Since winning the election, President-elect Donald Trump has been talking about immigration, border security and government efficiency.
But in California farm country, his comments about water are also getting top attention.
Our water supply is far from infinite. According to the UN, nearly 1.8 billion people are projected to live in areas with absolute water scarcity by 2025, and two-thirds of the world’s population could be living under water-stressed conditions.
If water becomes scarce or unavailable for an extended period, would you drink recycled sewage water?
Colorado River water users in California have together voluntarily conserved more than 1.2 million acre-feet of water in just two years, adding the water to Lake Mead to help stabilize the reservoir during historic drought conditions, according to figures released Wed. Dec.4, according to a recent CRBC press release.
The achievements, reported during a meeting of the Colorado River Board of California (CRBC) during this year’s Colorado River Water Users Association’s conference, result from the implementation of a series of conservation agreements in 2023 and 2024, along with agencies storing conserved water in Lake Mead. The agreements involve the Bard Water District, Coachella Valley Water District, Fort Yuma Quechan Indian Tribe, Imperial Irrigation District, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Palo Verde Irrigation District, San Diego County Water Authority, and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.
We can’t escape our history. In 1984, the Southern California Water Coalition (SCWC) was founded in response to the ballot-box defeat of the Peripheral Canal, a predecessor to today’s Delta Conveyance Project. This pivotal moment highlighted the urgent need for a unified effort to address Southern California’s water challenges.
The vision back then was clear: bring together water leaders, agriculture, businesses, local governments, and labor to educate Southern Californians on where their water comes from and the need for water infrastructure investment to assure future reliability. Over the past 40 years, SCWC has steadfastly carried out that mission, spreading awareness about the region’s reliance on imported water from the Colorado River and Northern California, as well as the strides we’ve made in using water more efficiently.
Valley Center Municipal Water District’s supplier the San Diego County Water Authority (SDCWA) will be shutting down the First Aqueduct December 7-17 to do warranty inspections on the recent relining work.
As in the past, the VC district will have some limited access to water from the 2nd Aqueduct. Leading up to the shutdown it is placing additional water in storage.
For the second year in a row, the San Diego County Water Authority and its partners have struck a deal to conserve water in Lake Mead, support the long-term sustainability of the Colorado River and save local ratepayers money.
The agreements between the Water Authority, the Imperial Irrigation District, and the Metropolitan Water District, with funding from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, are designed to promote voluntary water conservation. The 2024 agreement was announced during a meeting of the Colorado River Board of California at this year’s Colorado River Water Users Association’s conference in Las Vegas.
As a part of these deals, the Water Authority agreed to leave 50,000 acre-feet of water from its Quantification Settlement Agreement supplies in the Colorado River, helping California meet federal conservation goals.
The 2023 agreement between the three parties was the first of its kind. The 2024 deal will save San Diego County ratepayers approximately $20 million, which will be applied to 2026 wholesale water rates.
“For the second year in a row, the Water Authority and its partners have struck a deal to conserve water in Lake Mead and save our local ratepayers approximately $20 million,” said Water Authority Board Chair Nick Serrano. “This is a win-win for all of us and demonstrates how the Water Authority is strategically using its assets to help protect ratepayers and the Colorado River through innovative thinking.”
The Water Authority’s efforts are part of a larger commitment by California water users to protect the overtaxed Colorado River, including plans to save at least 400,000 more acre-feet in 2025 after conserving more than 1.2 million acre-feet over the last two years.
“It is really a model partnership and collaboration between states and local entities and the federal government,” said U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Commissioner M. Camille Calimlim Touton.
California’s efforts have led to the equivalent of 16 feet of water being added to Lake Mead in two years, providing much-needed stability to the entire river system as the seven Basin states work with the federal government to create a post-2026 operations plan for the river.
“Our collective achievements not only have made a profound impact on Lake Mead today, they also illustrate the can-do spirit that the Water Authority and our partners bring to future conservation work on the river,” said Colorado River Board Vice Chair and Water Authority Director Jim Madaffer. “We are both proud of what we have accomplished and committed to delivering additional solutions for the Southwest in the years ahead.”
The Colorado River Basin is the most important water source in the West, providing water for more than 40 million people and generating hydropower in seven U.S. states.
The Water Authority will continue to pursue other water transfers and exchanges to maximize the value of San Diego County’s water resources and minimize the cost to local ratepayers. Those steps include budget cuts, project deferrals, debt refinancing, increasing grant funds and restructuring rates.
A nearly billion-dollar investment will go to almost a dozen western states for critical upgrades to water delivery and drought resilience infrastructure, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced Tuesday.
“As we work to address record drought and changing climate conditions in the Colorado River Basin and throughout the West,” Acting Deputy Interior Secretary Laura Daniel-Davis said Tuesday in a release. “These investments in our aging water infrastructure will conserve community water supplies and revitalize water delivery systems.”
Residents in Poway will soon be paying more on their water bills following a unanimous vote by city council Tuesday night.
“Finances are tough for a lot of people so they should look somewhere else and not take something as basic as water and price it out for a lot of people who can’t afford it,” resident Jim Bunner said.
California farmers could soon be caught up in a political fight between Sacramento and Washington.
State Democrats want $25 million to sue the Trump administration.
When Catherine and Bryan Binotti moved into their La Mesa 1950 ranch-style home four years ago, they had, in a way, kind of a head start on the landscaping. The owners before them had put in some drought tolerant landscaping, Catherine noted. But a lot of it had died back. So the outdoor space had the bones of a beautiful garden but had long since lost the luster.
“There was the rockrose and gold coin daisy,” she said. “But they were dead and needed to be pulled out. But some sprouted from seed.”
