Wolk pushes state to consider climate change in water plans

Introduces bill to update state' s planning for water infrastructure and conveyance system

SACRAMENTO– Assemblywoman Lois Wolk (D-Davis) introduced Assembly Bill 224, legislation to update California water plans to include the projected effects of climate change, Monday.

The bill requires the California Department of Water Resources to consider accepted projections of climate change in plans for the State’s existing water delivery system—including the State Water Plan, urban water management plans, and basin water quality plans by state and regional water boards. The bill would also strengthen requirements for agricultural water management planning, adding climate change as a factor in those plans.

“State and local water plans consider water quantity, quality and efficient use. But those plans are rooted in the past,” said Wolk. “California continues to rely on its historic hydrological record to plan and create its water infrastructure. The time has come to look toward the future and include climate change as a key factor in our water planning.”

Numerous scientific studies have documented evidence of global climate change’s effect on California’s water supply. Climate change will change projections of future water supply. California’s own Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has estimated the effects of climate change on various aspects of California’s rich environmental and water resources, from Sierra forests to Central Valley agriculture. In 2005, the Department of Water Resources (DWR) issued a report projecting dramatic effects on the management of California water resources. The California Energy Commission also recently examined the substantial energy costs related to water supply.

“We’ve already started to see climate change’s effect on our water supply,” said Wolk. “California has experienced serious floods more frequently and a higher average elevation of snowfall in the Sierras. The hydrological patterns on which we have relied to build our water infrastructure and economy will change. It is critical that we begin adapting our water storage and conveyance systems now, because all evidence indicates these systems will be unable to support the state’s water supply in the not-so-distant future.”