Water
The Future of the Colorado
There’s not enough water to go around, but there’s no agreement about what to do.
The Colorado River provides water to 40 million people and about 5.5 million acres of irrigated farmland. There’s only so much water to go around, so how to divide up the water has been hotly disputed for over a century. The previous agreement has come unstuck, but finding a replacement has proved devilishly difficult. I suspect that the Feds would rather avoid this political hot-potato through a state agreement. So far, however, state negotiations haven’t been successful. Maybe the impending threat of a federal mandate will light a fire under the negotiations. Otherwise, we are probably guaranteed years of litigation while the river runs dry.
CONTINUE READINGClimate Issues in the 2026 Governor’s Race: Water
Third in a series of posts outlining key challenges and opportunities facing California’s next governor
California’s next Governor will need to grapple with a complex array of local, state, and regional water issues. Climate change, shifting population dynamics, and a changing economy are stressing California’s water systems and intensifying conflict over water resources. Floods and droughts are becoming more frequent and more severe. And there are no major new sources …
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CONTINUE READINGStuck in the swamp?
Proposed Trump revisions to the definition of “waters of the United States” would reduce wetlands protections, but may (mostly) be required by the Supreme Court.
The Trump Administration has a proposed rule revising the definition of “waters of the United States” for the Clean Water Act (comment period closing on Monday, if you want to get your two cents in). The definition is important (and has been the subject of a lot of litigation) because it defines the scope of …
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CONTINUE READINGEveryday Christmas: The Gift of the Commons
Clean air. Clean water. We receive these public goods every day without payment
One of the Christmas classics is the Jimmy Stewart movie, It’s a Wonderful Life. George Bailey, Stewart’s character, is despondent about his life until he learns how much he has unknowingly helped others and how grateful they are. It’s heartwarming, if also a bit corny. There’s a flip side to that story: the need to remember …
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CONTINUE READINGEliminate the Imperial Irrigation District?
Not yet, but maybe soon: a new UCLA report shows how Big Ag water agencies are robbing the rest of the state blind
This should come as no surprise to anyone who has studied water in the West: In a new study, researchers analyzed wholesale prices charged by the federal government in California, Arizona and Nevada, and found that large agricultural water agencies pay only a fraction of what cities pay, if anything at all. They said these …
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CONTINUE READINGReplumbing Los Angeles – Painfully Slowly
The City has captured 5.5 billion gallons of stormwater since October 1st — and that is literally just a drop in the bucket.
This caught my attention last week: The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power says it has captured nearly 5.5 billion gallons of water since Oct. 1 following the recent storms. Mayor Karen Bass’ office announced the estimate on Tuesday, saying it’s enough to serve almost 68,000 homes for an entire year. According to …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Promise and Growing Pains of Managed Aquifer Recharge
By Dave Owen, Helen E. Dahlke, Andrew T. Fisher, Ellen Bruno, and Michael Kiparsky
Around the world, groundwater mismanagement is a major driver of water crises. An emerging method for addressing such mismanagement, called managed aquifer recharge, has generated excitement among scholars and water managers. In a newly published article (Owen et al. 2025), we argue that this excitement, while often justified, should also be tempered by acknowledgment …
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CONTINUE READINGHow broad does Clean Water Act 401 certification sweep?
Recent disputes over infrastructure projects highlights the importance of the question
Another issue for ping-pong governance over the past few years has been certification under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act. For those of you who are not deep into the weeds of the Clean Water Act, Section 401 requires (a) federal agencies that are issuing licenses or permits that (b) result in discharges to …
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CONTINUE READINGFirst Monday? More Like ‘First Moanday.’
Since conservatives got a supermajority on the Supreme Court, it’s been on an anti-environmental tear.
Never say never. Maybe someday the Court will surprise us with a big win for the environment. But it would be foolish to count on that. We can also hope that the Court will do other good things, such as reining in Trump’s executive overreach. But it would be foolish to count on the Court to take a stand in favor of environmental protection.
CONTINUE READINGOwens Valley Redux: Los Angeles was Right
Far from a theft, the decision to divert water to Los Angeles made economic, environmental, and equitable sense.
I have a new piece out in The Urban Lawyer about the Owens Valley that might be of interest to Legal Planet readers. Here is an abstract: Everyone knows that Los Angeles stole its water from the Owens Valley, creating environmental devastation and a legacy of rapacity. It is such a commonplace that it needs …
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