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2015 Urban Water Management Plan

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2015 Urban Water Management Plan
Metropolitan Water District of Southern California | June 1, 2016...
Summary
Metropolitan’s 2015 Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP) has been prepared in compliance with Water Code Section 10608.36 of SB X7-7, which was enacted...

Metropolitan’s 2015 Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP) has been prepared in compliance with Water Code Section 10608.36 of SB X7-7, which was enacted in 2009, and Sections 10610 through 10656 of the Urban Water Management Planning Act (Act), which were added by Statute 1983, Chapter 1009, and became effective on January 1, 1984. This Act requires that every urban water supplier providing water for municipal purposes to more than 3,000 customers or supplying more than 3,000 acre-feet of water annually prepare and adopt, in accordance with prescribed requirements, an urban water management plan.

The Act requires urban water suppliers to describe and evaluate sources of water supply, efficient uses of water, demand management measures, implementation strategy and schedule, and other relevant information and programs. Urban water suppliers are required by the Act to update their UWMP and submit a complete plan to the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) every five years. An UWMP is required in order for a water supplier to be eligible for DWR administered state grants and loans and drought assistance.

As with Metropolitan’s previous plans, the 2015 UWMP does not explicitly discuss specific activities undertaken by its member agencies unless they relate to one of Metropolitan’s water demand or supply management programs. Presumably, each member agency will discuss these activities in its UWMP.

The information included in the 2015 UWMP represents the most current and available planning projections of supply capability and demand developed through a collaborative process with the member agencies. Metropolitan’s Board recently adopted the 2015 Integrated Water Resources Plan, Water Tomorrow (2015 IRP Update), which represents Metropolitan’s comprehensive planning process and will serve as Metropolitan’s blueprint for long-term water reliability, including key supply development and water use efficiency goals.

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2015 Urban Water Management Plans: Guidebook for Urban Water Suppliers
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2015 Urban Water Management Plans: Guidebook for Urban Water Suppliers
Department of Water Resources | March 3, 2016...
Summary
The Guidebook for Urban Water Suppliers (Guidebook) has been developed by Department of Water Resources to assist urban water suppliers in preparing 2015...
The Guidebook for Urban Water Suppliers (Guidebook) has been developed by Department of Water Resources to assist urban water suppliers in preparing 2015 Urban Water Management Plans (UWMPs or Plans). This guidance is intended to ensure the Plans will address the requirements of the California Water Code (CWC), provide useful information to the public about water suppliers and their water management programs, and provide a framework for water planning to minimize the negative effects of potential water shortages.

Water suppliers need not limit themselves to the requirements and recommendations found in the Guidebook. Suppliers may include any additional information that will assist in providing a full description of their water resources and water management.

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2017 Flood System Status Report
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2017 Flood System Status Report
Department of Water Resources | August 10, 2017...
Summary
This report is intended to assist flood management planners and engineers in characterizing facilities within the State Plan of Flood Control (SPFC) and...
This report is intended to assist flood management planners and engineers in characterizing facilities within the State Plan of Flood Control (SPFC) and to inform the 2017 Central Valley Flood Protection Plan Update (2017 CVFPP Update). The 2017 FSSR provides a concise repository of the status of SPFC Facilities as noted in related DWR evaluation and inspection efforts, along with the efforts of our local and federal partners. The 2012 CVFPP laid the foundation necessary for compliance with the Central Valley Flood Protection Act of 2008 and a new approach to flood management in the Central Valley.

As a supporting and informational document to the 2017 CVFPP Update, the 2017 FSSR includes information about inspecting and evaluating SPFC facilities. It also details and quantifies major components of existing flood risk within the Sacramento and San Joaquin river watersheds, and the factors that influence flood risk in relation to the various flood control structures within the SPFC. Additionally, the 2017 FSSR informs and details the current conditions of levees and channels within the SPFC, and includes finalized project information from DWR’s Levee Evaluations Program. Through updating the status of SPFC facilities, the State of California can continue to make informed decisions related to flood risk management.

This document is a collaborative effort by DWR, local, and federal partners, signifying a step forward in gaining deeper understanding of the flood system’s current status and condition in the Central Valley.

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2017 Potable Reuse Compendium

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2017 Potable Reuse Compendium
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency | January 11, 2018...
Summary
Appropriate and necessary treatment and reuse of wastewater to augment existing water resources is a rapidly expanding approach for both non-potable and potable...

Appropriate and necessary treatment and reuse of wastewater to augment existing water resources is a rapidly expanding approach for both non-potable and potable applications. EPA recognizes that potable reuse of water can play a critical role in helping states, tribes, and c ommunities meet their future drinking water needs with a diversified portfolio of water sources. Beginning with the first pioneers in water reuse, Los Angeles County Sanitation Distric t (1962), Orange County Sanitation District (1976), and the Upper Occoquan Service Authority (1978), the practice has gained substantial momentum because of drought and the need to assure groundwater resource sustainability and a secure water supply. Long-term water scarcity is expected to increase over time in many parts of the country as a result of drought, growing water demand , and other stressors.

Across the U.S., there has been a notable increase in the deployment of technologies to augment existing water supplies through reuse of wastewater that has been treated and cleaned to be safe for the intended use. Indirect reuse usually involves passage of water through an environmental buffer (e.g., groundwater aquifer, lake, river) before the water is again treated for reuse. Direct reuse refers to those situations where treatment is followed by storage and use, but without the environmental buffer. Many drinking water systems rely on water treatment technologies to support indirect reuse of water (e.g., indirect potable reuse) and some drinking water systems now directly reuse wastewater after treatment (e.g., direc t potable reuse).

In 2012, EPA published the 2012 Guidelines for Water Reuse to serve as a reference on water reuse practices . The document provided information related to indirect potable reuse (IPR), but only briefly described direc t potable reuse (DPR). Because of increased interest in pursuing potable water reuse, EPA is is suing the 2017 Potable Reuse Compendium to outline key science, technical, and policy considerations regarding this practice. This 2017 Compendium supplements the 2012 Guidelines for Water Reuse to inform current practices and approaches in potable reuse, including those related to direct potable water reuse. EPA recognizes the recent water reuse publications from our stakeholders at the World Health Organization (WHO), the National Research Council of the National Academies of Science, the Water Environment and Reuse Foundation (WE&RF), and the Water Environment Federation (WEF). The 2017 Compendium is a compilation of technical information on potable reuse practices to provide planners and decision-makers with a summary of the current state of the practice. Specific knowledge and experience are drawn from case studies on existing reuse approaches.

EPA supports water reuse as part of an integrated water resources management approach developed at the state and local level to meet the water needs of multiple sectors including agriculture, industry, drinking water, and ecosystem protection. An integrated approach commonly involves a combination of water management strategies (e.g., water supply development, water storage, water use efficiency, and water reuse) and engages multiple stakeholders and needs, including the needs of the environment. Although EPA encourages an integrated approach to water resources management, it does not require or restrict practices such as water reuse. EPA acknowledges the primacy of states in the allocation and development of water resources. EPA, State, and local governments implement programs under the Clean Water Act and the Safe Drinking Water Act to protect the quality of source waters to ensure that source water is treated so that water provided to the tap is safe for people to drink (e.g., contaminant specific drinking water standards). The SDWA and the CWA provide a foundation from which states can further develop and support potable water reuse as they deem appropriate.

EPA will continue to engage a broad spectrum of partners and stakeholders for input on where the Agency can provide meaningful support to states, tribes, and communities as they implement potable water reuse projects. EPA will also work with stakeholders, the scientific community , and the States to monitor and evaluate performance of water treatment technologies to ensure that potable reuse projects are implemented in a manner that protects the health of communities . This document is a collaborative effort between EPA, CDM Smith, and other key stakeholders. EPA acknowledges the importance of potable water reuse and looks forward to working with our stakeholders as the practice continues to be developed and deployed as an important approach to ensure a c lean, safe, and sustainable water supply for the nation.

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2017 Salinas Valley Groundwater Level Contours & Seawater Intrusion Maps
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2017 Salinas Valley Groundwater Level Contours & Seawater Intrusion Maps
Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA) | April 24, 2018...
Summary

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2017 SGMA Annual Report South American Subbasin (5-021.65) Sacramento Central Groundwater Authority
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2017 SGMA Annual Report South American Subbasin (5-021.65) Sacramento Central Groundwater Authority
Sacramento Central Groundwater Authority, GEI Consultants Inc. | April 1, 2018...
Summary
The Sacramento Central Groundwater Authority (SCGA) has prepared an Annual Report describing groundwater conditions in the South American Subbasin for the 2017 Water...

The Sacramento Central Groundwater Authority (SCGA) has prepared an Annual Report describing groundwater conditions in the South American Subbasin for the 2017 Water Year (i.e., inclusive of months October 2016 to September 2017) in support of their pending Alternative Submittal. The Annual Report is intended for conveying monitoring and water use data to the State DWR on an annual basis to gauge performance of the groundwater subbasin relative to the sustainability goal set forth in a Groundwater Sustainability Plan (GSP) or, for SCGA, the Alternative Submittal. As such, SCGA is including sufficient information to provide interested parties with sufficient background and supporting details to serve as a public communications document for subbasin management and to take the place of historic biennial reporting available on the SCGA website.

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20×2020 Water Conservation Plan
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20×2020 Water Conservation Plan
Department of Water Resources | February 18, 2009...
Summary
In February 2008, Governor Schwarzenegger introduced a seven-part comprehensive plan for improving the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. As part of this effort, the Governor...
In February 2008, Governor Schwarzenegger introduced a seven-part comprehensive plan for improving the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. As part of this effort, the Governor directed state agencies to develop a plan to reduce statewide per capita urban water use by 20 percent by the year 2020. This marked the initiation of the 20x2020 Water Conservation Plan (20x2020 Plan) process.

The 20x2020 Plan sets forth a statewide road map to maximize the state’s urban water efficiency and conservation opportunities between 2009 and 2020, and beyond. It aims to set in motion a range of activities designed to achieve the 20 percent per capita reduction in urban water demand by 2020. These activities include improving an understanding of the variation in water use across California, promoting legislative initiatives that incentivize water agencies to promote water conservation, and creating evaluation and enforcement mechanisms to assure regional and statewide goals are met. The 20x2020 Plan discusses these many activities in detail.

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A Commitment to Action: Advancing Integrated Water Management in California
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A Commitment to Action: Advancing Integrated Water Management in California
Department of Water Resources | September 11, 2013...
Summary
This document highlights the key perspectives and recommendations that emerged during the Integrated Water Management Summit held in Sacramento on April 3, 2013. ...
This document highlights the key perspectives and recommendations that emerged during the Integrated Water Management Summit held in Sacramento on April 3, 2013. The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) hosted the event in partnership with the Water Education Foundation and the California Water Commission, and would like to thank the 200+ attendees and guest speakers who participated in the Summit.

The goal of the Summit was to bring together water leaders from myriad agencies and organizations to share experiences and ideas on how we can effectively align to provide sustainable water resources services in the State, in the face of an uncertain future.

Most agree that the water management approaches we have been relying on for several decades are no longer sustainable given today’s economic climate, our changing environment and the need to supply safe drinking water, agricultural water and flood protection for a growing population, while also protecting and enhancing valuable environmental resources. The thoughtful presentations and informative discussions at the Summit served as an important milestone in the movement to shape a more cooperative and effective approach to water management in California.

The Summit launched a new campaign called “Water 360” to help refocus and strengthen the collective efforts of California’s water management community by advancing integrated water management. Integrated water management is a framework for planning and implementation that melds the objectives of improving public safety, fostering environmental stewardship and supporting economic stability to lead to sustainable water resource management.

Integrated water management is not a new concept in California, and great strides have been made in the last decade to utilize the approach, particularly at the regional level. The Water 360 Campaign builds on these early successes and calls for broader application across the entire state. DWR is prepared and committed to lead this effort in close partnership with other water leaders, particularly State, federal, and local agencies; and in collaboration with all stakeholders.

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A Community Guide for Evaluating Future Urban Water Demand
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A Community Guide for Evaluating Future Urban Water Demand
Pacific Institute | August 31, 2016...
Summary
A Community Guide for Evaluating Future Urban Water Demand provides communities, environmental groups, ratepayer advocates, and anyone interested in sustainable water supply planning...
A Community Guide for Evaluating Future Urban Water Demand provides communities, environmental groups, ratepayer advocates, and anyone interested in sustainable water supply planning with the knowledge and tools they need to understand water demand forecasts.

Communities across the U.S. are faced with decisions about how to meet the needs of a growing population. To help make these decisions, water utilities often rely on forecasts that project water use 20 or 30 years into the future, consistent with the amount of time it takes to develop new supply infrastructure, such as desalination plants or reservoirs.

For much of the 20th century, water use in American cities grew in proportion to population and the economy. Since the 1980s, however, water use in communities across the United States has remained steady or declined despite continued population and economic growth, due to improved water conservation and efficiency and structural changes in the American economy.

While the water sector has undergone a fundamental transformation, the practice of water demand forecasting has been slow to keep pace. Water suppliers routinely overestimate future water demand based on often overstated estimates of population and economic growth and underestimates of the effects of water conservation and efficiency improvements. These inflated estimates of future water needs can result in unneeded water supply and treatment infrastructure, higher costs to ratepayers, and unnecessary environmental impacts.

The guidebook explains how water utilities forecast long-term water demand and reviews some of the approaches and methods commonly used by utilities and consultants. It also provides a set of best practices that can be used to create more accurate and robust long-range water demand forecasts. Some of these best practices include accounting for water conservation and efficiency improvements and land use changes, as well as ensuring transparency and meaningful stakeholder engagement.

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A comparison of the taxonomic and trait structure of macroinvertebrate communities between the riffles and pools of montane headwater streams
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A comparison of the taxonomic and trait structure of macroinvertebrate communities between the riffles and pools of montane headwater streams
Hydrobiologica, Springer International Publishing | May 30, 2018...
Summary
Macroinvertebrate community taxonomic and trait structure showed consistent differences between riffles and pools across 12 headwater streams in the Sierra Nevada (California) even...

Macroinvertebrate community taxonomic and trait structure showed consistent differences between riffles and pools across 12 headwater streams in the Sierra Nevada (California) even as flows varied from wet to dry years and between seasons. Densities of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera, Elmidae, Orthocladiinae and Diamesinae midges, and mites were greater in riffles, whereas Tanypodinae, Chironominae, Sialis, and Pisidium were more abundant in pools. Pools had higher densities but estimated biomass was greater in riffles. Collector-gatherer and micropredator abundances were greater in pools whereas grazers, collector-filterers, and macropredators were more abundant in riffles. Stonefly shredders were most abundant in riffles but some caddis shredders were more abundant in pools. Trait state patterns were related to food resource and physical habitat differences between riffles and pools. Of the distinct pool–riffle differences we found among taxa, only about half conformed to expectations from the literature. Pool and riffle assemblages were most dissimilar at intermediate discharge and converged at low and high flows when one or the other habitat dominated. Bioassessment sampling will need to account for these flow-related differences. Benthic invertebrate communities in these mountain streams clearly differ between pools and riffles, but the relative extent of habitats and biological similarity shift with flow regime.

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A Compilation of Water Quality Goals
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A Compilation of Water Quality Goals
State Water Resources Control Board | January 1, 2016...
Summary
This State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) staff report, A Compilation of Water Quality Goals, supersedes the April 2011 edition and...
This State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) staff report, A Compilation of Water Quality Goals, supersedes the April 2011 edition and all prior editions and updates published by the State Water Resources Control Board and the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board. Earlier editions and updates should be discarded, as they contain outdated information.

The text of this edition has been updated mainly to reflect the transfer of California’s Drinking Water Program from the Department of Public Health (CDPH) to the Division of Drinking Water (DDW) at the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board). Information about this transfer is online at http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/drinking_water/programs/DW_PreJuly2014.shtml. Cited examples and hyperlinks to reference materials have also been updated.

Water Quality Goals includes an online searchable database of water quality based numeric thresholds available at http://www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/water_quality_goals/. The database contains up-to-date numeric thresholds from a variety of sources for over 860 chemical constituents and water quality parameters, including:
- California and Federal drinking water standards (MCLs)
- California Public Health Goals (PHGs)
- California State Notification and Response Levels for drinking water
  Health Advisories, Water Quality Advisories, and Drinking Water Advisories
- Cancer Risk Estimates
- Health-based criteria from USEPA's Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS)
- California Proposition 65 Safe Harbor Levels
- California Toxics Rule Criteria to protect human health and aquatic life
- California Ocean Plan Water Quality Objectives
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Recommended Water Quality Criteria to Protect Human Health and Aquatic Life
- Agricultural use protective thresholds
- Taste and odor based criteria
The narrative Selecting Water Quality Goals contains information to help users to understand California’s water quality standards adopted to protect the beneficial uses of surface water and groundwater resources, available criteria and guidance for evaluating water quality, and to help users select defensible numeric assessment thresholds based on applicable water quality standards. To use this information correctly, it is necessary to read Selecting Water Quality Goals carefully before using numeric thresholds from the database.

Water Quality Goals is a technical report prepared by staff of the State Water Board. It is intended to help identify and assess potential water quality concerns. This report is an informational tool only and does not establish State Water Board policy or regulation. The information presented in this report is not binding on any person or entity, nor does it represent final action of the State Water Board or any Regional Water Board. This report is not intended, nor can it be relied upon, to create any rights enforceable by any party in litigation in the State of California. The overseeing regulatory authority may decide to use the information provided herein, or to act at a variance with the information, based on analysis of site and case-specific circumstances.
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A Delta Renewed: A Guide to Science-Based Ecological Restoration in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
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A Delta Renewed: A Guide to Science-Based Ecological Restoration in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
San Francisco Estuary Institute | November 15, 2016...
Summary
This final report of the Delta Landscapes Project, A Delta Renewed, offers guidance for creating and maintaining landscapes that can provide desired ecological...

This final report of the Delta Landscapes Project, A Delta Renewed, offers guidance for creating and maintaining landscapes that can provide desired ecological functions for decades to come.

Based on extensive research into how the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta used to function, how it has changed, and how it is likely to evolve, we make recommendations for how to re-establish the dynamic natural processes that can sustain native Delta wildlife as healthy populations into the future. The approach, building on work others have piloted and championed, is to restore or emulate natural processes where possible, establish an appropriate configuration of habitat types at the landscape scale, and use multi-benefit management strategies to create a more viable Delta ecosystem that can adapt and continue to provide valued functions as the climate changes.

This approach is designed to integrate with the human landscape: ecosystem improvements as a part of a robust agricultural economy, water infrastructure and diversions, and urbanized areas. Strategic restoration which builds on the history and ecology of the region can contribute to the strong sense of place and recreational value of the Delta in the future.

See more at: http://www.sfei.org/projects/delta-landscapes-project#sthash.RryQdaII.dpuf

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A Delta Transformed: Ecological Functions, Spatial Metrics, and Landscape Change in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
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A Delta Transformed: Ecological Functions, Spatial Metrics, and Landscape Change in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
San Francisco Estuary Institute | October 1, 2014...
Summary
In A Delta Transformed, completed in 2014, SFEI researchers used the spatial data generated in the Delta Historical Ecology Investigation, as well as...
In A Delta Transformed, completed in 2014, SFEI researchers used the spatial data generated in the Delta Historical Ecology Investigation, as well as updated modern vegetation and land cover datasets, to carry out detailed analyses of how the Delta landscape has been altered since the early-1800s. By quantifying changes in metrics relevant to native wildlife (such as the extent and timing of inundation, habitat patch sizes, length of channel networks), the report provides a foundation for defining, designing, and evaluating landscapes that support desirable ecological functions in the future.

See more at: http://www.sfei.org/projects/delta-landscapes-project#sthash.RryQdaII.dpuf

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A Field Guide to the Identification of the Ordinary High Water Mark (OHWM) in the Arid West Region of the Western United States: A Delineation Manual

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A Field Guide to the Identification of the Ordinary High Water Mark (OHWM) in the Arid West Region of the Western United States: A Delineation Manual
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory | August 1, 2008...
Summary
The Ordinary High Water Mark (OHWM) is an approach for identifying the lateral limits of non-wetland waters. However, determining whether any non-wetland water...

The Ordinary High Water Mark (OHWM) is an approach for identifying the lateral limits of non-wetland waters. However, determining whether any non-wetland water is a jurisdictional “Water of the United States” (WoUS) involves further assessment in accordance with the regulations, case law, and clarifying guidance. In the Arid West region of the U.S., the most problematic Ordinary High Water (OHW) delineations are associated with the ephemeral/intermittent channel forms that dominate the Arid West landscape. This report presents a method for delineating the lateral extent of the non-wetland waters in the Arid West using stream geomorphology and vegetation response to the dominant stream discharge.

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A Guide for Using the Transient Ground-Water Flow Model of the Death Valley Regional Ground-Water Flow System, Nevada and California
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A Guide for Using the Transient Ground-Water Flow Model of the Death Valley Regional Ground-Water Flow System, Nevada and California
U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management | November 4, 2006...
Summary
This report is a guide for executing numerical simulations with the transient ground-water flow model of the Death Valley regional ground-water flow system,...
This report is a guide for executing numerical simulations with the transient ground-water flow model of the Death Valley regional ground-water flow system, Nevada and California using the U.S. Geological Survey modular finite-difference ground-water flow model, MODFLOW-2000. Model inputs, including observations of hydraulic head, discharge, and boundary flows, are summarized. Modification of the DVRFS transient ground-water model is discussed for two common uses of the Death Valley regional ground-water flow system model: predictive pumping scenarios that extend beyond the end of the model simulation period (1998), and model simulations with only steady-state conditions.

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A Guide to California Water Right Appropriations
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A Guide to California Water Right Appropriations
State Water Resources Control Board | January 1, 2000...
Summary
A guide to California's water right permit process written by the State Water Resources Control Board, dated January 2000. TABLE OF CONTENTS California...
A guide to California's water right permit process written by the State Water Resources Control Board, dated January 2000.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
- California Water Rights
- Permit Issuance - A look at the process
- Things to consider before filing your application
- Filing your applicationj
- Appendices
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A Historical Perspective of the Interagency Ecological Program: Bridging Multi-Agency Studies into Ecological Understanding of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Estuary for 40 Years
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A Historical Perspective of the Interagency Ecological Program: Bridging Multi-Agency Studies into Ecological Understanding of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Estuary for 40 Years
Interagency Ecological Program | February 8, 2013...
Summary
The Interagency Ecological Program (IEP) has been in existence in some form for almost 50 years. As the San Francisco Estuary evolved due...
The Interagency Ecological Program (IEP) has been in existence in some form for almost 50 years. As the San Francisco Estuary evolved due to natural and man-caused perturbations, the IEP has responded by creating and re-creating itself to ensure the best understanding of the Estuary as it was influenced by water project implementation. The goal of the IEP has always been to provide this understanding to managers responsible for water project implementation in the most protective and efficient manner given social, political, and environmental constraints. On the whole, IEP has done an outstanding job of providing consistently useful data and information in a highly complex environment.

As new programs and constraints are developed to cope with the ever changing natural environment and demands of society, an understanding of the history of IEP is valuable, and to learn from past experience is wise. This descriptive history is meant to document in some detail the development, strengths, and weaknesses of this one-of-a-kind multi-agency consortium that has attempted to bridge the gap between water management and estuarine science in the most significant Estuary on the west coast of North America.

Sources of information for this account are personal interviews with program participants, annual reports, IEP Newsletters, coordinator meeting summaries, director meeting summaries, management team meeting notes, and personal experiences of the author. This history may err on the side of excessive detail, but that has been intentional; the author believes it is important to have detailed information available in a single reference so that interested parties can readily obtain knowledge about IEP. Some individuals may not want to read the entire report, but can easily be guided to topics of interest by consulting Appendix A, which lists significant events that influenced the IEP by page number in the report.

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A hybrid machine learning model to predict and visualize nitrate concentration throughout the Central Valley aquifer, California, USA
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A hybrid machine learning model to predict and visualize nitrate concentration throughout the Central Valley aquifer, California, USA
Science of the Total Environment | June 9, 2017...
Summary
Intense demand forwater in the Central Valley of California and related increases in groundwater nitrate concentration threaten the sustainability of the groundwater resource....
Intense demand forwater in the Central Valley of California and related increases in groundwater nitrate concentration threaten the sustainability of the groundwater resource. To assess contamination risk in the region, we developed a hybrid, non-linear, machine learning model within a statistical learning framework to predict nitrate contamination of groundwater to depths of approximately 500m below ground surface.

A database of 145 predictor variables representing well characteristics, historical and current field and landscape-scale nitrogen mass balances, historical and current land use, oxidation/reduction conditions, groundwater flow, climate, soil characteristics, depth to groundwater, and groundwater age were assigned to over 6000 private supply and public supply wells measured previously for nitrate and located throughout the study area. The boosted regression tree (BRT) method was used to screen and rank variables to predict nitrate concentration at the depths of domestic and public well supplies.

The novel approach included as predictor variables outputs from existing physically based models of the Central Valley. The top five most important predictor variables included two oxidation/reduction variables (probability of manganese concentration to exceed 50 ppb and probability of dissolved oxygen concentration to be below 0.5 ppm), field-scale adjusted unsaturated zone nitrogen input for the 1975 time period, average difference between precipitation and evapotranspiration during the years 1971–2000, and 1992 total landscape nitrogen input.

Twenty-five variables were selected for the final model for log-transformed nitrate. In general, increasing probability of anoxic conditions and increasing precipitation relative to potential evapotranspiration had a corresponding decrease in nitrate concentration predictions.

Conversely, increasing 1975 unsaturated zone nitrogen leaching flux and 1992 total landscape nitrogen input had an increasing relative impact on nitrate predictions.

Three-dimensional visualization indicates that nitrate predictions depend on the probability of anoxic conditions and other factors, and that nitrate predictions generally decreased with increasing groundwater age.

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A Legal Guide to the Public’s Rights to Access and Use of California’s Navigable Waters

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A Legal Guide to the Public’s Rights to Access and Use of California’s Navigable Waters
California State Lands Commission | November 20, 2017...
Summary
In California, members of the public have rights to access and use navigable waters for many beneficial uses, including, but not limited to navigation, fishing, and recreation. These public rights are expressed in federal law, California’s Act of...
In California, members of the public have rights to access and use navigable waters for many beneficial uses, including, but not limited to navigation, fishing, and recreation. These public rights are expressed in federal law, California’s Act of Admission, the California Constitution, court opinions, and state statutes. However, the public’s rights to access and use the state’s navigable waters are sometimes misunderstood.

California public officials are periodically called on to address disputes about the public’s rights to access and use the state’s navigable waters. These disputes may arise between recreational water users, such as boaters, fishermen, hunters, shoreline and beach users, and adjacent private property owners. In this guide, the California State Lands Commission seeks to inform and clarify, for the public, government officials, and private property owners, the public’s rights to access and use the state’s navigable waters by summarizing the relevant legal principles.

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A Measure of Snow: A Report Based on Case Studies of The Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program

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A Measure of Snow: A Report Based on Case Studies of The Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting Program
U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service | November 1, 2008...
Summary
Snow depth and snow water content data have been collected and disseminated throughout the Western United States for over 100 years. Early snow survey and...

Snow depth and snow water content data have been collected and disseminated throughout the Western United States for over 100 years. Early snow survey and water supply data were gathered through the efforts of university scientists, beginning with the work of Dr. James E. Church. In 1935, the Soil Conservation Service (SCS), now the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), established a formal cooperative Snow Survey and Water Supply Forecasting (SS-WSF) Program. The Agency was charged with responsibility for “conducting snow survey and water supply forecasts and the forecasting of irrigation water supplies.” The new Program would also develop consistent methods for measuring snow and reliable models for accurate water supply forecasting.

Administered by NRCS, the SS-WSF Program has grown into a network of more than 1,200 manually-measured snow courses and over 750 automated Snowpack Telemetry (SNOTEL) weather stations in 13 Western States, including Alaska. (See map on page 4.) The SS-WSF Program provides manual snow course data collected by NRCS conservation professionals, automated SNOTEL data, and modeled water supply/streamflow volume data as well as issues streamflow forecasts for over 740 locations in the West. The data and the related reports and forecasts, are made available—in near real time for the automated SNOTEL sites—to private industry; to Federal, State, and local government entities; and to private citizens through an extensive Internet delivery system and other distribution channels.

With 50-80 percent of the water supply in the West arriving in the form of snow, data on the snowpack provides critical information to decision-makers and water managers throughout the West. The basic data become even more valuable when used in concert with partner organizations to provide water supply forecasting tailored to meet end-user needs. According to researchers from multiple U.S. and international agencies, research centers, and academia, changes in the world’s climate have resulted in a loss of predictability in weather, precipitation, and water transport and accumulation patterns. It is anticipated that the value the SS-WSF Program provides to society will increase over time as climate variability increases.

Recently a study was done to see who uses SS-WSF data, how the data are used, and the value of the data. Users of the data were interviewed and specific events and activities were analyzed. This publication is based on that study.

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