Recycled wastewater is increasingly touted as part of the solution to California’s water woes, particularly for agricultural use, as the state’s historic drought continues. The cost of treating wastewater to meet state health standards for reuse and to reduce salt levels that damage crops presents a new set of challenges, however.
California’s prolonged drought is forcing Central Valley farmers to scramble for water to irrigate crops. They have to be creative. One agency is even turning to a sewage plant to meet demand. Just outside Modesto, farming communities like Patterson are facing a crisis. There’s barely enough water to irrigate crops, so little, that about a quarter of the local farms have stopped growing anything.”We have over 12,000 acres that has not been farmed for the last several years, and that has very sudden and severe economic ripple effects through these small communities,” said Anthea Hansen of the Del Puerto Water District.
Conflicts over water are not new to the American West, especially to California. An upcoming trial in Santa Barbara showcases many of the issues involved in our parched state’s quest for water, and points to a possible solution.
Water, or the lack of it, has emerged as one of the greatest sources of stress for California, its people and its native species. Fish populations are declining in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, while farmers are facing short supplies. Urban dwellers have come under pressure to use less water, and underground reserves are being rapidly depleted. Making matters much worse is the ongoing drought, which shows no sign of ending. In fact, forecasts for less annual rainfall in years to come have cast uncertainty on the very future of California and its rapidly growing human population.
The 21st century may turn out to be the time in history when we hit the natural resource limits of the planet. Despite the technological innovations of the last century, natural resources – from fresh water to and forests, to healthy soils and fisheries-are becoming exhausted as we rely on them to meet the food, water and and energy needs of a global population that is expected to exceed 10 billing by 2050.
Climate change is dangerous, and it’s happening now. It threatens wildlife and the ecosystems they live in. It will make life harder for billions of people, with the greatest harm hitting the world’s poorest people. It may make some parts of the world uninhabitable for humans, and will almost certainly drive many species to extinction. But there are a half-dozen other environmental threats that are even worse. That’s according to a study published this month in Nature, generally considered the world’s most respected scientific journal.
The governor’s $68 billion California Delta twin water tunnels project cannot be economically justified, says a new report from the University of the Pacific. The tunnels scheme, promoted by Gov. Edmund Brown Jr. as one of his legacies to the people of California, would be the most costly water proposal in California history, the report says. But the new independent research, released Wednesday, shows that the tunnels’ costs are four times larger than its benefits, “and thus the project is not is not economically justified.”
As most of California recovers from this historic drought, one thing we can count on is that history will repeat itself. Californians can take full credit for willingly sacrificing landscape and adjusting habits to save water supply for another year. Toilets have been replaced, lawns have been converted to plastic, leaks have been fixed, prime agricultural land has been fallowed, and we have learned to be more efficient with our water supply. So, fast-forward to the next drought. What’s next?
When the Drought hit hard in 2014, Dublin San Ramon Services District (DSRSD), a water and wastewater utility, learned that it would receive only 5 percent of its typical water allocation for the 2014 water year. This meant that outdoor irrigation had to be severely curtailed in DSRSD’s service area and customers would likely need to let their lawns die. DSRSD operations manager Dan Gallagher came home and said to his wife “we might not be able to water the yard.”
The costs of Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed Delta tunnels vastly outweigh the benefits of building them, according to an analysis released Wednesday by University of the Pacific economist Jeff Michael.“I don’t think there’s a project that’s economically feasible here. And it’s not close,” said Michael, director of the university’s Center for Business and Policy Research. Michael has long been critical of the $15 billion tunnels. His latest review finds 23 cents of benefits for every dollar that would be spent — or, under a more optimistic scenario, 39 cents of benefits per dollar spent.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
