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Climate Warming & California’s Water Future. Jay R. Lund Civil and Environmental Engineering University of California, Davis. http://cee.engr.ucdavis.edu/faculty/lund/CALVIN/. Forms of Climate Change Climate Warming and Water System Performance Concluding thoughts. Overview.
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Climate Warming & California’s Water Future Jay R. Lund Civil and Environmental Engineering University of California, Davis http://cee.engr.ucdavis.edu/faculty/lund/CALVIN/
Forms of Climate Change Climate Warming and Water System Performance Concluding thoughts Overview
Forms of Climate Change • Sea level rise • Climate warming • Climate oscillations • Multi-decade droughts • Others?
Climate Warming & Water System Performance • 2100 water availability (LBNL) • Water management model for climate warming extremes
CALVIN’s Spatial Coverage Over 1,200 spatial elements 51 Surface reservoirs 28 Ground water reservoirs 600+ Conveyance links 88% of irrigated acreage 92% of population
Integrated Adaptation Options • Water allocation and markets • Joint surface & groundwater operations • Coordinated facility operations • Urban conservation/use efficiencies • Cropping changes and fallowing • Agricultural water use efficiencies • New technologies • Wastewater reuse • Seawater desalination
Water Management Objectives Environmentalflows - first priority Economic Water Uses: • Agricultural economic values • Urban economic demands (residential, industrial, and commercial) • Hydropower benefits • Operating Costs
Adaptive Responses • Water transfers • Agricultural to urban • Colorado River • Central Valley • Water quality exchanges • Flexibility trading • New technologies • Wastewater reuse • Sea water desalination • Urban water conservation/use efficiencies • Groundwater reservoir use • The mix of responses is important.
Conclusions from Results • Climate warming can be wetter or drier overall, with seasonal flow shifts. • Central Valley agriculture is most sensitive to dry climate warming. • Flooding could be very challenging and costly. • California’s system can adapt, at some cost, if it has institutional flexibility.
What to do now? • Long-term importance of flexibility • Integrated mix of management options: Water use efficiency, conjunctive use, water transfers, reuse, desalination, storage … • Importance of local and regional actions in a statewide context • Enhance ability to cooperate at local, regional, and statewide levels to gain from the richness and strengths of our water system.