Search Results

National Geographic ScienceBlogs: Impacts of the California Drought, Part 2: Net Agricultural Income

Last week, the Pacific Institute published the first comprehensive analysis of the impacts of the drought on California crop revenue and agricultural employment through 2014.

National Geographic ScienceBlogs: Impacts of the California Drought: Agriculture

California is in a severe drought – four years long now. But what does the drought really mean for the things we care about: food production, fisheries, industrial activities, rural communities?

Impacts of California’s Ongoing Drought: Agriculture

In 2015, California was in the midst of the most severe drought in nearly 120 years of instrumental record, with far-reaching effects in the state. This report examines the impacts of the drought on California’s agricultural sector through 2014.

Guide for Bringing Integrity to Companies’ Water Stewardship Initiatives: A Framework for Improving Effectiveness and Transparency

Today, the UN Global Compact’s CEO Water Mandate announced the first comprehensive guide on forming multi-stakeholder water stewardship initiatives with integrity.

Huffington Post: The New UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Fresh Water

For 15 years, the world community has worked to achieve a comprehensive set of goals and targets called the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) - launched in 2000 to tackle poverty, economic and environment inequity, and strategies for effective development.

New Data Show California Cities’ Progress towards State-Mandated Conservation Requirements

In response to the Executive Order Governor Brown issued in April, the State Water Resources Control Board adopted an emergency regulation requiring 25% savings in urban water use across the state, with a goal of saving 1.2 million acre-feet over a nine-month period.

Not a Drop to Drink: Dealing with Drought

In 2010, the UN passed a resolution recognizing access to water as a basic human right. The realization of this right is becoming increasingly difficult, as climate change disrupts rainfall and the growing global population places greater demands on this limited resource.

Peter Gleick at Sustainability @Scale 2015

National Geographic ScienceBlogs: Down the Drain: The Power and Potential of Improving Water Efficiency

Debates about water in California, the western U.S., and indeed, worldwide, have traditionally focused on the question of how best to further expand water supply to meet some hypothetical future increase in water demand.

An Independent Scientific Assessment of Well Stimulation in California and Fracking Issue Briefs

This study, prepared by the California Council on Science and Technology in partnership with the Pacific Institute and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, consists of three volumes. It explores well stimulation treatments in California; the risks these technologies pose to water, air, seismic activity, wildlife, plants, and human health; risks by geographic region within the state; and areas where there are information gaps.

Huffington Post: Laudato Si’ and Water: The Vatican’s Encyclical Letter and Global Water Challenges

The official text of the much-anticipated Vatican's Encyclical Letter, "Laudato Si'" was released today. While considerable attention is being devoted to the sections of Pope Francis's new Encyclical related ...

Sea-to-Sea Plans

California’s Salton Sea fast approaches a tipping point, driven by declining inflows and the continued absence of mitigation or restoration projects. Salton Sea import/export plans, often known as “Sea-to-Sea” plans, have been proposed and promoted for more than 30 years to address this challenge.

National Geographic ScienceBlogs: The Future of Desalination in California is Still in the Future: California, Israel, and Australia

It’s only natural that during a crisis we look to single, “silver bullet” technical solutions, after all, they are supposed to be effective against werewolves, witches, and other monsters. For monsters like the ongoing severe California drought, the current favorite silver bullet is seawater desalination.

National Geographic ScienceBlogs: The California Drought: Almonds and the Bigger Picture

California is a wonderful place to grow food. The climate is highly favorable; soils are some of the best in the world, it is located well to serve global distribution markets with major ports and other transportation infrastructure; and normally, some regions are relatively well-watered.

Corporate Water Stewardship in Asia

Huffington Post: Where Does California’s Agricultural Water Go?

Water plays a vital role in California's agricultural sector, using 80% of the water used by humans in the state. In recent months, water challenges imposed by the current severe drought have brought this agricultural water use into the limelight, raising new questions about how the water is used.

California Agricultural Water Use: Key Background Information

California is a key producer of agricultural goods that are consumed all over the world.

Comment Letter on the Status of the Salton Sea Management Program

This comment letters sent to the California State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board) urged the Water Board to direct the Salton Sea Management Program to review and act upon previous recommendations and suggestions, as well as those described in the letter, and to accelerate efforts on behalf of California’s Salton Sea and the people and wildlife who depend on it.

Water Use Trends in the United States

This report analyzes and explains the factors contributing to the positive trend of decreasing water use, and examines the implications for future water demand. National water use remains high, and many freshwater systems are under stress from overuse. Climate change will exacerbate existing challenges, affecting the supply, demand, and quality of the nation’s water resources.

New Data Show California Cities’ Response to Drought Is Highly Uneven

As California heads into its fourth consecutive year of drought, and pronouncements about our water supply are increasingly dire, new data released by the state show that water use and water conservation efforts in cities across the state are highly uneven.

National Geographic ScienceBlog: The Impacts of California’s Drought on Hydroelectricity Production

California’s hottest and driest drought in recorded history has shifted the sources of electricity with adverse economic and environmental consequences. The Pacific Institute has just completed and released a report that evaluates how diminished river flows have resulted in less hydroelectricity, more expensive electricity from the combustion of natural gas, and increased production of greenhouse gas emissions.

Impacts of California’s Ongoing Drought: Hydroelectricity Generation

California’s hottest and driest drought in recorded history, from 2012 to 2016, shifted the sources of energy for electricity with adverse economic and environmental consequences. This report focuses on the period of drought from 2011 to 2014.

The Water Footprint of California’s Energy System, 1990–2012

A new article by Julian Fulton and  Heather Cooley evaluates the amount of water consumed in meeting California’s energy needs – also referred to as the water footprint of energy.

History of Water Conflicts

National Geographic ScienceBlog: Tackling Global Sustainability: A Need for Integrated Systems Approaches

If there is anything that the past few decades of research and study of major global challenges tells us, it is that truly effective solutions to sustainability challenges require truly integrated approaches across disciplines, fields of study, data sets, and institutions. We are not going to solve 21st century global problems with 20th century tools.