Few issues in California are as contentious as water
That`s particularly true in Northern California, where snowmelt from the Sierra Nevada mountains is siphoned off to meet drinking and irrigation needs for the rest of the state.
But as California`s population continues to grow, so does concern over the future of its liquid assets. Today many residents are calling for a balanced approach to water management - one that meets the demands of thirsty farms and cities while protecting Northern California`s fragile rivers and lakes.
The critical role played by environmental scientists in solving the state`s complex water issues will be the subject of a symposium at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in San Francisco on Tuesday, Feb. 20, at 8 a.m. PT.
Hydrologist David L. Freyberg, an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Stanford, is one of a half-dozen experts from around the state invited to address the three-hour conference.
``The social, political and economic life of California is completely entwined with its water resources,`` Freyberg says, ``and the next few years are likely to be particularly interesting.``
Energy crisis
Freyberg points out that water is intimately linked to California`s most urgent crisis - the shortage of electricity resulting from deregulation of the state`s utilities. The power crisis, which caused rolling blackouts and skyrocketing utility bills in January, has been exacerbated by a lack of rainfall. That`s because most electricity in the Golden State is produced by hydroelectric dams, and when water reservoirs are low, electrical production drops.
Fear of additional shortages has led some political leaders to call for increased hydropower production, but Freyberg cautions that state policy makers m
'"/>
Contact: Mark Shwartz
mshwartz@stanford.edu
650-723-9296
Stanford University
19-Feb-2001