A wrap-up of posts published on Maven’s Notebook this week …
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In California water news this week …
Trump’s quiet truce on California water
“President Donald Trump promised to break California’s water rules wide open. So far, he’s mostly working within them. Five months after Trump issued a pair of directives for federal agencies to overturn state and Biden-era rules limiting water deliveries, the federal government has done no such thing. Instead, it’s quietly increasing water flows following the very rules Trump once railed against — at least for now. … It’s also a sharp contrast to Trump’s campaign rhetoric, when he vowed to force Newsom to reverse a lawsuit blocking his first-term effort to loosen environmental protections in the state’s main water hub, the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. But Trump seems mollified now, declaring victory over the state at a White House event last week. The president brought up the familiar theme of water flowing out to the Pacific Ocean instead of being used in farms and cities, called it “ridiculous” and declared of the water: “We got them to take it now.” … ” Read more from Politico.
The Water Blueprint and Trump’s Executive Order 14181
“The Water Blueprint for the San Joaquin Valley met in person at Fresno State University’s Jordan Agricultural Research Center and on Zoom on Wednesday, June 18, 2025. We’re beginning to hear more and more about the “Water Blueprint” here in the San Joaquin Valley. It’s a volunteer organization working to identify and prioritize plans and projects that will help secure better water supplies for all the people of the San Joaquin Valley. It’s a fairly inclusive bunch. Ag interests are of course represented and those interests include rural Disadvantaged Communities, DACs, environmental concerns. The big take away for this meeting was the Blueprint adopting a proposal on how to implement Executive Orders and both Trump and Newsom Administrations’ concern for a more equitable distribution of water throughout the state. … ” Read more from Water Wrights.
Outcome of Joint Legislative Audit Committee hearing on the Delta Conveyance Project audit has both sides claiming victory
“Yesterday, the Joint Legislative Audit Committee met and took up the request for an audit of the Delta Conveyance Project. According to Courthouse News, the committee on Wednesday didn’t have enough members present to approve the audit, but its expected the committee will again examine the issue in July or August. According to the Sacramento Bee, “Despite six lawmakers voting to approve the audit, no one made a vocal endorsement. The proposal failed because it didn’t receive the votes necessary from the state Senate side. At least four votes are necessary from both houses on the joint committee.” Nonetheless, both sides claimed victory. Here are the reactions from Californians for Water Security, Restore the Delta, and the State Water Contractors.” Read more from Maven’s Notebook.
Lawmakers to revisit Delta Conveyance Project audit
Restore the Delta writes, “Lawmakers on the Joint Legislative Audit Committee (JLAC) are set to reconsider a full audit of the Department of Water Resources’ spending on the Delta Conveyance Project (DCP) at an upcoming hearing. The vote for the audit received six “aye” votes and only a single vote against it in what Assemblymember Rhodesia Ransom called the most significant and consequential topic for discussion at the committee’s Tuesday hearing. The DWR is currently estimated to be spending $1 million per day on the DCP amidst a myriad of issues including expired water rights, growing legal and environmental concerns as well as broad opposition from tribes, environmental justice groups and fishing communities. Projected construction costs for the DCP are expected to exceed $20 billion, before accounting for inflation or unforeseen expenses. To proceed, the audit needs four votes from Assemblymembers and four votes from Senators on the committee. The audit received strong support from the committee’s Assemblymembers, with a single present member abstaining. Senate members voted with two in support, three abstaining and one no. … ” Read more from Restore the Delta.
Diverting flood flows – Details on the opportunity to utilize wasted water
“Earlier this year, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order (EO) N-16-25. That order is designed to facilitate the diversion and storage of flood flows and aligns with the Governor’s broader water supply strategy, which is focused on attacking the misalignment between water supply and demand while also factoring in the impacts of climate change. But the questions remain: will it be effective and will there be any unintended consequences? One key aspect of EO N-16-25 is that it waives a part of Water Code section 1242.1 that required a regional or local agency to have adopted a local flood control plan or to have considered flood risk in its most recent general plan. That water code section was created in 2023 by Senate Bill 122. It provides that the diversion of floodflows does not require an appropriation right as long as it meets certain conditions. Those conditions include the waived one, public notice, and the use of existing infrastructure. … ” Read more from Nossaman.
Proposed new groundwater fee structure has Tulare County farmers crying foul
“Tulare County farmers are incensed by a proposed new fee structure that they say will put the entire burden of state groundwater oversight across the San Joaquin Valley solely on their shoulders. It costs the state Water Resources Control Board about $5.5 million a year to oversee six basins in the San Joaquin Valley that have been found to have inadequate groundwater plans as part of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). Two of those subbasins have been placed on probation, under which farmers are required to pay fees to reimburse the state for those oversight costs. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
Enviros, utilities and tech bros walk into a data center
“For a state that considers itself a leader in both tech and climate, California is falling behind in both building data centers and putting guardrails around their environmental impacts. Democrats in Sacramento are taking cues from lawmakers in Indiana, Ohio and West Virginia as they explore special electricity rates for data centers aimed at controlling costs for other customers. They’re also weighing new energy reporting standards to better understand the supercomputers’ impacts on California’s electric grid. Those proposals come as electric utilities are embracing data centers as a potential business savior that promises to increase electrical demand several fold after an era of energy efficiency. “This trend is absolutely real for us,” Pacific Gas and Electric CEO Patti Poppe said during the utility’s most recent quarterly earnings call in April. “This will be so beneficial for our customers.” … ” Read more from Politico.
Q&A: Snow droughts imperil the American West’s water supply
“In recent years, scientists and water managers have started using the term “snow drought” to describe meager snowpacks in the American West. A snow drought can come about in two main ways. A “dry” snow drought happens when not enough snow falls, leading to a diminished snowpack. A “warm” snow drought occurs when precipitation is near or above normal, but higher temperatures cause raindrops to fall instead of snowflakes, or when warm weather causes the snowpack to shrink rapidly. Because a lack of snow has such profound implications for the West’s water supply, wildfire risk, recreational activities and ecosystem health, the federal government now regularly tracks the severity of snow drought across the region. The reports rely on data from hundreds of SNOTEL stations—a network of automated sensors that use “snow pillows” to weigh the snowpack and calculate its water content—but federal budget cuts may hamper that system going forward. To learn more about snow droughts, I recently spoke with one of the authors of those reports: Dan McEvoy, regional climatologist at the Western Regional Climate Center and the Desert Research Institute. … ” Read more from The Water Desk.
Partnering with tribes to restore a Delta wetland: Benefits go both ways
“Five years ago, Plains Miwok cultural practitioner Don Hankins got a surprising invitation from Russ Ryan, a project manager at the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. The agency owns four islands in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, including one called Webb Tract, and Ryan asked Hankins for help stewarding them from an Indigenous perspective. Hankins was skeptical at first. Metropolitan gets much of its water via the Delta, and he had seen the impact of such water exports firsthand as a child. His family had a place on Old River near Clifton Court Forebay, an expanse of open water near a pumping station that pulls water south from the Delta. “I could see sturgeon and other fish entrained in the forebay,” Hankins recalls. But Hankins feels a deep-rooted responsibility toward the Delta. He was also moved when Ryan visited him at California State University Chico, where he’s a professor of geography and planning. On a walk in Big Chico Creek Ecological Reserve, the pair forged a partnership that included bringing tribes into planning a new wetland on Webb Tract from the very beginning. “It’s a game changer,” says Hankins, noting that this is the first time tribes have been integral to a restoration project in the Delta. … ” Read more from Maven’s Notebook.
How changing ocean colors could impact California
“Earth’s oceans have been getting greener at the poles and becoming bluer closer to the equator, according to a study published Thursday in Science. The shift reflects changes in marine ecosystems, which experts say could affect fish populations and create problems for fisheries, including in California. “It has lots of potential implications for the way we use the ocean,” said Raphael Kudela, a professor of ocean sciences at UC Santa Cruz, who wasn’t part of the new study. The scientists analyzed satellite data from 2003 to 2022 to track ocean concentrations of chlorophyll, a green pigment that phytoplankton use to absorb sunlight and produce sugars. While phytoplankton are often associated with harmful algal blooms, they are also the base of the marine food web, serving as food for fish and other sea creatures. … ” Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle.
US critical networks are prime targets for cyberattacks. They’re preparing for Iran to strike.
“The organizations representing critical networks that keep the lights on, the water running and transportation systems humming across the U.S. are bracing for a possible surge of Iranian cyberattacks. Virtually every critical infrastructure sector is on high alert amid a deepening conflict between Iran and Israel, though no major new cyber threat activity has been publicly reported so far. As these groups proactively step up their defenses, it’s unclear whether Washington is coordinating with them on security efforts — a change from prior moments of geopolitical unrest, when federal agencies have played a key role in sounding the alarm. “Iranian cyber activity has not been as extensive outside of the Middle East but could shift in light of the military actions,” said John Hultquist, chief analyst for Google Threat Intelligence Group. … ” Read more from Politico.
In commentary this week …
Trump budget signals long-overdue shift toward pragmatic water management
William Bourdeau, executive vice president of Harris Farms and the owner of Bourdeau Farms, writes, “Over the years, a troubling narrative has taken hold in political circles and media coverage — one that portrays irrigated agriculture in California’s San Joaquin Valley as a misuse of precious water. As someone who has spent decades farming this land and advocating for its future, I can say with certainty that this argument isn’t just misinformed, it’s dangerously disconnected from the realities of how our food system works. Fortunately, times are starting to change. The pendulum is beginning to swing back toward common sense, and the voices of those who understand the importance of agriculture are finally being heard. California’s Central Valley is one of the most productive agricultural regions in the world. We feed America. Yet, under the guise of environmental protection, the federal and state governments have systemically restricted water deliveries to farms, even in wet years with ample precipitation and full reservoirs. This is not a water shortage problem; it is a policy failure. … ” Read more from the Modesto Bee.
U.S. water infrastructure is crumbling: It’s time to revitalize it
“In an age defined by self-driving cars, autonomous spacecraft, and artificial intelligence, it may come as no surprise that the science of effective water management often goes unnoticed. Many of us—especially in the U.S.—have grown accustomed to the convenience of clean, reliable water, and often take it for granted. In fact, most Americans engage with the U.S. water system only via a series of fleeting touch points—when they turn a faucet, water their lawn, or start their dishwasher—and have come to expect a seamless experience. And yet, behind the scenes, there is a complex, intricate network dedicated to providing safe and dependable water to hundreds of millions of Americans. But over the past several years, faced with unrelenting pressure, that system has started to crack. … ” Read more from Fast Company.
What it was like reporting on toxic drinking water at my prison, Mule Creek
D. “Razor” Babb, founding editor-in-chief of The Mule Creek Post, a newspaper published out of Mule Creek State Prison, where he is incarcerated, writes, “This May, the results of a two-year investigation into drinking water contamination at Mule Creek State Prison in Ione was published by the online criminal justice publication The Appeal and the nonprofit newsroom Type Investigations. This story began as I watched my cellmate (we are both incarcerated at Mule Creek) drop nearly 50 pounds in about three months. Acute pain in his side sent him to an outside hospital, where he was ultimately diagnosed with kidney cancer. Doctors couldn’t tell my cellmate the cause of his cancer, but the prevalence of others who complained of thyroid, kidney, liver and epidermal illnesses since arriving at Mule Creek was alarming. Many were suspicious that the water was the source of their illnesses. Prison officials have adamantly denied the allegations and assured us the water is safe. So began a unique reporting experience as an incarcerated journalist. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee.
In regional water news this week …
First time in 100 years: Young kayakers on a ride for the ages
“The remote and rugged Klamath River in Oregon and California, one of the mightiest in the American West and an ancient lifeline to Indigenous tribes, is running free again, mostly, for the first time in 100 years after the recent removal of four major dams. At the burbling aquifer near Chiloquin, Ore., that is considered the headwaters, a sacred spot for native people, a group of kayakers, mostly Indigenous youth from the river’s vast basin began to paddle on Thursday. Ages 13 to 20, they had learned to kayak for this moment. Stroke by stroke, mile by mile, day by day, they plan to reach the salty water of the rugged Northern California coast, more than 300 miles away, in mid-July. … ” Read more from the New York Times.
Siskiyou County talks economic impact of drought regulations
“Local leaders and economic stakeholders gathered to address the ongoing impact of emergency drought regulations on Northern California’s agricultural economy. The meeting, hosted by the Siskiyou Economic Development Council, focused on a draft plan assessing the effects of water curtailment in the region. “We raise the food that people eat, and we need water to do it. That’s the bottom line,” said Mark Mezzano, a field representative for Assemblymember Heather Hadwick. Years of drought have led to agricultural water restrictions, and the state legislature is considering Assembly Bill 263, which could extend these restrictions. Dr. Robert Eyler, founder of Economic Forensics & Analytics Inc., shared insights on the potential economic impact. … ” Read more from Action News Now.
North Coast Water Board makes historic move with vineyards to protect water quality, safeguard aquatic life
“The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board voted to approve a first-of-its-kind order to protect waterways, groundwater and aquatic species by regulating waste discharge for about 65,000 acres of vineyards. Known as the General Waste Discharge Requirements for Commercial Vineyards, the regulations are a major step forward in the effort to protect water resources from adverse impacts that commercial cultivation of winegrapes might cause. During storms, bare soil in vineyards can erode and contribute excess sediment to local rivers, which harms fish. The order establishes water quality regulations for owners and operators of commercial vineyards and requires them to implement on-farm practices to prevent or control discharges of sediment, nutrients and pesticides to surface water and groundwater. Requirements in the order will go into effect when vineyards begin enrolling under the order in July 2028. … ” Read more from the North Coast Regional Water Board.
New Vina GSA fee structure distinguishes residents, farmers, vacant parcels
“The Vina Groundwater Sustainability Agency adopted a new fee structure announced Friday for residents located in the 184,917 acre subbasin, which encompasses Chico and surrounding areas. The new fee schedule reflects the agency’s budget of $779,700 for 2025 to 2026, and now separates fees for different use types in the Vina GSA area to help pay for continued annual reporting and data management requirements by the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. Vina GSA Program Manager Dillon McGregor said the new fee structure is divided into two parts: the first part funds governance needed to maintain the agency, and the second part funds groundwater monitoring and projects. … ” Read more from the Chico Enterprise-Record.
Maximizing habitat for our Central Valley wildlife refuges
“As part of our ongoing commitment to restoring the Sacramento Valley’s floodplains and reviving essential ecological functions, we’re excited to share an updated summary document outlining the critical water and infrastructure funding needed for Central Valley wildlife refuges. Now available, this update reflects the latest cost estimates, water needs, and—perhaps most exciting—completed projects since the original 2020 release. Collaboratively developed with experts from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Reclamation, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Ducks Unlimited, and more, this document is a key resource for guiding state and federal funding decisions. It also highlights the significant strides being made toward meeting the habitat goals laid out in the Central Valley Joint Venture Implementation Plan. Together with ricelands and managed wetlands, these refuges are critical to the survival of thousands of species along the Pacific Flyway, supporting birds and wildlife that rely on our region’s unique natural resources. … ” Read more from the Northern California Water Association.
‘Not improving’: Lake Tahoe had one of its murkiest years on record
“Lake Tahoe’s iconic blue waters were the third murkiest on record last year and the worst they’ve been in several years, according to data from scientists who have studied the lake for decades. Clarity of the alpine lake — measured by dropping a white disk into the water and noting when it disappears from sight — is a signal of its overall health. Tiny particles are major culprits of reduced clarity, including the sediment and other pollutants that wash into the lake from runoff and air pollution and the plankton that grow in its waters. Researchers with UC Davis’ Tahoe Environmental Research Center reported today that the average murkiness in 2024 was exceeded only in 2021, when fires blanketed the lake in smoke and ash, and in 2017, when the lake was clouded by sediment-laden runoff during a near-record wet year. The report says that clarity levels are “highly variable and generally not improving,” and recommends that “future research should focus on examining the nature of the particles that affect water clarity.” … ” Read more from UC Davis.
Robot, volunteers, and science power new push to keep Kings Beach and the Tahoe Basin clean
“A real-life Wall-E is hitting the beaches–but this one’s mission is to keep trash from overshadowing Tahoe’s natural beauty. A solar-powered robot rolled onto the sand at Kings Beach on Monday, June 16, officially kicking off an expanded effort to tackle shoreline litter at one of Lake Tahoe’s busiest public beaches. The robot—known as the BEBOT—is the centerpiece of the newly expanded Tahoe Blue Beach Program, a multi-year initiative led by Marilee Movius, Sustainable Recreation Manager at the League to Save Lake Tahoe (Keep Tahoe Blue). Developed in partnership with ECO-CLEAN Solutions, the Desert Research Institute (DRI), and other community organizations, the project is funded through TOT-TBID Dollars at Work grants from the North Tahoe Community Alliance. The program aims to address the region’s growing waste problem by integrating science, education, engineering, and enforcement. … ” Read more from the Sierra Sun.
Why did ponds at Santa Rosa’s Juilliard Park suddenly turn bright blue?
“Santa Rosa city workers were puzzled last week when the murky ponds at Juilliard Park suddenly turned a vivid, unnatural blue. The transformation was discovered June 10, prompting an investigation by the city’s Recreation and Parks Department. Staff soon found a one-gallon bottle of Aquashade dye — an aquatic colorant that tints water and suppresses algae growth — discarded in a nearby trash can, city spokesperson Kristi Buffo said. While the mystery remains unsolved, city environmental specialists tested the water and determined the dye poses no significant harm to fish or plant life. They’ve recommended letting the color fade naturally over time. Still, officials are treating the act as vandalism, “whether well intentioned or not,” Buffo said. “Staff will continue to monitor the ponds and if the situation changes resulting in lasting damage, further action will be pursued,” she said. … ” Read more from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat.
South Bay sport fish not such good eating
“Long ago, the quiet shores of southern San Francisco Bay featured rich wetlands, streams thick with salmon and steelhead, and a bounty of other fishes and invertebrates which fed wildlife and people alike. Perhaps more than anything else, there was clean water. But after nearly two centuries of Western occupation and the steady pollution that has become a signature of our time, the South Bay has become a toxic sink. Fish still live here, and people still catch and eat species like striped bass, white croaker and leopard shark, but emerging research suggests they should reduce their portions. In a study published in May, sport fish captured in a remote backwater between Alviso and Milpitas called Artesian Slough topped the charts for concentrations of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. Other sites in the South Bay also ranked high in contamination for multiple species of frequently eaten fish – especially common carp, largemouth bass, leopard shark, shiner surfperch and striped bass – with some of the same species showing lower PFAS concentrations in the northern realms of San Francisco Bay. … ” Read more from Maven’s Notebook.
A gold mining company wants to destroy a remote, wild expanse of Calif. Locals are fighting it.
“Environmental advocates and local tribes in Inyo County are rallying against a proposed gold mining project that threatens to upend an expanse of California’s high desert near Death Valley National Park. Nestled in the Inyo Mountains, east of the Sierra Nevada and near the storied ghost town of Cerro Gordo, Conglomerate Mesa is a rugged stretch of land that boasts a thriving desert ecosystem and rich cultural history. Much of the 22,500-acre mesa has been a sacred ceremonial and harvesting ground for the Paiute and Shoshone tribes of the Owens Valley for thousands of years, and the area also acts as a climate refuge for sensitive plant species like Joshua trees and the vulnerable Inyo rock daisy, according to Olivia Tanager, director of the Sierra Club’s Toiyabe Chapter. “As climate change worsens, we’re going to need to rely on places at higher elevations like Conglomerate Mesa to make sure Joshua trees don’t go extinct,” Tanager told SFGATE. “So it’s both a climate refuge and a sacred landscape.” … ” Read more from SF Gate.
Meeting notes: Kern districts approve groundwater plan amendments
“Agricultural water districts in the Kern groundwater subbasin began approving amendments to the region’s groundwater sustainability plan this month in anticipation of resubmitting it to the state Water Resources Control Board by June 20. The Arvin-Edison, Wheeler Ridge-Maricopa and North Kern water storage districts, along with the Cawelo Water District, acting as groundwater sustainability agencies (GSAs), approved the latest plan amendments. The amendments focus on improving groundwater levels, greater protections for drinking water wells and more community engagement. The subbasin has had several meetings with state Water Board staff to work through questions the state board may have. Meanwhile, it was reported at the Wheeler Ridge-Maricopa, Cawelo, and North Kern board meetings that the Henry Miller GSA has been having its own meetings on the side with state board staff. … ” Read more from SJV Water.
Endangered fish saved from the Palisades fire were just returned to their Malibu home
“Hundreds of tiny endangered fish slipped from orange plastic buckets into a glittering lagoon in Malibu on Tuesday, returning home five months after being whisked away from threats wrought by the Palisades fire. The repatriation of more than 300 northern tidewater gobies — led by the Resource Conservation District of the Santa Monica Mountains — marked a peaceful moment in a region still reeling from the aftermath of wildfires and now in turmoil due to federal immigration raids. “In this time of total madness in our world and total upheaval in our environment, there’s not many moments when we get a chance to do something as hopeful as bringing the gobies back to their home,” Rosi Dagit, principal conservation biologist for the conservation district, told attendees of a small ceremony. … ” Read more from the LA Times.
SEE ALSO: Hundreds of endangered fish returned to habitat after Palisades Fire rescue, from KTLA
Trump admin eyes Mojave Desert groundwater as potential source for arid Arizona
“The situation on the Colorado River — the water supply for 40 million Westerners and half of all Californians — is dire. The waterway’s flows have shrunk 20 percent since the turn of the century and climate scientists say it’s not unreasonable to think that another 20 percent could be lost in the coming decades. To cities, farmers, tribes and industries from Wyoming to Mexico — but especially in legally vulnerable Arizona — that looks like pain. To the Los Angeles-based water company Cadiz Inc., that looks like opportunity. After trying and failing for more than two decades to pump ancient groundwater from beneath the Mojave Desert and sell it to Southern California water districts, the controversial company has set its sights on new customers over the border in the Grand Canyon State. … ” Read more from Politico.
SEE ALSO: Colorado River crunch gives Cadiz an opening, from Politico
An ‘amicable divorce’ proposed in Colorado River negotiations
“New details are emerging of what’s being negotiated between the seven states who rely on the Colorado River — an “amicable divorce” between the Upper and Lower Basins. At a meeting of a council made up of farmers, ranchers and other Colorado River water users here, the head of the Colorado River Authority of Utah disclosed some of what was being negotiated. “We have not agreed to anything yet,” Colorado River Authority of Utah Executive Director Amy Haas cautioned. “This, however, seems to be the one option that has the most traction in terms of getting a seven state proposal.” … ” Read more from Fox 13.
Colorado River water market could help fish and farmers alike
“A market-based approach to managing water in the Colorado River basin could provide more reliable supplies for farmers, communities, and industry amid ongoing drought and excess demand. The right market design and a little extra investment could also help threatened fish species, researchers have found. The study, published June 20 in Nature Sustainability, details a new system for leasing rights to water from the basin while reallocating some water to imperiled habitats. When the seven states of the Colorado River basin first divided water rights in the 1920s, they allocated more than the river could reliably deliver, especially during periods of drought. Today, the basin supplies drinking water to 40 million people and irrigation to 5 million acres of farmland across the southwestern United States, 30 tribal nations, and parts of Mexico. Climate change has exacerbated shortages, with studies indicating that recent Colorado River flows are near their lowest in at least 2,000 years. “The Colorado River is a marvel in terms of the scale of its impact on ecosystems, agriculture, economies, and people across the western U.S. and Mexico,” said Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability hydrologist Steven Gorelick, a senior author of the new study. “Given the overallocation of the river water, we explored how the needs of people and the environment can both be served.” … ” Read more from Stanford News.
