Announcement | June 22, 2021

Forty Two Percent of Public Water Supply Wells in California’s San Joaquin Valley Vulnerable, Finds New Report

June 22, 2021, Oakland, California – Forty two percent of shallow wells supplying water to community water systems in California’s San Joaquin Valley are vulnerable to going partially or fully dry under the state’s minimum thresholds, finds a new report from the Pacific Institute. Most impacted wells are shallower, and tend to be in disadvantaged communities.  

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Announcement | June 8, 2021

Report Explores Co-Funding Water Management through “Stacked Incentives”

June 8, 2021, Oakland, California – Today the Pacific Institute released a report to help water managers scale “stacked incentives” for water customer incentive programs. The report defines “stacked incentives” as customer incentive programs, including rebates and discounts, technical assistance, and/or education programs, that are co-funded by two or more separate entities to motivate voluntary action on public or private property.

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Announcement | May 28, 2021

May 2021 Newsletter

The monthly newsletter features the Pacific Institute’s research, publications, news about past and upcoming Institute staff outreach efforts, and media coverage of its work and analysis.

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Announcement | May 24, 2021

New Guide Provides Steps to Set Corporate Enterprise Water Targets

May 24, 2021, Oakland, California -- The CEO Water Mandate, along with partners World Resources Institute, the Pacific Institute, CDP, The Nature Conservancy, and WWF today released a new guide on setting water targets at the enterprise level, intended to help companies do their part to address shared water challenges—and to focus their efforts in the right high-priority places.

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Announcement | May 13, 2021

Significant COVID-19 Impacts on Some U.S. Small Community Water Systems, Finds New Report

May 13, Oakland, California -- The COVID-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on some small community water systems in the U.S., finds a new report from the Pacific Institute, the Rural Community Assistance Partnership, and the Rural Community Assistance Corporation. Customer Debt and Lost Revenue: The Financial Impacts of COVID-19 on Small Community Water Systems finds that in some cases small community waster system losses led to these systems operating at a deficit, delaying maintenance and capital projects, or increasing rates for customers, with revenue losses of up to 30%. Providing financial assistance at the federal level would boost small community water system resilience, ensuring access to safe, affordable water for the millions of Americans who rely on these systems.

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Announcement | April 14, 2021

April 2021 Newsletter

The monthly newsletter features the Pacific Institute’s research, publications, news about past and upcoming Institute staff outreach efforts, and media coverage of its work and analysis.

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Announcement | April 9, 2021

California Water System Assessment Will Inform Upcoming Funding Priorities

April 9, 2021, Sacramento, California -- The State Water Resources Control Board announced today the completion of its first-ever comprehensive look at California water systems that are struggling to provide safe drinking water to communities and how to help them. The Pacific Institute contributed to the  Gap Analysis and Appendix D. With criteria for the state’s Human Right to Water list recently expanded, the assessment identifies both failing water systems and those at risk of failing, offering the most in depth view of long-term drinking water safety the state has ever had.

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Announcement | April 1, 2021

President Biden’s Infrastructure Plan Proposes Billions of Dollars in Water Investments

April 1, 2021, Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, President Joe Biden introduced The American Jobs Plan, a $2 trillion proposed infrastructure investment plan for the United States. The plan, framed as a jobs investment and post-pandemic rebuilding strategy, calls for spending on water, energy, transportation, and communications infrastructure, as well as research and development.

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Announcement | March 30, 2021

Analysis Examines Gaps in Funding Solutions for Human Right to Water and At-Risk Drinking Water Systems in California

March 30, 2021, Oakland, California -- The California State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) recently released Gap Analysis for Funding Solutions for Human Right to Water and At-Risk Drinking Water Systems. The white paper provides an overview of the methodology for an upcoming study that will analyze the gap between the funding needs and available funding sources for the Human Right to Water in California, as well as at-risk water systems and domestic wells across the state. The Pacific Institute is currently undertaking this analysis.

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