OPINION: To Prevent Water Shortages, California Must Embrace Desalination

California has long been at the forefront of worldwide environmental leadership. Under our landmark law, Assembly Bill 32, we are slashing greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. We lead the way in recycling, with some of the strictest requirements on earth. Our solar industry is thriving. Silicon Valley is creating the most innovative zero-emissions vehicles ever imagined. And Gov. Gavin Newsom is committed to taking our environmental leadership to the next level. However, in one key respect, California is lagging behind many other parts of the world. Climate change is causing drought and water shortages everywhere, but California has been slow to adopt a solution that over 120 countries are using: desalination.