AWWA ACE65617

Regional water management has long been practiced throughout history. The Roman Empire, the Anasazi Indians of the Southwestern United States, and countless water agencies and districts across the western United States have long endeavored to bring water to arid areas that receive little local rainfall. Early efforts focused on bringing supply to densely populated areas, or for crop irrigation. Over time, the scarcity of water coupled with environmental and social concerns has resulted in an increasingly complex regulatory environment surrounding the management of water resources. This complex interplay has led to statewide, regional, and local battles over how to manage water resources in a sustainable fashion over time. Within California, the state legislature has recognized this problem, and fostered a new way of managing water resources called Integrated Regional Water Management Planning (IRWMP). IRWMP focuses on maximizing the beneficial use of water resources across all disciplines including water supply and quality, flood control, wastewater and water reuse, and watershed and habitat management and protection. Rather than an either/or notion of water being managed for a single purpose, IRWMP focuses on maximizing the benefit of water resources management for as many uses as possible. With IRWMP, it is possible to create water management scenarios that benefit both the human uses of water while maintaining and even improving the environment. This paper explores the idea of IRWMP as a means of promoting the wise and sustainable management of water resources. The paper discusses the historical context for regional water management, including the problems encountered in California due to the movement of water for urban and agricultural use. The discussion then focuses on the development of IRWMP in California, including the State's IRWMP grant program. Focusing on the Bay Area as a case study, the paper concludes with a discussion of the opportunities and challenges associated with implementing IRWMP at a larger regional level, including recommendations for improving IRWMP at the regional and state levels. Includes 15 references, figures.