist. read more

Sinkholes in Orland area raise new water concerns

Public records reveal problems on ag land around Stony Creek
by Todd Bishop | Posted April 20, 2022

photo courtesy of the Sacramento Valley Mirror
Public records recently released to the water monitoring nonprofit AquAlliance show sinkholes like this one appearing east of Orland.

Glenn County — State and local officials have been quietly looking into the emergence of numerous sinkholes starting last summer and fall on agricultural land east of Orland, in the area of Stony Creek, according to newly released public records.

Many of the sinkholes are relatively small and shallow, a few feet wide and less than a foot deep, for example. However, there are isolated reports of bigger sinkholes, as wide as 10 to 12 feet.

“The deepest is about 12 to 15 feet in depth — literally, a small child could have entered the tunnel that I observed at the bottom of that hole,” wrote Rick Massa, manager of the Orland Unit Water Users’ Association (OUWUA), in a Nov. 8 email to officials with Glenn County and the California Department of Water Resources after a follow-up visit to one hard-hit property. read more

Tuscan Water District gets LAFCO nod

Commission unanimously approves TWD
by Leslie Layton | Posted February 3, 2022

photo by Leslie Layton
Wilson Landing Road orchard.

The Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) today gave its unanimous approval to the Tuscan Water District (TWD), a proposed district that will now give northwestern Butte County landowners the chance to vote on formation, with one vote allocated for each acre owned.

The seven-member commission voted after more passionate debate, with members of the public often arguing that the landowner-based voting structure isn’t fair to small farmers and homeowners. But TWD and LAFCO said the district has agreed to divide into nine voting blocks to minimize influence by the largest landowners.

The argument that the two largest landowners will control the board has thus been “seriously de-bunked,” said LAFCO Executive Officer Steve Lucas, referring to Utah-based Deseret Farms and Concord-based Rancho Esquon. “They will only control two seats. They will always be in a minority position.” read more

Proposed Tuscan Water District before LAFCO

TWD is a "scramble" for the "new gold," critics say
by Leslie Layton | Posted February 1, 2022

photo by Karen Laslo
Deseret Farms, part of a corporate family run by the Mormon church, is the largest landholder in the proposed water district.

Many on the petitioners’ list of 70 parties working to form the proposed Tuscan Water District (TWD) describe themselves as local families who want to ensure the future of their farms.

But whether it’s the landowner-based voting structure, the many out-of-town mailing addresses, or the fact that that they’re trying to secure supplies of what many are now calling the “new gold,” TWD has rankled many Butte County residents.

The Butte County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) will consider giving its stamp of approval to TWD at a 9 a.m. Feb. 3 public hearing in the Oroville City Council chambers. LAFCO will also recommend conditions for approval meant to address the concerns of critics. read more

County supervisors endorse new water district

Tuscan Water District creates water oligarchy, critics say
by Leslie Layton | Posted September 30, 2021

photo by Karen Laslo
Supervisor Tod Kimmelshue: “I believe we should use all of our county resources, including surface water.”

The Butte County Board of Supervisors voted 3-1 Tuesday to endorse the formation of a new, landowner-run water district in which members will get one vote per acre of land they own. Members may also have to pay a hefty fee to belong to the governing body that will have authority to implement projects affecting the region’s aquifer.

The proposed Tuscan Water District (TWD) was endorsed by board Chair Bill Connelly and supervisors Tod Kimmelshue and Doug Teeter after hearing more than two hours of impassioned testimony from dozens of members of the public. (District 2 Supervisor Debra Lucero cast the lone vote in opposition and District 3 Supervisor Tami Ritter left the meeting early because of a personal emergency.) read more

Lucero: Public discourse on Tuscan Water District comes — but late

"The public had not been part of the formation process"
by Debra Lucero | Posted September 7, 2021

photo by Karen Laslo
District 2 Supervisor Debra Lucero

The Tuscan Water District story is unfolding in Butte County. This isn’t the first time large landowners have joined together to try to “preserve their way of life and heritage.” It has happened all over the state and more recently, in San Luis Obispo where the proposition to form a new, powerful California Water District failed.

So, how did this current effort in Butte County get birthed?

The former Butte County Water Conservation & Resource Department director, Paul Gosselin, (now the State of California’s deputy director of SGMA – Sustainable Groundwater Management Act) and a former longtime Sacramento Local Agency Formation Commission executive officer, John O’Farrell, came up with another idea — one that could circumvent the arduous San Luis Obispo process and even the Board of Supervisors. read more