Water Features of the Smith River Plain, Del Norte County, California

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | December 1st, 1957

Water for a Growing Bay Area: How the region can grow without increasing water demand

Pacific Institute | October 21st, 2021

The San Francisco Bay Area is at a crossroads. The region, blessed with a beautiful natural setting, multiple shipping ports and world-class universities, is a driver of

The San Francisco Bay Area is at a crossroads. The region, blessed with a beautiful natural setting, multiple shipping ports and world-class universities, is a driver of global economic growth. But the region’s housing supply has not kept up with population growth. Many low-income households, disproportionately made up of people of color, have been forced into overcrowded and substandard housing or displaced from the urban center to new neighborhoods far from their jobs, friends and families. The most vulnerable have lost their homes entirely and are among the region’s 35,000 unhoused people. Over the next half-century, the Bay Area’s need to add housing will only grow more intense. The region is projected to add 2 million new jobs by 2070, which would attract as many as 6.8 million people, and needs to build at least 2.2 million new housing units just to prevent housing affordability from worsening. This represents 83% more people, 74% more housing units and 38% more jobs over the next 50 years.

Water for Growth: California’s New Frontier

Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) | July 25th, 2005

California’s population is expected to add another 14 million people by 2030, reaching a total of 48 million. One of the most serious concerns of policymakers is wh

California’s population is expected to add another 14 million people by 2030, reaching a total of 48 million. One of the most serious concerns of policymakers is whether the state will be able to supply the water needed to sustain such a population. Although many large water projects in the past were undertaken with state and federal leadership, most current options are local or regional in scope. The frontline agencies responsible for water supply are the hundreds of municipal utilities serving the state’s residential and commercial customers. In this report, the author examines how well California is faring in meeting the water supply challenges of growth throughout the state and the extent to which local governments are integrating water supply concerns into their land-use planning. The report also evaluates progress in implementing the new “show me the water” laws, SB 610 and SB 221, which require up-front screening of water availability for large development projects.

Water from the Colorado River

Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) | July 1st, 1931

It is the purpose of this booklet to outline the Boulder Canyon Dam project on the Colorado River and the Metropolitan Aqueduct. Furthermore, it seems pertinent to indica

It is the purpose of this booklet to outline the Boulder Canyon Dam project on the Colorado River and the Metropolitan Aqueduct. Furthermore, it seems pertinent to indicate the extent of the population, industrial and agricultural resources of the Metropolitan area, which stand behind and urgently require Colorado River development.

Water Recommendations to the Next President

Pacific Institute | September 14th, 2020

The United States faces several severe and worsening water problems. Continuing to neglect these problems will impoverish and sicken this and future generations,

The United States faces several severe and worsening water problems. Continuing to neglect these problems will impoverish and sicken this and future generations, destroy beneficial aquatic ecosystems, and threaten our economy and food supply. Smart water policies will create hundreds of thousands of jobs, improve public health, and speed our economic recovery. In this letter, we offer a short assessment of four key problems and specific recommendations for addressing them.

Water Reliability in the West - 2021 SECURE Water Act Report

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | January 4th, 2021

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) is the largest wholesaler of water in the country. Reclamation delivers water for municipal, agricultural, tribal, and environment

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) is the largest wholesaler of water in the country. Reclamation delivers water for municipal, agricultural, tribal, and environmental water uses, including providing one out of five farmers in the Western United States (West) with irrigation water for 10 million acres of farmland that produce 60 percent of the Nation’s vegetables and 25 percent of its fruits and nuts. The Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-11), Subtitle F of Title IX of the Act (Science and Engineering to Comprehensively Understand and Responsibly Enhance [SECURE] Water Act) recognizes that changes to temperature, precipitation (rainfall and snowfall), and the timing and quantity of snowpack and runoff pose a significant challenge to the protection and use of water resources. Every 5 years, Reclamation submits a report to Congress under the SECURE Water Act that analyzes projected risks to water supplies in the West using the best available science and highlights collaborative efforts to mitigate those risks. This Water Reliability in the West - 2021 SECURE Water Act Report (2021 Report) provides a West-wide assessment of expected changes to water supplies, uses, and demands; highlights progress; and describes actions taken to increase water supply reliability since the 2016 SECURE Water Act Report. Reclamation has a broad range of programs and projects that help increase the reliability of water and power deliveries. Our activities include science and research, planning, infrastructure sustainability, efficient hydropower production, and on-the-ground actions to increase reliable water supplies to meet water demands. These activities are undertaken in collaboration with our customers, stakeholders, and partners. In the West, competing demands for water for farms, cities, Tribes, the environment, recreation, hydropower, and other uses can lead to conflict. Conflict escalates particularly during droughts, which are expected to be more frequent and severe with climate change. Fostering strong relationships is essential to carry out Reclamation’s everyday operations, conduct long-term planning efforts, and avoid unnecessary conflicts. Reclamation operators and planners rely on information about precipitation, snowpack, streamflow, temperatures, water demands, and groundwater to make informed decisions. Reclamation’s 2021 West-Wide Climate and Hydrology Assessment (2021 Assessment) builds on our 2011 and 2016 West-wide assessments of future temperature and precipitation change by using several complementary approaches, including analyses based in paleohydrology derived from tree rings (dendochronology) that help answer this question: “If droughts in the distant past were to occur today, how would water systems perform?” With our Federal, State, Tribal, and local partners, we address challenges resulting from climate change and shifting demographics. We use a multi-faceted approach to support reliable water and hydropower deliveries; to help maintain healthy ecosystems; to protect federally-listed fish, wildlife, and plants, as well as designated critical habitat; and to manage risks (e.g., droughts, floods, and fires). Implementing the SECURE Water Act has served as a catalyst for collaboration and innovation, improving our understanding of climate change impacts to water resources and our ability to address those impacts.

Water Resilience Assessment Framework

Pacific Institute | August 24th, 2021

A traditional saying in China is that the water that holds the boat afloat is the same that sinks it. In the context of climate change, water is both a threat and a solu

A traditional saying in China is that the water that holds the boat afloat is the same that sinks it. In the context of climate change, water is both a threat and a solution for most climate impacts. Climate change is driving many types of water challenges, such as water scarcity and abundance, worsening water quality, and shifts in timing of the hydrologic cycle. Shocks and stresses, both predictable and unforeseen, affect the resilience of water systems and the stakeholders that rely on them. Specific guidance on how to understand system resilience and measure systematic changes and intervening actions can ensure a more resilient future for all. The Water Resilience Assessment Framework (WRAF) is intended to inform resilient decision-making to avoid shocks and stresses from becoming crises. The WRAF emphasizes water resilience, not only because water is vital for life, but also because water is embedded in nearly every aspect of our daily lives and the systems that enable and fuel our economies—often in ways we cannot see and do not regularly think about. As such, the WRAF is a method to be used, either individually or collectively, along with existing water-management processes and approaches to gain insight into how we measure progress towards building long-term water resilience.  

Water Resources Data for California, Water year 1983, Volume 2, Pacific Slope Basins from Arroyo Grande to Oregon State Line except Central Valley

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | January 15th, 1985

Water resources data for the 1983 water year for California consists of records of stage, discharge, and water quality of streams; stage and contents in lakes and reservo

Water resources data for the 1983 water year for California consists of records of stage, discharge, and water quality of streams; stage and contents in lakes and reservoirs; and water levels and water quality in wells. Volume 2 contains discharge records for 145 gaging stations; stage and contents for 19 lakes and reservoirs; water quality for 17 stations; water levels for 67 observation wells. Also included are 2 low-flow partial-record stations and 18 water-quality partial-record stations. These data represent that part of the National Water Data System operated by the U.S. Geological Survey and cooperating State and Federal agencies in California.

Water Risk Hotspots for Agriculture: The Case of the Southwest United States

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) | July 14th, 2016

The Southwest United States – defined here as Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah – is a rapidly growing region that faces major water challe

The Southwest United States – defined here as Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah – is a rapidly growing region that faces major water challenges. It has the fastest growing population and one of the most economically productive regions of the United States. It is also the most arid region and is prone to long-term droughts. These dry conditions, combined with a water allocation system based on prior appropriation — whereby the “first in time” is the “first in line” to access water — generate tension between stable or declining sectors of the economy that hold the majority of the rights to water and the fast-growing sectors of the economy that have more limited water rights. The Southwest provides a case study of the challenges posed by limited water availability and some of the successful methods used to bridge the gap between water supply and demand.

Water scarcity and fish imperilment driven by beef production

Nature Portfolio (Springer Nature) | March 2nd, 2020

Human consumption of freshwater is now approaching or surpassing the rate at which water sources are being naturally replenished in many regions, creating water s

Human consumption of freshwater is now approaching or surpassing the rate at which water sources are being naturally replenished in many regions, creating water shortage risks for people and ecosystems. Here we assess the impact of human water uses and their connection to water scarcity and ecological damage across the United States, identify primary causes of river dewatering and explore ways to ameliorate them. We find irrigation of cattle-feed crops to be the greatest consumer of river water in the western United States, implicating beef and dairy consumption as the leading driver of water shortages and fish imperilment in the region. We assess opportunities for alleviating water scarcity by reducing cattle-feed production, finding that temporary, rotational fallowing of irrigated feed crops can markedly reduce water shortage risks and improve ecological sustainability. Long-term water security and river ecosystem health will ultimately require Americans to consume less beef that depends on irrigated feed crops.