The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) announced Jan. 26 it expects to deliver 30 percent of requested water to its public water agencies in 2023—1.27 million acre-feet—up from the initial 5 percent announced in December.
This comes after weeks of heavy rainstorms and public outcry demanding the state release more water from its reservoirs.
During the storms, California Gov. Gavin Newsom faced criticism from bipartisan legislators and California residents over trillions of gallons of rainwater that flowed out to the ocean instead of being stored in reservoirs after three years of extreme drought.
In a statement Thursday, Newsom called the increase in expected water deliveries “good news for communities and farms” in the San Francisco Bay Area, San Joaquin Valley, and Southern California….