Linking Water Supplies To Land Use

Stephen K. Hall, executive director of the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA, stresses the connection between land use and the availability of water resources in California communities. Builders and policy makers, alike, are enthusiastic about the positive economic impact that growth can have on communities, Hall observes. But this eagerness can have negative consequences for the state's water supply. Hall calls for tougher laws that make a clear connection between water availability, development, and the effect that development can have on water supply. Two bills are presently being considered, but these bills, along with overarching laws such as the California Environmental Quality Act, may be insufficient. The present bills should be amended so that the planning process involves assessing the availability of local water resources and the level of development that would severely impact the local supply. Regular inventories of present and future water supplies should also be mandated and used to guide land-use decisions, Hall concludes.