California governor outlines water strategy for hotter, drier state

Hotter and drier weather conditions spurred by climate change could reduce California’s water supply by up to 10% by the year 2040, according to state officials. In an Aug. 11 address at the Antioch Brackish Desalination Project, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the state's latest actions to increase water supply and adapt to more extreme weather patterns caused by climate change.

The announcement follows $8 billion in state investments over the last two years to help store, recycle, de-salt and conserve the water the state will need to keep up with the increasing pace of climate change, generating enough water in the future for more than 8.4 million households by 2040, according to a release from Gavin's office.

The actions, outlined in a strategy document published by the administration called “California’s Water Supply Strategy, Adapting to a Hotter, Drier Future” call for investing in new sources of water supply, accelerating projects and modernizing how the state manages water through new technology.

“The best science tells us that we need to act now to adapt to California’s water future. Climate change means drought won’t just stick around for two years at a time like it historically has — extreme weather is the new normal here in the American West, and California will adapt to this new reality,” Newsom said in Antioch. “California is launching an aggressive plan to rebuild the way we source, store and deliver water so our kids and grandkids can continue to call California home in this hotter, drier climate.”

California takes action

To help make up for the water supplies California could lose over the next two decades, the strategy prioritizes actions to capture, recycle, de-salt and conserve more water. According to a release, these actions include:

• Creating storage space for up to 4 million acre-feet of water, which would allow California to capitalize on big storms when they do occur and store water for dry periods;
• Recycling and reusing at least 800,000 acre-feet of water per year by 2030, enabling better and safer use of wastewater currently discharged to the ocean;
• Freeing up 500,000 acre-feet of water through more efficient water use and conservation, helping make up for water lost because of climate change; and
• Making new water available for use by capturing stormwater and desalinating ocean water and salty water in groundwater basins, diversifying supplies, and making the most of high flows during storm events.

Industry leaders applaud strategy

Industry leaders, including Western Growers and the California Fresh Fruit Association, are praising the water strategy.

“We applaud Gov. Newsom’s bold and comprehensive water infrastructure and management strategy,” said Western Growers President and CEO Dave Puglia. “Our farms are in distress due to water insecurity, increasingly placing millions of Californians in our agricultural regions at great risk of economic harm.

“To adapt to climate realities, the governor’s plan recognizes the urgent need to build new and improve existing infrastructure and to streamline and improve the practicality of the regulatory processes that govern them. Critically, that means new and expanded surface and groundwater storage to capture wet-year flood flows that are too infrequent to be missed.”

While the statement from Puglia indicated that the Irvine, Calif.-based Western Growers would likely have questions about the water strategy as it unfolds, he added, “We echo the governor’s sense of urgency and look forward to working with his administration in good faith to turn this plan into action.”

The California Fresh Fruit Association, Fresno, Calif., also expressed a desire to work with the Newsom administration to implement the water supply strategy.

“We appreciate the efforts the Newsom administration has taken to address the critical need for water investments to guarantee the continued sustainability of California agriculture,” CFFA President Ian LeMay said in a release. “This plan recognizes the need to expand on existing surface and groundwater infrastructure while streamlining the process to get construction started on new storage projects.

“Every person in our state, nation and world relies on agriculture, and the association appreciates Gov. Newsom’s action to ensure that California continues to be able to have a safe and resilient food supply. Our state and industry cannot survive without a reliable water resource,” added LeMay. “CFFA looks forward to working with the Newsom administration to implement this vital water action plan to address our state’s water supply and prepare for future drought years.”

The actions to capture, recycle, de-salt and conserve more water also appear in the Newsom administration’s Water Resilience Portfolio — the state’s master plan for water released in 2020 — but state officials say they will be expedited “given the urgency of climate-driven changes.”