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Santa Cruz County Water Overview



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California Local Pin Marker Local Water Digest

Fact Check: Why Is Trump Blaming the LA Fires on Newsom’s Water Policies?

01/08/2025

President-elect Donald Trump faulted California water policies for the devastating wildfires that are burning in Los Angeles County. The fires started because of fierce winds and extremely dry conditions.

Too Wet and Too Dry: The Crazy North-South Gap in California’s Rain

01/07/2025

Some Northern California cities have been soaked with almost twice their average rainfall, while southern cities are bone-dry. This season’s huge — possibly unprecedented — disparity works in favor of the state’s water supplies.

California Local Pin Marker Recent Articles

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San Lorenzo Valley Water District Receives $100K Grant to Replace Aging Water Meters

San Lorenzo Valley Water District (SLVWD) has been awarded a $100,000 grant to update hundreds of water meters in Ben Lomond.

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Go With the Flow

There are two sides to a levee, but a conservationist and a farmer have found common ground at the swampy mouth of the Pajaro River.

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
Sites Reservoir in the Sacramento Valley Remains a Second Environmental Battlefront Between Newsom and California Tribes and Conservation Groups

By Dan Bacher Gavin Newsom continued his “California Jobs First” tour last week with a press event at a farm in Colusa in the Sacramento Valley where the...

San Lorenzo Valley Post logo LOCAL NEWS
Scotts Valley Water District to Drill New Well

The Scotts Valley Water District (SVWD) will begin construction of a new production well at 5299 Scotts Valley Drive this winter. The work begins by removing a former commercial building at the project site before the start of well drilling. …

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Coastal Watershed Council Finds Romance in Our River

The Coastal Watershed Council wants you to fall in love. Since 1995, this nonprofit group has sought to ignite Santa Cruzans with a passion for the San Lorenzo River and the desire to explore, enhance and protect this waterway that …

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Wetland Restoration at Beach Ranch Benefits Nature, Wildlife, and People

Conservation of 247 acres by the Pajaro River preserves habitat, safeguards farmland, and builds climate resilience.

San Lorenzo Valley Post logo LOCAL NEWS
San Lorenzo Valley Water District to Replace Aging Water Meters

The San Lorenzo Valley Water District (SLVWD) has been awarded a $100,000 grant from the Federal Bureau of Reclamation to update hundreds of water meters in Ben Lomond, California. A total of 443 water meters are scheduled to be replaced …

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City of Santa Cruz Must Provide UCSC With Water as University Expands

A Nov. 21 appeals court decision obligates the City of Santa Cruz to provide water to campus areas outside city limits. (Nik Altenberg — Santa Cruz Local)
SANTA CRUZ >> The City of Santa Cruz must supply the entire UC …

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Students Help Spruce Up Struve Slough

The organization responsible for keeping Watsonville’s wetlands healthy joined forces with city officials and a herd of volunteers Saturday to spruce up the Struve Slough trail.

Sacramento News and Review logo LOCAL NEWS
When Fish Are Free: Hundreds of Salmon Are Now Spawning in Klamath River and Tributaries After Dam Removal Completed

By Dan Bacher Hundreds of fall-run Chinook salmon are now spawning on the Klamath River and its tributaries both above and below the former sites...

Featured

The city of Santa Cruz gets just over 20 percent of its water from Loch Lomond in the mountain community of Lompico.
Where’s Our Water?
Santa Cruz is one of the few California communities that receive 100 percent of its water from local rainfall.
In Santa Cruz County, 10 separate entities manage the water supply.
Santa Cruz County Water, Explained
Santa Cruz County's water system is run by a decentralized collection of entities.
Water is a human right under California law, but it doesn’t always work out that way.
Agriculture and Water Shortages in the State’s Breadbasket, Explained
There are many causes contributing to this crisis. And as you may already know, this situation really is nuts.
RCDs look after the land, whether it’s used for grazing, growing, or getting out into nature.
California Dirt
RCDs were created to avoid a repeat of the Dust Bowl. Now they work with landowners to preserve the air, water and natural habitats that sustain us all.
There are more than 300 community service districts in California.
Community Services Districts, Explained
Areas that the county overlooks can form their own local governments.
Just because record rains have been falling, the state’s water crisis remains.
What Is Drought? Probably Not What You Think
Recent torrential rains have helped, but California's drought is a long way from over.
From nitrates to arsenic to “forever chemicals,” California’s water supply faces a serious pollution threat.
Dirty Water: California Faces a Water Contamination Crisis
In a state that declares water a “human right,” more than 2 percent of its residents have no drinkable water.
How California reclamation districts turned millions of acres of wetlands into fertile agricultural land, starting in the earliest days of the Gold Rush.
Reclamation Districts: Turning ‘Swamps’ Into Farmland
From its earliest days as a state, California has been trying to turn marshes into productive land.
Since the Gold Rush era, land reclamation has cost California 90 percent of its wetlands.
How Land Reclamation Hurts California’s Environment
The hidden price tag of “reclaiming” swamps and marshes as usable land.
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