Greg Pierce
@gregspierce.bsky.social
UCLA: Human Right to Water Solutions Lab, Luskin Center, Department of Urban Planning, Water Resources Group
Pinned
Greg Pierce
@gregspierce.bsky.social
· Mar 5
Out now! A Comment in Nature Water discusses major implications for water supply after the Los Angeles Fires
@gregspierce.bsky.social l @edithdeguzman.bsky.social @mullinmeg.bsky.social
👇
www.nature.com/articles/s44...
@gregspierce.bsky.social l @edithdeguzman.bsky.social @mullinmeg.bsky.social
👇
www.nature.com/articles/s44...
Redefining expectations for urban water supply systems to fight wildfires - Nature Water
Three major implications stemming from the water supply narratives around the Los Angeles fires have emerged: the need for greater infrastructure resilience, considering the uneven costs of new expect...
www.nature.com
Our Nature Water comment “Redefining expectations for urban water supply systems to fight wildfire” is out ⬇️.
I started working on this w/ @edithdeguzman.bsky.social and @mullinmeg.bsky.social 10 days after the fires started.
We lay out 3 major implications from the fires for water supply systems
I started working on this w/ @edithdeguzman.bsky.social and @mullinmeg.bsky.social 10 days after the fires started.
We lay out 3 major implications from the fires for water supply systems
Reposted by Greg Pierce
Are you a California well owner dealing with a water emergency? We can help! To find out more, visit: www.rcac.org/lending/hous...
November 10, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Are you a California well owner dealing with a water emergency? We can help! To find out more, visit: www.rcac.org/lending/hous...
Reposted by Greg Pierce
"electrification is also the key to a dramatic improvement in energy efficiency, potentially reducing global final energy demand by 24% over the next 25 years, even as global GDP doubles"
A truly stunning point.
This is why I write about energy efficiency so much!
www.ft.com/content/7258...
A truly stunning point.
This is why I write about energy efficiency so much!
www.ft.com/content/7258...
Electrification is the key to energy efficiency
Productivity gains could cut final energy demand by nearly a quarter over the next 25 years, even as global GDP doubles
www.ft.com
November 10, 2025 at 9:45 PM
"electrification is also the key to a dramatic improvement in energy efficiency, potentially reducing global final energy demand by 24% over the next 25 years, even as global GDP doubles"
A truly stunning point.
This is why I write about energy efficiency so much!
www.ft.com/content/7258...
A truly stunning point.
This is why I write about energy efficiency so much!
www.ft.com/content/7258...
Reposted by Greg Pierce
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/...
Reposted by Greg Pierce
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 Greg Pierce
The MWD and Yorba Linda Water District dedicated a new helicopter hydrant to provide firefighters a new, strategically located water source for aerial fire suppression. #cawater www.mwdh2o.com/press-releas...
November 7, 2025 at 5:49 PM
The MWD and Yorba Linda Water District dedicated a new helicopter hydrant to provide firefighters a new, strategically located water source for aerial fire suppression. #cawater www.mwdh2o.com/press-releas...
Great work by @luskininnovation.bsky.social @uclaurbanplanning.bsky.social colleagues Veronica Herrera & Dan Coffee to identify a clear connection between fossil fuel infrastructure, plastic production and community impacts in California.
innovation.luskin.ucla.edu/2025/11/06/c...
innovation.luskin.ucla.edu/2025/11/06/c...
Equitable Policy to Mitigate Plastic’s Health Risks | UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation
UCLA research links plastic, oil, and gas pollution to health inequities in California and guides equitable policy for effective mitigation.
innovation.luskin.ucla.edu
November 6, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Great work by @luskininnovation.bsky.social @uclaurbanplanning.bsky.social colleagues Veronica Herrera & Dan Coffee to identify a clear connection between fossil fuel infrastructure, plastic production and community impacts in California.
innovation.luskin.ucla.edu/2025/11/06/c...
innovation.luskin.ucla.edu/2025/11/06/c...
Thanks to @blancabegert.bsky.social for covering this important topic and a bunch of work by my colleagues @uclalawemmett.bsky.social, @uclaioes.bsky.social looking at the LADWP/SoCal Edison comparison +
insideclimatenews.org/news/0511202...
insideclimatenews.org/news/0511202...
Why Are Rates Rising Faster at Investor-Owned Utilities Than at Public Utilities? - Inside Climate News
Case studies from California offer a look into the pros and cons of public and private utilities.
insideclimatenews.org
November 5, 2025 at 11:14 PM
Thanks to @blancabegert.bsky.social for covering this important topic and a bunch of work by my colleagues @uclalawemmett.bsky.social, @uclaioes.bsky.social looking at the LADWP/SoCal Edison comparison +
insideclimatenews.org/news/0511202...
insideclimatenews.org/news/0511202...
Our @luskininnovation.bsky.social-led, 4-university team report w the State Water Board on Phase 1 of the CA Wastewater Needs Assessment is out.
It runs a brisk 187 pages and lays out the methodologies for implementation in Phase 2, to be completed by July 1, 2027.
You're welcome.
It runs a brisk 187 pages and lays out the methodologies for implementation in Phase 2, to be completed by July 1, 2027.
You're welcome.
November 5, 2025 at 5:33 PM
Our @luskininnovation.bsky.social-led, 4-university team report w the State Water Board on Phase 1 of the CA Wastewater Needs Assessment is out.
It runs a brisk 187 pages and lays out the methodologies for implementation in Phase 2, to be completed by July 1, 2027.
You're welcome.
It runs a brisk 187 pages and lays out the methodologies for implementation in Phase 2, to be completed by July 1, 2027.
You're welcome.
Reposted by Greg Pierce
Ratio utility billing victims are everywhere - wrote about this often third-party billing system used to mask extra costs on tenants back in 2023 voiceofsandiego.org/2023/04/26/r...
November 3, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Ratio utility billing victims are everywhere - wrote about this often third-party billing system used to mask extra costs on tenants back in 2023 voiceofsandiego.org/2023/04/26/r...
Had me at "opaque utility fees"
Amazing deep dive at the utility-housing inequality intersection
shelterforce.org/2025/10/10/l...
Amazing deep dive at the utility-housing inequality intersection
shelterforce.org/2025/10/10/l...
LA Tenants’ Strikes Forced a Major Landlord to Refund Opaque Utility Fees. Their Fight Isn’t Over.
A commonly used billing system allows landlords to shift building utility costs onto tenants. Tenants say it’s time to stop the practice.
shelterforce.org
November 3, 2025 at 5:57 PM
Had me at "opaque utility fees"
Amazing deep dive at the utility-housing inequality intersection
shelterforce.org/2025/10/10/l...
Amazing deep dive at the utility-housing inequality intersection
shelterforce.org/2025/10/10/l...
Water-housing, Canadian edition:
The Canadian Environmental Law Association said the 2-year-old Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, that allowed municipalities to more easily sprawl, could allow ministerial zoning orders to bypass some drinking water rules.
thenarwhal.ca/ontario-bill...
The Canadian Environmental Law Association said the 2-year-old Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, that allowed municipalities to more easily sprawl, could allow ministerial zoning orders to bypass some drinking water rules.
thenarwhal.ca/ontario-bill...
Ford plans changes to Ontario's Clean Water Act | The Narwhal
Ontario’s Clean Water Act was a response to the deadly Walkerton tragedy. Bill 56 proposes changes that would centralize provincial powers
thenarwhal.ca
November 3, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Water-housing, Canadian edition:
The Canadian Environmental Law Association said the 2-year-old Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, that allowed municipalities to more easily sprawl, could allow ministerial zoning orders to bypass some drinking water rules.
thenarwhal.ca/ontario-bill...
The Canadian Environmental Law Association said the 2-year-old Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, that allowed municipalities to more easily sprawl, could allow ministerial zoning orders to bypass some drinking water rules.
thenarwhal.ca/ontario-bill...
Late to this but great work by @alfencl.bsky.social and team on The Dangers of Extreme Heat in Affordable Housing⬇️
Nearly half of the nation’s affordable housing stock experienced three or more weeks’ worth of extreme heat alerts in 2024, the hottest year on record, as the affordable housing and climate crises increasingly collide.
October 31, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Late to this but great work by @alfencl.bsky.social and team on The Dangers of Extreme Heat in Affordable Housing⬇️
We do all know that you can Google tediously-detailed cost of service studies for all public agency rates and charges in 30 seconds?
"Tell me the cost of those choices, and then we can have an informed conversation as to whether it was a good choice or a bad choice"
www.latimes.com/california/s...
"Tell me the cost of those choices, and then we can have an informed conversation as to whether it was a good choice or a bad choice"
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Austin Beutner assails Karen Bass over rising city fees he says are 'crushing families'
L.A. mayoral candidate Austin Beutner, standing in front of Van Nuys City Hall, said Mayor Karen Bass has contributed to a cost-of-living crisis that is “crushing families.”
www.latimes.com
October 31, 2025 at 5:33 PM
We do all know that you can Google tediously-detailed cost of service studies for all public agency rates and charges in 30 seconds?
"Tell me the cost of those choices, and then we can have an informed conversation as to whether it was a good choice or a bad choice"
www.latimes.com/california/s...
"Tell me the cost of those choices, and then we can have an informed conversation as to whether it was a good choice or a bad choice"
www.latimes.com/california/s...
Reposted by Greg Pierce
A major shift in where L.A. gets water: The city will double the size of a project to transform wastewater into purified drinking water, producing enough for 500,000 people. The recycled water will allow L.A. to stop taking water from creeks that feed Mono Lake. www.latimes.com/environment/...
Los Angeles will nearly double recycled water for 500,000 residents
Los Angeles is set to double the size of a planned facility that will transform wastewater into purified drinking water, recycling enough water to meet the needs of 500,000 people.
www.latimes.com
October 31, 2025 at 3:27 PM
A major shift in where L.A. gets water: The city will double the size of a project to transform wastewater into purified drinking water, producing enough for 500,000 people. The recycled water will allow L.A. to stop taking water from creeks that feed Mono Lake. www.latimes.com/environment/...
Reposted by Greg Pierce
Sudan is witnessing a massive humanitarian crisis- in the last 3 days, 2000 civilians have been killed in North Darfur, the country is on the verge of splitting up again. Spoke to AlJazeera (Arabic) about what should be the role of the UN and international community.
October 30, 2025 at 7:10 PM
Sudan is witnessing a massive humanitarian crisis- in the last 3 days, 2000 civilians have been killed in North Darfur, the country is on the verge of splitting up again. Spoke to AlJazeera (Arabic) about what should be the role of the UN and international community.
Reposted by Greg Pierce
Led by @gregspierce.bsky.social and @edithdeguzman.bsky.social, our team joined @ucanr.edu and ASU for a workshop exploring how urban water systems can prepare for and respond to wildfire risks.
Learn more: ucanr.edu/blog/conflue... #UCLA #UCLALuskin
Learn more: ucanr.edu/blog/conflue... #UCLA #UCLALuskin
Water Systems and Wildfire: Understanding Capacities and Limitations | The Confluence
Image
ucanr.edu
October 30, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Led by @gregspierce.bsky.social and @edithdeguzman.bsky.social, our team joined @ucanr.edu and ASU for a workshop exploring how urban water systems can prepare for and respond to wildfire risks.
Learn more: ucanr.edu/blog/conflue... #UCLA #UCLALuskin
Learn more: ucanr.edu/blog/conflue... #UCLA #UCLALuskin
Reposted by Greg Pierce
Major new report just released showing that total #water use in US homes, businesses, institutions, and water distribution systems could be reduced by 25% to 60% through improvements in efficiency.
pacinst.org/announcement...
pacinst.org/announcement...
New Pacific Institute Report Finds Huge Potential to Save Water Across the U.S. Through Efficiency - Pacific Institute
First-of-its-kind national assessment shows efficiency can cut municipal and industrial water use by 25% to 60%, strengthening the economy and … New Pacific Institute Report Finds Huge Potential to Sa...
pacinst.org
October 28, 2025 at 8:56 PM
Major new report just released showing that total #water use in US homes, businesses, institutions, and water distribution systems could be reduced by 25% to 60% through improvements in efficiency.
pacinst.org/announcement...
pacinst.org/announcement...
1/2 of all families in Gaza have < the bare humanitarian minimum of six liters of water per person/day for drinking and cooking.
And 1/4 of the population has < 9 liters of domestic water per person/day for laundry, maintaining personal hygiene, cleaning their shelter, and other domestic needs.
And 1/4 of the population has < 9 liters of domestic water per person/day for laundry, maintaining personal hygiene, cleaning their shelter, and other domestic needs.
With a ceasefire in Gaza, UNICEF begins assessing the damage to water and wastewater infrastructure
to water and wastewater infrastructure
www.unicef.org
October 29, 2025 at 3:49 PM
1/2 of all families in Gaza have < the bare humanitarian minimum of six liters of water per person/day for drinking and cooking.
And 1/4 of the population has < 9 liters of domestic water per person/day for laundry, maintaining personal hygiene, cleaning their shelter, and other domestic needs.
And 1/4 of the population has < 9 liters of domestic water per person/day for laundry, maintaining personal hygiene, cleaning their shelter, and other domestic needs.
Can confirm
Drought is quietly pushing American cities toward a fiscal cliff.
Drought is set to pose a greater risk to the $4 trillion municipal bond market than floods, hurricanes, and wildfires combined.
grist.org/cities/droug...
#Bonds #Market #Climate #Finance #Government
Drought is set to pose a greater risk to the $4 trillion municipal bond market than floods, hurricanes, and wildfires combined.
grist.org/cities/droug...
#Bonds #Market #Climate #Finance #Government
Drought is quietly pushing American cities toward a fiscal cliff
Drought is set to pose a greater risk to the $4 trillion municipal bond market than floods, hurricanes, and wildfires combined.
grist.org
October 29, 2025 at 3:28 PM
Can confirm
Alexandria Mobile Home Park has been without water for nearly two months because of an ongoing payment dispute between the city and the property management company, Park Place Communities.
The Arizona-based company owes the city more than $97,000 in water bills.
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
The Arizona-based company owes the city more than $97,000 in water bills.
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Alexandria Mobile Home Park residents nearly two months without water
ALEXANDRIA — Chrystal Jenkins wants to cook for her family, but has to make sure there’s enough water. Nothing comes out of her kitchen faucet or the other faucets in her home. The mother of three liv...
www.yahoo.com
October 29, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Alexandria Mobile Home Park has been without water for nearly two months because of an ongoing payment dispute between the city and the property management company, Park Place Communities.
The Arizona-based company owes the city more than $97,000 in water bills.
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
The Arizona-based company owes the city more than $97,000 in water bills.
www.yahoo.com/news/article...
Reposted by Greg Pierce
Southern Jamaica is expected to receive a life-threatening storm surge of up to 4 metres (13 feet)
“There is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5,” Prime Minister Andrew Holness said. “The question now is the speed of recovery. That’s the challenge.”
“There is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5,” Prime Minister Andrew Holness said. “The question now is the speed of recovery. That’s the challenge.”
Hurricane Melissa is set to pummel Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, the strongest to lash the island since recordkeeping began 174 years ago.
Hurricane Melissa is set to hit Jamaica as its strongest storm since records began
Hurricane Melissa is set to pummel Jamaica as a catastrophic Category 5 storm, the strongest to lash the island since recordkeeping began 174 years ago.
bit.ly
October 28, 2025 at 2:27 PM
Southern Jamaica is expected to receive a life-threatening storm surge of up to 4 metres (13 feet)
“There is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5,” Prime Minister Andrew Holness said. “The question now is the speed of recovery. That’s the challenge.”
“There is no infrastructure in the region that can withstand a Category 5,” Prime Minister Andrew Holness said. “The question now is the speed of recovery. That’s the challenge.”
Official journal notifications I haven’t see before: “Almost ready to be accepted”
October 24, 2025 at 5:37 PM
Official journal notifications I haven’t see before: “Almost ready to be accepted”
Reposted by Greg Pierce
Important report out from the Initiative on Universal Access to Clean Water for Tribal Communities (UACW): The FY 2026 federal budget includes a 70% reduction in funding for Tribal Access to Clean, Reliable and Accessible Drinking Water. tribalcleanwater.org/wp-content/u...
October 17, 2025 at 8:38 PM
Important report out from the Initiative on Universal Access to Clean Water for Tribal Communities (UACW): The FY 2026 federal budget includes a 70% reduction in funding for Tribal Access to Clean, Reliable and Accessible Drinking Water. tribalcleanwater.org/wp-content/u...
Reposted by Greg Pierce
We were thrilled to have co-host Sam Sandoval play a guest role this time around as one of the foremost experts on the binational relationship between Mexico and the US on the Colorado River! www.binationalwaters.org/our-network/...
Our Network - Water scientists and experts
We are a multidisciplinary institution of Water scientists and experts dedicated to improve water resilience along the Mexico-US border.
www.binationalwaters.org
October 17, 2025 at 5:25 PM
We were thrilled to have co-host Sam Sandoval play a guest role this time around as one of the foremost experts on the binational relationship between Mexico and the US on the Colorado River! www.binationalwaters.org/our-network/...
Reposted by Greg Pierce
Nearly nine months after the Eaton Fire, around 70% of severely damaged homes show no progress toward rebuilding, with families of color facing the greatest barriers to recovery and rebuilding. Read more: latino.ucla.edu/research/who...
Who’s Coming Home?
This data brief combines property sales, market listings, permits & fire damage data to create a snapshot of how Altadena homeowners are faring 7 months after the Eaton Fire.
latino.ucla.edu
October 17, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Nearly nine months after the Eaton Fire, around 70% of severely damaged homes show no progress toward rebuilding, with families of color facing the greatest barriers to recovery and rebuilding. Read more: latino.ucla.edu/research/who...