As California continues to experience its fourth year of drought conditions, the end of the summer does not signal the end of water management challenges for water resources managers in the Sacramento Valley. As we enter into the fall and winter months, a partnership of water management entities, conservation organizations and California Rice are pursuing numerous options to increase the available habitat for birds that are beginning to arrive in the region. The objective is to provide as much diverse and productive habitat spread throughout the region to help the birds in their annual migration and to avoid avian diseases.

El Niño has been in the news, associated with Godzilla, Bruce Lee and many other colorful terms. While interesting, the thought and prospect of very wet conditions on the heels of a four year drought is not new to the Sacramento Valley and is very real to those working out on the ground. Water resources … Continue reading “The Sacramento Valley Approach to Water Management in the Face of El Niño”

A recent study conducted by scientists with University of California, Davis and the University of California Cooperative Extension investigated the value deliberate winter flooding of fields during rainy years would have in recharging groundwater in California. According to the study, areas of open land that can be dedicated to groundwater recharge are scarce, but “Flooding agricultural land during fallow or dormant periods has the potential to increase groundwater recharge substantially….”

There are many perspectives on climate change and its potential impact on California’s water supplies. A recent article looks at whether California’s water right system is able to adjust to any shifting water supplies that result from changes in climate. In The effects of global climate change on the California water rights system, Stuart Somach and Jonathan Schutz explore how California water law will hold up under the predicted climate change scenarios.