Seeing California’s Water from the Lens of a Responsible Investor (Photo Essay)

Pyramid Lake

In September, the CEO Water Mandate and Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) took a group of 29 international investors on a California water “field trip.”

The journey started in Los Angeles, meandered up through the San Joaquin Valley, and made a final stop in Napa Valley before coming to a close in San Francisco. The group heard from water managers, policymakers, farmers, environmental groups, and companies to discuss the water challenges they are contending with and hear about the innovative solutions they are deploying. In addition to learning about exciting pilot projects and new ideas, the investors gained an understanding the broader water risk and opportunity context in which California’s public and private sectors operate.

Learn more about the field trip, with details on each stop, by clicking through the photo essay below.

  • The PRI and CEO Water Mandate took a group of 30 international investors on a California Water field trip.
  • The trip started in Los Angeles and ended in San Francisco, covering 400 miles of California.
  • Our first stop was a visit to the Water Replenishment District of Southern California, an entity responsible for managing the groundwater for Los Angeles. This construction site will be a new water treatment facility , which will purify 10,000 acre feet of recyled water annually to near distilled levels for groundwater recharge.
  • The water shown here goes through three levels of treament including reverse osmosis before supplying drinking water to the residents of Los Angeles.
  • Underground at this water treatment facility is the pipe that will treat water from the facility to spreading grounds. This facility is a key component of the Water Replenishment District's "Water Independence Now" initiative.
  • Water from the treatment facility, the San Gabriel River, and other sources is piped to this large marshy area. The water seeps back into the soil replenishing groundwater.
  • Our next stop with to downtown. Los Angeles to meet with State Controller Betty Yee about efforts to integrate water risk considerations into their portfolios.
  • On our way north we stopped at Pyramid Lake which is part of the State Water Project conveyance system.
  • The Metropolitan Water District rep talked to investors about WaterFix, an ambitious highly-debated plan to improve the reliability of the State Water Project.
  • phases toward catalyzing a water resilient society
  • DAy two the investors visted an almond orchard owned by Olam.
  • The almond orchard has four holding ponds that is pumped up from groundwater during low energy demad times.
  • Our last stop in the San Joaquin Valley was at the De Jager dairy farm. These farmers, in partnership with the environmental group Sustainable Conservation, has adpated a state-of-the-art drip irrigation and nutrient application system.
  • Water and nutrients are piped to cops such as corn through the drip irrigation system. A practice that saves water and also reduces nitrous oxide emissions.
  • The field trip cam to a close at Trefethen Family Vinyards, in Napa Valley. The investors learned about the vineyards sustainabilitry practices, and about how climate change is expected to affect the grape-growing conditions in the valley.
  • And, of course, we got to taste some wine!
  • text: The trip ended with one last bus ride back to San Francisco where the investors then spent the week attending PRI In-Person and the Global Climate Action Summit

Pacific Institute and California Water

The Pacific Institute, a global water sustainability think tank that acts as co-secretariat for the CEO Water Mandate, has a long history of research and engagement on California’s water issues. The PRI asked Pacific Institute, in its role as Mandate secretariat, to consult on this field trip because of the Institute’s depth of knowledge and research track record in California.

Peruse the Pacific Institute’s California-focused work.

About the PRI

Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) is an independent organization, supported by the United Nations, that works to understand the investment implications of environmental, social and governance factors and supports its 2,000+ investor signatories in incorporating these factors into their decision-making. The PRI has a workstream focused on water risks in agricultural supply chains and a workstream encouraging ESG performance in infrastructure assets.

Links to Further Information

Water Replenishment District of Southern California

California WaterFix

The Groundwater Exchange (information on the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act)

De Jager Dairy Farm Drip Irrigation Project

Olam’s Water Sustainability Program

Trefethen Vineyards’ Sustainability Program

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author avatar
Cora Kammeyer, Pacific Institute
Cora Kammeyer joined the Pacific Institute in 2017 as a Research Associate. Cora conducts research and analysis on water policy and management issues in California, and supports the Institute's corporate water stewardship initiatives. Prior to joining the Pacific Institute, Cora worked for a global environmental nonprofit on a project focused on using water markets to provide wetland habitat for migratory birds in California's Sacramento Valley. She also worked with a San Francisco-based startup that uses behavioral science techniques to encourage residential water conservation. Cora received a B.A. in Environmental Studies with a minor in Spanish from the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). She also received a Master’s Degree in Environmental Science and Management from the Bren School at UCSB, where she was a Sustainable Water Markets Fellow.