Mer. Feb 12th, 2025


Clean Water Trump’s water plan for California is a giveaway to Big Ag corporations that will not prevent wildfires. Here’s what the state really needs to ensure water for all Californians.
In late January, Donald Trump used the devastating Los Angeles fires to push harmful, pro-corporate water policies. His executive order to move water to Southern California would mostly benefit the fields of big agribusiness in the San Joaquin Valley. “None of the policies in this executive order will move even a single drop of water to communities devastated by these wildfires,” said California’s Representative Jared Huffman. 
Earlier, Trump ordered the release of billions of gallons of water from dams, claiming to help Los Angeles. In reality, he created panic in the Central Valley and released water from reservoirs at a time when it wasn’t needed and they weren’t prepared to receive it — essentially wasting this precious resource. RELATED CONTENT
This is a sick ploy that will make matters worse. It also underscores long-standing water problems in our state. For years, California has pursued unsustainable water policy. We need a rapid reorientation away from policies that prop up Big Ag and Big Oil toward a progressive vision of water and climate resilience that benefits all Californians.
That means addressing the root causes of climate change to stem the tide of disasters. It means investing in strong local water infrastructure that can meet people’s water needs, even in times of crisis. And it means ensuring all Californians — not just Big Ag and Big Oil — have long-term access to clean, affordable water. 
LA Wildfires Show the Stark Need for Climate Resilience
Many factors lead to the devastating fires in Los Angeles, but the main driver is climate change. Long dry periods are becoming more frequent, and Los Angeles had seen almost no rain since the previous May. The extremely dry conditions, coupled with unseasonably strong winds, allowed the fires’ rapid spread. 
Contrary to Trump’s claims, there was plenty of water in Southern California at the time. Reservoirs were at historic averages or higher. But at the neighborhood level, water infrastructure in LA — like many places across the country — was built to fight smaller structural fires, not climate-fueled mega-fires.
As a result, it couldn’t deliver as much water, or as quickly, as such large and fast-moving fires demanded. Hydrants lost pressure as local water supplies drained.
All of this demands solutions that ensure our communities are climate resilient. That means investing to prepare for, recover from, and adapt to climate change. It includes projects like upgrading local water systems so they can respond to mega-fires. Resiliency projects are essential to ensuring everyone can access basic needs and services in a climate-changed world, or through a climate disaster.
However, rather than promoting resilience, California’s water policy supports th