The Flood-MAR folks will be kicking off the new year with a Lunch-MAR webinar on Wednesday, Jan. 7, starting at noon. The hour-long event will feature a presentation from White Pine Renewables focusing on co-locating solar on groundwater recharge basis, balancing ponds, and other water infrastructure. For more information on upcoming Lunch-MAR webinars and virtual workshops, visit the Flood-MAR Network’s webpage.

The DWR Drought Resilience Interagency and Partners (DRIP) Collaborative, a State interagency and public task force on drought planning, response, and management, is looking for interested applicants for representation of agriculture, public water systems, or Tribal categories. More information about the task force and membership responsibilities is provided in DRIP's informational flyer. Interested parties can complete and submit a DRIP Membership Interest Form electronically by scanning the QR code above or filling out the PDF version of the form and emailing it to DRIP@water.ca.gov. Questions can be sent to that same email address or answered in a phone call to Anthony Navasero at 916.837.6378. The deadline to submit your DRIP Membership Interest Form is Friday, Jan. 16.

DWR has officially released provisional statewide land use data from Water Year (WY) 2024 for public access and use. The released data follows up on land use mapping conducted in 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 where more than 15 million acres of land were classified (including agriculture multi-cropping instances and urban categories) using tools such as remote sensing and geographic information systems. This data plays a key role in California’s water management planning and DWR’s modelling work in preparing annual water demands for the California Water Plan and drought management.

The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) has released a six-month progress report on SprayDays California, the first statewide pesticide notification system in the U.S. Launched last March, the tool provides real-time data on the application of restricted agricultural pesticides to help residents make informed decisions. The system has seen significant early engagement from agricultural communities. Monterey, Ventura, Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, and Stanislaus counties recorded the highest sign-up rates. To improve user experience and accessibility, the DPR made several updates during the first six months, adding pesticide-related community health tips, program FAQs, and educational materials in several languages. The DPR plans to open a formal public feedback period in early 2026, seeking input from growers, public health advocates, and environmental justice committees. A comprehensive annual report is scheduled for release in early 2026.