Watch our series of short videos on the importance of the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, how it works as a water hub for
California and the challenges it is facing.
When a person opens a spigot to draw a glass of water, he or she
may be tapping a source close to home or hundreds of miles away.
Water gets to taps via a complex web of aqueducts, canals and
groundwater.
Learn more about our team in the office and on the Board of
Directors and how you can support our nonprofit mission by
donating in someone’s honor or memory, or becoming a regular
contributor or supporting specific projects.
Unlike California’s majestic rivers and massive dams and
conveyance systems, groundwater is out of sight and underground,
though no less plentiful. The state’s enormous cache of
underground water is a great natural resource and has contributed
to the state becoming the nation’s top agricultural producer and
leader in high-tech industries.
A new era of groundwater management began in 2014 in California
with the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. The landmark law
turned 10 in 2024, with many challenges still ahead.
Are you an emerging leader ready to
make a greater impact on California water policy and management?
Applications are now being accepted for the Water Education
Foundation’s 2027
California Water Leaders cohort, with submissions
due Dec. 3.
Designed for rising professionals in California’s water
community, the program offers participants an unparalleled
opportunity to deepen their understanding of water issues, expand
their professional network and develop leadership skills
alongside a cohort of peers from across the state.
Visit the
application page, paying close attention
to frequently asked questions and mandatory
program dates to ensure you can fully
participate.
Confirm that you have your organization’s support and can
commit the time necessary to partipating in the program.
Interested in learning more? Join our exeuctive director, Jenn
Bowles, and other members of the Foundation team for
a virtual Q&A session at 12:30 p.m. on Nov.
10. We’ll provide an overview of the program and
share tips for submitting a strong application. Sign up here.
What role will desalination play in
the arid West? That topic is one of many engaging conversations
that will be explored at our Oct. 29 Water
Summit revolving around this year’s theme,
Stewarding a New Era in Western Water.
Led by Central Arizona Project’s General Manager Brenda Burman,
the panel will discuss all topics worth their
salt - from emerging desalination technologies to the
latest developments in innovative desalination programs to the
regulatory challenges and opportunities that face the region.
The panel of accomplished speakers will provide deep
insight on desalination’s implications for water management
in the West.
The Water Summit is the Foundation’s premier event of
the year and returns to Sacramento on Oct. 29
with leading policymakers and experts addressing critical water
issues in California and across the West. Capacity is
limited and registration closes soon, so grab your ticket
here while they’re still available!
After an epically dry winter and a tense summer for the
Colorado River, the autumn has delivered a rare boost to one of
its most iconic stretches. In recent days, heavy rains pushed
Colorado River flows through the Grand Canyon to their highest
levels in years. The rains, which also caused flooding and
destruction in communities throughout the Four Corners region,
provided a crucial slug of water to the Grand Canyon’s
unique ecosystems. River scientists are still
gathering precise information about the exact volume of water
surging through the river, but experts estimate flows reached
at least 21,000 cubic feet per second. According to the U.S.
Geological Survey’s measuring station above Diamond Creek, that
marks the highest rate of flow since April 2023, when
water managers deliberately sent a massive, sudden burst of
water through the canyon.
Scientists today say we’re just beginning to understand
the harm that the tiny bits of plastic we drink, eat
and breathe are doing to the human body. But recently
discovered chemical company documents dating back several
decades show that industry scientists have long been aware of —
and concerned about — the way microplastic particles
migrate beyond the gut in animals and humans, depositing in
important organs. … [T]heir presence has become
concern enough among health officials, lawmakers and
researchers that in 2018, California passed a
law requiring the state’s water agency to define, test
for, and report the particles in drinking water. The
Trump administration, averse to most regulation, announced
earlier this year that the EPA would begin tackling
them in drinking water as well.
Iron County is moving ahead with new regulations for
data centers in the southwestern Utah county — months
after passing a temporary moratorium on the controversial
projects. The Iron County Commission unanimously approved the
new rules during a meeting in Cedar City on Monday after
hearing from residents for more than an hour. Notably,
the new rules do not set hard limits on water use for
data centers. Instead, data center sites that would
use more than 50,000 gallons of water per day would have
to submit a plan to prove the additional water use
won’t harm the aquifer. … In another vote
Monday, the commission repealed the previous moratorium on data
centers, with no debate. Commissioners took public comment
before voting Monday and heard from residents who were
concerned about noise pollution, air quality, water
use and the longtime environmental effect of data
centers.
Winter and spring storms can bring a deluge of rain to Sonoma
County, swallowing vineyards and turning low-lying areas into a
network of lakes and ponds. While the sight of a flooded
vineyard may be worrisome, the dormant grapevines
typically remain unaffected, their roots requiring
little oxygen or nutrients while growth is suspended.
But what happens if the rain keeps
coming? … Despite the potential risks,
heavy rains help irrigate the vines deep beneath the soil,
which is beneficial in the long term, added [Balletto Vineyards
founder John] Balletto. To prepare for impending storms, his
team is currently installing erosion controls in
flood-prone areas. … Jackson Family Wines has
largely continued its usual operations leading up to winter,
but [vice president of farming Scott] Welch took a
precautionary step in mid-July, instructing his team to
stop replenishing some reservoirs in anticipation of El
Niño.
Operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the
Bay Model is a giant hydraulic replica of San Francisco
Bay and the Sacramento-San Joaquin
Delta. It is housed in a converted World II-era
warehouse in Sausalito near San Francisco.
Hundreds of gallons of water are pumped through the
three-dimensional, 1.5-acre model to simulate a tidal ebb
and flow lasting 14 minutes.
As part of the historic Colorado
River Delta, the Salton Sea regularly filled and dried for
thousands of years due to its elevation of 237 feet below
sea level.
The most recent version of the Salton Sea was formed in 1905 when
the Colorado River broke
through a series of dikes and flooded the seabed for two years,
creating California’s largest inland body of water. The
Salton Sea, which is saltier than the Pacific Ocean, includes 130
miles of shoreline and is larger than Lake Tahoe.
Drought — an extended period of
limited or no precipitation — is a fact of life in California and
the West, with water resources following boom-and-bust patterns.
No portion of the West has been immune to drought during the last
century and it occurs with much greater frequency in the West
than in any other region of the country.
