Incomplete Determination of the 2020 Eastern San Joaquin Subbasin Groundwater Sustainability Plan

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | January 28th, 2022

The Department of Water Resources (Department) has evaluated the groundwater sustainability plan (GSP) submitted for the Eastern San Joaquin Subbasin (Subbasin) and has d

The Department of Water Resources (Department) has evaluated the groundwater sustainability plan (GSP) submitted for the Eastern San Joaquin Subbasin (Subbasin) and has determined that the GSP is incomplete. The Department based its determination on recommendations from the Staff Report, included as an enclosure to the attached Statement of Findings, which describes that the Eastern San Joaquin Subbasin GSP does not satisfy the objectives of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) nor substantially comply with the GSP Regulations. The Staff Report also provides corrective actions which the Department recommends to address the identified deficiencies.

Incomplete Determination of the 2020 Groundwater Sustainability Plans Submitted for the San Joaquin Valley – Kern County Subbasin

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | January 28th, 2022

Department management has reviewed the enclosed Staff Report, which recommends that the deficiencies identified should preclude approval of the Plan. Based on its review

Department management has reviewed the enclosed Staff Report, which recommends that the deficiencies identified should preclude approval of the Plan. Based on its review of the Staff Report, Department management is satisfied that staff have conducted a thorough evaluation and assessment of the Plan and concurs with, and hereby adopts, staff’s recommendation and all the corrective actions provided. The Department thus deems the Plan incomplete based on the Staff Report and the findings contained herein. A. The GSPs do not establish undesirable results that are consistent for the entire Subbasin. 1. While the Coordination Agreement presents Subbasin-wide undesirable results, the Subbasin’s fragmented approach towards establishing management criteria that define undesirable conditions in various parts of the Subbasin does not satisfy SGMA’s requirement to use same data and methodologies. B. The Subbasin’s chronic lowering of groundwater levels sustainable management criteria do not satisfy the requirements of SGMA and the GSP Regulations. 1. The GSPs relied on disparate methods to develop groundwater level minimum thresholds across the numerous GSPs and management areas. 2. The GSPs do not consistently and sufficiently document the effects of their selected minimum thresholds on beneficial uses and users in the Subbasin, nor explain how the minimum thresholds and measurable objectives that are set below historical lows will impact other applicable sustainability indicators, specifically water quality, land subsidence, and reduction of groundwater storage. C. The Subbasin’s land subsidence sustainable management criteria do not satisfy the requirements of SGMA and the GSP Regulations. 1. The Plan lacks a Subbasin-wide, coordinated approach to establishing land subsidence sustainable management criteria. 2. The GSPs and management areas that use their minimum thresholds for the chronic lowering of groundwater levels as proxy criteria for subsidence do not sufficiently demonstrate that groundwater levels (specifically groundwater levels below historical lows) are a reasonable proxy to avoid land subsidence that would substantially interfere with surface land uses.

Incorporating anthropogenic influences into fire probability models: Effects of human activity and climate change on fire activity in California

PLOS | April 28th, 2016

The costly interactions between humans and wildfires throughout California demonstrate the need to understand the relationships between them, especially in the fa

The costly interactions between humans and wildfires throughout California demonstrate the need to understand the relationships between them, especially in the face of a changing climate and expanding human communities. Although a number of statistical and process-based wildfire models exist for California, there is enormous uncertainty about the location and number of future fires, with previously published estimates of increases ranging from nine to fifty-three percent by the end of the century. Our goal is to assess the role of climate and anthropogenic influences on the state’s fire regimes from 1975 to 2050. We develop an empirical model that integrates estimates of biophysical indicators relevant to plant communities and anthropogenic influences at each forecast time step. Historically, we find that anthropogenic influences account for up to fifty percent of explanatory power in the model. We also find that the total area burned is likely to increase, with burned area expected to increase by 2.2 and 5.0 percent by 2050 under climatic bookends (PCM and GFDL climate models, respectively). Our two climate models show considerable agreement, but due to potential shifts in rainfall patterns, substantial uncertainty remains for the semiarid inland deserts and coastal areas of the south. Given the strength of human-related variables in some regions, however, it is clear that comprehensive projections of future fire activity should include both anthropogenic and biophysical influences. Previous findings of substantially increased numbers of fires and burned area for California may be tied to omitted variable bias from the exclusion of human influences. The omission of anthropogenic variables in our model would overstate the importance of climatic ones by at least 24%. As such, the failure to include anthropogenic effects in many models likely overstates the response of wildfire to climatic change.

Incorporating Bioassessment Using Freshwater Algae into California’s Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program (SWAMP)

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | June 3rd, 2008

This document was written to assist California’s State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) with incorporating algae into the bioassessment toolbox of the Surface Wate

This document was written to assist California’s State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) with incorporating algae into the bioassessment toolbox of the Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program (SWAMP). It represents a consensus among members of a Technical Advisory Committee  (TAC) regarding the best next steps toward implementation of algal bioassessment in the State. Recommendations were based on a combination of 1) information gathered from an extensive literature review,  2) a survey of algal bioassessment efforts that have occurred in parts of California and of programs in other states and countries, and 3) the best professional judgment of TAC members.

Incorporating Sea Level Change in Civil Works Programs

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) | December 31st, 2013

Incorporating Wetlands into Watershed Planning

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) | February 26th, 2013

The purpose of this Supplement is to encourage the inclusion of proactive wetland management into watershed plans because wetlands play an integral role in the healthy fu

The purpose of this Supplement is to encourage the inclusion of proactive wetland management into watershed plans because wetlands play an integral role in the healthy functioning of the watershed. This Supplement promotes using a watershed approach that not only protects existing freshwater wetlands but also maximizes opportunities to use restored, enhanced, and created freshwater wetlands to address watershed problems such as habitat loss, hydrological alteration, and water quality impairments. The primary audiences for the Supplement are members and staff of watershed organizations and local/state agencies. This document is a Supplement to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Watershed Planning Handbook. It conveys information on recently developed approaches and tools for assessing wetland functions and conditions, the results of which assist decision makers in determining where in a watershed existing and former wetlands can best be restored or enhanced, or where wetlands can be created to optimize their functions in support of water quality and other watershed management plan goals. The Supplement also discusses wetland restoration, enhancement, and creation techniques and reviews the considerations involved in deciding how best to undertake a wetlands project. EPA’s Watershed Planning Handbook and other scientific resources emphasize the importance of the watershed as a management unit in which elements and processes operate over different spatial and temporal scales. The literature also emphasizes the importance of planning and implementing projects aimed at protecting or restoring water quality (or meeting similar goals) within the context of the watershed.

Incorporation of Adaptive Management into Conservation Planning and Resource Management

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) | July 2nd, 2014

This document was prepared by the Science Institute to provide information to CDFW’s Divisions and Regions as they incorporate adaptive management in their conservation

This document was prepared by the Science Institute to provide information to CDFW’s Divisions and Regions as they incorporate adaptive management in their conservation and resource management decisions and planning documents. It highlights statutory definitions, statements of policy and requirements that are relevant to CDFW’s activities, and summarizes descriptions and evaluations of adaptive management in the technical literature. This information is relevant to all CDFW activities involving the conservation and management of natural resources under the jurisdiction of CDFW. However, given the breadth of CDFW’s Mission and the wide variety of regulatory, management and scientific roles CDFW plays, it should be emphasized that this information does not present a one-size-fits all approach to adaptive management. Rather, where adaptive management principles are appropriate and applicable in a given situation, the discussion and resources in this document should highlight issues for consideration under the specific circumstances at hand. CDFW affirms that project-specific circumstances always necessitate the development of project-specific adaptive management strategies. The information in this document is provided as a tool to be used, where appropriate, to support CDFW’s Divisions and Regions as they implement the CDFW Mission. The general principles presented here are not intended to be relied upon absent, or in lieu of, site- or project-specific analysis that shapes the application of these principles.

Increased drought and extreme events over continental United States under high emissions scenario

Nature Portfolio (Springer Nature) | December 6th, 2023

Increased drought severity tracks warming in the United States’ largest river basin

National Academy of Sciences (NAS) | March 28th, 2020

Across the Upper Missouri River Basin, the recent drought of 2000 to 2010, known as the “turn-of-the-century drought,” was likely more severe than any in th

Across the Upper Missouri River Basin, the recent drought of 2000 to 2010, known as the “turn-of-the-century drought,” was likely more severe than any in the instrumental record including the Dust Bowl drought. However, until now, adequate proxy records needed to better understand this event with regard to long-term variability have been lacking. Here we examine 1,200 y of stream- flow from a network of 17 new tree-ring–based reconstructions for gages across the upper Missouri basin and an independent reconstruction of warm-season regional temperature in order to place the recent drought in a long-term climate context. We find that temperature has increasingly influenced the severity of drought events by decreasing runoff efficiency in the basin since the late 20th century (1980s) onward. The occurrence of extreme heat, higher evapotranspiration, and associated low-flow conditions across the basin has increased substantially over the 20th and 21st centuries, and recent warming aligns with increasing drought severities that rival or exceed any estimated over the last 12 centuries. Future warming is anticipated to cause increasingly severe droughts by enhancing water deficits that could prove challenging for water management.

Increased flood exposure due to climate change and population growth in the United States

American Geophysical Union (AGU) | October 30th, 2021

Precipitation extremes are increasing globally due to anthropogenic climate change. However, there remains uncertainty regarding impacts upon flood occurrence and subseq

Precipitation extremes are increasing globally due to anthropogenic climate change. However, there remains uncertainty regarding impacts upon flood occurrence and subsequent population exposure. Here, we quantify changes in population exposure to flood hazard across the contiguous United States. We combine simulations from a climate model large ensemble and a high‐resolution hydrodynamic flood model—allowing us to directly assess changes across a wide range of extreme precipitation magnitudes and accumulation timescales. We report a mean increase in the 100‐year precipitation event of ~20% (magnitude) and >200% (frequency) in a high warming scenario, yielding a ~30–127% increase in population exposure. We further find a nonlinear increase for the most intense precipitation events—suggesting accelerating societal impacts from historically rare or unprecedented precipitation events in the 21st century.