On February 16, 2016, the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) adopted a resolution identifying the human right to water as a top priority and core value of the State Water Board and Regional Water Quality Control Boards (collectively the Water Boards). The resolution stated the Water Boards will work “to preserve, enhance, and restore the quality of California’s water resources and drinking water for the protection of the environment, public health, and all beneficial uses, and to ensure proper water resource allocation and efficient use, for the benefit of present and future generations.” The resolution cements the Water Boards’ commitment to considering how its activities impact and advance the human right to safe, clean, affordable, and accessible water to support basic human needs. The human right to water will be considered in actions taken by the Water Boards that pertain to sources of drinking water. These actions may include: revising or establishing water quality control plans, policies, and grant criteria permitting site remediation and monitoring and water right administration. Under the resolution, Water Board staff will work with relevant stakeholders, as resources allow, to develop new systems or enhance existing systems to collect data and identify and track communities that do not have, or are at risk of not having, safe, clean, affordable, and accessible water for drinking, cooking, and sanitary purposes. Water Board staff will also work with relevant groups to develop performance measures to evaluate the Water Boards’ progress toward making the human right to water a reality, and such information will be made available to the public. This portal serves as the primary location for information on performance measures and program updates and allows the public to see which communities and non-associated schools do not have, or are at risk of not having, water that is safe, clean, affordable, and accessible.
