DWR Updates

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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California State University, East Bay, research technician Daphne Szutu (left), and graduate student research assistant Brandon Broach — both with the Department of Earth, Environmental and Sustainability Sciences — gather data from eddy covariance flux towers as colleagues take core samples of biomass on Twitchell Island after a pilot-scale burn coordinated by Division of Multibenefit Initiatives scientists on land managed by the California Department of Water Resources in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, Sacramento County. Photo taken March 11, 2026.

The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta has long been recognized for its ability to store carbon, so experts from DWR and partner agencies are exploring the practice of culturally informed burning to accelerate the sequestration process in the region.

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