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California WaterBlog

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  • Resilient California Fishes: Sacramento Sucker

    By Peter Moyle and Tom Taylor ____________________ The fresh waters of California support a diverse native fish fauna, 130 taxa by our count (Leidy and Moyle 2021). At least 56 of these taxa are on trajectories towards extinction 7 are already extinct; 32 are listed as threatened or endangered by state and federal agencies. Not…

  • Representing interannual variability for environmental flow operations: the functional flow regime

    By Lindsay Murdoch, Sarah Yarnell, and Jay Lund California’s local communities and native ecosystems alike have adapted to cycles of flood, drought, and a healthy portion of everything in between. Our river management, on the other hand, has fallen out of natural balance and tends to oscillate between insufficient minimum flows and emergency flood responses,…

  • California: A Salmon Society?

    By Carson Jeffres Consider for a moment the identity of the Pacific Northwest as a Salmon Society.  When you fly into an airport in the Pacific Northwest, salmon are on the floors and walls as art.  This art is an expression of societal values in which salmon are important.  In contrast, when you fly into Sacramento you see…

  • Don’t Let a Shutdown Wash Away U.S. Flood Protection

    By Nicholas Pinter A US federal government shutdown is looming, potentially starting Oct. 1, with broad impacts across the government and across the country.  The scope of these unfolding events is beyond the wheelhouse of the California Water Blog.  But pulled into the slipstream of this potential budget impasse is an important water issue.  If Congress does not…

  • Happy New Water Year 2026! – following 2025’s Normal and Extreme Hydrology

    By Jay Lund October 1 marks the beginning of California’s new Water Year (WY). Water years here run from October 1 until September 30 of the next calendar year and are named for the calendar year of the bulk of the water year (January-October). October 1 is also the nominal beginning of California’s wet season.  California’s…

  • International Approaches to Freshwater Management

    By Nicholas Pinter and Sarah Yarnell In late June and July of this year, UC Davis convened an Advanced Studies Institute (ASI) on “International Approaches to Freshwater Management,” bringing 11 top graduate students from across the US to study rivers and management systems in California, Italy, and the Netherlands.   ASIs are funded by the National…

  • The Texas Flood Tragedy was Predictable, but was it Preventable?

    By Kathleen Schaefer In the wake of recent tragic events, such as the devastating floods in Texas, it’s become clear that our current approach to flood management and disaster preparedness is falling short. The Associated Press reported that a flood warning system, which could have potentially saved lives, was left unfunded due to budget constraints…

  • California’s Amazing Terminal Lakes

    By Peter B. Moyle * This is a re-post of a blog originally published 11/26/2023. When Californians talk of lakes, they usually mean reservoirs, the 1500 or so artificial bodies of water behind dams. Alternately, they may be referring to the 4,000 or so natural lakes in the Sierra Nevada or to one of the…

  • Being the Lorax

    By Andrew L. Rypel “Way back in the days when the grass was still green and the pond was still wet and the clouds were still clean, and the song of the Swomee-Swans rang out in space…one morning, I came to this glorious place. And I first saw the trees! The Truffula Trees! The bright-colored…

  • Change at the Center for Watershed Sciences

    By Karrigan Börk Readers of the California Water Blog (Blog) may have noticed some changes over the past year. The Blog is a product of the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences (CWS), and after many years of dedicated service, longtime CWS leaders Dr. Andrew Rypel (Director) and Dr. Cathryn Lawrence (Assistant Director) are transitioning…

  • Sites – The Permitting Process

    By Christopher Mouawad This blog provides a glimpse into the complexity of permitting for large water projects like Sites. California water law is as intricate and varied as the systems it governs. What begins as a seemingly simple doctrine, such as “first in time, first in right,” can quickly spiral into a labyrinth of layered…

  • Announcing the 7th International Symposium on River Science

    The International Society for River Science (ISRS) will hold the 7th International Symposium on River Science at the University of California, Davis on October 6-9, 2025. We invite you to attend! The first river symposium was held in 1979 in Norway, and rivers conferences have continued through the decades since, across the globe. Recent conferences…

  • Where are they now: Caroline Newell

    Registration is now open for the 7th International Symposium on River Science, held in Davis, California from Oct 6-9, 2025! Early Bird Registration will remain open until 15 August 2025. “Where are they now:”  is a blog series on the California WaterBlog, written by our alumni. The series will celebrate the many alumni who got…

  • Where are they now: Anna Sturrock

    Registration is now open for the 7th International Symposium on River Science, held in Davis, California from Oct 6-9, 2025! Early Bird Registration will remain open until 15 August 2025. “Where are they now:”  is a new blog series on the California WaterBlog, written in the voices of our alumni. The series will celebrate the…

  • Bargaining for Tribal Water in California

    By Leslie Sanchez and Eric C. Edwards Stark power disparities between Native American tribes (tribes) and nontribal entities in California have shaped tribes’ legal standing to assert water rights claims, bargaining power in resolving claims, and the ability to assert meaningful control over water rights. This post outlines the status of tribal water rights in California and…

  • Microplastic Pollution: Impact on the SF Bay Delta and Remediation Strategies

    “Microplastic Pollution: Impact on the SF Bay Delta and Remediation Strategies” Symposium with Delta Stewardship Council and Coastal Marine Sciences Institute By Miranda Bell-Tilcock In May, I had the privilege of attending the Microplastic Pollution: Impact on the SF Bay Delta and Remediation Strategies symposium hosted by the Coastal Marine Sciences Institute (CMSI) and the…

  • AI explanations of California water management

    By ChatGPT prompted by Jay Lund I was playing with ChatGPT and had some fun and insightful replies.  (I’d interpret these insights, but I am no Professor of Literature, and it would probably get me into trouble.  Please add your interpretations below in the replies.) 1) Prompt: Write a buzzword sentence on California water management. ChatGPT replied:…

  • Where are they now: Mollie Ogaz

    “Where are they now:”  is the first in a new blog series on the California WaterBlog, written in the voices of our alumni. The series will celebrate the many alumni who got their start at the Center for Watershed Sciences (CWS) and have now gone on to bigger and better things. Blog posts from the…

  • Build it, and they will come: Early evidence for establishment of Chinook salmon in Putah Creek, CA

    By Lauren G. Hitt, Malte Willmes, Mackenzie C. Miner, Max Stevenson, Carson A. Jeffres, Robert A. Lusardi, Nann A. Fangue, and Andrew L. Rypel For the third year in a row, regulators have canceled California’s commercial Chinook salmon fishing season.Poor spawning salmon returns in 2024 and low predicted numbers of salmon in the ocean during 2025…

  • Bull Trout and Other Endemic Fishes: McCloud River 

    By Peter B. Moyle There are about 130 fish species (as defined by the federal Endangered Species Act) native to the fresh waters of California. Most (80%) are arguably on trajectories to extinction. Seven species are already extirpated from the state (Thicktail Chub, Clear Lake Splittail, High Rock Springs Tui Chub, Bull Trout, Tecopa Pupfish,…

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