Water Dependent Recreation (Resource Management Strategy)

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | July 29th, 2016

California residents and visitors can choose from a variety of water-dependent recreation activities managed by federal, State, and local agencies, as well as businesses

California residents and visitors can choose from a variety of water-dependent recreation activities managed by federal, State, and local agencies, as well as businesses and not-for-profit organizations. They may enjoy recreation activities in or on water, including fishing, swimming, skiing, and snowboarding, waterfowl hunting, motor boating, surfing, and kayaking. They also may participate in recreation activities that can be enhanced by water, such as wildlife viewing (including birding), picnicking, biking, relaxing on the beach, camping, and hiking. Although the latter activities do not require water, they are frequently enjoyed near waterways, lakes, floodways, and the sea. This resource management strategy report will not address water parks, swimming pools, and water- thirsty lawn-dependent recreational facilities, such as ball fields and golf courses; however, these are examples of popular off-stream recreational facilities that may require significant water resources.

Water Distribution System Efficiency: An Essential or Neglected Part of the Water Conservation Strategy for Los Angeles County Water Retailers?

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) | November 2nd, 2015

The water governance system in Los Angeles County is complex and fragmented. Potable water supply in metropolitan Los Angeles County relies on over 100 water retailers, b

The water governance system in Los Angeles County is complex and fragmented. Potable water supply in metropolitan Los Angeles County relies on over 100 water retailers, both public and private. It is unclear how the current system with many small water retailers will succeed in promoting integrated water resource management. Among other changes, there will need to be a shifting of water supply sources from predominantly imported to more local resources through conservation, recycled water usage, stormwater capture and groundwater management. The institutional capacity of water retailers to instigate this transition will depend heavily on their capacity to maintain reliable water deliveries without significant losses from leakage and failing infrastructure. Additionally, with drought conditions prevalent in eleven of the last fourteen years in California, and increasing evidence of climate change impacts on all water resources in California, it is crucial that water retailers minimize water losses through their distribution systems to match the increasingly stringent conservation efforts required of their customers, and to efficiently utilize scarce supplies.  Until this year, existing regulations for water agencies in California only requested information about system losses for potable water systems with more than 3000 connections. These numbers were reported through Urban Water Management Plans every five years. However, loss estimates through breaks and leaks have not been separated out from other non-revenue uses of water. To date, the most effective efforts to monitor water losses in California are voluntary and limited to members of the California Urban Water Conservation Council. To understand water distribution efficiency in urban Los Angeles County, we developed a questionnaire regarding leakage monitoring, system-wide water losses, and the implementation of pre-emptive best management practices. We surveyed 10 of the approximate total of 100 water retailers. The sample was representative of retailers of many types, sizes, and geographical locations in metropolitan Los Angeles and divided into tiers of size (small, mid-sized and large) based on the number of connections served. The survey questionnaire also addressed other metrics including per capita water consumption, leakage volumes, water loss estimation methodology, water loss estimates and infrastructure monitoring and replacement. The survey indicated several findings. First, the percentage of water loss due to breaks and leaks, though possibly misrepresentative, is still a widely used metric to measure water losses. Sixty percent of the agencies sampled still monitor only ‘unaccounted for water’ and not ‘real losses’. Retailers that do measure real losses reported them to be between 3-4% of total water supplied, which is an improbably low compared to international estimates as elaborated in the literature review section. Different water retailers were divided on the efficacy of leak detection technologies, which demands more education on available leak detection technology and their usage.  Larger retailers reported greater use of most of the best management practices addressed by our survey to maintain storage and distribution systems. Most small retailers did not report prioritizing adoption and implementation of best management practices to minimize water loss. Also, small Mutual Water Companies that we contacted did not have information on distribution water losses available publicly. To improve water efficiency, small retailers could pool resources and expertise to better detect, monitor and reduce distribution water losses. Investor-owned utilities and special water districts serve a large customer base, but as a group, they were least responsive of all the sample water retailers we contacted. In summary, California water regulations should aim at recommending crucial best management practices, ensuring accurate and verifiable water loss monitoring and prescribing an effective water loss metric and maximum acceptable standard as a roadmap for water retailers 

Water Facilities Including a Peripheral Canal [Proposition 9]

Department of Justice (DOJ) | June 9th, 1982

Water Facilities Including a Peripheral Canal Referendum Statute

State of California | June 1st, 1982

WATER FACILITIES INCLUDING A PERIPHERAL CANAL. REFERENDUM STATUTE. A "yes" vote approves, a "no" vote rejects, a law that will : Designate additional facilities and pr

WATER FACILITIES INCLUDING A PERIPHERAL CANAL. REFERENDUM STATUTE. A "yes" vote approves, a "no" vote rejects, a law that will : Designate additional facilities and programs, including a peripheral canal as units of Central Valley Project. Specify requirements regarding feasibility, environmental impacts, design construction, operation, financing, and protection and enhancement of fish and wildlife for project units. Require Water Resources Department to contract with named Delta agencies regarding users' rights, water quality, and benefit payments; and to immediately proceed with specified prerequisites to construction of peripheral canal . Required compliance with designated water quality standards and conditions . Specify other responsibilities and matters. Summary of Legislative Analyst's estimate of net state and local government fiscal impact: As Project has been planned and operated to be self-supporting, implementation under present policies would not require increase in state taxes or reduce funds for other state programs . Potential construction costs at 1981 prices are in excess of $3 .1 billion plus unknown additional costs, plus interest, to be financed by increased user charges.

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

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

Water Footprint Outcomes and Policy Relevance Change with Scale Considered: Evidence from California

Pacific Institute | September 1st, 2014

A new article by Julian Fulton, Heather Cooley, and Peter Gleick evaluates California’s water footprint, finding that California’s water footprint demonstrate a set o

A new article by Julian Fulton, Heather Cooley, and Peter Gleick evaluates California’s water footprint, finding that California’s water footprint demonstrate a set of vulnerabilities and policy options that do not emerge in national-level assessments. The article, published in Water Resources Management, demonstrates that water footprint assessments may find greater policy relevance when scaled to analytical units where water-related decision making occurs. Abstract: Methods and datasets necessary for evaluating water footprints have advanced in recent years, yet integration of water footprint information into policy has lagged. One reason for this, we propose, is that most studies have focused on national units of analysis, overlooking scales that may be more relevant to existing water management institutions. The authors of Water Footprint Outcomes and Policy Relevance Change with Scale Considered: Evidence from California illustrate this by building on a recent water footprint assessment of California, the third largest and most populous state in the United States. While California contains diverse hydrologic regions, it also has an overarching set of water institutions that address statewide water management, including ensuring sustainable supply and demand for the state’s population and economy. The water footprint sheds new light on sustainable use and, in California, is being considered with a suite of sustainability indicators for long-term state water planning. Key to this integration has been grounding the method in local data and highlighting the unique characteristics of California’s water footprint, presented here. Compared to the U.S., California’s water footprint was found to be roughly equivalent in per-capita volume (6 m3d-1) and constituent products, however two  policy-relevant differences stand out: (1) California’s water footprint is far more externalized than the U.S.’s, and (2) California depends more on “blue water” (surface and groundwater) than on “green water” (rainwater and soil moisture). These aspects of California’s water footprint suggest a set of vulnerabilities and policy options that do not emerge in national-level assessments. Such findings demonstrate that water footprint assessments may find more policy relevance when scaled to analytical units where water-related decision making occurs.

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 Forward 2024 Plan Report - Austin's 100 Year Plan

City of Austin | December 6th, 2024

Water Forward 2024 is Austin’s 100-year integrated water resource plan. The purpose of Water Forward is to develop and implement diverse and environmentally conscious w

Water Forward 2024 is Austin’s 100-year integrated water resource plan. The purpose of Water Forward is to develop and implement diverse and environmentally conscious water management strategies to adapt to growth, drought, and climate change and ensure a sustainable, resilient, equitable, and affordable water future for our community for the next 100 years. Austin Water has developed this plan to address near- and long-term water needs through a collaborative process in alignment with guiding principles crafted to reflect the Austin community’s values. 

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.