Daniel Rothberg
@danielrothberg.bsky.social
Writing about (ground)water in the West on Substack and elsewhere • Master's student @ UC Davis • invisiblewaters.substack.com 🏔🏜
This is so sad on so many levels.
Academics and technologists are sounding the alarm about a growing crisis in scholarship as we know it: AI-generated citations of nonexistent papers that have infested real journals. Despite being fake, the sources are widely assumed to be authentic the more they appear in published literature.
AI Is Inventing Academic Papers That Don't Exist -- And They're Being Cited in Real Journals
Academic articles from authors using large language model are creating an ecosystem of fake research that threatens human knowledge itself.
www.rollingstone.com
December 18, 2025 at 12:42 AM
This is so sad on so many levels.
"One of the West’s most valuable resources has no consistent valuation – and sometimes costs nothing at all." | California cities pay a lot for water; some agricultural districts get it for free calmatters.org/environment/...
California cities pay a lot for water; some agricultural districts get it for free
Water costs are confusing — even for the experts. A new study shows huge differences in what cities and farm water districts pay for supplies from rivers and reservoirs in California, Arizona, and Nev...
calmatters.org
December 11, 2025 at 10:58 PM
"One of the West’s most valuable resources has no consistent valuation – and sometimes costs nothing at all." | California cities pay a lot for water; some agricultural districts get it for free calmatters.org/environment/...
New report from the Colorado River Research Group: Dancing with Deadpool. It begins: "Conditions on the Colorado River are, to put it bluntly, dire." www.colorado.edu/center/gwc/C...
December 10, 2025 at 12:40 AM
New report from the Colorado River Research Group: Dancing with Deadpool. It begins: "Conditions on the Colorado River are, to put it bluntly, dire." www.colorado.edu/center/gwc/C...
"Nevada is completely over-allocated on its groundwater resources. It’s the driest state in the union. Our tribe’s number one goal is protecting our resources." | The AI boom is heralding a new gold rush in the American west www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
The AI boom is heralding a new gold rush in the American west
Once home to gold and prospectors, the Nevada desert is now the site of a new kind of expansion: tech datacenters
www.theguardian.com
December 4, 2025 at 11:53 PM
"Nevada is completely over-allocated on its groundwater resources. It’s the driest state in the union. Our tribe’s number one goal is protecting our resources." | The AI boom is heralding a new gold rush in the American west www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
A new report looks at approaches for updating local ordinances in California to consider the connection between groundwater use and streamflow within the context of SGMA and a 2018 ruling that applied public trust considerations to well permits. www.groundwaterresourcehub.org/content/dam/...
December 3, 2025 at 5:56 PM
A new report looks at approaches for updating local ordinances in California to consider the connection between groundwater use and streamflow within the context of SGMA and a 2018 ruling that applied public trust considerations to well permits. www.groundwaterresourcehub.org/content/dam/...
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
I joined @danielrothberg.bsky.social for the first video edition of his newsletter, Invisible Waters—imo the best resource for staying up to date about what’s going on with water in the West—to talk about my forthcoming book, Salt Lakes:
substack.com/@cetracey/no...
substack.com/@cetracey/no...
November 25, 2025 at 11:15 PM
I joined @danielrothberg.bsky.social for the first video edition of his newsletter, Invisible Waters—imo the best resource for staying up to date about what’s going on with water in the West—to talk about my forthcoming book, Salt Lakes:
substack.com/@cetracey/no...
substack.com/@cetracey/no...
‘The precedent is Flint’: How Oregon’s data center boom is supercharging a water crisis thefern.org/2025/11/the-...
‘The precedent is Flint’: How Oregon’s data center boom is supercharging a water crisis | Food and Environment Reporting Network
In the spring of 2022, Jim Doherty kept having the same conversation with folks at the only grocery store in Boardman, his eastern Oregon hometown, or at the grain depot where he picked up food for…
thefern.org
November 25, 2025 at 6:45 PM
‘The precedent is Flint’: How Oregon’s data center boom is supercharging a water crisis thefern.org/2025/11/the-...
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
Have you been wanting to learn more about Nobel Prize winner Elinor Ostrom's ideas for collaborative governance?
Now is your chance to get that copy of The Uncommon Knowledge of Elinor Ostrom for half price!
islandpress.org/books/uncomm...
Now is your chance to get that copy of The Uncommon Knowledge of Elinor Ostrom for half price!
islandpress.org/books/uncomm...
November 13, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Have you been wanting to learn more about Nobel Prize winner Elinor Ostrom's ideas for collaborative governance?
Now is your chance to get that copy of The Uncommon Knowledge of Elinor Ostrom for half price!
islandpress.org/books/uncomm...
Now is your chance to get that copy of The Uncommon Knowledge of Elinor Ostrom for half price!
islandpress.org/books/uncomm...
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
“Litigation could take years, if not decades, to resolve. The effects of aridification are unfolding at a faster rate.” @danielrothberg.bsky.social invisiblewaters.substack.com/p/what-happe...
What happened on the Colorado River?
Negotiating around legal uncertainties as climate change takes its toll.
invisiblewaters.substack.com
November 13, 2025 at 1:59 AM
“Litigation could take years, if not decades, to resolve. The effects of aridification are unfolding at a faster rate.” @danielrothberg.bsky.social invisiblewaters.substack.com/p/what-happe...
“Previous negotiations did not address core issues. They either delayed them or worked around them, making do based on the circumstances of the time.” Good piece from Caitlin Ochs on the legal questions behind the Colorado River talks: www.hcn.org/articles/why...
Why Colorado River negotiations are so difficult - High Country News
Basin states have had 2 years to figure out how to share the shrinking river. Will they get there before the feds step in?
www.hcn.org
November 11, 2025 at 6:44 PM
“Previous negotiations did not address core issues. They either delayed them or worked around them, making do based on the circumstances of the time.” Good piece from Caitlin Ochs on the legal questions behind the Colorado River talks: www.hcn.org/articles/why...
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
New York Times investigation finds home insurance companies have exploited loopholes in California wildfire regulations to avoid high-risk areas while still charging higher rates: www.nytimes.com/2025/11/01/u...
California Promised Insurance Relief, But Delivered Loopholes
www.nytimes.com
November 11, 2025 at 5:36 PM
New York Times investigation finds home insurance companies have exploited loopholes in California wildfire regulations to avoid high-risk areas while still charging higher rates: www.nytimes.com/2025/11/01/u...
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
my latest: CRIT grants personhood status to #coloradoriver - 3rd in North America by Indigenous peoples. www.azcentral.com/story/news/l...
Colorado River wins personhood status from Arizona tribal council
Personhood status creates a powerful new mechanism for protecting the eponymous river that makes life possible in their arid homelands.
www.azcentral.com
November 10, 2025 at 11:43 PM
my latest: CRIT grants personhood status to #coloradoriver - 3rd in North America by Indigenous peoples. www.azcentral.com/story/news/l...
Colorado River talks hit crunch time as deadline from Trump administration looms calmatters.org/environment/...
Colorado River talks hit crunch time. What's at stake for California water?
Western states in the Colorado River basin are racing a federal deadline to hash out how to share the overtapped river. As the clock ticks down, two questions looms large: Just how real is this deadli...
calmatters.org
November 10, 2025 at 9:46 PM
Colorado River talks hit crunch time as deadline from Trump administration looms calmatters.org/environment/...
Do groundwater rights retirement programs work? There is certainly demand for them in Nevada. For KNPR and the Daily Yonder, I talked to irrigators about their experiences with a pilot program in areas where aquifers are being depleted faster than they are replenished. knpr.org/desert-compa...
Well Into the Future
A Nevada program addressed overallocation of groundwater by paying farmers to use less. Is it working?
knpr.org
November 7, 2025 at 8:14 PM
Do groundwater rights retirement programs work? There is certainly demand for them in Nevada. For KNPR and the Daily Yonder, I talked to irrigators about their experiences with a pilot program in areas where aquifers are being depleted faster than they are replenished. knpr.org/desert-compa...
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
Exactly a year ago, Ellen Wohl, @parriblue.bsky.social and I spent two days in Providence thinking about #rivers and how we conceptualize them & live with them. Here’s the result of history and fluvial geomorphology teaming up. #envhist
doi.org/10.1371/jour...
doi.org/10.1371/jour...
Rivers are messy: Beyond the water bias in research and management
This article reviews current trends in interdisciplinary river research to argue that a “water bias” or tendency consider rivers as synonymous with water can hinder our understanding of rivers and con...
doi.org
November 6, 2025 at 10:29 AM
Exactly a year ago, Ellen Wohl, @parriblue.bsky.social and I spent two days in Providence thinking about #rivers and how we conceptualize them & live with them. Here’s the result of history and fluvial geomorphology teaming up. #envhist
doi.org/10.1371/jour...
doi.org/10.1371/jour...
“Regardless of what sort of offsetting or replenishment you do, it doesn’t necessarily nullify the water footprints of your own operations." Amazon strategised about keeping its datacentres’ full water use secret, leaked document shows www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Amazon strategised about keeping its datacentres’ full water use secret, leaked document shows
Executives at world’s biggest datacentre owner grappled with disclosing information about water used to help power facilities
www.theguardian.com
October 28, 2025 at 12:34 AM
“Regardless of what sort of offsetting or replenishment you do, it doesn’t necessarily nullify the water footprints of your own operations." Amazon strategised about keeping its datacentres’ full water use secret, leaked document shows www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Wrote a bit about the mining and (ground)water nexus in the Western U.S., with the rush for critical minerals and gold surpassing $4,000/ounce. invisiblewaters.substack.com/p/where-ther...
Where there's mining there's water
Gold hit a record-high this week. Behind the commodity price is a water story, too.
invisiblewaters.substack.com
October 24, 2025 at 10:29 PM
Wrote a bit about the mining and (ground)water nexus in the Western U.S., with the rush for critical minerals and gold surpassing $4,000/ounce. invisiblewaters.substack.com/p/where-ther...
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
Melanie Winter, who dedicated much of her life to reimagining the Los Angeles River as a natural asset, has died.
I feel fortunate to have known Melanie and learned about her vision for a living river. She inspired many others, who will carry her vision with them. www.latimes.com/environment/...
I feel fortunate to have known Melanie and learned about her vision for a living river. She inspired many others, who will carry her vision with them. www.latimes.com/environment/...
Melanie Winter, who fought for embracing nature along the Los Angeles River, dies
Melanie Winter led efforts to embrace nature along the L.A. River, touting the potential for a restored river to heal the city's relationship to water. She was 67.
www.latimes.com
October 23, 2025 at 11:40 PM
Melanie Winter, who dedicated much of her life to reimagining the Los Angeles River as a natural asset, has died.
I feel fortunate to have known Melanie and learned about her vision for a living river. She inspired many others, who will carry her vision with them. www.latimes.com/environment/...
I feel fortunate to have known Melanie and learned about her vision for a living river. She inspired many others, who will carry her vision with them. www.latimes.com/environment/...
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
California condor range expanding into the Bay Area and Santa Cruz Mountains, further south into Santa Barbara County too. 🪶 www.mercurynews.com/2025/10/20/f...
October 22, 2025 at 11:07 PM
California condor range expanding into the Bay Area and Santa Cruz Mountains, further south into Santa Barbara County too. 🪶 www.mercurynews.com/2025/10/20/f...
Check out (and subscribe!) to @sammyroth.bsky.social's new Substack focused on climate solutions in entertainment and pop culture.
"...what I’ve realized — what drove me to start this newsletter — is that the climate crisis is in large part a cultural problem."
"...what I’ve realized — what drove me to start this newsletter — is that the climate crisis is in large part a cultural problem."
Why I'm writing about climate and culture
I never expected to leave the Los Angeles Times and start a Substack. Then a story about Disneyland caught me by surprise.
www.climatecoloredgoggles.com
October 22, 2025 at 4:59 PM
Check out (and subscribe!) to @sammyroth.bsky.social's new Substack focused on climate solutions in entertainment and pop culture.
"...what I’ve realized — what drove me to start this newsletter — is that the climate crisis is in large part a cultural problem."
"...what I’ve realized — what drove me to start this newsletter — is that the climate crisis is in large part a cultural problem."
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
Its official! Today, the US Corps Of Engineers is announcing that it signed into effect a Water Control Manual update for Lake Mendocino on the Russian River that implements FIRO* there! 1/7
www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...
* Forecast-Informed Reservoir Operations
www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...
* Forecast-Informed Reservoir Operations
This Northern California reservoir has pioneered a way to store more water
After years of advocacy and experimentation, officials will celebrate the reservoir’s status as the nation’s first to get the go-ahead to adopt a flexible, forecast-based operations policy.
www.sfchronicle.com
October 22, 2025 at 4:19 PM
Its official! Today, the US Corps Of Engineers is announcing that it signed into effect a Water Control Manual update for Lake Mendocino on the Russian River that implements FIRO* there! 1/7
www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...
* Forecast-Informed Reservoir Operations
www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...
* Forecast-Informed Reservoir Operations
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
“The Monday filing outlines where 2,050 positions would be eliminated; the U.S. Geological Survey, the Bureau of Land Management, and the main Interior office would be especially hard hit. Regional offices with the National Park Service are also targeted for significant cuts.”
Inside Trump's plan to eviscerate USGS and beyond - Center for Western Priorities
Forced by a federal judge to partially reveal plans for firing federal employees, the Trump administration on Monday said it plans to “imminently” terminate more than 2,000 employees at the Interior d...
westernpriorities.org
October 21, 2025 at 7:32 PM
“The Monday filing outlines where 2,050 positions would be eliminated; the U.S. Geological Survey, the Bureau of Land Management, and the main Interior office would be especially hard hit. Regional offices with the National Park Service are also targeted for significant cuts.”
Salmon reach headwaters for first time in a century after California dam removal www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...
Salmon reach headwaters for first time in a century after California dam removal
Klamath River salmon have crossed a major threshold after dams were removed along the California-Oregon border, with the fish reaching the river’s headwaters for the first time in more than a...
www.sfchronicle.com
October 21, 2025 at 8:08 PM
Salmon reach headwaters for first time in a century after California dam removal www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...
“We’ve seen so many impacts from groundwater pumping. There’s a lot of areas that are dewatered, that are dried up.” Indigenous leaders raise concerns about groundwater pumping in Owens Valley and call for negotiations with L.A. @ianjames.bsky.social has more. www.latimes.com/environment/...
The little-known groundwater Los Angeles pumps in the Owens Valley, and the tribes who want it back
In the Owens Valley, Los Angeles siphons water from Sierra streams and also pumps groundwater from wells. Native tribes are calling for the city to take less water.
www.latimes.com
October 20, 2025 at 4:46 PM
“We’ve seen so many impacts from groundwater pumping. There’s a lot of areas that are dewatered, that are dried up.” Indigenous leaders raise concerns about groundwater pumping in Owens Valley and call for negotiations with L.A. @ianjames.bsky.social has more. www.latimes.com/environment/...
Reposted by Daniel Rothberg
You'd think the Colorado River Basin dispute amounts to conflict between the upper and lower basin states based on most coverage, but Tribes and Mexico also have a big role here. We talked with Cora Tso and Sam Sandoval about these issues on Water Talk
www.watertalkpodcast.com/episodes/epi...
www.watertalkpodcast.com/episodes/epi...
Episode 74: Tribal and Transboundary Issues in the Colorado River Basin — Water Talk
A conversation with Cora Tso (Senior Research Fellow, Tribal Water Policy, Kyl Center for Water Policy, Arizona State University) and Prof. Sam Sandoval (University of California Agriculture and Natur...
www.watertalkpodcast.com
October 17, 2025 at 5:13 PM
You'd think the Colorado River Basin dispute amounts to conflict between the upper and lower basin states based on most coverage, but Tribes and Mexico also have a big role here. We talked with Cora Tso and Sam Sandoval about these issues on Water Talk
www.watertalkpodcast.com/episodes/epi...
www.watertalkpodcast.com/episodes/epi...