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PPIC Water Policy Center

The PPIC Water Policy Center spurs innovative water management solutions that support a healthy economy, environment, and society—now and for future generations.

photo - Flooded Fields and Structures Caused by Flood Waters - pixel-ca-dw-2023_05_12_ZZ_0030_Tulare_Lake
Fact Sheet · February 2024

Floods in California

photo - Wave Crashing Against Pacifica Pier
Fact Sheet · February 2024

Sea Level Rise in California

photo - Bridgeport Valley in Spring
Report · November 2023

Priorities for California’s Water

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Blog Posts

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photo - Building with Wood for a Carbon Neutral Sustainable
April 8, 2024

The Holy Grail of a Zero-Carbon Home

Sarah Bardeen

photo - Fog in Redwood Forest
April 1, 2024

The Future of Fog

Sarah Bardeen

photo - Aerial View of Boats Anchored on Lake Shasta on a Sunny Day
March 25, 2024

How Business and Government Might Solve the Freshwater Crisis—Together

Sarah Bardeen

photo - Turbulent River
March 18, 2024

What’s Worse Than a Flood? A Debris Flow

Sarah Bardeen

Fact Sheets

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photo - Flooded Fields and Structures Caused by Flood Waters - pixel-ca-dw-2023_05_12_ZZ_0030_Tulare_Lake
February 2024

Floods in California

Jeffrey Mount, Gokce Sencan, Letitia Grenier

photo - Wave Crashing Against Pacifica Pier
February 2024

Sea Level Rise in California

Letitia Grenier, Gokce Sencan

Events

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Stewarding California’s Wet Years

November 14, 2023

Video

photo - Flooded road warning sign

Drought and Floods in California

Featured Fact Sheet · April 2023

Water Use in California

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Key Areas

Fact Cards

30 million people and 6 million acres of farmland depend on water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta watershed.
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Landscaping accounts for about half of California’s urban water use.
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About 40% of water used by California cities and farms comes from underground aquifers.
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Southern California’s cities and suburbs rely on the dwindling Colorado River for about one-third of their water.
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Who uses water in California?
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240+ The number of endangered or vulnerable California freshwater species.
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Most California water systems that fail to meet safety standards are in rural, low-income communities of color.
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California added more than 5 million people since 1990, yet urban water use changed little.
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The past 20 years have been the warmest in California history, making droughts more intense.
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Two-thirds of dams in California are more than 50 years old.
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1 in 5 Californians are vulnerable to flooding.
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