Category: Stories

Kern River flows through Bakersfield again

Water is flowing down the Kern River in Bakersfield for the first time in many years, thanks to the combination of abundant snowmelt and an injunction preventing water diversions from drying up the river. Record runoff from last winter’s historic…

Walker Lake ringed by mountains with pine trees in the foreground.

Major water decision by Nevada Supreme Court

In a recent ruling, Sullivan v. Lincoln County, the Nevada Supreme Court changed the way water will be managed throughout the state. Patrick Donnelly, Great Basin Director of the Center for Biological Diversity, wrote about the decision: Pre-Sullivan, nearly every…

Ringing in 2024: Tangled in the Anthropocene

This essay, written by Stephen Trimble, appears in the 2024 Mono Lake Calendar. The great Western writer Wallace Stegner knew that “the Great Basin is a unifying force; wherever you live in it, you flow toward every other part.” And as…

Phil Isenberg’s legacy at Mono Lake

Phillip L. Isenberg, an inventive and unconventional Sacramento political leader, and champion of Mono Lake has died. Around Sacramento, and much of the state, he was known for his impressive legacy of public service—as City Council Member, Assemblyman, Sacramento Mayor, and…

Walker Lake, Nevada is on the rise

Record Sierra runoff (and the Public Trust Doctrine) flow into Walker Lake In the last days of 1994, celebrations of State Water Board Decision 1631 by Mono Lake Committee staff had barely ended when it began to snow, and snow,…

2023 Mono Lake Committee Scholarship recipients

Last month, Mono County high school seniors celebrated graduation throughout the Eastern Sierra. The Mono Lake Committee awarded $1,000 scholarships to two very deserving seniors: Esha Eilts from Lee Vining High School and Kelly Thompson from Coleville High School. Along with submitting…