A collection of top water news from around California and the West compiled each weekday. Send any comments or article submissions to Foundation News & Publications Director Vik Jolly.
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Lake Oroville is sitting at 89 percent capacity, and the
Department of Water Resources is focused on keeping it that way
as dry conditions persist across the Feather River watershed.
The reservoir currently stands at 875 feet in elevation.
Releases to the Feather River are running at 2,100 cubic feet
per second, with a planned reduction to 1,750 cfs on Sunday,
March 29. Even with the reservoir nearly full, DWR is required
to maintain designated flood storage space under federal
guidelines set by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Between
mid-September and June, those rules dictate that a portion of
the reservoir’s capacity must remain open to absorb potential
inflows from rain and snowmelt.
… At least 36 states now offer tax incentives to attract data
center projects. But a backlash is growing in tandem — at least
12 states have filed moratorium bills this legislative cycle to
pause new data center construction while they sort out impacts
on electric grids, water supplies and public
health. Against that backdrop, the closed-door “Data x
Power” summit in Jackson April 1-2 will convene about 50 senior
leaders from hyperscale technology companies, energy
developers, government agencies and academia to explore whether
Wyoming belongs in the conversation.
Lawyers fighting for more flows in the Kern River got the green
light to question a noted river historian and author per a
court ruling issued Friday afternoon. It may seem like a “No
duh” objective to pick the brain of someone steeped in the
history of the Kern River in a trial about the Kern River, but
lawyers representing a local agricultural water district had
concerns about the breadth and nature of questions that would
be posed to Douglas R. Littlefield. … That’s because the
Buena Vista Water Storage District has hired Littlefield as an
“expert” witness in this and previous legal actions. So, he’s
not just someone who knows basic facts. He’s also potentially
privvy to Buena Vista’s legal strategies.
… Across Indian Country, many reservations still lack access
to safe drinking water. On the Navajo Nation—roughly the size
of West Virginia—about 30% of citizens live without running
water. A reservation where nearly one-third of residents lack
running water exposes a stark divide between national wealth
and daily reality. This is more than an infrastructure issue—it
is a public health crisis, a matter of dignity, and an ongoing
policy failure. Earlier this month, Navajo Nation President Buu
Nygren testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian
Affairs during a hearing that included review of the
Northeastern Arizona Indian Water Rights Settlement Act of
2025. Nygren said a typical Navajo family that must haul
water to meet basic needs spends an average of $600 per
month. –Written by Levi Rickert, publisher and editor of Native
News Online.
A judge is now mulling whether to push pause on the attorney
general’s public nuisance lawsuit against a Saudi-owned alfalfa
farm as the state’s water resources department moves to
regulate groundwater in the area. Fondomonte
Arizona continues to face legal action from the state for
allegedly excessive groundwater pumping in the Ranegras Plain
Basin in La Paz County. But in January, the Arizona
Department of Water Resources’ director formed an active
management area in the basin, kickstarting the process for the
agency to assess and regulate groundwater use.
… Maricopa County Superior Judge Scott Minder heard
arguments from attorneys on March 25 and plans to issue a
ruling on whether to halt the case or let it proceed alongside
the AMA.
A state lawmaker has unveiled legislation designed to speed up
the construction effort that will bring much-needed flood
protection improvements to the Pajaro Valley. In the name of
increased efficiency, California Sen. John Laird has introduced
Senate Bill 1055, meant to expand the suite of contracting
tools available to the Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency.
The local agency has been spearheading the ongoing overhaul of
the Pajaro River levee system in South Santa Cruz County and
North Monterey County alongside state and federal partners.
… The bill would authorize the flood management agency
to tap a number of additional contracting methods to maximize
flexibility in order to accelerate construction timelines and
reduce costs.
Sonoma County Regional Parks has received a $1.5 million state
grant to restore wetlands, streams and fish habitat at Mark
West Creek Regional Park and Open Space Preserve, county
officials announced. The funding from the California
Wildlife Conservation Board will support a three-year project
aimed at improving habitat for coho salmon and steelhead trout
in a key tributary of the Russian River watershed, according to
a press release issued Friday. … The project
includes installing structures that mimic beaver dams, placing
large logs in streams, restoring side channels and wetlands,
and modifying or removing concrete dams that block fish
passage, county officials said.
The Golden Hills Community Services District Board of
Directors, along with representatives from the city of
Tehachapi, Stallion Springs and Bear Valley, heard a
presentation last week from the Tehachapi-Cummings County Water
District and the California Department of Water Resources on
the Delta Conveyance Works Project and the effects it would
have on the region. … Delta Conveyance Works would
essentially be a massive tunnel transporting water from the
Sacramento River under the San Francisco Bay Delta to be
returned to the system near the San Luis Reservoir. It carries
a hefty price tag of $20.1 billion.
Located in the San Francisquito Creek watershed in Portola
Valley on Stanford University’s campus, Searsville Dam blocks
wildlife migration and critical sediment between the headwaters
and San Francisco Bay, harming threatened Central California
Coast steelhead populations and reducing sediment that is
needed to protect sediment-starved San Francisco Bay wetlands,
a crucial buffer for communities from sea level rise. … Just
days ago, an updated NOP [Notice of Preparation] has been
released with dam removal included as one of the alternatives
and plans for offstream flood attenuation, indicating our
voices have been heard and our expertise incorporated into
their planning. Stanford announced that the draft EIR will be
released in November 2026, and we look forward to partnering
with Stanford University and others on the removal of this
antiquated, deadbeat dam.
For more than 50 years, NOAA Fisheries has conducted vital
research on seal and sea lion populations at a remote research
station on San Miguel Island, California. The long-term data
set provides clues to help us understand what environmental
conditions lead to malnourished California sea lion pups and
increased stranding levels. This information is important for
managing their populations and helping rehabilitation centers
prepare for periods when sea lion pup strandings may be
elevated.
Seeking to prevent the California State Water Resources Control
Board from stepping in to regulate groundwater in critically
overdrafted subbasins, local agencies are working to correct
deficiencies in their plans to protect groundwater. With
groundwater sustainability agencies formed and groundwater
sustainability plans evaluated, the state water board has moved
to implement the 2014 Sustainable Groundwater Management Act,
or SGMA. … Under probation, groundwater extractors in
the Tulare Lake subbasin face annual fees of $300 per well and
$20 per acre-foot pumped, plus a late reporting fee of 25%.
SGMA also requires well owners to file annual groundwater
extraction reports.
Last year’s snow deluge in California, which quickly erased a
two decade long megadrought, was essentially a
once-in-a-lifetime rescue from above, a new study found. Don’t
get used to it because with climate change the 2023 California
snow bonanza —a record for snow on the ground on April 1 — will
be less likely in the future, said the study in Monday’s
journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
… UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain, who wasn’t part
of the study but specializes in weather in the U.S. West, said,
“I would not be surprised if 2023 was the coldest, snowiest
winter for the rest of my own lifetime in California.”
Six tribes in the Upper Colorado River Basin, including two in
Colorado, have gained long-awaited access to discussions about
the basin’s water issues — talks that were formerly
limited to states and the federal government. Under an
agreement finalized this month, the tribes will meet every two
months to discuss Colorado River issues with an interstate
water policy commission, the Upper Colorado River Commission,
or UCRC. It’s the first time in the commission’s 76-year
history that tribes have been formally included, and the timing
is key as negotiations about the river’s future intensify.
… Most immediately, the commission wants a key number:
How much water goes unused by tribes and flows down to the
Lower Basin?
A group of Western lawmakers pressed the Biden administration
Monday to ramp up water conservation, especially in national
forests that provide nearly half the region’s surface water.
“Reliable and sustainable water availability is absolutely
critical to any agricultural commodity production in the
American West,” wrote the lawmakers, including Sens.
Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), in a
letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. The 31
members of the Senate and House, all Democrats except for Sen.
Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.), credited the administration for
several efforts related to water conservation, including
promoting irrigation efficiency as a climate-smart practice
eligible for certain USDA funding through the Inflation
Reduction Act.
A study led by NASA researchers provides new estimates of how
much water courses through Earth’s rivers, the rates at which
it’s flowing into the ocean, and how much both of those figures
have fluctuated over time—crucial information for understanding
the planet’s water cycle and managing its freshwater supplies.
The results also highlight regions depleted by heavy water use,
including the Colorado River basin in the United States, the
Amazon basin in South America, and the Orange River basin in
southern Africa.
State water management officials must work more closely with
local agencies to properly prepare California for the effects
of climate change, water scientists say. Golden State
officials said in the newly revised California Water
Plan that as the nation’s most populous state, California
is too diverse and complex for a singular approach to manage a
vast water network. On Monday, they recommended expanding the
work to better manage the state’s precious water resources —
including building better partnerships with communities most at
risk during extreme drought and floods and improving critical
infrastructure for water storage, treatment and distribution
among different regions and watersheds.
It’s the most frustrating part of conservation. To save water,
you rip out your lawn, shorten your shower time, collect
rainwater for the flowers and stop washing the car. Your water
use plummets. And for all that trouble, your water supplier
raises your rates. Why? Because everyone is using so much less
that the agency is losing money. That’s the dynamic in
play with Southern California’s massive wholesaler, the
Metropolitan Water District, despite full reservoirs after two
of history’s wettest winters. … Should water users be
happy about these increases? The answer is a counterintuitive
“yes.” Costs would be higher and water scarcer in the future
without modest hikes now.
A steady stream of water spilled from Lake Casitas Friday, a
few days after officials declared the Ojai Valley reservoir had
reached capacity for the first time in a quarter century. Just
two years earlier, the drought-stressed reservoir, which
provides drinking water for the Ojai
Valley and parts of Ventura, had dropped under 30%.
The Casitas Municipal Water District was looking at emergency
measures if conditions didn’t improve, board President Richard
Hajas said. Now, the lake is full, holding roughly 20 years of
water.
After nearly a century of people building dams on most of the
world’s major rivers, artificial reservoirs now represent an
immense freshwater footprint across the landscape. Yet, these
reservoirs are understudied and overlooked for their fisheries
production and management potential, indicates a study from the
University of California, Davis. The study, published
in the journal Scientific Reports, estimates that U.S.
reservoirs hold 3.5 billion kilograms (7.7 billion pounds) of
fish. Properly managed, these existing reservoir ecosystems
could play major roles in food security and fisheries
conservation.
California has unveiled an ambitious plan to help combat the
worsening climate crisis with one of its invaluable assets: its
land. Over the next 20 years, the state will work to transform
more than half of its 100 million acres into multi-benefit
landscapes that can absorb more carbon than they release,
officials announced Monday. … The plan also calls for
11.9 million acres of forestland to be managed for biodiversity
protection, carbon storage and water supply protection by 2045,
and 2.7 million acres of shrublands and chaparral to be managed
for carbon storage, resilience and habitat connectivity, among
other efforts.
