David N. Kennedy (1936-2007) was at the helm as the director of
the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) for 15 years,
the longest serving director to date, and a champion of the State
Water Project (SWP).
The 272-mile long Kings River drops sharply in elevation from its
headwaters high in the Sierra
Nevada Mountain Range on its way to the Central Valley,
flowing just south-east of Fresno.
The dramatic descent generates electric power for dams and
the river also helps irrigate cropland and provides fresh water
to Central Valley communities.
The Klamath Basin’s Chinook salmon and coho salmon serve a vital
role in the watershed.
Together, they are key to the region’s water management, habitat
restoration and fishing.
However, years of declining population have led to federally
mandated salmon restoration plans—plans that complicate the
diversion of Klamath water for agriculture and other uses.
On the Klamath River, the Upper Klamath Basin’s aquatic
ecosystems are naturally very productive due to its
phosphorus-rich geology.
However, this high productivity makes the Basin’s lakes
vulnerable to water quality problems.
Nutrient loads in the Upper Klamath Basin are a primary driver of
water quality problems along the length of the Klamath River,
including algal blooms in the Klamath Hydroelectric Project
reservoirs. Municipal and industrial discharges of wastewater in
the Klamath Falls area add to the nutrient load.
The Klamath River Basin is one of the West’s most important and
contentious watersheds.
The watershed, which bisects California and Oregon, is unusual.
Unlike many major western rivers, the Klamath does not originate
in snowcapped mountains but rather a high desert plateau. It’s
considered an “upside-down river” because of its unusual
geography.
Lois Krieger (1917–2014) was one of
the true pioneers of the California water world. She was the
first woman elected chair of the Metropolitan Water District of
Southern California’s board of directors, the first female
president of the Association of California Water Agencies and a
long-time champion of the wise development and use of water in
the state.
