California Facing a Structural Water Deficit

California Facing a Structural Water Deficit

An assertion made in the LA Times earlier this week stated that current drought conditions are “Not that bad.” The article implied that our current water supply crisis is solely a result of drought, and that extraordinary efforts to conserve may not be as necessary as many State and local officials have repeatedly insisted. These implications demonstrate a dangerous line of thinking that many people hold regarding an “endless” supply of water that will never dry up.
Southern California faces a structural imbalance between its water supplies and its water demands, even with normal levels of precipitation and snow, and every Southern Californian needs to heed calls to conserve, not just Long Beach residents, who continue to set records each month for low water consumption.
The State of California is in its third consecutive year of a drought. Even with the most recent improved snow pack survey results, the State is still planning on delivering eighty-five percent less water than has been requested by water contractors in Southern California, the Bay Area and the Central Valley. In addition, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD), from which Southern California purchases all of its imported water, will implement a Water Shortage Allocation Plan in the coming months, which will have a huge impact on communities, both in water allocation and rates. And those communities not adequately prepared to deal with this plan will pay a price.
By far the most significant water supply issue we have involves the decline of fish populations in the Bay Delta estuary, which has led to pumping restrictions on imported water delivered from the north to the southern part of our state, where two-thirds of the population resides. These restrictions are currently resulting in an approximate thirty percent cut in water deliveries to several regions throughout our state. In fact, just this week, the State imposed additional protections on two different species of fish that reside in this estuary. Over the next several weeks, there will be additional legal opinions and rulings to protect additional fish species, which will likely result in additional restrictions on pumping, resulting in additional cuts in water deliveries.
Today, our most critical water supply reserves continue to remain dramatically low with little to no prospect of recovery this year. Add to that an ever-increasing population, which has grown by millions since our state’s last water supply crisis just two decades ago, and an overly-casual, business as usual attitude with regard to our water use, and we have the recipe for a disaster.
We all need to be less reactionary and more informed when it comes to our water crisis. Relying on increases in future rain and snowfall, or a miracle weather event, to fix our water deficit, is not only short-sighted and irresponsible, but it is bound to result in failure. A permanent change in our water-using behavior is necessary, regardless of whether there is a drought or not. Conservation is an absolutely necessary component of a viable, long-term water supply and we all need to hold ourselves and our neighbors accountable.

John Allen, President, Long Beach Board of Water Commissioners
Suja Lowenthal, Board Member, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California