While Silicon Valley copes with its dependence on imported water, our neighbors in Santa Cruz are striving to rely entirely on their local water supply.

A pending catastrophe has caused our local leaders to finally call for recharging our groundwater basins.

San Jose may enact water-rationing measures to cope with the state’s dogged drought.

San Jose Water Company proposed in 2012 to increase water rates nearly 40 percent over three years. A report on the proposed rate increase shows that, to a large degree, the project is tied to a a worthwhile expansion of our water recycling infrastructure.

California’s persistent drought is turning into a money-suck of historic proportions. The dry scourge will end up costing the state $2.2 billion and more than 17,000 jobs, according to a new study from the University of California, Davis.

Future droughts will become increasingly frequent and severe, according to climate predictions. Officials are so concerned about the current shortage that many are now looking for new sources of water, including the use of treated sewage discharge for—gulp—drinking water.

More than a year after San Jose upped its minimum wage to $10 an hour and as the conversation around pay increases for low-paid workers ramps up on a national scale, Santa Clara County is starting to look at enacting a similar measure for unincorporated parts of the region. Supervisor Dave Cortese, who’s also running for mayor of San Jose, will lead the discussion when the Board of Supervisors meets on Tuesday. A county ordinance comes with many more challenges than a citywide measure, Cortese notes.

It’s been two decades since water officials have asked the public to cut back this much on water consumption. But with reservoirs at just a third of capacity and rain a rarity aside from the last couple weeks, the Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD) is asking residents to dial down water use by 20 percent.