ANTIOCH – (INT) – California’s diminishing water supply future may look grim but proposals are in the works to meet the challenges.

State officials believe extreme weather could diminish the state’s water supply up to 10% by 2040.

$8 billion in state investments over the last two years could help store, recycle, de-salt and conserve the water needed to keep up with the increasing pace of climate change.

Governor Newsom was in Antioch Thursday with a series of proposals.

• Creating storage space for up to 4 million acre-feet of water, capitalizing on big storms when they do occur and store water for dry periods

• Recycling and reusing at least 800,000 acre-feet of water per year by 2030 that would otherwise be discharged into the ocean

• Freeing up 500,000 acre-feet of water through more efficient water use and conservation, helping make up for water lost due to climate change.

• Making new water available for use by capturing stormwater and desalinating ocean water and salty water in groundwater basins

“Extreme weather is a permanent fixture here in the American West and California will adapt to this new reality,” Governor Newsom said at the Antioch Brackish Desalination Project.

Story Date: August 28, 2022