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.
The biennial program, which will run from March to September
next year, selects about a dozen rising
stars from the seven states that rely on the river
– California, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and New
Mexico – Mexico and tribal nations.
Registration for our first water tour of 2026 along the lower
Colorado River is now open and the bus will fill up quickly! You
can also find more information below on next year’s programming
calendar packed with engaging tours, workshops and conferences.
And don’t forget that current Foundation member organizations
receive access to coveted sponsorship options for our
tours and events, which are all prime networking
opportunities for the water professionals in attendance! Contact
Nick Gray for more information.
Lower Colorado River Tour | March 11-13
Be sure to catch the return of our
annual Lower Colorado
River Tour as we take you from Hoover Dam to
the U.S.-Mexico border and through the Imperial and
Coachella valleys to learn about the challenges and opportunities
facing the “Lifeline of the Southwest.”
Following the river as it winds through Nevada, Arizona and
California, the tour explores infrastructure, farming
regions, wildlife refuges and the Salton Sea. Experts discuss
river issues, such as water needs, drought management, endangered
species and habitat restoration.
In anticipation of high demand, space is limited to two
tickets per organization so reserve your spot soon while
tickets last. Get more tour
details and register here!
In the next few weeks, the public will get their first look at
a critical document two and a half years in the making that
will define how the Colorado River is managed for the next
decade. The Bureau of Reclamation – which manages water in the
West under the Interior Department – is on track to release a
draft environmental review by early January with a range of
options to replace the river’s operating rules, which are set
to expire at the end of 2026. Several elements of the draft
were shared during the annual Colorado River Water Users
Association’s conference in Las Vegas at Caesars Palace
Wednesday.
A powerful Pineapple Express storm could deliver a wet, white
and potentially wild Christmas to California, with the
possibility of snow in the Sierra Nevada and
plenty of rainfall across the Southland. … “This
atmospheric river pattern will bring significant amounts of
rain,” said the weather service office in Sacramento. Snow
levels could drop to 5,500 feet above sea level by Tuesday and
Wednesday, suggesting “potential major mountain holiday travel
impacts” for Christmas Eve. … In the Sierra, where resorts
have been pained by warm weather and a snow drought so far this
season, it was far from clear whether there would be enough
cold air to lower snow levels.
The two largest tribal water rights holders in Arizona and the
Central Arizona Water Conservation District accomplished
something that has eluded states so far. They have pledged
greater cooperation in managing and addressing Colorado River
issues, including shortages, river restoration and a long-term
drought that bodes a long-term change in the Southwest’s
climate. The Colorado River Indian Tribes, Gila River Indian
Community and CAWCD, which manages the Central Arizona Project,
put their promise in a proclamation demonstrating their
commitment to collaboration and conservation, signing it on
Dec. 17 during the Colorado River Water Users Association
annual meeting.
The Trump administration is moving to dismantle the National
Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado, according to a
senior White House official, taking aim at one of the world’s
leading climate research labs. Trump officials have circled the
federally funded research institution, based in Boulder,
Colorado, as a hub for “federal climate alarmism” after it was
established decades earlier in 1960 for research in atmospheric
chemistry and physical meteorology. The administration
plans to identify and eliminate what it calls “green new scam
research activities” … while “vital functions” such
as weather modeling and supercomputing will be moved to another
entity or location.
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.
During California’s 2012–2016 drought, much of the state
experienced severe drought conditions: significantly less
precipitation and snowpack, reduced streamflow and higher
temperatures. Those same conditions reappeared early in 2021
prompting Gov. Gavin Newsom in May to declare drought emergencies
in watersheds across 41 counties in California.
