The Water Education Foundation’s Water 101 Workshop, one of our most popular events, offered attendees the opportunity to deepen their understanding of California’s water history, laws, geography and politics.

Taught by some of the leading policy and legal experts in the state, the one-day workshop held on Feb. 20, 2020 covered the latest on the most compelling issues in California water. 

The event also hosted an optional screening for attendees of the award-winning documentary The Sacramento: At Current Speed, a film about the Sacramento River that was inspired in part by the Foundation’s Northern California Tour. This 38-minute film was screened at end of the day after the workshop concluded at 5 p.m.

Optional One-Day Tour

We also offered an optional one-day tour on Friday, February 21, in conjunction with the Water 101 Workshop that highlighted innovative and collaborative water partnerships, projects and programs. More information on tour stops is included below under Optional Tour Details.

The annual workshop, held at McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento, is geared toward water resource industry staff, engineering and environmental firm personnel, city council members, county supervisors, legislators, legislative staff, press, advocates, attorneys, stakeholders, environmentalists, public interest organizations and water district directors.

What attendees say about our Water 101 Workshop:

“Great workshop. Loved it! Learned a lot and I feel inspired.”

“Outstanding in all aspects. Great job done by everyone.”

“You folks put on phenomenal events: Well thought-out agenda, logical order, fantastic speakers, and ample breaks/networking opportunities.”

Educational Sessions During the Workshop Covered:

• History & geography of California water
• Water rights
• The big water projects, including State Water Project & Central Valley Project
• The legal & institutional management framework
• Water use & demand
• Water-related bills in the Legislature

Optional Tour Details:

Among the stops and topics:

• The Nigiri Project, a private-public partnership among rice farmers, government agencies, nonprofits and researchers to help restore salmon populations by reintroducing them during the winter to floodplains that are farmed with rice during the summer.
• Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District’s EchoWater Project, among the largest public works projects in Sacramento’s history that will meet new wastewater treatment requirements and produce recycled water for landscape and agricultural irrigation.
• Freeport Regional Water Project’s intake facility on the Sacramento River, a collaborative effort of the Sacramento County Water Agency and the East Bay Municipal Utility District to both reduce local reliance on groundwater and supplement East Bay water supply in dry years.
• The Public Policy Institute of California’s recent report on shifting the management of the state’s freshwater resources from a species-by-species approach to an ecosystem level approach by promoting more coordination, streamlined permitting and planning, and objective alignment among agencies.
• The recently completed Folsom Dam Auxiliary Spillway, a cooperative project between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation. The spillway is critical to both flood protection and the newly revised Folsom Dam Water Control Manual that for the first time calls for forecast-informed decision-making to shape operations.
• Cosumnes Floodplain Mitigation Bank, a 472-acre floodplain near the confluence of the Cosumnes and Mokelumne rivers formerly used to grow corn and grapes that has been restored to a natural state. It now provides crucial fish habitat along one of the last undammed rivers in California while also providing riparian, perennial and seasonal wetland mitigation credits.

Location:

The Feb. 20 workshop was held inside the Lecture Hall at McGeorge School of Law, 3327 5th Ave., Sacramento, CA, 95817

Pickup for the tour on Feb. 21 was at the parking lot on the McGeorge School of Law campus. 

Nearby Hotels:

Courtyard Marriott

Hotel Med Park

Cost/Refund Policy:

Feb. 20 Workshop Only: $249 and includes lunch, coffee breaks, materials and reception following the workshop.

Feb. 20 Workshop and Feb. 21 Tour: $465 and includes lunch on the first day, coffee breaks, materials and reception following the workshop. During the tour, it includes lunch, snacks, drinks and materials.

Please note: Participants can only attend the tour if they attend the workshop the day before.

Last day to cancel for a full refund, less Eventbrite’s fees, is Feb. 6, 2020. Substitutions can be made three days prior to event.

MCLE Credit:

The workshop and tour are eligible for MCLE credits for attorneys for an extra charge.