People in the News

Department of Interior official Alan Mikkelsen — who spent the week in Klamath Falls and Medford — said he will return to the Basin next month to continue water talks, but that he has no plans to reach out to the Klamath Tribes based on their last interaction. Mikkelsen, senior adviser to Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke on water and western resources, said he’s met with a group of stakeholders at the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) office in Medford on Monday for what he calls a “coalition of the willing.”

Under pressure from Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration, state regulators once again postponed a vote on a contentious plan to force San Francisco and several big San Joaquin Valley irrigation districts to give up some of their water supplies for environmental protection. On the eve of Wednesday’s scheduled vote, Brown and the man who will succeed him next year, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, asked for a month’s delay and promised to get involved in ongoing settlement negotiations.

Related Article: 

• The Modesto Bee: Board agrees to Newsom-Brown request to delay decision on water plan

Related News Release: 

• State Water Resources Control Board: State Water Resources Control Board delays final decision on updated flow objectives for the San Joaquin River

Four incumbents seeking to retain their governing positions in Marin County’s two water districts held off their challengers, according to preliminary election results on Tuesday.

John F. Kennedy was warned about “climate control” in February 1961, becoming perhaps the first American president to learn about people’s impact on planetary temperatures. The warnings never stopped.

With over 30 years of advocacy experience on behalf of California’s Native American tribes, Department of Water Resources Tribal Policy Advisor Anecita Agustinez was recently honored with a resolution from the California State Assembly. Her recognition is a testament to DWR’s commitment to ongoing tribal government relationships on critical state water policies.