California Water Policy Speaker Series

Latest Episodes:

California's Integrated Water Management Mar 18, 2013

Show notes

Mark Cowin, director of the California Department of Water Resources, whose agency would own and operate the proposed new export tunnels in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, discusses the agency's evolution from water "extraction" to sustainable and integrated water "management."

Tim Washburn: Sacramento Area Levees and Flood Protection: History and Current Challenges Mar 11, 2013

Show notes

Next to New Orleans, Sacramento has the greatest flood risk of any major urban area in America. Most residents live below the water level flowing by in the Sacramento and American rivers. Tim Washburn, Director of Planning for the Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency, discusses how river levees and bypasses are managed to minimize the risks.

Felicia Marcus: California Delta: Convergence or Collision? Mar 04, 2013

Show notes

Felicia Marcus, a member of the California State Water Resources Control Board, talks about the governance of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and why she is optimistic on warring water interest reaching a compromise on the management of the estuary as both a major ecosystem and heart of the state's water delivery system. Marcus says the five-member board is at a critical juncture in California's water history. "The next four years will see a series of decisions that have the promise of both improving public health protection and of meeting the 'co-equal' goals of water supply reliability and ecosystem protection (in the Delta)," she said last August in a news release on the Senate confirmation of her board appointment, by Gov. Jerry Brown. "The state board will either make or be a critical player in those decisions."

John Laird: California water policy: Will we actually be able to decide something? Feb 25, 2013

Show notes

California Natural Resources Secretary John Laird tells why he's optimistic that the state will reach resolution on critical water decisions in the near future. A former Santa Cruz mayor and state assemblyman, Laird has long championed environmental protections and water conservation. As resources secretary, Laird is charged with completing the Bay Delta Conservation Plan, which aims to restore wildlife habitat in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta while improving the reliability of water supplies exported from the estuary. The plan includes a controversial new diversion tunnel system on the Sacramento River.

Peter Moyle: The Future of Freshwater Fish in California Feb 11, 2013

Show notes

Peter Moyle, one of the foremost experts on California’s freshwater fish, talks about the future of the species. Moyle is a UC Davis professor of fish biology and an associate director of the university's Center for Watershed Sciences. He authored "Inland Fishes of California," the definitive reference on the subject. His research has strongly influenced state and federal management of endangered fish.

Timothy Quinn: In Pursuit of 'Coequal' Goals: A Statewide ACWA Perspective Feb 04, 2013

Show notes

Tim Quinn, executive director of the Association of California Water Agencies, discusses California's challenges in managing water reliability and Delta ecosystem health "coequally," as mandated by the state Delta Reform Act of 2009. Quinn leads the largest water organization of its kind in the nation. The association's 450 public water agency members are responsible for about 90 percent of the water delivered in California.

Phil Isenberg: California Water History and Today's Debate Jan 28, 2013

Show notes

A veteran of California's water wars, Phil Isenberg outlines the political history of water and comments on today's debate over building water export tunnels to bypass the Delta. Isenberg is currently Chairman of the State's Delta Stewardship Council.

Jay Lund: California Water: Insurmountable Opportunities Jan 14, 2013

Show notes

This overview of water management in California -- its history, challenges and opportunities.is given by Jay Lund, professor of civil and environmental engineering at UC Davis. He has led development and application of a large-scale optimization modeling for California's water supply and is co-author of several books and reports on the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

Senator Lois Wolk: Water and the California Legislature Jan 07, 2013

Show notes

State Sen. Lois Wolk, D-Davis, (and former Davis mayor), who has a long and distinguished record on California water policy, shares her views on effective water policymaking and Gov. Jerry Brown's proposal to tunnel exported water beneath the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Senator Wolk heads the Senate Select Committee on Delta Stewardship and Sustainability. The Jan. 7, 2013, event, was the first in a series of talks on California water policy sponsored by the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences.