DWR Updates

The North San Joaquin Water Conservation District’s Lakso Recharge Basin in San Joaquin County helps facilitate year-round groundwater recharge and doubles as a habitat for various waterfowl. Photo taken December 23, 2025.

The North San Joaquin Water Conservation District’s Lakso Recharge Basin in San Joaquin County helps facilitate year-round groundwater recharge and doubles as a habitat for various waterfowl. The 80-acre project was funded by DWR’s Flood Diversion and Recharge Enhancement Initiative to proactively prepare for future storm events and drought by dive ...

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The California Department of Water Resources and UC Davis are building a Longfin Smelt culture program that will maintain a refugial population of Longfin Smelt in captivity at UCD’s Center for Aquatic Biology and Aquaculture in Yolo County, answer key uncertainties about the species biology and ecology, as well as produce fish for other researchers to use to support conservation of the species.

Tucked within the UC Davis campus, a quiet but critically important effort is helping preserve the Longfin Smelt, a vulnerable fish species native to the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta. Scientists with DWR and UC Davis are collaborating to better understand and conserve this declining species through immediate conservation actions and long-term resea ...

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California Department of Water Resources Utility Craftsworkers (from left) Julian Lemus, Paul Bronson and David Martinez count and measure young fish during a count in a fish holding tank building at the John E. Skinner Delta Fish Protective Facility in Contra Costa County, California. Photo taken June 4, 2024.

DWR is now recruiting for the 2026-27 Apprenticeship Program. Now in its 55th year, the program has produced 709 graduates, approximately 85% of whom have remained with the department, including 10 Field Division Managers.

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Vernal pools at the Illa M. Collin Conservation Preserve in Sacramento County. Photo taken April 10, 2026.

Vernal pools don’t immediately catch the eye’s attention. They're stealthy and scattered across rolling grasslands – hidden beneath layers of vegetation. Appearing seasonally during the cooler months, vernal pools are temporary shallow wetlands that hold water in winter and spring until they dry in the summer heat. A keen eye for these isolated gem ...

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