Tag: Jay Lund
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Drought’s No. 1 lesson: Modernize water management
Jeff Mount, Ellen Hanak, Bruce Cain, Caitrin Chappelle, Richard Frank, Brian Gray, Richard Howitt, Katrina Jessoe, Jay Lund, Josué Medellín-Azuara, Peter Moyle, Leon Szeptycki and Buzz Thompson This year’s drought is testing how well California manages water during severe dry periods. As we head into spring and the major irrigation season, rainfall totals, snowpack, reservoir…
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Funding sustainable groundwater management in California
Ellen Hanak, Emma Freeman, Caitrin Chappelle, Brian Gray, Jay Lund, Dean Misczynski, Josué Medellín-Azuara, David Mitchell, Jeff Mount, James Nachbaur, Robyn Suddeth, Buzz Thompson One of the few current bright spots on California’s waterfront is that the drought seems to be spurring momentum to improve groundwater management in the state’s rural areas. Outside of a…
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Funding water services in California
By Ellen Hanak, Brian Gray, Jay Lund, David Mitchell, Caitrin Chappelle, Andrew Fahlund, Katrina Jessoe, Josué Medellín-Azuara, Dean Misczynski, James Nachbaur and Robyn Suddeth The current drought has brought renewed calls for more conservation, reservoirs, recycled water use, stormwater capture and desalination plants. But more than calls to action are needed to make these things happen.…
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Virtual Water vs. Real Water in California
By Jay Lund There has been considerable kvetching during this drought about California exporting agricultural products overseas, with some saying that this implies we are virtually exporting water that we should be using in California. Those concerned should take comfort with California’s major imports of virtual water. Much of the food consumed here comes from…
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California droughts precipitate innovation
Percentage of average precipitation, Oct. 1, 2013 – Jan. 19, 2014. Source: National Weather Service “A crisis is a terrible thing to waste” – Paul Romer, Stanford University economist By Jay Lund The 2013 calendar year was the driest on record for much of California. There is almost no snow in the Sierra Nevada or…
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Resistance is futile: Inevitable changes to water management in California
“Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt” — anonymous By Jay Lund and Ellen Hanak Water policy in California has always been about making and resisting change. The gold mining period, the growth of agriculture and cities, and today’s environmental priorities all led to fundamental changes in water and land management, law and regulation.…
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New suspense flick on Delta
_____________ Postcard from the Sacramento Delta (2013) 5 min 40 sec — Rated G — Suspense Director: Todd Dayton Cast: Jay Lund, Daniel Wilson The sea is rising and the land is sinking. Aging levees are giving way. Island communities find themselves at the mercy of forces beyond their control. Produced by Fallout Pictures for Greenpeace’s Postcards…
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Groundwater and climate change in California
By Andrew Fisher, Graham Fogg, Joshua Viers, Jay Lund, Ruth Langridge and Patricia Holden For all the talk of climate change adaptation, California has yet to comprehensively address the effects of warmer temperatures and changing weather patterns on the state’s limited groundwater resources. To start the process, several of the leading University of California faculty…
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Major gift endorses UC Davis’ multidisciplinary engagement with California’s water problems
By Jay Lund Today marks a milestone for successful engagement of university research with California’s water problems. UC Davis Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi announced a major donation to the Center for Watershed Sciences. The $10 million gift from the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation will enable the Center to expand its scientific research and public…
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Project HOBBES: Assembling water models from the data up
By Samuel Sandoval Solis, Josué Medellín-Azuara and Jay Lund Computer modelers tasked with untangling California’s knotty water problems often find themselves entangled by incompatible or poorly organized datasets. They’re stuck for months trying to transform these datasets into model inputs before the important business of modeling can get underway. Some highly useful datasets on parts…
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New environmentalism needed for California water
By Jay R. Lund California needs a new environmentalism to set a more effective and sustainable green bar for the nation and even the world. For decades, we have taken a “just say no” approach to stop, prevent or blunt human encroachments onto the natural world – often rightly so. Early environmentalism needed lines in…
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The Delta won’t rise again
By Jay R. Lund Much of the western and central Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta has sunk deeply below sea level, and it continues to subside as its marsh soils erode from being drained and farmed. At the same time, sea level is rising. The two trends increase these islands’ likelihood of flooding from major storms, earthquakes,…
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Jerry Orlob: legendary mentor for California water engineers
By Jay Lund Jerry was a giant. He pioneered the field of water quality modeling and system analysis in water and environmental engineering. He founded a series of influential consulting firms, many of which exist today. And he helped establish the excellence of environmental and water engineering programs at UC Davis. What made Jerry a…
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California’s groundwater problems and prospects
Under the rocks and stones, there is water underground — Talking Heads By Jay R. Lund and Thomas Harter Groundwater is one of California’s most ubiquitous, widely used resources that is unseen and misunderstood. Aquifers gather and store water and contaminants from large areas over decades to eons to support many human and ecosystem functions. …
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Climate change and California water – past, present and future
Everyone talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it. – Charles Dudley Warner, 1897 By Jay R. Lund Talk of climate change and water in California is fraught with handwringing and delusions. Much discussion borders on alarmist or seems to presume magical abilities to precisely plan and prepare for a future climate. Here…
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How engineers see the water glass in California
By Jay R. Lund Depending on your outlook, the proverbial glass of water is either half full or half empty. Not so for engineers in California. Civil engineer: The glass is too big. Flood control engineer: The glass should be 50 percent bigger. Army Corps levee engineer: The glass should be 50 percent thicker. Mexicali…
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Restoring Hetch Hetchy Valley
Jay Lund, the Ray B. Krone Professor of Environmental Engineering, University of California – Davis In November, the people of San Francisco will vote on looking into alternatives to capturing water at the Hetch Hetchy reservoir site, which could lead to restoring the fabled valley in Yosemite National Park. While this modest step faces steep…
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California Water – The Great Remodeling Project
Jay R. Lund, Director, Center for Watershed Sciences, and Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, UC Davis People periodically remodel their homes. A household might need a new room for children or an ailing grandparent, want a bigger kitchen, replace a leaky roof, or want more room to entertain. California’s water system is now…
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Reconciling wild things with tamed places – a future for native fish species in the Delta
Peter Moyle, William Bennett, John Durand, William Fleenor, Jay Lund, Jeffrey Mount, University of California – Davis Ellen Hanak, Public Policy Institute of California, San Francisco Brian Gray, University of California – Hastings School of Law Today, the Public Policy Institute of California released two reports that look at how California can better manage the…
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Water and California’s Economy
Ellen Hanak, Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC), San Francisco, CA Jay Lund, Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California – Davis Buzz Thompson, Stanford School of Law Today, PPIC released “Water and the California Economy,” a report that presents the consensus view of 15 experts* on the role of water in California’s economy, key…