LA WILDFIRES FAQ

FAQs for Reporters RE: LA Wildfires and Water

(Last Updated: 1/16/25)

Q: What is the relationship between water, climate change, and the 2025 LA wildfires? 

Warming temperatures and shifting weather patterns due to climate change are making natural disasters like wildfires bigger, more frequent, and harder to predict, as evidenced by the scale of the current disaster during a typically “cold” month like January. 

A phenomenon called weather whiplash, or hydroclimate whiplash, created conditions for these wildfires. The last two years saw record-setting winter rainfall, which fueled significant plant growth, followed by one of the driest winters on record. The explosion of vegetation from recent years has since dried out. Paired with unusually hot and dry Santa Ana winds, this dried brush created perfect conditions for these catastrophic blazes. According to researchers for Environmental Resource Letters, climate change is increasing the odds that windy periods occurring deeper into the traditional "rainy season" will overlap with extreme dryness, in turn increasing the chance of fire. 

Q: Why did fire hydrants temporarily run dry in the Pacific Palisades? 

Water systems designed for normal urban use and relatively limited firefighting efforts (e.g., for fighting fire on a small cluster of homes) were over-taxed due to the large and widespread nature of these fires. The lack of water coming out of hydrants was related to their inability to retain sufficient pressure to push the water uphill where it was needed, not due to a lack of available water in the region. 

Q: Did the lack of water from fire hydrants mean that firefighting stopped in the area? 

No. According to reporting published in LAist, LADWP delivered 19 water trucks to support ongoing firefighting efforts while several million-gallon water tanks that typically provide water to these neighborhoods refilled. 

Q: What are the likely impacts of these fires on local water quality? 

The 2025 LA wildfires, which as of January 14, 2025 had burned over 40,000 acres and destroyed more than 12,000 homes, are expected to have significant impacts on local water quality. Fires release a host of contaminants into the environment, especially from manmade materials from firefighting efforts as well as destroyed homes and infrastructure. Runoff can cause ash and debris, as well as common materials such as lead-based paint, asbestos, and heavy metals, to leach into the water supply. Some areas are under unsafe water advisories, and residents have been told to avoid tap water. 

One major environmental concern is the use of flame retardants. While generally considered safe for humans, phosphorus-based retardants can be toxic to aquatic ecosystems. When these chemicals enter streams and rivers, they can cause harmful algal blooms and harm fish, amphibians, and other wildlife. Despite the Forest Service’s ban on aerial retardant drops in sensitive areas like waterways, exceptions are made when human safety is at risk. Flame retardants can contain PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals.” 

Runoff from the fires is also affecting LA’s beaches. The LA County Health Department has issued ocean water advisories for areas from Surfrider Beach to Dockweiler State Beach, warning beachgoers to avoid water contact near storm drains and creeks. 

Q: What are the likely impacts of these fires on LA’s water system? 

The full extent of the 2025 LA wildfires’ impact on the region’s water system is currently unclear, as conditions remain too dangerous for experts to conduct proper testing. However, based on similar disasters, significant and long-lasting damage to water distribution systems is expected. According to the NRDC, high heat from wildfires can melt or degrade plastic pipes, releasing hazardous compounds into the water supply.  

In the coming days and weeks, water experts will assess the damage to determine whether flushing the system of these compounds will be sufficient or if more extensive repairs are needed. As Daniel McCurry, a USC civil and environmental engineering professor, told Wired, recovery for LADWP-served areas could take days to weeks, but smaller providers in regions like Altadena may face longer delays due to limited resources. In some cases, McCurry noted, rebuilding damaged systems could take years. 

Q: What could the LA region do to better prepare for future events of this nature?  

The Los Angeles region can take both immediate and long-term steps to better protect its communities and ecosystems. In the short term, recovery efforts must prioritize public health through proper cleaning and remediation. In the long term, Los Angeles must also focus on bolstering its climate resilience. Stricter building codes and enforcement of those codes, requiring fire-resistant materials in new construction, and encouraging landscaping that reduces flammability may help mitigate fire risks in rebuilt neighborhoods. Likewise, LA must make significant investments in overhauling its aging infrastructure. Nearly 29% of LA’s water pipes are over 80 years old, which already contributes to dangerous leaks and sewage spills on a regular day and are vulnerable to failure during emergencies.  

Q: What changes are needed to ensure that the region always has enough water on hand to fight fires? 

The region must rethink its overall approach to water management. Investments in resilient local water supplies, like wastewater recycling, stormwater capture, cleaning up contaminated groundwater and conservation are essential to reduce reliance on imported water and lower the carbon footprint of our state’s water infrastructure. Transporting water from far flung places leaves us vulnerable to interrupted delivery from these water sources due to increasingly common natural disasters of all types throughout the state. 

Q: What, if anything, is the connection between the Delta Conveyance project, Sites Reservoir, and firefighting capacity in Los Angeles? 

The LA region has ample local water available at this time. There is no need to increase water deliveries from the Bay-Delta or any other source from which LA imports water for the region to be able to fight the current fires. The sources of our water imports (i.e., Mono Lake, Bay Delta, Colorado River) are drying up due to climate change, and are themselves at risk of future interruptions due to natural disasters. We should therefore be focusing our efforts on new, local water supplies to make LA water secure.  

Q: Would Los Angeles have been better equipped to fight these fires had the Delta Conveyance project and/or Sites Reservoir already been built? 

No. The challenge that made it difficult to respond quickly to the fire storm that hit the Palisades and Altadena was not related to the availability of local water.  

Q: In what ways does LA’s reliance on imported water increase its vulnerability to climate-driven disasters? 

Nearly 19% of the state’s electricity is used for water-related activities like the pumping and transporting of millions of acre-feet of water across vast distances, making it a substantial source of greenhouse gas emissions. With the increase in extreme weather events due to climate change, LA’s reliance on imported water also leaves it vulnerable to natural disasters that could reduce the ability of the State Water Project and Los Angeles and Colorado River Aqueducts to reliably send water to Southern California. 

Q: What types of investments are most likely to provide the LA region with reliable and affordable access to water in the long run? 

The best thing the region could do is to commit to strengthening local water resilience through investments in wastewater recycling, stormwater capture, groundwater cleanup, and conservation/efficiency. Property owners in areas that face high wildfire risk might also consider investing in fire-safety cisterns, as described on page 85 of this report. Water agencies in the region could provide incentives for homeowners to install such cisterns, which make it possible for property owners to protect their own property from embers without tapping into shared water resources that firefighting agencies also depend upon in times of crisis.