Despite droughts, the recession and natural disasters,
California’s urban population continues to grow.
This population growth means increasing demand for water by urban
areas—home to most of California’s population [see also
Agricultural Conservation]. As of 2012, seven of the most
populated urbanized areas in the United States are in California.
Those who love the Dolores River canyonlands agree — the swath
of rugged land along Colorado’s western border is one of the
state’s last, best wild places. The tract encompasses
staggering red rock cliffs, broad valleys and rolling hills
that burst into green in the spring. Cutting through it all is
the beloved river, which sometimes dwindles to a trickle.
Nobody wants to see it overrun with tourists and trash, like so
many of the West’s wild places. But disagreements about whether
to designate some of the river and its canyonlands as a
national monument have driven a caustic rift between the people
who love the area. What those protections look like, and who
gets to shape them, are at the center of a fiery debate that,
in some instances, has sunk to name-calling and declarations of
evil doing.
Los Osos is one step closer to lifting its 35-year building
moratorium. Since 1988, construction in the coastal town of
15,500 people has been effectively banned due to a limited
water supply, habitat constraints and ineffective wastewater
treatment infrastructure. The Los Osos Community Plan, however,
seeks to solve those challenges by setting rules for
development that protect sensitive habitats and the water
supply. On Thursday, the California Coastal Commission is
poised to approve the Los Osos Community Plan with a handful of
revisions. If the commission supports the plan, the San Luis
Obispo County Board of Supervisors will vote on the
modifications in September or October, according to SLO County
Supervisor Bruce Gibson. After that, the commission would vote
on the plan one last time in December — clearing the way for
the county to start issuing building permits for Los Osos early
next year, Gibson said.
The billionaire proponents of a brand-new city that would rise
from the rolling prairie northeast of the San Francisco Bay
cleared their first big hurdle Tuesday, when the Solano County
Registrar of Voters certified the group had enough signatures
to put its proposal before local voters in November. The group
backing the measure, called California Forever, must now
convince voters to get behind the audacious idea of erecting a
walkable and environmentally friendly community with tens of
thousands of homes, along with a sports center, parks, bike
lanes, open space and a giant solar farm on what is now
pastureland. … But the proposal faces opposition from
some local leaders, along with environmental groups concerned
about the loss of natural habitat. Project opponents said a
recent poll they conducted found that 70% of the people
surveyed were skeptical.
Silicon Valley billionaires are still aggressively moving
forward with their attempt to create a utopian, sustainable
“city of yesterday” near San Francisco atop what they describe
as “non-prime farmland.” However, an accredited land trust now
claims California Forever’s East Solano Plan is intentionally
misleading local residents about the “detrimental harm” it will
cause ecosystems, as well as its potential to “destroy some of
the most self-reliant farmland and ranchland” in the state.
… [A]s CBS Sacramento first reported on June
7, Solano Land Trust’s executive director Nicole Braddock
contends California Forever’s aim “really goes against our
mission of protecting working farms, natural areas, land and
water Solano County.” Additionally, the influx of as many as
400,000 new residents would result in “a detrimental impact on
Solano County’s water resources, air quality, traffic,
farmland, and natural environment,” according to the trust’s
board of directors.
As crowds head to cool off in the water early this summer,
authorities at Discovery Park, Folsom Lake and other capital
region waterways are taking steps to prevent incidents such as
the ones that have occurred recently at other Northern
California watering holes. There have been various incidents
reported since Memorial Day involving fights and other unruly
crowds at Northern California waterways that have led to
arrests, injuries, and even death. … In Stanislaus County on
Sunday, 75 to 80 people had a confrontation with deputies who
were patrolling near Woodward Reservoir. At least six people
were arrested.
Solano County has announced next steps for the controversial
California Forever development. The proposal, backed by
tech and finance billionaires, would build a new city of up to
400,000 people between Fairfield and Rio Vista. Officials
will announce by June 12 whether the project gained enough
signatures to qualify for the November ballot. Bill Emlen,
Solano County Administrator, said there’s not a lot of
information yet about how this new city could impact roadways
and water supplies.
Water regulation in Arizona has devolved into a game of
chicken. The governor and farmers are rivals revving their
engines, hoping their opponent will flinch first. Caught
in the middle is Gila Bend, a groundwater basin south of
Buckeye, where the state could decide to impose its most
stringent form of regulation, whether folks like it or not.
Both sides are using Gila Bend as a bargaining chip to win
support for competing legislative proposals. But to what
end? - Written by Joanna Allhands, Arizona Republic digital
opinions editor
It’s been a year since two devastating wildfires on opposite ends
of California underscored the harsh new realities facing water
districts and cities serving communities in or adjacent to the
state’s fire-prone wildlands. Fire doesn’t just level homes, it
can contaminate water, scorch watersheds, damage delivery systems
and upend an agency’s finances.
We have an unknown distance yet to run, an unknown river to explore. What falls there are, we know not; what rocks beset the channel, we know not; what walls ride over the river, we know not. Ah, well! We may conjecture many things.
~John Wesley Powell
Powell scrawled those words in his journal as he and his expedition paddled their way into the deep walls of the Grand Canyon on a stretch of the Colorado River in August 1869. Three months earlier, the 10-man group had set out on their exploration of the iconic Southwest river by hauling their wooden boats into a major tributary of the Colorado, the Green River in Wyoming, for their trip into the “great unknown,” as Powell described it.
In the universe of California water, Tim Quinn is a professor emeritus. Quinn has seen — and been a key player in — a lot of major California water issues since he began his water career 40 years ago as a young economist with the Rand Corporation, then later as deputy general manager with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and finally as executive director of the Association of California Water Agencies. In December, the 66-year-old will retire from ACWA.
Owens Lake is a dry lake at the terminus of the Owens River
just west of Death Valley and on the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada. For at least
800,000 years, the lake had a continuous flow of water, until
1913 when the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power
(LADWP) completed the 233-mile Los Angeles
Aqueduct to supplement the budding metropolis’
increasing water demands.
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.
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.
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.
As the state’s population continues to grow and traditional water
supplies grow tighter, there is increased interest in reusing
treated wastewater for a variety of activities, including
irrigation of crops, parks and golf courses, groundwater recharge
and industrial uses.
The 20-page Layperson’s Guide to Water Marketing provides
background information on water rights, types of transfers and
critical policy issues surrounding this topic. First published in
1996, the 2005 version offers expanded information on
groundwater banking and conjunctive use, Colorado River
transfers and the role of private companies in California’s
developing water market.
Order in bulk (25 or more copies of the same guide) for a reduced
fee. Contact the Foundation, 916-444-6240, for details.
The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to the State Water Project provides
an overview of the California-funded and constructed State Water
Project.
The State Water Project is best known for the 444-mile-long
aqueduct that provides water from the Delta to San Joaquin Valley
agriculture and southern California cities. The guide contains
information about the project’s history and facilities.
The 24-page Layperson’s Guide to Integrated Regional Water
Management (IRWM) is an in-depth, easy-to-understand publication
that provides background information on the principles of IRWM,
its funding history and how it differs from the traditional water
management approach.
Despite droughts, recession and natural disasters, California’s
urban population continues to grow.
This population growth means increasing demand for water by urban
areas—home to most of California’s population [see also Agricultural
Conservation]. As of 2021, three of the nation’s 10 most
populated cities are in California.
This printed issue of Western Water features a
roundtable discussion with Anthony Saracino, a water resources
consultant; Martha Davis, executive manager of policy development
with the Inland Empire Utilities Agency and senior policy advisor
to the Delta Stewardship Council; Stuart Leavenworth, editorial
page editor of The Sacramento Bee and Ellen Hanak, co-director of
research and senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of
California.
This printed issue of Western Water discusses low
impact development and stormwater capture – two areas of emerging
interest that are viewed as important components of California’s
future water supply and management scenario.
This printed issue of Western Water examines the
changed nature of the California Water Plan, some aspects of the
2009 update (including the recommendation for a water finance
plan) and the reaction by certain stakeholders.
This printed issue of Western Water explores some of the major
challenges facing Colorado River stakeholders: preparing for
climate change, forging U.S.-Mexico water supply solutions and
dealing with continued growth in the basins states. Much of the
content for this issue of Western Water came from the in-depth
panel discussions at the September 2009 Colorado River Symposium.
This issue of Western Water asks whether a groundwater
compact is needed to manage this shared resource today. In the
water-stressed West, there will need to be a recognition of
sharing water resources or a line will need to be drawn in the
sand against future growth.
This issue of Western Water examines the continuing practice of
smart water use in the urban sector and its many facets, from
improved consumer appliances to improved agency planning to the
improvements in water recycling and desalination. Many in the
water community say conserving water is not merely a response to
drought conditions, but a permanent ethic in an era in which
every drop of water is a valuable commodity not to be wasted.
When water and growth was featured in the May/June 1995 Western
Water, the debate in the California Legislature was about whether
a local water district should have any say when it came to
providing water to new developments. Of the four bills before
state lawmakers, it was Sen. Jim Costa’s SB 901 that cleared the
Legislature and was signed into law. The bill established a
voluntary link between water and land-use planning by requiring
planning departments to consult with local water purveyors about
the availability of new supplies.