Growing Returns: Western Water

A “Finding Common Water” rafting excursion developed by EDF and UC Merced was designed to get participants with a stake in California water off our desk chairs and onto rafts, out of the ordinary and into an extraordinary setting — a hot, highly regulated, wild and scenic river —  to push everyone out of their comfort zone and get to work on addressing real water problems.

After months of negotiations, the Arizona Legislature passed a major water spending plan last month with funding for new conservation efforts to address deteriorating water supply conditions. However, for the fourth year in a row, state leaders failed to pass legislation to address unlimited groundwater pumping, missing an opportunity to enable a water secure future for 1.5 million rural residents and the state as a whole.

These are the three key things that successful applications had in common.

As Colorado’s drought worsens with the snowpack melting at a ridiculous rate,  the state Legislature has stepped up by sending two key bills to the governor’s desk to increase funding for water conservation, river health and ecosystem restoration. The new funding will help Colorado take advantage of even more federal infrastructure dollars approved last year […]

What this Water Leadership Institute graduate is doing to move water innovation forward.

The West has to come together to break the cycle of depletion for the sake of the Colorado River.

What makes the Texas Hill Country unique? In my mind, it comes down to one thing: groundwater. It is impossible to overstate the importance of groundwater to this region, because without it, the Hill Country would not be the region we know and love. It is the beauty and abundance of the Hill Country’s water […]

Record-setting high temperatures in the 90s — in April. The driest first three months of the year in California history. Another drought executive order from the governor calling for more water conservation and requiring protection of existing groundwater wells. These are all signs that the drought is continuing to rear its ugly head in our […]

Across Arizona, the consequences of unlimited groundwater pumping are becoming untenable for many communities. In response, Arizona state Rep. Regina Cobb, R-Kingman, has introduced legislation, for the third year in a row, to enable rural communities to manage their groundwater through a new opt-in program called Rural Management Areas (RMAs). Although the bill again did […]

This project is an example of what can be funded through California's new Multibenefit Land Repurposing Program.

This year, farmers in Pinal County, Arizona, will lose two-thirds of their irrigation water from the Colorado River because of a historic shortage declaration triggered by the driest period in more than 1,000 years. And within two years, they will be completely cut off from the Colorado River. Some farmers are responding by fallowing fields. […]

How California’s new Multibenefit Land Repurposing Program aims to ensure communities and farmers are more involved in land and water use planning by making their engagement a requirement for funding recipients.

Why this new program is so critical to San Joaquin Valley's water.

Arizona needs to protect groundwater for all Arizonans, not just the ones who can drill the deepest.

Legislation to protect rural Arizona groundwater has stalled for two years but Arizonans across the state have spoken: It’s time to move forward on a vote to protect this vital natural resource.

Last February, Texans got a terribly clear view of the fragility of their state’s water infrastructure, as a statewide freeze left millions of Texans without heat or electricity and almost half of the state’s population lost water. This event provided a stark reminder of what’s at stake. The state’s 2022 water plan estimates that more […]

Protecting Texas’ vulnerable groundwater supplies raises a challenging dilemma: How can you motivate people to stand up for an underground resource they cannot see? So, we made a video to bring this vital resource to life.

Groundwater management in Texas is headed in the wrong direction, but groundwater agencies have the authorities and tools to reverse this alarming trajectory.

With the Grand Canyon Protection Act, Congress has an opportunity to help safeguard a global treasure and its waters while advancing environmental justice.

It’s critical we prepare now to capture and store water during shorter, intense wet periods so that more water is available during the inevitable increasingly severe drought years ahead.