The 2017 article titled by Ryan J. Mahoney, published on the Water Law Journal website, addresses the critical issue of sedimentation in California’s reservoirs and its significant impacts on water supply, quality, public safety, and environmental health. Sedimentation, which is the process of sediment accumulation in reservoirs, reduces storage capacity and causes heavy concentrations of toxic materials on the reservoir floor. This issue affects water supply reliability, reservoir infrastructure, and ecosystems reliant on the waterway. The article argues that California needs to adopt new laws requiring reservoir owners and operators to take specific actions to prevent, eliminate, and reverse sedimentation in both existing and future reservoirs. It highlights that sedimentation is not only a natural process but also significantly influenced by human activities such as dams and reservoirs, which prevent sediments from flowing downstream.
The detrimental impacts of sedimentation include reduced water supply due to loss of storage capacity, contaminated water quality with toxic chemicals, pesticide residues, and heavy metals, damage to reservoir infrastructure, economic concerns related to water supply and the cost of sedimentation management strategies, and harm to both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems due to high levels of toxic sedimentation. The article emphasizes that addressing sedimentation is crucial for California’s water infrastructure’s longevity and efficiency, suggesting that significant public investment and stakeholder input are necessary to develop effective laws and regulations to combat this issue.
Read the article by clicking this link: https://waterlawjournal.com/sedimentation-in-california-reservoirs-a-long-term-problem-of-immediate-concern/
