In Rod Smith’s post on April 2nd, he predicts that the final 2014 allocation from the State Water Project will be 23%, with “a reasonable chance that the final SWP allocation will be zero.” Although the rains in February were kind to California’s most-parched areas, the major storm did not help much towards reversing the severe drought conditions that the Central Valley farming areas face. However, in the Southeastern portion of the state along the Colorado River, the water crisis seems much less dire. For now, the Colorado River has given Arizona and the portions of California that have access to it water supplies without interruption – a marked contrast to the areas of California that rely on the State Water Project. But why is this the case, and for how long can the Colorado supply water reliably? In this piece, I will address both of these issues. Continue reading
Category Archives: Supply Reliability
Rethinking California’s Water Industry: Part 2—Think Risk Management Not Reliability of State and Federal Projects
Time to change our use of language about California’s State Water Project and the Central Valley Project. Out with the old (supply reliability) and in with the new (risk management of water shortages).
Rethinking California’s Water Industry: Part 1—a Zero State Water Project Allocation World
California’s State Water Project is the backbone of the California economy. The recent declaration of a zero water allocation for 2014 has exposed the California economy’s vulnerability to decades of political gridlock and ineffective water agency action. Last Friday’s announced allocations for the federal Central Valley Project piled on. Unless changes are made promptly to California’s “water culture”, look for California growth to come to a screeching halt. To quote Reverend Wright (admittedly out of context), “California, the chickens have come home to roost.” Continue reading
Will the Aid Packages for California Help to Dampen the Impact of the Drought?
In the last week, President Barrack Obama and Jerry Brown have rolled out drought relief packages. Pundits have expressed their opinions both for and against these packages, and they have also used these proposals as a venue to opine on everything from the Bay Delta Conservation Plan to Climate Change. Both packages try to address both short-term and long-term issues related to the drought, but will they be successful towards these goals? In this piece I will address the details of both of these measures and how effective I believe they will be towards curbing the drought that California faces. Let’s start first with the President’s proposal. Continue reading