Cloudy with a chance of a bond: In November voters may be asked to take first big step to rebuild California’s water infrastructure for the 21st Century.

Drought, shrinking snowpack in the Sierras and dwindling reservoirs, remind us that Californians must do more to maintain and refurbish our aging water system.  In January, the Governor declared a drought state of emergency. Today reservoirs, rainfall totals and the snowpack remain critically low. Current readings show the snowpack's statewide water content at just 3 percent of average.

In South Orange County, most of the drinking water is from just two sources, the Colorado River and the less saline State Water Project (SWP) fed by rivers that must circulate through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta about 400 miles to the north .  Not only do we need the SWP water to blend with the more saline Colorado River water, we also need it to ensure we do not become overly dependent on one source of supply that could be cut due to a natural disaster. On January 31, 2014, due to the drought, allocations from the State Water Project were shut off completely for the first time in the 54 history of SWP.

The weather is not the only cause of reduced water supplies. Another cause is inadequate infrastructure to manage water efficiently. The State Water Project was built in the 1960’s and elements of the system were built in the 1930’s.   There is also an urgent need to upgrade facilities in Northern and Central California for more storage of water in wet years. Development of surface water and groundwater facilities must be coordinated and better managed too. Even with adequate storage and better management practices, the State’s conveyance system from the Delta can no longer reliably accommodate the dual demands of water supply and protection of the ecology. The Delta is the hub of SWP serving more than 25 million people and millions of acres of farmland that are critical to the economy of the state and the nation. Existing pumping plants drawing water only from the south end of the Delta need to be supplemented with new intakes to the north. This would improve the flow of water and allow water to be diverted reliably while better protecting the ecology of the Bay Delta. The Delta and San Francisco Bay comprise the largest estuary on the west coast. This estuary is habitat for hundreds of species of wildlife including the Salmon that migrate through the Delta.   

Many Southern Californians do not see the urgency of the situation. Perhaps this is because we have been insulated from the drought with two years’ of water supply in reserve thanks to Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MET).  Also, Southern California water authorities have developed unrivaled recycling facilities along with groundwater management and reuse systems. We have made progress toward the goal set in 2009 of reducing per capita water consumption 20% by 2020. But if we have another year of dry weather, we face the prospect of water shortages and possible rationing, similar to the situation in parts of Northern and Central California today.

Even with an abundance of rain next season, we are on the brink of a water supply shortage with unprecedented economic and ecological damage. Relying on standard practice and political dickering, infrastructure will not be built fast enough to compensate for years of drought and increasing water demand fueled by population growth. The real question is whether California voters are willing to pay for expediting construction of facilities to mitigate effects of drought and improve management of scare water resources.

To help ensure a reliable supply of imported water we need a balanced approach to improving water delivery facilities and protecting the ecology. As we approach the November 2014 election, we are going to hear more about these issues. There are several different versions of a water bond under consideration in the California Legislature. Leading versions would start improving things in the Bay Delta by providing over $2 billion to protect the Bay’s ecology and improve watershed management.  But the water bond is also about building or improving reservoirs and groundwater storage, and it is about improving water quality and using water more efficiently in virtually every part of the state. It is likely the 2014 bond will include billions of dollars more for these types of projects. Bond funds should support conservation programs as well as local efforts to build recycling facilities coordinated with improved groundwater management systems.