A collection of top water news from around California and the West compiled each weekday. Send any comments or article submissions to Foundation Writer Matt Jenkins.
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The headlines below are the original headlines used in the publication cited at the time they are posted here and do not reflect the stance of the Water Education Foundation, an impartial nonprofit that remains neutral.
A parade of El Niño-fueled storms has boosted southwest
Colorado’s snowpack. The 9NEWS Weather Impact Team said
Colorado’s statewide snowpack stands at 125% of average
for November 3, the highest level for this point in
the winter season since 2022, driven largely by storms in the
southern part of the state. … The snowpack
measure, which began October 1, averages all eight of
Colorado’s key river basins. [Meteorologist Chris]
Bianchi cautioned that the 125% snowpack figure is a little bit
of a misleading stat because of a sharp divide across the
state. Northern Colorado’s percentages are in most cases
well-below average, while southern Colorado has two,
three, or even four times the snow typical for this time of
year. The snow has come at a steep cost in the
southwest, with flooding events in Pagosa
Springs and the Piedra and San Juan rivers.
California’s State Water Resources Control Board committed to
public scoping hearings on Trinity River water quality
and flow issues after hours of debate and testimony
from tribal communities on Oct. 29. The decision came after
dozens of tribal members testified that the Bay-Delta
process failed to address major impacts on the Klamath-Trinity
River system. Most of the Trinity River, the Klamath’s
largest tributary, is diverted to the
Bay-Delta for use by agribusiness interests.
… The resolution the board added to the Bay-Delta Plan
falls short of what counties, tribal members and environmental
advocates requested. Those requests included a water
rights hearing, protections for federal flow
decisions and changes in temperature standards.
October was a banner month for Lake Powell, a key
Colorado River reservoir straddling the
Utah-Arizona state line, as rainstorms sent billions of gallons
into the pool behind Glen Canyon Dam. What
that means for ongoing drawdowns from Flaming Gorge Reservoir
on the Wyoming-Utah border is uncertain. Between Oct. 21
and Oct. 28, the reservoir’s contents increased by 537,540
acre-feet, or roughly 175 billion gallons, raising its level by
nine to 10 feet, according to reservoir data. The surge
was primarily driven by flooding along the San Juan
River in the Four Corners region. All told, Lake
Powell gained about 600,000 acre-feet from its
September low through late October. Coincidentally,
600,000-acre feet is roughly the amount released from
Flaming Gorge over the past few months to make
up for Lake Powell shortfalls.
With a little more than half the vote counted early Wednesday,
voters appeared to be rejecting the idea of amending
the California Environmental Quality Act. Prop. 45,
which would change the state’s landmark environmental review
law by setting deadlines for environmental reviews and related
lawsuits on certain projects, was losing 54 percent to 46
percent. Supporters had said the changes would reduce building
costs. The California Chamber of Commerce sponsored Proposition
45, the Building an Affordable California Act, which would
limit the length of environmental reviews for projects deemed
“essential” to 365 business days and require courts to resolve
litigation in 270 calendar days. Those projects include
housing, water, broadband and transit
developments.
Besides local races, state races and propositions, some Ventura
County voters are voting on whether or not to approve a
$350 million water bond this election. Known
as Measure D, the United Water Conservation District is
asking county voters within its service area to approve
the bond to help fund three capital improvements projects it
says are required. The bond, if passed, would
cost property owners in the district’s service area
approximately $24 per $100,000 of assessed value annually.
United Water says the bond would run 30 years, from 2028
through 2057. It would help fund improvements to the
Santa Felicia Dam, Freeman Diversion, and Extraction Barrier
and Brackish Water Treatment. … [T]he dam is
classified as an extremely high hazard dam by the state due to
the high population amount below the dam.
Democratic gubernatorial candidates who pledged to halt data
centre development swept to victory on Tuesday night,
threatening to derail billions of dollars of planned
investments for the AI boom over the coming years.
… The “blue wave” of results on Tuesday, which also
included a number of local ballot measures blocking the data
centre construction, marked a sharp rebuke to President Donald
Trump’s endorsement of the AI infrastructure building spree.
… AI spending by a small number of Big Tech companies
has supported much of the stock market gains since Trump took
office. But the power-hungry computing complexes have sparked
nationwide anxiety over their impact on air and noise pollution
and electricity and water bills.
Downstream Missouri River states have worried for decades about
receiving an insufficient flow of water from upstream dams. Now
they’re worried their share of water could be further
diminished by potential pipelines for dry Western
states. The concern is the basis of a dispute about
the U.S. House version of the federal Water Resources
Development Act. A provision in the bill would require
approval from all governors in Missouri River states to study
or construct a project that moves water from the river or its
tributaries to a non-Missouri River state.
… The governors of Montana, North Dakota and South
Dakota — where the Missouri River flows through a series of
dams and reservoirs — recently joined with governors in the
Missouri River Basin states of Colorado and
Wyoming on a letter opposing the House provision. Also
signing the letter was the governor of Utah. … Utah
relies on the Colorado River for some of its water,
and the state’s Great Salt Lake Commission has
mentioned the Missouri River as a potential source of
imported water for the vanishing Great Salt Lake.
Waste dumped into the Tijuana River can travel seven times
farther than expected before becoming airborne and affecting
San Diego’s air, at least 20 miles from its source, according
to UC Riverside research. The river carries a complex
mixture of untreated sewage from toilets, industrial waste, and
urban runoff into the Pacific Ocean at Imperial Beach. The
study, published in Scientific Reports, found that wastewater
chemicals can remain in the ocean long enough to then travel
north along the San Diego coast before escaping into the
atmosphere. The finding helps explain why researchers detected
Tijuana River-linked pollution in the air near the Scripps
Institution of Oceanography pier in La Jolla, roughly 22 miles
from the river mouth. … Previous research demonstrated
that human waste flowing through the Tijuana River affects air
quality in communities near the border. For this study, the
researchers wanted to know whether the pollution might extend
further.
Voters on Tuesday rejected an effort to enshrine the right to
hunt and fish in the Colorado Constitution. As of 10 p.m., 56%
of votes tabulated opposed Amendment 83, and 44% supported it.
The measure needed the support of at least 55% of voters to
pass because it is a constitutional amendment. Proponents of
Amendment 83 conceded defeat late Tuesday. … Hunting and
fishing are protected by state law. Besides elevating that to
the state constitution, the amendment also would designate the
activities as the preferred method for managing wildlife
populations and provide for the use of “traditional methods.”
It also more strictly defines when Colorado Parks and Wildlife
and the state legislature could change hunting and fishing
regulations. … Proponents of the amendment — primarily
hunting groups, including large out-of-state donors — said the
change is necessary to defend hunting from potential ballot
measures, laws or regulatory changes.
The California Tahoe Conservancy (Conservancy) invites
community members to the next round of public meetings on the
Marsh South Restoration Project on November 18 and 19, 2026. At
the two meetings, the Conservancy will engage the public about
the proposed restoration project in the southern part of méšuk
málɨm, formerly known as the Upper Truckee Marsh, in South Lake
Tahoe. Proposed project elements include significant river and
wetland restoration downstream of U.S. Highway 50, including
the site of the former Motel 6. To facilitate the restoration,
the Conservancy also proposes to modify the South Tahoe Bikeway
and river access. … The Conservancy proposes to restore
historical wetland habitat, which will include removing fill
from past development, lowering the floodplain to reconnect it
to the river, and removing encroaching conifers.
Floods have overwhelmed parts of the parched American Southwest
in recent days and weeks, pouring water into critically
low reservoirs. But the deluge did little to ease
worries over the water crisis that required significant limits
on usage across the Colorado River basin
earlier this year. Instead, it exemplified a sort of
weather whiplash that is becoming more common
as the climate warms, making it harder to maintain a
stable water supply for the West. Right after enduring
one of its driest stretches of spring and summer on record, the
Southwest is now experiencing one of its wettest
autumns. … [T]he wet weather could provide
some medium-term benefits. … The rain has saturated
soils across much of the Southwest, causing more precipitation
to run off rather than percolate into the ground. While that is
making the floods worse, it could also mean that more
of any precipitation that falls in the coming months will make
it into reservoirs.
Renewable energy companies and environmental groups have a long
history of joining forces to push for favorable government
policies. Then came the bipartisan bill to overhaul the
nation’s permitting rules. While groups representing
wind, solar, batteries and other renewable energy companies are
lobbying hard to get the landmark deal through Congress by the
end of the year, environmental groups are riven by the
bill’s potential to cut red tape for fossil fuel projects
alongside renewable ones. The break reflects not just
an ideological split, but an economic one. The renewables
industry is reaching maturity and argues it can compete on an
even playing field with fossil fuels. Renewable energy
companies, like their fossil fuel counterparts, would also find
it easier to build under the Bipartisan American Affordability
and Jobs Act’s rewrites of the National Environmental
Policy Act, Clean Water Act and Endangered Species
Act.
The Solano County Planning Commission on Thursday will consider
making a recommendation on a proposed zoning change affecting
1,312 acres of land east of Collinsville that California
Forever has proposed using for shipbuilding.
… It will consider making a recommendation to the Solano
County Board of Supervisors on a proposal to change the
property’s zoning from Exclusive Agriculture to
Industrial-Water Dependent. The proposed changewould bring the
property’s zoning into alignment with the county’s 2008 General
Plan,which designated the area for water-dependent industrial
development along the Sacramento River.
… The General Plan specifically designated the property
east of Collinsville for water-dependent industrial uses,
envisioning development along the Sacramento River
while protecting significant marshland, wetland habitats, and
water quality, according to the staff report.
“Cheap water is over.” That’s the quote from
Queen Creek Utilities Director Mark Skocypec at a recent town
meeting. It made it into The Washington Post, which recently
profiled the town and some of its residents who are not
exactly happy about a new water resource fee being debated in
the East Valley town. It’s part of a plan the town has
been working on to prepare for a drier future
for almost a decade. The idea is to buy water from the
Harquahala Valley, pump it out of the ground and
transport it via canal to the fast-growing suburb. But
it won’t come cheap, hence that quote from Mark Skocypec. The
Town Council is voting on the new fee later this
month, and I spoke with Skocypec more about Queen
Creek’s long-term future water plan and why he thinks they are
a model for other cities facing uncertain water futures.
Wild bees are helping guide Klamath River restoration,
providing pollen data that could shape planting in former
reservoirs after dam removal. … “Sometimes you can see them
carrying in leaves, grass hairs,” said [Brissa] Garcia, a
wildlife biologist with RES, the company charged with restoring
three former reservoirs along the Klamath River in Northern
California and Southern Oregon. … RES and the Yurok Tribe
have been planting billions of seeds and thousands of trees,
shrubs, and flowering plants in the reservoir footprints. One
goal is to support pollinators, which rely on nectar and pollen
for food. Now, wild bees are helping the restoration team tweak
their palette of native plants. … RES can compare the
information the bees are bringing in with weather data and
plant monitoring data. Over time, the pollen data could help
paint a more nuanced picture of what’s happening on the ground.
Throughout the winter, scientists will be using cosmic rays to
research soil and snowpack moisture levels at the Mullen Fire
burn scar. Colorado State University civil engineers are
working with a Cosmic Ray Neutron Rover to study ground
moisture in several scenarios, from dusty, rural roads to
wildfire recovery. This winter, researchers will evaluate snow
water equivalent, or the amount of liquid water content in the
snowpack in the Medicine Bow National Forest, working in an
area that suffered a catastrophic wildfire in September 2020
west and southwest of Laramie. The team will use the technology
at the Mullen Fire burn scar, utilizing the sensor to measure
hydrological changes and water content across large-scale
areas. … [R]esearchers hope to use the study to
determine how the 176,878-acre Mullen Fire altered snowpack,
soil moisture, and the connection between them.
The Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board announced a
proposed settlement that would protect drinking water supplies
in South Lake Tahoe from a toxic groundwater plume linked to a
former dry-cleaning site. The proposed settlement would require
Seven Springs Limited Partnership and Fox Capital Management
Corporation, the former and current owners of the property, to
provide treatment for municipal drinking water wells and
address pollution affecting the Tahoe Valley South Subbasin for
a period of 59 years. The contamination, primarily from
tetrachloroethylene (PCE), originated from dry-cleaning
activities at the property between 1972 and 1979 that formed a
regional groundwater plume. The plume extended from the State
Route 89 and U.S. Route 50 junction toward the Tahoe Keys and
has contaminated wells used by two local drinking water
providers.
Inside a conference room on the outskirts of Gillette, about
100 residents gathered to discuss concerns and questions they
have about growing data center development across Wyoming. The
discussion mirrored growing national concern about the
large-scale projects, known as hyperscalers. Questions at the
forum, hosted by the Wyoming Outdoor Council (WOC), ranged from
how data centers may influence energy markets to how they may
affect the health of people and livestock. … Questions
and concerns about the energy and water use needed to fulfil
energy production came up in the discussion numerous times.
… Data center developers have reassured locals elsewhere
that increased power generation will not affect ratepayers and
that protections are in place to protect nearby water.
Microsoft’s data center in Cheyenne has pledged to provide the
community with more water than it consumes.
Volunteers are needed to assist biologists for the Kings River
Fisheries Management Program’s annual fish population survey
Nov. 17 through Dec. 2. Each event will take place between 9
a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Equipment and lunch will be provided to all
volunteers. Volunteers must be 18 or older. … The survey
assesses the health of the river and its fish populations.
Biologists and volunteers will use devices that send an
electric shock through the water, which does not cause harm,
stunning the fish in order to count and measure them. The
program is in collaboration with Kings River Conservation
District, Kings River Water Association and the California
Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), and aims to improve and
enhance the lower Kings River and its fish habitat.
Gov. Newsom vetoed AB 2218 (the Indigenous Water Rights Bill)
on 30 September 2026 (Kalra, 2026). This is particularly
pertinent for Humboldt County, where the tribal communities are
so reliant on the local rivers and watersheds for cultural,
environmental, and economic reasons. The veto has certainly
raised the alarm for tribes such as the Hoopa Valley Tribe and
the Yurok Tribe as to their ability to protect their water
rights and to be meaningfully part of state water policy.
… The AB 2218 discussion is completely tied into the
current regulatory issues relating to the decommissioning of
the Potter Valley Hydroelectric Project on the Eel River
(Potter Valley Hydroelectric Project 2026). The result of that
process could have a huge impact on water access in Humboldt
County, the state of the fisheries, and the health of the
river.
