blog post How Might Small Farms Fare Under SGMA? By Spencer Cole, Ellen Hanak, Alvar Escriva-Bou Sep 13, 2023 Change is coming to the heavily agricultural San Joaquin Valley, as irrigation water declines due to climate change, new environmental regulations, and SGMA. But how will these changes affect farms of different sizes in the valley? We finally have answers.
blog post Exploring the Yurok Tribe’s Management of the Klamath River By Sarah Bardeen Sep 5, 2023 The Yurok Tribe is one of the few California tribes whose members still reside on a portion of their ancestral lands, including a 44-mile stretch bordering the Klamath River. The Yurok are deeply involved with efforts to protect the river’s watershed, so we asked one of the Tribe’s lawyers to tell us more about what they’re doing—and what challenges they face.
blog post Fostering Fairness in Flood Risk Management By Sarah Bardeen Aug 15, 2023 The US Army Corps of Engineers is responsible for planning and building much of the nation’s flood management infrastructure. In the past, the Corps used an economic evaluation system that favored projects in wealthier areas, that now appears to be changing. We asked the Corps’ Dr. Tessa Beach to tell us more.
blog post New State Budget Maintains Water and Natural Resources Funding in an Uncertain Economy By Gokce Sencan Aug 1, 2023 When it comes to state funding for water and natural resource projects, California has typically turned to general obligation bonds as the first resort. The historic budget surpluses of recent years have shaken up this long-standing arrangement, but is that funding source drying up?
blog post Climate Resilience Expert Letitia Grenier to Lead the PPIC Water Policy Center By Ellen Hanak, Tani Cantil-Sakauye Jul 24, 2023 We are thrilled to announce that senior scientist and climate resilience expert Letitia Grenier will join PPIC as the next director of the Water Policy Center. Letitia is currently the Resilient Landscapes Program director at the San Francisco Estuary Institute. She will assume her new role on September 25, 2023.
blog post Renewing California’s Groundwater: Ready, Set, Recharge! By Caitlin Peterson, Sarah Bardeen Jun 21, 2023 California’s wet winter has been a boon for the parched state, and farmers and water managers have been scrambling to funnel some of that abundance into the ground. But how is recharge going—and what could be improved? We get on-the-ground insights from Daniel Mountjoy of Sustainable Conservation and Aaron Fukuda of the Tulare Irrigation District.
blog post Safeguarding the Future of California’s Freshwater Ecosystems By Sarah Bardeen May 22, 2023 Climate change is transforming California’s ecosystems, threatening vital habitat for many native species. Some species may be lost, which is why former Department of Water Resources lead scientist Ted Sommer and environmental law expert Jennifer Harder are joining forces as our 2023–24 PPIC CalTrout ecosystem fellows. We recently asked them to tell us more about their new project, which could help protect wildlife as the climate changes.
Fact Sheet Water Use in California By Jeffrey Mount, Ellen Hanak, Caitlin Peterson Apr 19, 2023 To understand California’s water, start here. Water use in California varies dramatically between wet and dry years: learn who’s using California’s water, where, and how much.
Fact Sheet Water Use in California’s Agriculture By Caitlin Peterson, Alvar Escriva-Bou, Josué Medellín-Azuara, Spencer Cole Apr 19, 2023 California is an agricultural powerhouse that relies heavily on irrigation. Discover how much water the sector uses and how groundwater laws and climate change are bringing change.
Fact Sheet Water Use in California’s Environment By Jeffrey Mount, Caitlin Peterson, Gokce Sencan Apr 19, 2023 What exactly is “environmental water,” and how much water does California’s environment actually use? This explainer sticks to the facts—and dispels a few myths in the process.
