SACRAMENTO, California — Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration is looking for new places to store water and preparing to prevent saltwater from creeping into California’s main water hub as part of long-term drought planning outlined in a report published Thursday.
The report was prompted in part by last year’s state audit that determined that the state Department of Water Resources did not adequately factor climate change into its forecasts. It lists several ongoing efforts to revamp the State Water Project but does not propose any significant changes in operations, which would have to go through a lengthy federal and state process and, most likely, rounds of litigation.
Climate change is likely to further constrict deliveries by the State Water Project, the state-run system of pipes, pumps and reservoirs that provides water to 27 million Californians and irrigates 750,000 acres of farmland. Under one forecast of climate impacts in 2043 outlined in the report, deliveries would be 10 to 46 percent less than they have historically been during drought periods.
“We really do expect to see more extreme droughts more frequently in the future,” said John Yarbrough, deputy director of the State Water Project, in an interview. “It’s a good time to be planning for that.”
