A recent study highlights the growing difficulty of tracking data center water use. Much of this operational information remains unavailable to the public. This lack of data creates significant planning challenges for communities located in water-scarce regions. Facilities utilize massive amounts of water to cool computer servers. The current data gap includes both direct…
A new report from the Neptune Flood Research Group, California Underwater: A Blind Spot in the Golden State, reveals that California carries one of the largest residential flood insurance gaps of any state in the nation, leaving millions of homeowners financially exposed to a threat they may not even know they face. Residential flood…
For anyone who has been forced to evacuate during a wildfire, the experience of not knowing how fast the fire is moving or which direction it will take is terrifying. That unpredictability is exactly what a team of researchers at USC Viterbi’s Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering is working to eliminate. The new model,…
A new study from researchers at the University of British Columbia, delivers some of the clearest evidence yet that the rhythm of the seasons is fundamentally changing – and faster than scientists previously measured. The study analyzed global temperature data from 1961 through 2023, tracking not the calendar definition of summer, but the actual…
A new report from a team of water law scholars, engineers, and policy experts argues that the 80-year-old framework governing how the United States delivers Colorado River water to Mexico is no longer fit for purpose – and that a fundamental redesign is both possible and urgent. Since 1945, the US has been obligated…
Applications Due June 29. NOAA Fisheries has opened applications for up to $99 million through the Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund, directing federal investment toward conservation and habitat restoration projects across the West Coast and Alaska. Eligible applicants include state agencies in Alaska, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington, as well as federally…
The Water-AI Nexus™ Center of Excellence has released two resources designed to move artificial intelligence from pilot projects to everyday operations in water and wastewater systems. Their new insight report, “Principles for AI and the Future of Work in Water: Building an AI-Empowered Water Workforce,” lays out four principles centered on a worker-first approach…
A new policy report by UC Berkely Law entitled “Regulating Data Center Water Use in California” addresses the environmental impact of the AI-driven data center boom on the state’s water resources. The report identifies a critical lack of transparency and a fragmented regulatory framework, offering a roadmap for how the state and industry should manage this…
The Utah legislature has officially passed a bill requiring water reporting for new data facilities moving into the state. Driven by concerns over resource consumption, the new legislation aims to increase transparency by mandating that operators publicly disclose their annual water usage to state officials. The bill specifically targets new data centers measuring at…
The California Department of Conservation has approved 13 new projects for the Multibenefit Land Repurposing Program which now has more than 4,800 acres of land enrolled. Since launching in 2022, the initiative has allocated nearly $80 million to help transition the least-viable irrigated agricultural lands into alternative uses that conserve groundwater and support local ecosystems.…
A new study from the University of California Riverside and the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) reveals that the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence is placing unprecedented demand on municipal water supplies. As cloud computing grows, servers require massive amounts of cooling during peak temperatures, creating sudden spikes in demand that local systems cannot currently…
When severe weather strikes, the National Weather Service Office of Water Prediction relies on complex modeling to make critical safety forecasts. Despite improvements, these predictive capabilities have plateaued. To overcome these limitations, a University of Vermont scientist has collaborated with federal agencies to develop the Next Generation Water Resources Modeling framework, with the goal of…
More than 80% of watersheds in the United States currently lack adequate protection, but the new National Protected Rivers Assessment tool can now tell you if your local river or creek is in trouble. Developed by the nonprofit American Rivers and Conservation Science Partners, this online framework evaluates waterways across the entire country to address…
Federal officials are proposing to increase logging in Oregon with the goal of returning timber harvest rates to 1960s levels. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) recently announced plans to update the Western Oregon Resource Management Plans to reflect this new goal which would impact 2.5 million acres across 17 counties. This proposal could…
For 35 years, Professor Robert Mahler at the University of Idaho (UI) Department of Soil and Water Systems has meticulously tracked changing public perceptions of water resources in Idaho. His exhaustive dataset represents one of the longest-standing public water surveys in the nation, capturing exactly how residents view their most vital natural asset. …
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has introduced a new initiative aimed at strengthening technical support for drinking water and wastewater utilities across the country. Known as RealWaterTA, this program focuses specifically on aiding small and rural systems by refocusing federal support on practical measures that directly improve water quality and protect public health. …
While desalination is a globally proven technology, California projects have faced regulatory roadblocks at the state level. A new report from the California Policy Center and Californians for Energy and Water Abundance outlines how the federal government can bypass these hurdles by developing facilities directly on federal coastal lands under the Coastal Zone Management Act…
Floating solar panel projects offer a promising clean energy solution (see TWR #259 for more information on this innovative technology). A new study evaluates potential environmental impacts of these projects and finds that results vary significantly depending on where the systems are deployed. The floating solar technology offers several key advantages including: Can boost…
A groundbreaking simulation from Princeton and the University of Arizona reveals that groundwater flow paths travel much farther and deeper than previously understood. By tracking water across 3 million square miles, researchers discovered that raindrops and snowmelt can travel underground for several hundred kilometers and spend up to 100,000 years in the subsurface before…
Researchers from Princeton and the University of Arizona have released the highest-resolution map of US groundwater to date. They have estimated that a total of 306,500 cubic kilometers of groundwater is available – 13 times the capacity of all the Great Lakes combined. Using a machine learning algorithm and more than one million data points,…
The Nature Conservancy in Nevada, DRI, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison have launched the Nevada GDE Water Needs Explorer Tool. This online resource helps managers quantify the water requirements of Groundwater-Dependent Ecosystems (GDEs) such as meadows, wetlands, and riparian forests. In Nevada’s arid environment, understanding how groundwater levels sustain these habitats is vital for maintaining…
The University of Arizona’s Water Resources Research Center (WRRC) is now accepting proposals for the federal WRRA grant program. These water research grant opportunities support university-based projects addressing Arizona’s water challenges. Eligible faculty from Arizona’s three state universities can submit proposals by March 16, 2026 for the WRRA 104(b) program. Selected projects typically receive…
Sea level rise, driven by climate change, significantly increases flood risk for industrial and contaminated sites across the United States. A new study, published in Nature, reveals thousands of hazardous sites could flood in the coming decades. This threat creates a massive challenge for public health and environmental protection, especially in coastal zones. The…
Two new studies from Scripps Institution of Oceanography researchers offer encouraging news about the resilience of California’s beaches. The 2025 San Diego County Beach Report found most regional beaches gained width last year as they entered a post-El Niño recovery phase. Typically, El Niño years bring larger, more powerful waves that rip sand from…
The Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) Tribal Council recently made history with a unanimous vote that granted legal river personhood status to the Colorado River. CRIT is the first community to bestow such recognition on the 1,450-mile waterway. This action represents a dramatic departure from Western water law, which historically treats rivers as property to…