“Infrastructure” in general can be defined as the components and
equipment needed to operate, as well as the structures needed
for, public works systems. Typical examples include roads,
bridges, sewers and water supply systems.Various dams and
infrastructural buildings have given Californians and the West
the opportunity to control water, dating back to the days of
Native Americans.
Water management infrastructure focuses on the parts, including
pipes, storage reservoirs, pumps, valves, filtration and
treatment equipment and meters, as well as the buildings to
house process and treatment equipment. Irrigation infrastructure
includes reservoirs, irrigation canals. Major flood control
infrastructure includes dikes, levees, major pumping stations and
floodgates.
The Fairfield-Suisun Sewer District, which provides wastewater
service to Fairfield, Suisun City and Travis Air Force Base, is
kicking off a long-range planning initiative. The purpose of
the initiative is to “safeguard nearly $1 billion in aging
infrastructure and control future costs.” “Our goal is to plan
smarter now so we complete needed replacements and upgrades
responsibly and efficiently,” Engineering Manager Irene
O’Sullivan said in a statement. “This is about continuing safe
and reliable sewer service to our community.” Many facilities
are more than 50 years old. ”The district is investing
$2.8 million, 1.5% of its 10-year capital budget, into a series
of master plans for sewer collection, treatment, recycled
water, storm drainage and mapping systems,” the statement said.
The master plans were unveiled during a recent district board
meeting. The Fairfield and Suisun City council members sit as
the directors.
Caltrans got one step closer to its controversial $500 million
project to widen Highway 37, a notoriously trafficky corridor,
with an infusion of funding Thursday. But critics said the
money could be wasted as rising tides are expected to
flood the low–lying highway within decades. On
Thursday, the California Transportation Commission approved $73
million toward the plan, which calls for widening Highway 37
between Sears Point in Sonoma and Mare Island in Vallejo from
two lanes to four. Caltrans said the project will greatly
reduce congestion on a highway used by 47,000 daily. However,
the highway is also expected to be inundated by rising tides by
2050, threats that will not be addressed by the project,
Caltrans said. Instead, the agency has a separate $10 billion
plan to elevate and protect the highway in the future.
… Portions of Highway 37 “will be completely inundated
by 2050,” especially during major storms and king tides, and
there will be increased flooding leading up to that time,
Caltrans said in a statement.
As wildfires grow in size and intensity, older communities are
recognizing the need to update their municipal water systems.
In Lake Tahoe, a robust water infrastructure is now considered
one of the three cornerstones of wildfire readiness, alongside
forest and fuels management and community and home
hardening. Each summer, utility companies on both sides of
the lake race to complete water system upgrades within the
limited six-month construction window. Today, the Lake Tahoe
community is leading the way in ensuring that firefighters
always have access to water. … The Tahoe Water for Fire
Suppression Partnership estimates that the Tahoe Basin will
need an additional $125 million in funding over the next five
years to upgrade its water systems.
The United States Bureau of Reclamation celebrated the 80th
anniversary of the Shasta Dam and Powerplant’s completion, a
key element of California’s Central Valley Project. Acting
Regional Director Adam Nickels honored the 4,700 workers and
their families who contributed to this engineering milestone
from 1938 to 1945. … On June 20, 1945, the Bureau of
Reclamation officially took control of both the dam and power
plant from Pacific Constructors, Incorporated. Towering at 602
feet tall, Shasta Dam is the second-largest concrete dam in the
U.S., stretching 3,460 feet across the Sacramento River. It
required 6.5 million cubic yards of concrete, enough to circle
the Earth’s equator with a 3-foot-wide sidewalk.
… Shasta Reservoir, formed by the dam, is California’s
largest water storage facility, holding over 4.5 million
acre-feet of water.
Winter storms, combined with debris from the Park Fire, pushed
the Five-Mile basin in northeast Chico to its limits for flood
control. Butte County Public Works Director Josh Pack received
a nod from the Board of Supervisors during Tuesday’s meeting to
look into a job order contract to mitigate flood risk, ideally
before winter. Pack said the Five-Mile Sediment Removal Project
would consist of two phases with the first made up of any work
that can be completed this year and the second being the
long-term work next year and beyond. Pack said the goal of the
first phase is to begin work by Aug. 15, creating a strict
timeline to get the project rolling. … To help aid in
the project, Pack said U.S. Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale)
helped secure $5.6 million in earmarked funding while state
Assemblyman James Gallagher (R-Yuba City) introduced a bill
that could expedite the work by exempting the project from the
California Environmental Quality Act and its required studies.
… The Supreme Court’s reasoning in Seven
County encourages judicial restraint in NEPA cases.
Thus, Seven County may prompt federal agencies to
conduct NEPA reviews with less fear of judicial oversight than
they may have had prior to the decision. For proponents of
water infrastructure projects involving the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers (Corps), Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), or
other federal agencies, this shift could create a less onerous
permitting process. However, these project proponents remain
exposed to regulatory uncertainty — especially in projects
involving multiple federal agencies — because of the recent
rollback of the Council on Environmental Quality’s unified NEPA
framework. The proponents also face litigation risk at the
state level, and under statutes that, unlike NEPA, impose
substantive constraints on development decisions. In fact,
approval of the project at the heart of Seven
County remains vacated under some such authorities at this
time. Therefore, all stakeholders — project proponents and
opposers alike — should proceed cautiously as this area of law
continues to evolve.
… We are the Round Valley Indian Tribes. In the early
20th century, without our consent, the Potter Valley Project
dammed our river and started diverting significant portions to
generate electricity, after which the water was made available,
at no cost, to users in the Russian River watershed. All the
while, our community endured the loss of a critical part of our
economy and culture: the decimated Eel River salmon fishery.
… We also understand, however, that we are part of the larger
region, and our members live, work and study in the surrounding
communities, which support our tribal economy. These
communities, in turn, depend on the river. Thus, while removal
of the project facilities and the return of a healthy river is
our goal, we must achieve this goal mindful of how this may
affect others. The Round Valley Indian Tribes support the
Two-Basin Solution, which shares this limited resource between
both basins by pairing fishery restoration with continued
diversions that do not harm the fishery. –Written by Joe Parker, president of the Round Valley
Indian Tribes.
Olivenhain Municipal Water District has completed construction
of several recycled water pipelines in Carlsbad and Encinitas.
The installation of over 5,600 feet of new pipelines will allow
several HOA communities in the project area to convert their
irrigation systems to recycled water, resulting in more than
12.5 million gallons of drinking water saved every year,
according to a news release. … OMWD secured more than
$900,000 in grant funding to make the project cost-effective
for ratepayers. Specifically, both the US Bureau of
Reclamation’s Title XVI Water Reclamation and Reuse Program,
and the California Department of Water Resources’ Integrated
Regional Water Management Program contributed grant funds
to offset project costs, the news release stated. … The
project was completed on time and with no interruptions to
customers’ water supplies.
Yesterday, the unincorporated community of West Goshen in
Tulare County hit a key milestone to achieve their Human Right
to Water by breaking ground on their safe drinking water
project. Many families in this area currently rely on drinking
water contaminated with concerning levels of contaminants
including nitrate, 1,2,3-trichloropropane, and uranium.
… In 2021, residents formed the community based
organization West Goshen Water for Life. … Through an
alternatives analysis funded by State Water Board technical
assistance funding, the community decided that connecting to a
safe piped water supply from the California Water Service (Cal
Water) Visalia system was the most sustainable long-term
drinking water solution. Their efforts to implement that
solution were met with collaboration from Tulare County,
California Water Service, and funding from the Department of
Water Resources through a $3.4 million grant aimed at emergency
drought relief.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Los Angeles District joined
the City of Inglewood June 13 to officially sign a project
agreement that will strengthen the city’s emergency water
storage capacity and spotlight more than two decades of
interagency collaboration. The agreement, supported by federal
funding through Section 219 of the Water Resources Development
Act, will assist in the design and construction of the
Morningside Reservoir — the first and
highest-priority of four planned water infrastructure projects.
The overall program is expected to support up to $20 million in
improvements across Inglewood’s aging water system.
… The new reservoir, which will be constructed below
grade on the existing site, is designed to hold about 4 million
gallons of water. It will mix groundwater from Inglewood’s
treatment plant with supply from the Metropolitan Water
District and distribute it citywide.
A pipeline project designed to provide clean, accessible water
to residents living in eastern Coachella Valley has been
completed, Coachella Valley Water District officials announced
today. The Avenue 66 Transmission project, also
known as the Saint Anthony Mobile Home Park Water Consolidation
project, involved the installation of more than 26,000 linear
feet of water pipes along Avenue 66. The project connects to
three mobile home parks — Saint Anthony, Seferino Huerta and
Manuela Garcia — and will supply water to the communities of
Mecca and North Shore. ”Access to safe, affordable water
and sewer services brings additional benefits, including new
housing opportunities and economic growth,” CVWD Board Vice
President Castulo Estrada said in a statement. Numerous eastern
Coachella Valley residents previously received water from
failing or at-risk private water systems and unreliable
sanitation systems, district officials said.
During the first semiannual meeting of the North American
Development Bank (NADBank) in 2025, the Governments of the
United States and Mexico, through the Board of
Directors, agreed to invest up to US$400 million in
priority water conservation and diversification infrastructure
in response to prolonged drought conditions throughout the
U.S.-Mexico border region. NADBank will welcome input from the
public on the Water Resilience Fund (WRF) during a 30-day
public comment period, after which the Board will consider its
final approval. Through the WRF, NADBank will allocate up
to US$100 million in retained earnings over the next five years
for concessional financing, as well as make up to US$300
million available for low-interest loans from its established
lending resources. NADBank may also supplement these
instruments with market-rate financing to further expand the
reach and impact of available resources.
During the Contra Costa Taxpayers Association Members and
Leaders monthly luncheon in May, Contra Costa Water District
Board President, Ernesto Avila provided an update on the
district’s current work and plans. They include repairing 20 of
the 48-mile canal at a cost of $1 billion, keeping water rates
as low as possible and expanding service to keep up with
growth. … Half of the district’s water is provided to
treated water customers and the other half to raw water
customers, Avila stated and then spoke about ensuring adequate
“water supply during disasters such as fire and earthquake
emergencies.” … The district owns Los Vaqueros Reservoir
for storage, which is currently 93% full. But “we can’t just
draw water whenever we want,” Avila stated. “All of our intakes
are screened to protect fish.” “We are out of our drought,”
Avila added. However, “during the drought there were no
constraints on water supply for development and growth.”
… Recently the governor used his May budget revision to
fast-track the Delta Conveyance Project, saying that was a
critical addition to the State Water Project. That announcement
drew criticism from opponents. The 15-member Delta Caucus
— a bipartisan group of lawmakers representing Delta
communities — sent a letter to Newsom and legislative leaders
saying they are “unanimous in strong opposition to the
governor’s proposal to fast-track the Delta tunnel.” One
of the caucus members is State Sen. Christopher Cabaldon
(D-Yolo), who previously served as the mayor of West Sacramento
for two decades. Cabaldon recently spoke with Insight Host
Vicki Gonzalez about the caucus’s opposition to the Delta
Conveyance Project, and the alternative methods that could help
meet the state’s water needs.
… The City’s aging combined sewer infrastructure – and the
increasing cost to maintain it – forced San Francisco into an
odd position on the wrong side of clean water advocacy. This
recently culminated in March 2025. In a 5-4 decision, the
Supreme Court ruled in favor of San Francisco in its case
against the EPA, significantly limiting the federal
government’s ability to enforce water quality standards
nationwide. The case began when San Francisco challenged
EPA regulations to avoid penalties for discharging sewage into
the Bay and Pacific Ocean from its combined sewer system. The
city argued that the Clean Water Act doesn’t authorize the EPA
to include broad “end-result” requirements in
permits—essentially fighting for less oversight of its
pollution. … While the Supreme Court decision represents
a significant setback for clean water protections nationwide,
it also creates an opportunity for grassroots action. Cities
across America, including San Francisco, can voluntarily
implement so-called “Green Infrastructure” solutions that
reduce pollution without waiting for federal mandates.
After decades of planning and construction, the Richard L.
Schafer Dam Spillway at Lake Success is officially complete.
Leaders say this large reservoir will dramatically improve
flood control, protecting homes and lives in the area. This is
a historic milestone for our community,” said Congressman Vince
Fong. “We not only built a new emergency spillway, but we
raised this dam ten feet, that is more water storage for us.”
The improvements will increase the lake’s storage capacity by
28,000 acre-feet, bringing the total to 112,000
acre-feet. ”What that really means is 9.8 billion gallons
of water, additional water storage that we can now hold in this
lake so it’s critical for us,” explains Fong. … The
total cost of the project was $135 million.
Six years after first announcing plans to walk away from
the Potter Valley Project, Pacific Gas
and Electric Company has finally revealed the staggering price
tag for dismantling the century-old hydroelectric facility:
$532 million. That’s the estimated cost PG&E submitted to
state regulators on May 15, a half-billion-dollar teardown that
will be funded by PG&E customers, many of whom also risk
losing the year-round water supply the system delivers to
600,000 people across Northern
California. … Now, with the Potter Valley Project
slated for removal, a replacement is already on the drawing
board. The New Eel-Russian Facility, led by
the Eel-Russian Project Authority, commonly referred to as
ERPA, would be built near Cape Horn Dam to keep water flowing
while restoring the Eel River’s natural processes.
Work is set to begin on a water infrastructure in central
Oroville as the California Water Service (Cal Water) works to
improve water supply reliability and fire protection. The
project, which begins on June 9, 2025, is expected to last
10-12 weeks. Cal Water said that crews will install 3,510 feet
of new 12-, 8- and 6-inch water main to replace aging main.
“Infrastructure improvements like this help Cal Water provide
safe, clean, reliable drinking water to our customers’ homes
and businesses. That’s our top priority,” said Loni Lind, Local
Manager. “Proactive, ongoing maintenance and upgrades like this
also help improve our emergency readiness.” … Cal Water
said that this effort aligns with their goal to continually
modernize and upgrade its water system to better serve
customers.
… The California Wildlife Conservation Board, a state agency
dedicated to protecting California’s biological diversity, has
approved $59.5 million in grant funding to preserve nearly
23,000 acres of some of the state’s most ecologically
significant habitats, a May 23 news release from the California
Department of Fish and Wildlife shows. … For instance,
the beleaguered Salton Sea, which is at risk
of drying out and releasing toxic dust if left unattended, will
receive $5.2 million in funding to restore over 560 acres of
crucial wetland habitat. … One of the more significant
awards is a $14.75 million grant to acquire nearly 6,500 acres
of land in Ventura County home to at least 20 special-status
species, including the California red-legged frog and the
Southern California steelhead.
President Donald Trump has taken millions of dollars already
allocated to blue states—and reallocated the funding to red
states—impacting a wide array of ongoing critical
infrastructure projects, including the Pajaro River Flood
Management Project. … Also losing funding are the
American River Common Features Levee Improvement Project, the
Lower San Joaquin River Project and the West Sacramento
Project. Pajaro River Flood Management Agency (PRFMA) Director
Mark Strudley said that construction is still expected to start
this fall on Reach 6, which runs along Corralitos Creek from
Green Valley Road to East Lake Avenue. That portion of the
project is funded by $156 million already allocated to the
project. … PRFMA was also counting on—and what Trump zeroed
out—was $38.5 million in funding for the Pajaro River Levee
project provided by Congress to the Army Corps under
Republicans’ yearlong continuing resolution for fiscal year
2025.
The Trump administration has canceled $33 million worth of
federal funds meant to help pay for earthquake retrofits in
California — sparking “grave concern” and a call to reconsider
from one of the state’s highest elected officials.
… FEMA issued a statement on April 4 announcing the
cancellation of the Building Resilient Infrastructure and
Communities program, known as BRIC, that would have funded the
California earthquake retrofits. … Also in jeopardy is up to
$50 million in funding apiece for a Port of San Francisco
coastal resilience project, a flood protection
project for the Menlo Park area, a flood
adaptation project in Oakland and Alameda, a Sutter
Bypass levee project in the Central Valley,
for water supply resiliency for the city of
Riverbank in Stanislaus County, and for infrastructure
resiliency for the city of Pacifica in San Mateo County.
In an ominous sign for an already struggling project, state
officials on Wednesday said they are unhappy with the lack of
progress over plans by the Santa Clara Valley Water District to
build a huge new dam near Pacheco Pass and Henry W. Coe State
Park in Santa Clara County. Members of the California Water
Commission, an 8-member agency appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom
that tentatively committed $504 million in state bond funding
seven years ago to the $2.7 billion project — and still could
revoke it — expressed frustration at the district’s shifting
timelines and lack of specifics and accomplishments.
… On Wednesday, district officials told the water
commission that they still haven’t secured major permits needed
to start construction, haven’t secured water rights, and only
have completed 30% of the design. They said they wouldn’t be
able to break ground until 2029 and won’t complete construction
until at least 2036.
Sen. Jerry McNerney is laying down the gauntlet against Gov.
Gavin Newsom’s budget proposal to fast-track a controversial
Delta water tunnel. What happened: McNerney said he has the
votes to defeat Newsom’s bid last week to speed up the
permitting for a tunnel underneath the state’s main water
delivery hub, the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, if it came to
that. “I’m confident that we do,” the former House Democrat
said in an interview following a press conference on the
issue. A version of the proposed project has been floating
around — first as a canal, then a pair of tunnels — for more
than a half-century, during which it has reliably brought out
opposition from environmental groups and elected officials in
the Delta region concerned about habitat loss and construction
impacts.
The Trump administration significantly cut funding for flood
prevention projects in blue states across the country while
creating new water construction opportunities in red states,
undoing a Biden-era budget proposal that would have allocated
money more evenly, according to a data analysis prepared by
Democratic staffers. California and the state
of Washington lost the most funds, with the administration
cutting water construction budget for those states by a
combined $606 million, according to the analysis, which was
shared with CNN. Texas, meanwhile, gained $206 million. …
Collectively, states with Democratic senators lost over $436
million in funding compared to what they would have received
under the last proposed budget of President Joe Biden’s
administration, the data analysis shows. Republican-led states
gained more than $257 million, the analysis shows.
Memorial Day weekend guests at Whiskeytown National Recreation
Area should be on alert for fast moving, deep and very cold
water, the park’s rangers cautioned. The Bureau of
Reclamationis releasing more water through Whiskeytown Dam and
into the park through June 24, boosting water levels. Expect
highest flows this week, peaking Thursday, according to an
announcement issued by the park. … Increasing the amount
of water flowing into Clear Creek and the Trinity River will
benefit fish species, including salmon, by
mimicking natural springtime runoff. These fish need a lot of
water, “particularly cold water if you are (a) Chinook salmon,”
the park said. Sacramento River spring-run Chinook live in
Clear Creek, and are under federal protection.
Across California, water utility managers, elected officials,
and state regulators are working to address a critical
challenge: funding essential water infrastructure investments
that deliver public health through the provision of reliable
water service, while minimizing customer rate impacts. To
tackle this issue, the California Water Association (CWA) has
developed the Water Affordability Framework to guide efforts in
maintaining affordability and sustainability for the six
million Californians our member utilities
serve. … Over the next 5 years, CWA members plan to
invest up to $5 billion in new water infrastructure projects,
including pipeline replacements and meter upgrades. Our members
remain committed to minimizing costs and exploring strategies
to keep water service affordable, while navigating the
financial implications of future regulations.
Cities across California and the Southwest are significantly
increasing and diversifying their use of recycled wastewater as
traditional water supplies grow tighter.
The 5th edition of our Layperson’s Guide to Water Recycling
covers the latest trends and statistics on water reuse as a
strategic defense against prolonged drought and climate change.
As the permitting battle over the proposed Sites Reservoir
Project in Northern California heats up, it’s become clear that
the project would further heat up the atmosphere as well. Just
as California has made bold commitments to achieve carbon
neutrality in the next few decades, the state seems ready to
approve a dam project that would put that progress in jeopardy.
A new report, “Estimate of Greenhouse Gas Emissions for the
Proposed Sites Reservoir Project Using the All-Res Modeling
Tool,” created by a science team at my organization, Tell The
Dam Truth, exposes the climate impacts caused by this massive
dam and reservoir system. -Written by Gary Wockner, PhD, who directs Tell The
Dam Truth
Residents living below the Isabella Auxiliary Dam were thrilled
earlier this month with a temporary fix that finally dried up
excessive seepage from the dam that had been swamping septic
systems and breeding forests of mosquito-infested weeds around
their homes. The didn’t realize how temporary the fix would be,
however. After only 12 days without a river cutting through his
land, rancher Gerald Wenstrand woke up to see the seepage back
on Saturday.
It was exactly the sort of deluge
California groundwater agencies have been counting on to
replenish their overworked aquifers.
The start of 2023 brought a parade of torrential Pacific storms
to bone dry California. Snow piled up across the Sierra Nevada at
a near-record pace while runoff from the foothills gushed into
the Central Valley, swelling rivers over their banks and filling
seasonal creeks for the first time in half a decade.
Suddenly, water managers and farmers toiling in one of the
state’s most groundwater-depleted regions had an opportunity to
capture stormwater and bank it underground. Enterprising agencies
diverted water from rushing rivers and creeks into manmade
recharge basins or intentionally flooded orchards and farmland.
Others snagged temporary permits from the state to pull from
streams they ordinarily couldn’t touch.
Managers of California’s most
overdrawn aquifers were given a monumental task under the state’s
landmark Sustainable Groundwater Management Act: Craft viable,
detailed plans on a 20-year timeline to bring their beleaguered
basins into balance. It was a task that required more than 250
newly formed local groundwater agencies – many of them in the
drought-stressed San Joaquin Valley – to set up shop, gather
data, hear from the public and collaborate with neighbors on
multiple complex plans, often covering just portions of a
groundwater basin.
Martha Guzman recalls those awful
days working on water and other issues as a deputy legislative
secretary for then-Gov. Jerry Brown. California was mired in a
recession and the state’s finances were deep in the red. Parks
were cut, schools were cut, programs were cut to try to balance a
troubled state budget in what she remembers as “that terrible
time.”
She now finds herself in a strikingly different position: As
administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s
Region 9, she has a mandate to address water challenges across
California, Nevada, Arizona and Hawaii and $1 billion to help pay
for it. It is the kind of funding, she said, that is usually
spread out over a decade. Guzman called it the “absolutely
greatest opportunity.”
When you oversee the largest
supplier of treated water in the United States, you tend to think
big.
Jeff Kightlinger, general manager of the Metropolitan Water
District of Southern California for the last 15 years, has
focused on diversifying his agency’s water supply and building
security through investment. That means looking beyond MWD’s
borders to ensure the reliable delivery of water to two-thirds of
California’s population.
As California slowly emerges from
the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic, one remnant left behind by
the statewide lockdown offers a sobering reminder of the economic
challenges still ahead for millions of the state’s residents and
the water agencies that serve them – a mountain of water debt.
Water affordability concerns, long an issue in a state where
millions of people struggle to make ends meet, jumped into
overdrive last year as the pandemic wrenched the economy. Jobs
were lost and household finances were upended. Even with federal
stimulus aid and unemployment checks, bills fell by the wayside.
A government agency that controls much of California’s water
supply released its initial allocation for 2021, and the
numbers reinforced fears that the state is falling into another
drought. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation said Tuesday that most
of the water agencies that rely on the Central Valley Project
will get just 5% of their contract supply, a dismally low
number. Although the figure could grow if California gets more
rain and snow, the allocation comes amid fresh weather
forecasts suggesting the dry winter is continuing. The National
Weather Service says the Sacramento Valley will be warm and
windy the next few days, with no rain in the forecast.
Across a sprawling corner of southern Tulare County snug against the Sierra Nevada, a bounty of navel oranges, grapes, pistachios, hay and other crops sprout from the loam and clay of the San Joaquin Valley. Groundwater helps keep these orchards, vineyards and fields vibrant and supports a multibillion-dollar agricultural economy across the valley. But that bounty has come at a price. Overpumping of groundwater has depleted aquifers, dried up household wells and degraded ecosystems.
Innovative efforts to accelerate
restoration of headwater forests and to improve a river for the
benefit of both farmers and fish. Hard-earned lessons for water
agencies from a string of devastating California wildfires.
Efforts to drought-proof a chronically water-short region of
California. And a broad debate surrounding how best to address
persistent challenges facing the Colorado River.
These were among the issues Western Water explored in
2019, and are still worth taking a look at in case you missed
them.
It’s been a year since two devastating wildfires on opposite ends
of California underscored the harsh new realities facing water
districts and cities serving communities in or adjacent to the
state’s fire-prone wildlands. Fire doesn’t just level homes, it
can contaminate water, scorch watersheds, damage delivery systems
and upend an agency’s finances.
The southern part of California’s Central Coast from San Luis Obispo County to Ventura County, home to about 1.5 million people, is blessed with a pleasing Mediterranean climate and a picturesque terrain. Yet while its unique geography abounds in beauty, the area perpetually struggles with drought.
Indeed, while the rest of California breathed a sigh of relief with the return of wet weather after the severe drought of 2012–2016, places such as Santa Barbara still grappled with dry conditions.
For the bulk of her career, Jayne
Harkins has devoted her energy to issues associated with the
management of the Colorado River, both with the U.S. Bureau of
Reclamation and with the Colorado River Commission of Nevada.
Now her career is taking a different direction. Harkins, 58, was
appointed by President Trump last August to take the helm of the
United States section of the U.S.-Mexico agency that oversees
myriad water matters between the two countries as they seek to
sustainably manage the supply and water quality of the Colorado
River, including its once-thriving Delta in Mexico, and other
rivers the two countries share. She is the first woman to be
named the U.S. Commissioner of the International Boundary and
Water Commission for either the United States or Mexico in the
commission’s 129-year history.
The San Joaquin Valley, known as the
nation’s breadbasket, grows a cornucopia of fruits, nuts and
other agricultural products.
During our three-day Central Valley Tour April
3-5, you will meet farmers who will explain how they prepare
the fields, irrigate their crops and harvest the produce that
helps feed the nation and beyond. We also will drive through
hundreds of miles of farmland and visit the rivers, dams,
reservoirs and groundwater wells that provide the water.
In the universe of California water, Tim Quinn is a professor emeritus. Quinn has seen — and been a key player in — a lot of major California water issues since he began his water career 40 years ago as a young economist with the Rand Corporation, then later as deputy general manager with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and finally as executive director of the Association of California Water Agencies. In December, the 66-year-old will retire from ACWA.
There’s going to be a new governor
in California next year – and a host of challenges both old and
new involving the state’s most vital natural resource, water.
So what should be the next governor’s water priorities?
That was one of the questions put to more than 150 participants
during a wrap-up session at the end of the Water Education
Foundation’s Sept. 20 Water Summit in Sacramento.
New water storage is the holy grail
primarily for agricultural interests in California, and in 2014
the door to achieving long-held ambitions opened with the passage
of Proposition
1, which included $2.7 billion for the public benefits
portion of new reservoirs and groundwater storage projects. The
statute stipulated that the money is specifically for the
benefits that a new storage project would offer to the ecosystem,
water quality, flood control, emergency response and recreation.
It’s high-stakes time in Arizona. The state that depends on the
Colorado River to help supply its cities and farms — and is
first in line to absorb a shortage — is seeking a unified plan
for water supply management to join its Lower Basin neighbors,
California and Nevada, in a coordinated plan to preserve water
levels in Lake Mead before
they run too low.
If the lake’s elevation falls below 1,075 feet above sea level,
the secretary of the Interior would declare a shortage and
Arizona’s deliveries of Colorado River water would be reduced by
320,000 acre-feet. Arizona says that’s enough to serve about 1
million households in one year.
Get a unique view of the San Joaquin Valley’s key dams and
reservoirs that store and transport water on our March Central
Valley Tour.
Our Central Valley
Tour, March 14-16, offers a broad view of water issues
in the San Joaquin Valley. In addition to the farms, orchards,
critical habitat for threatened bird populations, flood bypasses
and a national wildlife refuge, we visit some of California’s
major water infrastructure projects.
One of the wettest years in California history that ended a
record five-year drought has rejuvenated the call for new storage
to be built above and below ground.
In a state that depends on large surface water reservoirs to help
store water before moving it hundreds of miles to where it is
used, a wet year after a long drought has some people yearning
for a place to sock away some of those flood flows for when they
are needed.
Contrary to popular belief, “100-Year Flood” does not refer to a
flood that happens every century. Rather, the term describes the
statistical chance of a flood of a certain magnitude (or greater)
taking place once in 100 years. It is also accurate to say a
so-called “100-Year Flood” has a 1 percent chance of occurring in
a given year, and those living in a 100-year floodplain have,
each year, a 1 percent chance of being flooded.
Mired in drought, expectations are high that new storage funded
by Prop. 1 will be constructed to help California weather the
adverse conditions and keep water flowing to homes and farms.
At the same time, there are some dams in the state eyed for
removal because they are obsolete – choked by accumulated
sediment, seismically vulnerable and out of compliance with
federal regulations that require environmental balance.
The proposed Sites Reservoir would
be an off-river storage basin on the west side of the Sacramento
Valley, about 78 miles northwest of Sacramento. It would capture
stormwater flows from the Sacramento River for release in dry
years for fish and wildlife, farms, communities and
businesses.
The water would be held in a 14,000-acre basin of grasslands
surrounded by the rolling eastern foothills of the Coast Range.
Known as Antelope Valley, the sparsely populated area in Glenn
and Colusa counties is used for livestock grazing.
This 25-minute documentary-style DVD, developed in partnership
with the California Department of Water Resources, provides an
excellent overview of climate change and how it is already
affecting California. The DVD also explains what scientists
anticipate in the future related to sea level rise and
precipitation/runoff changes and explores the efforts that are
underway to plan and adapt to climate.
Water as a renewable resource is depicted in this 18×24 inch
poster. Water is renewed again and again by the natural
hydrologic cycle where water evaporates, transpires from plants,
rises to form clouds, and returns to the earth as precipitation.
Excellent for elementary school classroom use.
Redesigned in 2017, this beautiful map depicts the seven
Western states that share the Colorado River with Mexico. The
Colorado River supplies water to nearly 40 million people in
Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming
and Mexico. Text on this beautiful, 24×36-inch map, which is
suitable for framing, explains the river’s apportionment, history
and the need to adapt its management for urban growth and
expected climate change impacts.
The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the State Water Project provides
an overview of the California-funded and constructed State Water
Project.
The State Water Project is best known for the 444-mile-long
aqueduct that provides water from the Delta to San Joaquin Valley
agriculture and southern California cities. The guide contains
information about the project’s history and facilities.
The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to Integrated Regional Water
Management (IRWM) is an in-depth, easy-to-understand publication
that provides background information on the principles of IRWM,
its funding history and how it differs from the traditional water
management approach.
The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the Central Valley Project
explores the history and development of the federal Central
Valley Project (CVP), California’s largest surface water delivery
system. In addition to the project’s history, the guide describes
the various facilities, operations and benefits the water
project brings to the state along with the CVP
Improvement Act (CVPIA).
This printed issue of Western Water examines water
infrastructure – its costs and the quest to augment traditional
brick-and-mortar facilities with sleeker, “green” features.
Everywhere you look water infrastructure is working hard to keep
cities, farms and industry in the state running. From the massive
storage structures that dot the West to the aqueducts that convey
water hundreds of miles to large urban areas and the untold miles
of water mains and sewage lines under every city and town, the
semiarid West would not exist as it does without the hardware
that meets its water needs.
This printed issue of Western Water discusses low
impact development and stormwater capture – two areas of emerging
interest that are viewed as important components of California’s
future water supply and management scenario.
This printed issue of Western Water examines
groundwater banking, a water management strategy with appreciable
benefits but not without challenges and controversy.
This printed issue of Western Water examines the
changed nature of the California Water Plan, some aspects of the
2009 update (including the recommendation for a water finance
plan) and the reaction by certain stakeholders.
This printed issue of Western Water looks at some of
the pieces of the 2009 water legislation, including the Delta
Stewardship Council, the new requirements for groundwater
monitoring and the proposed water bond.
It’s no secret that providing water in a state with the size and
climate of California costs money. The gamut of water-related
infrastructure – from reservoirs like Lake Oroville to the pumps
and pipes that deliver water to homes, businesses and farms –
incurs initial and ongoing expenses. Throw in a new spate of
possible mega-projects, such as those designed to rescue the
ailing Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and the dollar amount grows
exponentially to billion-dollar amounts that rival the entire
gross national product of a small country.
This printed issue of Western Water examines the
financing of water infrastructure, both at the local level and
from the statewide perspective, and some of the factors that
influence how people receive their water, the price they pay for
it and how much they might have to pay in the future.
They are located in urban areas and in some of the most rural
parts of the state, but they have at least one thing in common:
they provide water service to a very small group of people. In a
state where water is managed and delivered by an organization as
large as the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California,
most small water systems exist in obscurity – financed by
shoestring budgets and operated by personnel who wear many hats.
This issue of Western Water looks at water
infrastructure – from the large conveyance systems to the small
neighborhood providers – and the many challenges faced by water
agencies in their continuing mission of assuring a steady and
reliable supply for their customers.
Chances are that deep within the ground beneath you as you read
this is a vast network of infrastructure that is busy providing
the necessary services that enable life to proceed at the pace it
does in the 21st century. Electricity zips through cables to
power lights and computers while other conduits move infinite
amounts of information that light up computer screens and phone
lines.
This issue of Western Water explores the question of whether the
state needs more surface storage, with a particular focus on the
five proposed projects identified in the CALFED 2000 ROD and the
politics and funding issues of these projects.
