Water and energy are interconnected. A frequent term to describe
this relationship is the “water-energy nexus.”
Energy for Water: Energy is needed to store water, get it where
it is needed and also treat it to be used:
* Extracting water from rivers and streams or pumping it
from aquifers, and then conveying it over hills and into storage
facilities is a highly energy intensive process. The State Water
Project (SWP) pumps water 700 miles, including up nearly 2,000
feet over the Tehachapi Mountains. The SWP is the largest single
user of energy in California. It consumes an average of 5 billion
kWh per year. That’s about 2 to 3 percent of all electricity
consumed in California
* Water treatment facilities use energy to pump and process
water for use in homes, businesses and industry
* Consumers use energy to treat water with softeners or
filters, to circulate and pressurize water and to heat and cool
water
* Wastewater plants use energy to pump wastewater to
treatment plants, and also to aerate and filter it at the plant.
Different end uses require more electricity for delivery than
others. Water for residential, commercial and industrial end-use
needs the most energy (11 percent), followed by agricultural
end-use (3 percent), residential, commercial and industrial
supply and treatment (3 percent), agricultural water supply and
treatment (1 percent) and wastewater treatment (1 percent),
according to the California Energy Commission.
Water for Energy: Water is used to generate electricity
* Water is needed either to process raw materials used in a
facility or maintaining a plant,or to just generate electricity
itself.
Overall, the electricity industry is second only to agriculture
as the largest user of water in the United States. Electricity
production from fossil fuels and nuclear energy requires 190,000
million gallons of water per day, accounting for 39 percent of
all freshwater withdrawals in the nation. Coal, the most abundant
fossil fuel, currently accounts for 52 percent of U.S.
electricity generation, and each kWh generated from coal requires
withdrawal of 25 gallons of water.
After Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed her data center water
disclosure bill last year, Assemblymember Diane Papan,
D-San Mateo, returned this year with a two-bill package. One of
the bills, AB 2619, was passed by the Legislature Thursday
morning, sending to Newsom a measure that would require
data centers to report their water consumption
annually. The other bill, AB 2469, which would require
information about projected water demand before new
data centers are approved, is still moving through the
Legislature. … Opponents have argued that existing state
law already gives local water agencies the information they
need to plan for new development and that additional reporting
requirements would place unnecessary burdens on the industry.
Pinal County supervisors on Wednesday rejected plans to build
La Osa Energy Center, a massive development planned outside
Eloy. It was among the largest proposed data centers in
Arizona. … The rejection comes even after the
developers proposed an 80% reduction in the original scale of
the project, self-imposed limits on water use
and a commitment to shoulder all of the energy costs.
… Between the last public hearing in May and Wednesday’s
vote, Vermaland added 22 new development conditions. These
included a 600 acre-foot cap on fresh water
use within the data center buildings — close to 200
million gallons worth of water — and at the on-site natural gas
plant. Vermaland said it would consider offsetting
some of this consumption by purchasing effluent water,
but didn’t mention firm requirements.
U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.) on Tuesday announced he had
co-sponsored two federal bills aimed at data center
transparency. Vasquez signed on as a co-sponsor to the FAIR
Data Act, sponsored by Rep. Josh Riley (D-N.Y.), and the Data
Center Water and Energy Transparency Act of 2026, sponsored by
Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-IL). The FAIR Data Act would shield
residential electric customers and small businesses from
shouldering increased energy costs related to large data
centers. The Data Center Water and Energy Transparency
Act of 2026 would require developers to provide state
and local governments that have data centers, or are
considering them, with information pertaining to energy
and water consumption. Companies that don’t comply
would face fines of up to $20,000 per day.
Electric power generation for data centers is a threat to
water supplies even in states outside the arid
Southwest, according to a report published Tuesday by
the think tank Ceres. Data centers in the seven states with the
highest concentrations of them use about 3.4 trillion
gallons of freshwater for electric power generation every
year, but few electric power producers have connected
increasing power demand to water supply risks, says the report,
“The Water Behind the Watts.” That volume of water adds up to
10.4 million acre-feet—greater than the 8
million-acre-foot average annual urban water demand in
California that the state’s Legislative Analyst’s
Office reported in 2021. It’s the equivalent to 12-times the
annual water use of Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Washington, DC,
combined, the think tank that advocates for clean energy and
sustainable development found.
Concerns over how much groundwater artificial
intelligence data centers could extract prompted the Tulare
County Board of Supervisors to adopt an ordinance Tuesday that
bans consideration of any new data center development for 45
days. The ban could be extended up to a
year. “We all sit on (groundwater sustainability
agency) boards, and we know the issues going on and the impact
they have on our farming,” Supervisor Larry Micari
said. He referred to pumping restrictions in place
throughout Tulare County, required under the
Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. The
ban gives county planners time to alter zoning regulations,
which are ill-prepared to consider the water, energy
and infrastructure demands of AI data centers that
come in a variety of configurations.
Following a county-wide moratorium on any new data center
applications, the Nye County Board of Commissioners voted
Tuesday to completely ban data centers in one of the
most over-appropriated water basins in Nevada. After
hours of public comment, the Nye County Board of Commissioners
voted unanimously to ban the construction and operation of data
centers in Nevada’s Hydrographic Basin 162, becoming
the first municipality in Nevada to outright ban data
centers. … The vote comes after county
commissioners approved a temporary county-wide moratorium in
June on any new data center applications, which will remain in
effect until the county adopts local data center regulations.
The temporary moratorium followed an emergency order in May
from the Nye County Water District Governing
Board recommending a pause on data centers in the
Pahrump Valley.
The Tulare County Board of Supervisors adopted Tuesday morning
an interim ordinance to establish a 45-day moratorium
on data center development in any unincorporated part of the
county, with the possibility of extension up to a
year. The county’s proposal aims to evaluate the
impact of data centers on public health, safety and
infrastructure before permanent regulations are established.
Concerns raised include water consumption, electrical
demand, noise pollution and potential negative impacts
on agriculture and air quality. … On Monday, the Visalia
City Council discussed a proposal to set up a moratorium on
data centers due to concerns over water and electricity
usage. At the meeting, Councilmember Brian Poochigian
emphasized the city’s struggle with
groundwater and electricity.
… For decades, the [White Mesa uranium] mill has sparked
debate over whether radioactive contamination threatens human
health by getting into the water and the air. Concerns run
especially deep in the White Mesa Ute Community. … State
regulators and the company that owns the mill contend that any
pollution associated with it is contained. That’s little
consolation to nearby tribal members, who — aware of uranium’s
deadly legacy across the Colorado Plateau — have raised
questions about the potential spread of toxic waste.
Many won’t drink the local water, relying on
bottled water instead. Now the tribe’s concerns have taken on
new urgency as the U.S. pushes to revive domestic uranium
production. … The White Mesa Mill, built in 1980 near
what is now Bears Ears National Monument in southeastern Utah,
is a focal point of this latest uranium boom.
… Two major data center bills passed a key committee
last week as California’s legislative session nears its close
at the end of this month. Senate Bill 886 aimsto
prevent data centers from raising utility costs for other
consumers, while SB 887 would incentivize
developers to invest in clean energy and nearby communities.
… It’s unclear how Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) will respond to
bills opposed by politically powerful utilities and tech
companies. Last year, Newsom vetoed a bill that would
have required data centers to report their water
usage. … But the politics are shifting.
Questions about artificial intelligence and jobs, ethics, even
the end of humanity may be swirling through the ethernet right
now but folks in the San Joaquin Valley want to know:
What about the water? Proposals for two “mini”
AI data centers on the fairgrounds in Tulare and Kings counties
recently generated a firestorm of questions and angry comments.
They are far from approval, but residents fear the notorious
power and water guzzling centers will drain already
stressed water supplies. Whether they would depends on
a lot of factors, including the size and type of data
center. One thing is certain, whatever water they use, it
must be accounted for, according to water managers.
EPA is turning to local governments as the Trump administration
pushes to build data centers required to win the global race
for artificial intelligence. On Wednesday, the agency named 22
state and municipal officials as members of its Local
Government Advisory Committee, which included 13 new members
and nine returning members. On the panel’s agenda for its
public meeting in September is discussion about what local
governments face when siting and developing data centers in
line with the environment. The infrastructure necessary for AI
has become a hot topic in politics, as voters protest data
center projects over worries about high electricity costs as
well as growing air and water pollution.
More than 300 residents of Doña Ana County, where the massive
Project Jupiter data center is under
construction, aired their frustrations this week with state
lawmakers as they shared their plans for the 2027 legislative
session. … Residents had the chance to ask questions
pertaining to water usage, air quality,
energy, economic development and other concerns about the
project being built in the southern part of the county.
… Residents also voiced concerns over security for
personal information and for banks and hospitals; that impacts
to children and future generations are being overlooked;that
the New Mexico Office of the State Engineer granted
emergency water usage permits; and that the New Mexico
Environment Department will similarly grant air quality permits
to the project.
City lawmakers on Monday opposed a data center moratorium but
moved forward with new regulations prohibiting excessive water
and requiring operators to mitigate potential residential
impacts. The Aurora City Council voted 7-4 to approve a
resolution to create data center specific
regulations, and opposed another more broad resolution
that would have included a pause on data center development.
Councilmembers Alison Coombs, Alli Jackson, Ruben Medina and
Amy Wiles opposed the resolution. The resolution identifies two
specific regulations: a prohibition on the use of
evaporative cooling, which is a type of cooling system data
centers use that can be water-intensive, and requires
setback and buffers for data centers in certain areas that are
near residences.
A bitter legal battle has emerged over water availability in
Nevada’s technology epicenter, raising questions about whether
companies critical to diversifying the state economy have
enough water to survive into the future.For nearly two years,
the developer of the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center (TRIC) — a
sprawling complex east of Reno that houses Tesla’s
“Gigafactory” and Switch data centers — has traded legal barbs
with the quasi-governmental entity that provides water to
companies. It has included a lawsuit, countersuit and
myriad subpoenas, with a trial set for next
spring. The most notable parts of the case deal
with whether the developer of TRIC has been able to
deliver the amount of water it promised, and whether it’s
responsible to make up for alleged shortfalls.
The Butte County Water Commission will discuss what the process
would be if there was a proposal to build an AI data center in
Butte County at its meeting Wednesday afternoon. The
agenda item has sparked controversy on social media over the
last couple of days, with some urging public participation to
express opposition. The county responded with a statement
clarifying that it has not received an application or
development proposal for a center. The county said the
commission requested a general discussion to better understand
the process for what would happen if a proposal was submitted.
… Butte County says the commission’s discussion
will provide an overview of how AI data centers would
impact water usage.
Modesto officials have received initial contact from NorthPoint
Development, a leading developer of data centers in the nation.
NorthPoint’s name is associated with the former FMC plant site
in Modesto and the company has inquired about putting a data
center at that location. … According to Facebook posts
last week by Modesto Councilman Chris Ricci, NorthPoint, based
in Kansas City, proposed talks with council members about a
small data center here. … Ricci said in a text he has
serious concerns about the impacts of data centers on the
community, ranging from high-volume water use for
cooling operations and energy consumption, which could
lead to higher electric rates for residents. According MOST
Policy Institute, citing an EPA study, data centers
used 17.4 billion gallons of water in 2023.
The Park County commissioners are taking a hard line with data
centers, in large part after hearing overwhelming public
sentiment in opposition and due to simply not knowing enough
about potential issues. … While Gov. Mark Gordon recently
came out opposed to a moratorium at the state level, a number
of primary election candidates have expressed opposition to any
more data centers being built. … “At this time, based on
public input and just the unknown, the recommendation [from the
consultant] is to more widely prohibit them as opposed
to allow,” Planning Director Joy Hill told
commissioners during a work session last week. … “I don’t
know how much water they need and how often. I
could not tell you. I do not have enough factual information
about data centers generally to feel comfortable even advising
you.”
As a data center developer moves its project forward on federal
land in Boulder City using an unusual
regulatory mechanism, a heated land use debate has sparked
appeals and a resolution in Congress that would ban data
centers on federal land. On Monday, the Center for Biological
Diversity and the Sierra Club jointly filed a petition for a
stay to the Interior Board of Land Appeals, asking a judge to
halt construction while an appeal is processed. … While
building the solar project would have required the use of
25 acre-feet of water, building the data center would
need 560 acre-feet. … That water might come from
Boulder City’s wastewater treatment plant —
the only one in the Southern Nevada Water Authority’s purview
that doesn’t send treated water back into Lake Mead.
But if no deal is reached with the city, questions remain about
where that water may come from.
… Stratos developers say the project would bring an initial
$30 million to the county and a permanent 2,000 skilled jobs,
higher than the 50 jobs data centers typically provide,
according to a 2024 Virginia legislative audit of the industry
in that state. In terms of water, backers say the
project wouldn’t draw directly from the Great Salt
Lake and would use two kinds of cooling systems to
keep servers from overheating: a closed-loop system circulating
liquid and air-based cooling. They’re also seeking
water rights for more than 13,000 acre-feet — enough
to supply 26,000 households per year — saying those rights are
attached to the land they’re buying. But they contend the data
center would use less water than the ranchers
there do now.
The developer behind a proposed $10 billion data center has
filed a lawsuit asserting his rights to Colorado River
water in California’s Imperial Valley. Sebastian Rucci
is a Huntington Beach lawyer and businessman pushing the plan
in a region already known as a big water user. The Imperial
Valley sprouted as an agricultural center that’s the largest
user of Colorado River water in the seven states that rely on
the river. Farmers use about 80% of the state’s full
allocation. As managing member of Imperial Valley Computer
Manufacturing, Rucci filed his lawsuit June 5 in California
Superior Court in Imperial County. After two cities — El Centro
and Imperial — snubbed Rucci’s bid to get recycled wastewater
to cool the proposed data center, the developer went
back on a statement that he had no intention of using water
from the over-allocated Colorado River.
Imperial Valley Computer Manufacturing (IVCM) is suing the
Imperial Irrigation District (IID) after the utility denied the
company’s request for about 260 million gallons of Colorado
River water per year, or roughly 750,000 gallons per day, to
cool a planned 330 MW AI data center in Imperial County. The
case tests whether water historically used for agriculture can
be redirected to industrial projects envisioned in the county’s
emerging Lithium Valley plan. … To support future
growth, Imperial County’s plan proposes a regional backbone
water conveyance system, 12 water storage facilities, and a
special district to build and manage new infrastructure.
… Recently, a data center under construction in Cheyenne,
Wyoming, was found to have contaminated the sewer system with a
rare bacterium. The water utility took swift action. The
Cheyenne Board of Public Utilities fined the project developer,
revoked its wastewater permit and announced that it would not
accept certain types of wastewater from data centers
citywide. The developer of the project — which is backed
by Meta — is appealing the $10,000 fine and disputes the
utility’s conclusion tracing the bacterium to its project. But
the incident highlights what engineers view as an
emerging challenge for the data center industry that is already
under scrutiny over its environmental footprint.
California’s Central Valley is one of the country’s richest
farming regions, blessed with fertile soils, sunny days and a
massive man-made system of irrigation canals and reservoirs.
But as climate change intensifies, droughts deepen, and water
restrictions kick in, growers in much of the valley are
getting less water for their fields.They also face new
limits on how much they can pump from underground, forcing them
to leave hundreds of thousands of acres dry in the coming
years. Some are turning to an answer they never thought
they’d embrace: solar. … Farmers’ desperation
coincides with California’s solar dreams. The state is legally
mandated to reach 100% clean electricity by 2045. That will
require an additional 10 gigawatts of clean energy a year and
between 0.5 and 1.3 million acres of in-state solar
development.
La Guía para el Público en General sobre el Agua en California,
de 24 páginas, ofrece una visión integral de la historia del
desarrollo de los recursos hídricos en California y de la gestión
de los numerosos desafíos que enfrenta el estado en la
actualidad.
The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to California Water provides a
comprehensive overview of the history of water development in
California and management of its many challenges today.
This tour explored the lower Colorado River firsthand where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to some 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states, 30 tribal nations and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs was the focus of this tour.
Hilton Garden Inn Las Vegas Strip South
7830 S Las Vegas Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89123
On this first-ever Foundation water tourwe examined water issues along the 263-mile Klamath River, from its spring-fed headwaters in south-central Oregon to its redwood-lined estuary on the Pacific Ocean in California.
Running Y Resort
5500 Running Y Rd
Klamath Falls, OR 97601
This tour explored the lower Colorado River firsthand where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to some 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states, 30 tribal nations and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs was the focus of this tour.
Hilton Garden Inn Las Vegas Strip South
7830 S Las Vegas Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89123
Learn the history and challenges facing the West’s most dramatic
and developed river.
The Layperson’s Guide to the Colorado River Basin introduces the
1,450-mile river that sustains 40 million people and millions of
acres of farmland spanning seven states and parts of northern
Mexico.
The 28-page primer explains how the river’s water is shared and
managed as the Southwest transitions to a hotter and drier
climate.
This tour explored the lower Colorado River firsthand where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to some 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states, 30 tribal nations and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs was the focus of this tour.
Hilton Garden Inn Las Vegas Strip South
7830 S Las Vegas Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89123
This special Foundation water tour journeyed along the Eastern Sierra from the Truckee River to Mono Lake, through the Owens Valley and into the Mojave Desert to explore a major source of water for Southern California, this year’s snowpack and challenges for towns, farms and the environment.
This tour explored the lower Colorado River firsthand where virtually every drop of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to some 40 million people in the Southwest across seven states, 30 tribal nations and Mexico. How the Lower Basin states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial needs was the focus of this tour.
Hyatt Place Las Vegas At Silverton Village
8380 Dean Martin Drive
Las Vegas, NV 89139
The majestic beauty of the Sierra
Nevada forest is awe-inspiring, but beneath the dazzling blue
sky, there is a problem: A century of fire suppression and
logging practices have left trees too close together. Millions of
trees have died, stricken by drought and beetle infestation.
Combined with a forest floor cluttered with dry brush and debris,
it’s a wildfire waiting to happen.
Fires devastate the Sierra watersheds upon which millions of
Californians depend — scorching the ground, unleashing a
battering ram of debris and turning hillsides into gelatinous,
stream-choking mudflows.
We explored the lower Colorado River where virtually every drop
of the river is allocated, yet demand is growing from myriad
sources — increasing population, declining habitat, drought and
climate change.
The 1,450-mile river is a lifeline to 40 million people in
the Southwest across seven states and Mexico. How the Lower Basin
states – Arizona, California and Nevada – use and manage this
water to meet agricultural, urban, environmental and industrial
needs was the focus of this tour.
Hampton Inn Tropicana
4975 Dean Martin Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89118
This 30-minute documentary-style DVD on the history and current
state of the San Joaquin River Restoration Program includes an
overview of the geography and history of the river, historical
and current water delivery and uses, the genesis and timeline of
the 1988 lawsuit, how the settlement was reached and what was
agreed to.
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.
20-minute DVD that explains the problem with polluted stormwater,
and steps that can be taken to help prevent such pollution and
turn what is often viewed as a “nuisance” into a water resource
through various activities.
Many Californians don’t realize that when they turn on the
faucet, the water that flows out could come from a source close
to home or one hundreds of miles away. Most people take their
water for granted; not thinking about the elaborate systems and
testing that go into delivering clean, plentiful water to
households throughout the state. Where drinking water comes from,
how it’s treated, and what people can do to protect its quality
are highlighted in this 2007 PBS documentary narrated by actress
Wendie Malick.
A 30-minute version of the 2007 PBS documentary Drinking Water:
Quenching the Public Thirst. This DVD is ideal for showing at
community forums and speaking engagements to help the public
understand the complex issues surrounding the elaborate systems
and testing that go into delivering clean, plentiful water to
households throughout the state.
Water truly has shaped California into the great state it is
today. And if it is water that made California great, it’s the
fight over – and with – water that also makes it so critically
important. In efforts to remap California’s circulatory system,
there have been some critical events that had a profound impact
on California’s water history. These turning points not only
forced a re-evaluation of water, but continue to impact the lives
of every Californian. This 2005 PBS documentary offers a
historical and current look at the major water issues that shaped
the state we know today. Includes a 12-page viewer’s guide with
background information, historic timeline and a teacher’s lesson.
This beautiful 24×36-inch poster, suitable for framing, displays
the rivers, lakes and reservoirs, irrigated farmland, urban areas
and Indian reservations within the Klamath River Watershed. The
map text explains the many issues facing this vast,
15,000-square-mile watershed, including fish restoration;
agricultural water use; and wetlands. Also included are
descriptions of the separate, but linked, Klamath Basin
Restoration Agreement and the Klamath Hydroelectric Agreement,
and the next steps associated with those agreements. Development
of the map was funded by a grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
A companion to the Truckee River Basin Map poster, this
24×36-inch poster, suitable for framing, explores the Carson
River, and its link to the Truckee River. The map includes the
Lahontan Dam and reservoir, the Carson Sink, and the farming
areas in the basin. Map text discusses the region’s hydrology and
geography, the Newlands Project, land and water use within the
basin and wetlands. Development of the map was funded by a grant
from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Mid-Pacific Region, Lahontan
Basin Area Office.
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 Water Education Foundation’s second edition of
the Layperson’s Guide to The Klamath River Basin is
hot off the press and available for purchase.
Updated and redesigned, the easy-to-read overview covers the
history of the region’s tribal, agricultural and environmental
relationships with one of the West’s largest rivers — and a
vast watershed that hosts one of the nation’s oldest and
largest reclamation projects.
The construction of Glen Canyon Dam
in 1964 created Lake Powell. Both are located in north-central
Arizona near the Utah border. Lake Powell acts as a holding tank
for outflow from the Colorado River Upper Basin States: Colorado,
New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming.
The water stored in Lake Powell is used for recreation, power
generation and delivering water to the Lower Basin states of
California, Arizona, and Nevada.
Every five years the California Department of Water Resources
updates its strategic plan for managing the state’s water
resources, as required by state law.
The California Water Plan, or Bulletin 160, projects the
status and trends of the state’s water supplies and demands
under a range of future scenarios.
This printed issue of Western Water looks at hydraulic
fracturing, or “fracking,” in California. Much of the information
in the article was presented at a conference hosted by the
Groundwater Resources Association of California.
The connection between water and energy is more relevant than
ever. After existing in separate realms for years, the maxim that
it takes water to produce energy and energy to produce water has
prompted a re-thinking of management strategies, including an
emphasis on renewable energy use by water agencies.
This printed issue of Western Water looks at the energy
requirements associated with water use and the means by which
state and local agencies are working to increase their knowledge
and improve the management of both resources.
This printed issue of Western Water examines
desalination – an issue that is marked by great optimism and
controversy – and the expected role it might play as an
alternative water supply strategy.
This printed copy of Western Water examines climate change –
what’s known about it, the remaining uncertainty and what steps
water agencies are talking to prepare for its impact. Much of the
information comes from the October 2007 California Climate Change
and Water Adaptation Summit sponsored by the Water Education
Foundation and DWR and the November 2007 California Water Policy
Conference sponsored by Public Officials for Water and
Environmental Reform.
Hydropower generation is prevalent in the West, where rapidly
flowing river systems have been tapped for generations to produce
electricity. Hydropower is a clean, steady and reliable energy
source, but the damming of rivers has exacted a toll on the
environment, affecting, among other things, the migration of fish
to vestigial spawning grounds. Many of those projects are due to
be relicensed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
The California power crisis has made international headlines. But
what is the link between water and power in California? How is
the state’s dry spell affecting its hydropower generation? How
has the electric crisis affected water users in the state? These
questions and others are addressed in this issue of Western
Water.
