WATER POLITICS

Los Angeles County’s Board of Supervisors has voted for a plan to improve stormwater capture, with a goal of capturing more stormwater for local reuse rather than importing water from other regions.

The L.A. County Water Plan aims to increase the local water supply by 580,000 acre-feet per year by 2045 so that 80% of water for the county will be sourced locally.

As National Resources Defence Council (NRDC) reported, about 40% of water for Los Angeles County and about 20% of water for the city of Los Angeles are sourced locally, such as from groundwater or recycled water. The rest of the water to meet demand is imported from other regions, but this has become less reliable due to climate change and water scarcity.

Ultimately, the plan could increase the local supply by about 162 billion gallons, the Los Angeles Times reported. This increase could service an additional 5 million people in the county.

The plan follows long-standing droughts in the county over the past 10 years, including a severe drought in 2012 to 2016 and another drought in 2021 to 2022.

Another target in the L.A. County Water Plan is to meet 100% of water needs in the county during times of drought.

“In our dry region we need to conserve every drop of water possible for beneficial reuse,” said Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, as reported by LAist. “As climate change makes our imported water resources less reliable and more expensive, I would like to see the majority of our stormwater be diverted for beneficial reuse.”

The plan outlines 14 strategies to increase stormwater capture and local water supply by 2045, including reducing water usage, improving drought preparedness and messaging, leveraging groundwater storage potential, making pumping and treating groundwater more cost-effective, and managing invasive species and wildfires that impact water supply and water quality.

“What we need to do is basically turn the entire county of L.A. into a sponge and capture stormwater where it falls,” said Annelisa Moe, associate director of science and policy at Heal The Bay, as reported by LAist. That includes everything from the big spreading grounds to parcel level projects that allow water to just infiltrate into the ground.”

Further, the plan will address making safe water access more equitable, as currently several water agencies in the county are failing or at risk of failing. Many of the failing and at-risk water agencies service low-income communities. The water plan aims to foster collaboration among the water agencies to improve drought resilience and water self-sufficiency throughout the county.