Pacific Institute Insights is the staff blog of the Pacific Institute, one of the world’s leading nonprofit research groups on sustainable and equitable management of freshwater resources.
From Source to Tap: Assessing Water Quality in California
Water providers in California face myriad challenges in sustainably providing high quality drinking water to their customers while protecting the natural environment.
Ending Conflicts Over Water
In recent years, a wide range of water-related factors have contributed to political instability, human dislocation and migration, agricultural and food insecurity, and in more and more cases, actual conflict and violence.
How Distributed Water Infrastructure Can Boost Resilience in the Face of COVID-19 and Other Shocks
COVID-19 — and the ensuing economic crisis — is affecting all sectors of society, including water. Across the country, water utilities are facing lower revenues, more unpaid and late water bills, and higher costs to protect essential staff from COVID-19.
Simple Steps for Businesses to Transform Their Landscapes
The Pacific Institute has developed an interactive guide, Sustainable Landscapes in California: A Guidebook for Commercial and Industrial Site Managers, which provides step-by-step help for businesses interested in sustainable landscapes.
Why Should Your Business Be Interested in Nature-Based Solutions for Watersheds?
As large users of natural resources, including water, the private sector has disproportionate impacts and dependencies on natural capital.
Final California Water Resilience Portfolio Released: What’s There, What’s Missing
In January 2020, California state agencies released a draft document meant to signify a new chapter in California water. Now, six months later and after extensive public consultation, the final draft of the Water Resilience Portfolio has arrived.
What Can We Learn from Setting Site Water Targets in South Africa and India?
Setting site water targets is a business imperative to reduce water risk and improve water security. Every water catchment has a unique set of water challenges.
How the Coronavirus Pandemic is Affecting Water Demand
The COVID-19 pandemic has imposed massive health and economic burdens on communities around the world, and no sector of society is going untouched, including the vitally important water sector.
The COVID Crisis is Slashing California’s State Budget. What Does it Mean for Water Management?
It goes without saying that California today, in the throes of the coronavirus pandemic, looks very different from the California of January 2020. Governor Gavin Newsom’s May Revisions to the 2020-2021 state budget reflect this drastic change in circumstance, announcing a $54.3 billion budget deficit and proposing $18 billion in cuts to State funds expenditures.
Water in the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act (“HEROES ACT”): May 2020
The newly proposed House of Representative’s emergency supplemental appropriations bill was just released. Among the $3 trillion dollars it allocates are several provisions related to water and wastewater agencies, residential water use, and agriculture.
Want to Help Fight COVID-19? List Your Organization’s Work on the Water Action Hub
People around the world are told to wash their hands to “flatten the curve” and slow the spread of COVID-19, but what if you don’t have a sink or tap in your home?
How Can the World Avoid the Spread of Future Pandemics?
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought up problems and challenges related to basic sanitation, as this is not only a global health crisis, but also a social crisis that affects the lives of millions of people living in vulnerable situations.
The Environment, Climate, and a Global Pandemic
The 2020 Coronavirus Pandemic is having the unexpected and unintended effect of teaching us lessons about both the vulnerability and the resilience of our natural ecosystems and environment. As of this writing in late April, we are still in the middle of it, with no obvious end in sight, as the virus continues to spread around the world.
On Earth Day, Envisioning Our Shared Future
We don’t inherit the earth from our parents, we borrow it from our children. This saying, commonly attributed to American poet Wendell Berry, reminds us that we are stewards of the earth.
When Utilities Shut Off Water for the Poor, We Are All at Risk
When a household fails to pay its water bill in full for more than a given period of time – typically one or two months – its water service may be shut off by the water utility serving the household.
Stormwater Capture is Undervalued in California
Urban stormwater is an important and undervalued alternative water supply in California. In two recent articles, Pacific Institute researchers examined how to better value urban stormwater capture and incorporate co-benefits provided by this water source.
Corporate Water Stewardship in the Colorado River Basin
The Colorado River Basin is the lifeblood of the West, providing water to more than 40 million people in seven U.S. states and two states in Mexico. Irrigation using Colorado River water generates an estimated $8 billion annually in agricultural products like winter vegetables, cotton, and cattle and dairy. In addition, recreation along the river and its tributary streams (boating, swimming, hiking, camping, etc.) contributes $17 billion per year to local economies.
Pacific Institute Provides Comments on California Water Resilience Portfolio
In January 2020, California state agencies released a draft document meant to signify a new chapter in California water: the Water Resilience Portfolio. The Portfolio was developed in response to Governor Newsom’s Executive Order (N-10-19), which called for a comprehensive strategy to build a climate-resilient water system for the 21st century.
Taps, Toilets, and Good Hygiene: Critical Ingredients for Resilient Agriculture
2019 was a critical year for climate and water. Major events – from hurricanes to droughts and brushfires – highlight that climate’s impacts are being felt now and that the world needs to take action to build resilience while also accelerating action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Insights from COP25: The (Interconnected) Pillars of Water System Transformation
At both major international climate events this year – COP25 in Madrid this month and the Climate Action Summit in New York City in September – there was a clear, resounding message from the environmental community: “We are exactly on track to where we don’t want to go, and change is needed now.” This message, while not new, was spoken this year with unprecedented urgency...
Managing Urban Flooding in the San Francisco Bay Area: From a Concrete Bowl to a Green Sponge
The first fall storm is rolling through the San Francisco Bay Area this week, marking the beginning of the rainy season. While this may mean a reprieve from this season’s wildfires, it also means there’s a new risk: floods. In this post, I dig into the issue of urban flooding – what are the causes, what are the dangers and impacts, and how can we better manage it?
Putting the Water Action Hub into Action in the Apparel Sector
How often do you think about where that new jacket you just bought was made? Or how much water was used to make it? As consumers in this rapidly expanding and globalized world, it is easy to forget the resources that go into making something that we buy with a click in the comfort of our homes.
How to Set Meaningful Site Water Targets
Climate change is impacting all regions of the world, cutting across all sectors of society. It is closely connected to water resources, leading to more floods, droughts, poor water quality, and increased water demand due to higher temperatures – more water is needed for irrigation, drinking water, and industrial cooling.
Salton Sea +20
After decades of false starts and false hopes, progress might finally be within reach for California’s Salton Sea – the state’s largest and most maligned lake. California’s governor and natural resources secretary have demonstrated the commitment and political will needed to construct actual, on-the-ground habitat and dust control projects.
Find Your Partners for Water Sustainability with the Water Action Hub 3.0
For those who don’t know, the Hub is an online collaboration and knowledge sharing platform for water. Or, as we like to say sometimes, it’s a “dating” site for water sustainability partners.
Comparing Apples to Apples: Towards Better Communication Using a Common Language for Water
Coming up with a common language to describe water issues is a must if companies and other stakeholders are to engage in meaningful action. As a precursor to this, in 2014 we collaborated on the publication of the UN Global
4 Reasons Why Urban Landscapes are a Linchpin for Climate Resilience
When it comes to water sustainability and climate resilience, urban outdoor landscapes represent a wealth of opportunity. Outdoor landscapes are a vital component of our cities...
Water Risk Management for the Private Sector
The complexity and local nature of the global water crisis requires collaboration, from community-based organizations to governments to businesses and others. Knowledge of water risks and opportunities can help businesses mitigate those risks and contribute to water security.
Kilimanjaro, Home to a Great Example of Water Stewardship in Action. And the Highest Mountain in Africa.
In Tanzania, between Moshi and Arusha, you come across a small town called Usa River, which is situated on the banks of its namesake: the Usa River, a tributary of the Kikuletwa and then eventually Pangani River.
Can California Shift to Proactive Drought Preparedness?
Precipitation in California is highly variable from year to year, and climate change is increasing this variability. We can expect to see more intense droughts and storms, and rapid shifts from very wet to very dry conditions.
