Mayor Villaraigosa Calls for New Wave of Los Angeles Water Policy

[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Traci Sheehan
Executive Director
Planning and Conservation League

Last week Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa made an exceptionally bold move by declaring that Los Angeles would accommodate all new water demands through intense water conservation and water recycling.

"Securing LA's Water Supply," the Mayor's plan, reflects a changing paradigm in California water policy.

Historically, Los Angeles has sought out new sources of imported water to meet growth demands. The city is famous for fighting legal and public battles to win water from the Owens River, tributaries to Mono Lake, the Colorado River and northern California's Bay Delta Estuary. Yet, these sources are becoming increasingly unreliable as climate change, increased competition for water, and environmental needs all limit the water available to the city.

Rather than fight another water war, the Mayor's plan targets the enormous untapped potential of water use efficiency and recycled water. The California Department of Water Resources estimates that these two options alone could produce over 4 million acre feet of "new" water - more than enough to meet the needs of 12 million new residents expected in California through 2030. By tapping into these sources, L.A. will also secure highly reliable local water resources that will not be impacted by declining snowpack or other side effects of climate change.

The Mayor's move should be an example to all of California. Our traditional water resources are declining in reliability. It's time to stop focusing on out-dated water strategies like dams and diversions from our rivers and streams and start focusing on cost-effective, environmentally beneficial water policies that will allow us to secure water to accommodate future growth while adapting to climate change.

Traci Sheehan is the Executive Director of the Planning and Conservation League, a statewide, nonprofit lobbying organization. For more than thirty years, PCL has fought to develop a body of environmental laws in California that is the best in the United States. PCL staff review virtually every environmental bill that comes before the California Legislature each year. It has testified in support or opposition of thousands of bills to strengthen California's environmental laws and fight off rollbacks of environmental protections.