For over 50 years, the Clean Water Act has done much to protect our nation’s waterways, but loopholes in the regulations and lax enforcement have crippled its effectiveness, allowing polluters to exploit the system and contaminate our waters with impunity.

Angelenos are experiencing the impacts of climate change firsthand, with extreme droughts and floods becoming more frequent. Proposition 4 offers a solution by funding stormwater capture, groundwater recharge, and climate resilience efforts. Voting "yes" will ensure LA's water future is secure and sustainable, especially for underserved communities.

Though recent headlines may suggest these problems are new, the reality is that bacterial contamination, ocean advisories, and beach closures have been worsening in recent years. It’s enough to make any beach-going Angeleno wonder: what’s going on, and is this something people should be worried about?

The CAMP4W marks a historic shift for MWD, placing climate change at the core of its planning and emphasizing local water supplies. This move is crucial for addressing water sustainability and climate resilience across the United States.

To fully deliver on its promise of healthy waterways, thriving communities, and resilient water supplies, the Safe Clean Water Program has to evolve.

Climate change is affecting the Colorado River, highlighting the need for local, resilient water sources such as recycled wastewater and stormwater capture.

Your support for LA Waterkeeper is a crucial part of the solution. Every donation propels us forward in our mission to safeguard water resources, combat pollution, and foster a genuinely sustainable and equitable future for all Angelenos.

Heal the Bay, LA Waterkeeper, and NRDC worked together to develop Vision 2045, a roadmap for a more sustainable water future for Los Angeles.

In a significant move, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors officially adopted the First Edition of the Los Angeles County Water Plan (CWP) this past Tuesday, marking a crucial step towards achieving resilient and sustainable water resources for the region.  

As we reflect on the past year's successes, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to our legal interns, whose dedication and expertise have played a pivotal role in shaping our 2023 efforts. From researching the ramifications of Sackett v. EPA to exploring the harmful impacts of ship anchoring on the seafloor, they have collectively demonstrated a commitment that goes beyond their individual roles. The strides we've made in the past year wouldn't have been possible without their collaborative efforts.

Three decades after two conservation groups sued the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) over its mishandling of polluted runoff, the groups and the agency have agreed to update the settlement terms and end the case for good. The case, which was filed by the NRDC and LA Waterkeeper in 1993, argued Caltrans failed to properly manage discharge from more than 900 miles of roads and 35 maintenance facilities located across Los Angeles and Ventura counties in violation of the Clean Water Act.

The Los Angeles County Water Plan was recently released for public review, and it gets a lot of things right. LA Waterkeeper submitted comments on the draft, noting some of the things the Plan gets right and where opportunities for improvement remain.

Our State of the Water blog series has explored how LA’s water sources fared after one of the wettest wet seasons the region has ever experienced. Here we explore how we can take advantage of future rains to ensure a secure water future.

On the heels of one of LA’s wettest winters in decades, the value of a robust, dynamic stormwater capture program has become crystal clear to the public and policymakers alike. LA County voters were ahead of the curve when they passed Measure W in 2018 to better equip the region for the extremes of climate change. The resulting Safe Clean Water Program (SCWP) is the most ambitious stormwater capture program in the country and has already brought myriad benefits to LA’s communities.

Two years have passed since a catastrophic system failure at the Hyperion Water Treatment Plant led to a massive spill of 12.5 million gallons of raw sewage into the plant’s one-mile outfall pipe. This disaster on July 11, 2021 was our region’s most devastating sewage spill in decades. In its aftermath, LA Sanitation & Environment (LASAN) is working with the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board (LA Regional Board) on a plan to address its numerous violations related to the spill. Depending on the outcome of negotiations between these agencies, robust penalties for this spill could create an opportunity for local community investments focused on ecological restoration, as well as investments that would modernize our wastewater system to protect our region from similar spills in the future.