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California cities work to capture a much-needed water supply from urban runoff after rain storms.
With extreme weather incidents increasing due to climate change, California is now grappling with an atmospheric river that's bringing "bomb cyclone"-level rainfall to our parched landscape — thanks to drought conditions that are several years in the making. And that's a recipe for dangerous flooding.
As Southern California goes through an extreme drought, desalination plants have become a bigger part of the conversation. These facilities, however, are controversial, seen by many as harmful to marine ecosystems, too expensive, and too energy intensive compared to other water conservation approaches.
Los Angeles county approved an LA River Master Plan that will develop a variety of projects over the next several years, including a land bank to buy affordable housing along the river. The five supervisors backed the River and Land Bank plans despite environmental and community groups pulling their support for it the day before.