OPINION: A Test Of California’s Commitment To Groundwater Sustainability

Throughout California, access to water and how it is distributed is a perennial issue. Water conflicts are often nuanced and take on a life of their own. In some cases, a local conflict can have statewide implications — the City of Marina, a small city along the shores of Monterey Bay, finds itself in such a conflict. In 2009, the California State Water Resources Control Board ordered the private, for-profit California American Water Company to end its illegal water diversions from the Carmel River.