WaterWired

John H. Matthews' Presentation and More! 'Climate-Water Action: Is 2020 the Pivotal Year?'

Dr. John H. Matthews, the person when it comes to climate-water adaptation, is the co-founder and executive director of AGWA, the Alliance for Global Water Adaptation. If ever there was an organization that punches above its weight, AGWA is the one. 

John, who's one of the nicest persons you could imagine, took tim from his busy schedule to speak to our GEOG seminar on Monday afternoon. He gave me permission to post his presentation.

PPT: Download 2020_i_13_Matthews_OSU

PDF: Download 2020_i_13_Matthews_OSU

Read his award-winning AWRA Water Resources IMPACT article, Change:Resilient Infrastructure or Infrastructure for Resilience?It's a quick read.

Download Matthews

And check out CRIDA, Climate Risk Informed Decision Analysis.

Enjoy!

“In life, our first job is this, to divide and distinguish things into two categories: externals I cannot control, and the choices I make with them that I do control. Where will I find good and bad? In me, in my choices" - Epictetus (thanks to JHM)

A New Year's Day Tribute to 'Good Guy' John W. Fordham, R.I.P.

Sometimes I use New Year's Day to remember something I forgot to do in the previous year. This is one of those times but at least I can rectify my omission. What follows was originally written in August 2019. Why I delayed its publication is beyond me, but a recent card from John's widow Prella spurred this long-delayed remembrance. Here goes...

I got the news the other day from a Facebook post by Alan McKay: John Fordham had died with his family present at his home in Carlsbad, CA. Alan went on to say that John was 'one of the good guys'. My feelings exactly.

I usually write obituaries and recollections about people like Stan Davis, Tom Prickett, et al. - folks who were well-known to WaterWonks, water buffaloes, and fellow travelers.

John William Fordham? Not so much, although he was well-known to and respected by the Nevada water community. Yes, he was one of the good guys who always deflected praise and was a contemporary of mine (five years older).  John was a civil engineer - BS and MS from the University of Nevada-Reno, specializing in hydrology and water resources management. He undoubtedly had as much (if not more) influence on my early professional development than the aforementioned men.

We met in July 1976 at the Desert Research Institute (DRI) in Reno, my first job as a freshly-minted PhD from the University of Arizona. I was in one of DRI's centers, the Center for Water Resources Research, later changed to Water Resources Center (now the Hydrologic Sciences Center).

Since that was my first 'real' job (at $17,286 per year!) John and his academic mentor, Dr. Vulli Gupta, took it upon themselves to clue me in. Vulli was more about academics (we started writing an (unfinished) introductory hydrology textbook) and John was more about the nuts-and-bolts of how the Center ran, who did what, Nevada's water resources, etc. John was not the only who performed this function but I soon learned that he seemed to know about what (and who) worked and what (or who) didn't. He was also not a bullshitter. He was always there to help anyone.

I also came to realize that he knew a lot about hydrology, Nevada water and its idiosyncrasies, who had it in for the Center and all the other stuff. Turns out that his cousin Roland Westergard was the State Engineer. I am unsure that was a good thing.

My respect for John grew after the death of George Burke Maxey in early 1977. Burke was a legendary hydrogeologist who had been the only head of the WRC. When an outsider was brought in to replace Burke, John and a few others were viewed as being disloyal and/or too much oriented to the 'old ways', shunted aside, and were no longer in the power structure. John accepted this in stride and continued to do what he was asked and did what needed to be done. He was the consummate 'good soldier'.

John was also a darn good hydrologist/civil engineer. I learned quite a bit about surface water hydrology from him. He taught me much about flash floods, water quality, dams, water law and rights, ET. He was a practitioner, not a researcher (although most of us knew he wanted to finish his PhD). Vulli would bug him to no avail (I think John was in the 'ABD' classification).

Flash forward to late December2019 when Prella Fordham's annual holiday card arrived. I had never written her abou John's death. In my response to her card, I wrote that when I thought of John three things came to mind:

1) he was an 'engineer's engineer' - other would seek his advice/counsel;

2) he put his organization's interests above his own; and

3) he could always be counted upon to do what he was asked, and to do it right.

And Alan McKay's assessment was right: he was truly one of the good guys.

My only regret: I never told him any of the above while he was alive - how much I appreciated him and valued his help.

My funniest remembrance of John? At one time our offices were adjacent. One day in the early 1980s we had a lively discussion about CDs. We must have been engaged for 5-10 minutes before we each realized that I meant 'compact discs' and he meant 'certificates of deposit'.

Yes, John, I miss you (especially the technical sessions at Trader Dick's in the old Nugget.

You can read his obituary here.

Note: Comsider a donation to the Fordham Family Civil Engineering Scholarship Endowment #175449 with checks payable to UNR Foundation/0162, 1664 N. Virginia Street, Reno, NV, 89557 https://www.unr.edu/giving/foundation

"C'mon! You know better than that!" - John W. Fordham

Time to Put Democracy on Hold? G. Tracy Mehan III Book Review: 'Can Democracy Handle Climate Change?'

Can democracy handle climate change? Not only is that the $64 question, but it is also the title of a new book by Daniel J. Fiorino.

So who should review this book? Only the best - G. Tracy Mehan III, a frequent contributor to WaterWired, executive director for government affairs at the American Water Works Association and adjunct professor at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University. He writes great book reviews (and other things) so when he sends me something I post it. He sent me this review, which will be publsihed in the September/October 2019 issue of the The Environmental Forum

Download_Democracy_and_Climate_Change_Review

Here are the first few paragraps:

With the election of President Trump in 2016, and recent setbacks for political parties supporting aggressive action on climate change in Australia and Canada, there is dissension among some environmentalists and academics about the efficacy of democracies in achieving the goal of mitigating emissions of greenhouse gases and the resulting changes to our planet.

“Even the best democracies agree that when a major war approaches, democracy must be put on hold for the time being,” says Gaia theorist James Lovelock. “I have a feeling that climate change may bean issue as severe as a war. It may be necessary to put democracy on hold for a while.”

That old curmudgeon Garrett Hardin (of “The Tragedy of the Commons” fame), believed the world had to relinquish “the freedom to breed, and that very soon.” That was back in 1968. And David Shearman andJoseph Wayne Smith, in The Climate Challenge and the Failure of Democracy (Praeger 2007) stated their firm belief that “authoritarianism is the natural state of humanity, and it may be better to choose our elites rather than have them imposed.” Battling climate change is warfare, and “humanity will have to trade its liberty to live as it wishes in favor of a system where survival is paramount.”

You also might also enjoy Tracy's review of  Beyond Politics: The Private Governance Response to Climate Change. Click here for his review of 1 March 2018.

Enjoy!

“No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare.” - James Madison (thanks to G. Tracy Mehan III)

Lisa Beutler Interview: Wade Crowfoot, California Secretary for Natural Resources

My friend and colleague, Lisa Beutler of Executive Facilitator at Stantecand President of the AWRA, interviewed Wade Crowfoot, the new Secretary for Natural Resources for the State of California. The interview is in the current issue (#183) of The Water Report by David Light and David Moon. David Light granted me permission to distribute the PDF. You can also read an online version on Maven's Notebook. 

Download BeutlerTWR#183

Here is the introductory section.

On April 24th, we had the much-appreciated opportunity to interview Wade Crowfoot, the Secretary for Natural Resources for the State of California. California Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Secretary Crowfoot to this position on January 11, 2019.

When asked about his priorities, California’s recently appointed Natural Resources Secretary quickly rattles off a range of topics: climate change; strengthening water supply resilience; and building water capacity for communities, agriculture, and the environment, among them.

We caught up with Crowfoot just days before issuance of the Governor’s Executive Order on water (see next page) and he enthusiastically explained that the Governor’s priorities were his priorities. He noted that even while California faces a plethora of pressing issues, Governor Gavin Newsom has madewater management a high priority. As evidence he offered that Newsom made time on multiple occasions to convene the Secretaries of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection, and the Department of Food and Agricultural to meet with him personally and explore and define a course of action. Crowfoot found the Governor’s knowledge and commitment to water resiliency during these sessions impressive.

Talking about water is part of Wade Crowfoot’s DNA. A native son of the Great Lakes region he proudly recounts that his most formative years were spent exploring its vast reaches that encompass 20 percent of the world’s surface fresh water. These early years along with his extensive work experiences in planning and natural resources positions (and many subsequent hiking adventures) provide him with a solid integrated resource management framework. This makes serving as California’s Natural Resources Secretary an easy fit.

Crowfoot sees integration as the organizing principle for his approach to water management. He describes this as a “One California” portfolio approach that incorporates: conservation; continued improvements in water use efficiency; stormwater capture; recycling; and smart conjunctive water use. It  also includes smart investment in green and built infrastructure and the full and fair implementation of California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA).

In addition to leveraging a full toolkit of water management options, a portfolio approach embraces multiple time scales and plans for short, mid, and long-term actions and returns. He defined the longer term timeframe as generational investments that look out 80 years and beyond. As an example he noted that planning documents like the previous Governor’s Water Action Plan are directed more to immediate needs while other required planning processes — like the current California Water Plan — are focused on mid and long-term actions.

When asked how the state’s Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) Plans fit into this planning framework, Crowfoot saw an IRWM 2.0 in the future. He noted this was contingent on securing additional funding. Given 85% of water investment happens locally, Crowfoot felt the state could play a role in enhancing what is already happening.

Skipping three pages...

Conclusion

The importance of fair and equitable water security for all Californians was threaded throughout Crowfoot’s entire discussion. He noted the state’s policy on the human right to water and touched on the need to consider this in every water management decision. This means: addressing existing adverse impacts; preventing unnecessary impacts; and minimizing economic disruption. He also felt that accomplishing these goals would require ensuring some form of representation of impacted communities.

Crowfoot was sober in understanding that the Resources Agency and state government alone could not address every water management need. In considering topics like water security and public health for the homeless population, he pointed to the need for integrated approaches led by social service agencies and a continuum of responses. Even so, he felt the state did have a role in defining standards, providing technical assistance, and incentivizing actions.

In closing Crowfoot offered his optimism and excitement in working to address the state’s water management challenges. He was fully aware of the magnitude and breadth of work undertaken by the California Department of Natural Resources and expressed appreciation of the hour we had to focus just on state water management.

Enjoy!

Today's quote just has to be:

"Water is the Rubik's Cube of public policy." - John Laird, former Secretary of the California Resources Agency (apologies to John Fleck)

John H. Matthews' Thursday Twofer Treat: 1) Award-Winning CRIDA Article: 2) University of Idaho FREE CRIDA Workshop

1) Award-Winning CRIDA Article

I last wrote about John H. Matthews' article on 5 December 2018:

John H. Matthews, a good friend and one of the smartest water-climate guys in the room, is the lead and co- founder of the dynamic organization Alliance for Global Water Adaptation (AGWA). In just a few short years John and AGWA have catapulted themselves to the climate and water A-list. His success is well-deserved. 

One of the many nice things about John is that all his fame has not gone to his head and he still talks to me. He'll even write a brief article for a special issue of Water Resources IMPACTI edited, Climate Change: Resilient Infrastructure or Infrastructure for Resilience?. He begins the article as few people can - by recounting an invitation he received to an informal dinner in Europe with investors and their ilk. What happened there? Read on, gentle reader....

Download Matthews

Don't forget to check out Climate Risk Informed Decision Analysis (CRIDA).

So why am I repeating the above here? Perhaps trying to curry favor with Dr. Matthews? Or fearful that he might drop me from his cellphone contact list?

None of those is true. John's article, Climate Change: Resilient Infrastructure or Infrastructure for Resilience?, has recently been awarded the Water Resources IMPACT best article for 2018. It's the first time we have made such an award. I love the way John starts his article:

Recently I was invited to an informal dinner in Europe withnvestors and groups that interact with investors. I’m a freshwater scientist, working on climate change and water management issues for about 15 years. I had been seated across from a smartly dressed woman from southern Africa, affiliated with a group funded by British foreign aid to support resilient infrastructure in the region.

I was intrigued. Infrastructure is especially exposed to climate change risks. By its nature, infrastructure lasts a long time, but we typically evaluate success/failure and “sustainability” over much shorter periods. Worse, our ability to predict future impacts in a shifting climate with confidence and certainty is limited—especially for investments that interact with the water cycle, that require a quantitative evaluation framework such as engineering or economics, or that have low tolerance for failure. Climate models provide limited and often weak confidence and conflicting projections about conditions 10 years from now, much less 50 or 100. Worldwide, we see many pieces of twentieth-century infrastructure in cities, along rivers and on shorelines that no longer match their climate conditions. Some, like the Hoover and Glen Canyon Dams in the United States, require billions in retrofitting or demand adjustments in order to maintain their fit with current and emerging patterns.

  Read it all:

Download MatthewsArticleOfYearNov2018IMPACT

Here is a presentation John gave here at OSU in January 2019:

Download 2019_i_18_osu_matthews_climate

 2) Climate Risk Informed Decision Analysis (CRIIDA) Workshop - University of Idaho, 22-23 April 2019

Mary Engels, a PhD student at the University, just sent me information about a workshop John is consucting at UI. There are some spots still available. Please register by 17 April. Click here. The workshop fee and a light breakfast and lunch are provided free of charge; attendees must cover dinner, travel, and lodging. Want more information? Contact Mary Engels: enge5729@vandals.uidaho.edu

Enjoy!

"We build things that last 300 years. Why don't we think about sustainability for that long?" - Senior manager, The World Bank, February 2017 (thanks to John H. Matthews)