California Water Crisis--Institutional Innovation for Sustainability Success

The key question from a sustainability perspective -- does current water planning account for likely local and regional effects of climate change -- particularly the decline in surface water? A quick review of the PPIC report below, does not indicate such factors being a core component of the analysis, although, the topic was at least entertained through a chapter on the drivers of change (shifting rainfall patters in the west over the past 50 years and increased sea level rise of 29-39 inches by 2100 with one-third occurring by 2050. The key question for large hardware investments is whether they make sense or not in an environment of shrinking water supplies. In any case, the analysis and initiatives below are good examples of the institutional innovation requird for sustainability success--increasing the intelligence and long-range problem-solving and management capacity of our organizations and institutions.

A recent analysis from the Public Policy Institute of California suggests a peripheral canal may be the "least bad" option given that the current approach is adversely affecting the ecosystem, reducing water supplies, and putting the delta at risk of seawater intrusion from a major earthquake, which could reduce water deliveries to Bay Area residents by 30 percent for months, even years. The report is entitled Comparing Futures for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is available at www.ppic.org.

An on-line policy simulation game was developed by, Lisa Pickoff-White, a recent graduate  of the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism for the Chronicle. It's available at www.sfgate.com/ZGSR.

Rep. George Miller D-Martinez, a member of the House leadership, and Lois Wok, State Senator, D-Davis, Chair of the Senate Select Committee on Delta Stewardship and Sustainability and a member of the Delta Protection Commission, argue that before spending billions on a new peripheral canal or other hardware solutions, for which the stae Dept. fo Water Resources is now spending $1.1B on canal and water project palnning off budget with no legistlative oversight or public accountability, putting the right policies and strategies in place to correct years of mismangement is essential. They argue that initial steps now should include expanding proven and cost-effective strategies such as conservation, recycling, groundwater cleanup, desalination ehahnced coordination between reservoirs, and regional water supply projects. They also suggest that a smarter organization needs to be created to solve the problem and for on-going smart managment of the resource. They propose a Delta Stewardship Counciil whose twin goals should be water supply reliabilty and ecostyem restoration. Sate Must Rescue Delata From Crisis, Insight, SF Chronicle, April 12, 1990.