Can California’s $20B water construction curb a climate change catastrophe?
Historically, most of Californians’ drinking water has come from the mountains; a complex series of water utility infrastructure including dams, levees, intakes, and outflows routes melted snowpack through the water system to homes, businesses and farms. But California officials said climate change has exacerbated the already fragile water conveyance system, and the existing infrastructure has been delivering less water than prior years. As a result, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and its State Water Project (SWP), are planning a colossal conveyance infrastructure project at a value of more than $20 billion. The scheme, dubbed the Delta Conveyance Project (DCP), will add new and upgrade existing water transmission facilities and install 45 mi- (72km-) worth of concrete tunnels through a regional river delta in between the state capitol of Sacramento and the City of San Francisco.