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California Proposition 3: Water Supply Projects

Creative Commons. Cropped and resized.

Proposition 3 is one of the handful of state bond measures we are voting on this November. This one has to do with water. And it may sound familiar.

In June, Californians passed Proposition 68. It’ll allocate 4 billion dollars for state and local parks, environmental protection, flood protection, and, yes, water infrastructure.

Proposition 3 is a much bigger ask, and it's totally focused on water. It would allocate more money - almost 9 billion dollars - for even more water related projects like wastewater recycling, restoring watersheds and rivers, and groundwater storage. Notably, this bond would also tackle the repairs of a broken irrigation canals.

Business owners and farmers (many seeking canal repairs) are supporting the measure and have donated millions. Environmental groups like the California Wildlife Foundation and Ducks Unlimited are also for Proposition 3. They’ve given close to a million dollars to its campaign. They support the measure’s promise of restoring wildlife habitats.

There’s no funding for an opposition campaign so far, but the Sierra Club warns Proposition 3 could be used to  “fund dam projects that are harmful to the environment.” They also say it will give too much away to rich corporate interests - like large corporate agriculture businesses.

So, if you want to approve a bond that will fund a variety of water projects around the state, vote yes on Proposition 3. If you don’t want the state to spend more money on water projects, vote no. 

 

Angela Johnston is the Senior Producer of Uncuffed and an editor in the KALW newsroom. She holds a Master’s degree in journalism and graduated from KALW’s Audio Academy program. She’s worked for KALW in numerous roles - from the deputy news director, to the health and environment reporter, and she's covered everything from lead poisoning to climate change. Her work has aired on KALW, KQED, Reveal, and The Pulse. She also freelances as a producer and editor for Cosmic Standard and AFAR Media. Outside of work, she loves to swim in the bay, surf small waves on her longboard, read, backpack, cook, and garden.