By Charles Carner, HPC/WellJet®
Everyone who didn’t graduate from the Zohran Mamdani School of Economics knows that California water policies have been largely insane and extremely destructive. A fanatical desire to protect obscure bait fish and tear down dams to protect salmon runs has badly harmed our farmers who feed the world, while helping our finned friends not at all. Millions of acre feet of liquid gold are annually flushed out to sea, while the price humans pay for water skyrockets and supplies dwindle.
In a state obsessed with sustainability, this isn’t remotely sustainable.
Will the Golden State change course before it is too late, or – like much of Western Europe – join the kamikaze parade to Third World wasteland oblivion?
Those of us whose livelihoods depend on water (not just our lives!) watch the signs. And lately, the signs have been promising:
The long-stalled Sites Reservoir is moving closer to reality. Close to $1.5 billion in funding has been secured. The project’s environmental review process has been affirmed. Construction is scheduled to begin next year – as long as the State Water Resources Control Board issues a permit, which is likely. Sites will significantly increase California’s woefully inadequate surface water storage capacity.
The Delta Conveyance Project is inching ahead, with some funding and environmental approvals. Some permits may be issued as early as next year.
The heavy rains of the past few winters have led to improvements in many of the state’s groundwater basins, where aquifer levels have come up and subsidence has lessened. More aggressive recharge efforts, particularly at the Tulare and Fresno Irrigation Districts, have captured many thousands of acre-feet of water that might previously have been lost to evaporation.
Leadership at the Department of Water Resources has shown an excellent grasp of the scale, urgency and complexities of California’s water policy problems. If this awareness trickles down to staff level execution, positive change may occur.
Finally, the federal government has made a decisive shift toward pragmatic, common-sense water management. Strong efforts are being made to streamline permitting for critical water infrastructure and cut much of the regulatory red tape that has been strangling process for a long time.
None of this means that California’s water problems – and water policy problems – have been solved. Many difficulties lie ahead. But for the first time in a long time, the trend is positive.
A nation that cannot feed itself cannot defend itself. Water for agriculture = food security = national security. California is the most important agricultural state in the union. Our farmers have been neglected for too long. Water policy decision makers seem to finally realize this. And that’s good news!
Charles Carner is President of WellJet® ccarner@welljethpc.com WellJet® (US Patent No. 8,312,930 B1) provides high-pressure hydrojetting services for water well development and rehabilitation. http://www.welljetbyhpc.com
DISCLAIMER OF RESPONSIBILITY; Waterwrights.net strives to provide its clients with the most complete, up-to-date, and accurate information available. Nevertheless, Waterwrights.net does not serve as a guarantor of the accuracy or completeness of the information provided, and specifically disclaims any and all responsibility for information that is not accurate, up-to-date, or complete. Waterwrights.net’s clients therefore rely on the accuracy, completeness and timeliness of information from Waterwrights.net entirely at their own risk. The opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not represent any advertisers or third parties.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Copyright 2025 by WaterWrights.net
