May

15

UC Regents: Save the Water Resources Center Archives!

May 15, 2010 | Posted by Michael "Aquadoc" Campana
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I am more than a little perturbed this week: first Science magazine, now the University of California Regents, who seem intent on dismantling the Water Resources Center Archives (WRCA) at the University of California-Berkeley, the most comprehensive collection of water materials in the USA.  

Read what Dr. Peter Gleick said last fall. Here is a bit of his post:

The WRCA serves the entire state: not just students, faculty, and staff of the University of California, but hydrologists, engineers, historians, authors, journalists, lawyers, scientists, and the general public — anyone with an interest or stake in water issues (no library card needed!!). Shutting the Archives would serve the purpose of those who would seek to hide the unseemly history of California water — in the files of the archives are the stories, histories, and dirty linen of how we got where we are today. But the Archives is also one of the only places where real data on water — most of which is not on the Internet — can be found. I’ve used the Archives for over 25 years to find materials not available anywhere else.

In this time of water stress, especially in California, I find it incredibly shortsighted that the Regents want to dismantle this resource. It costs all of about $300,000 per year to maintain the WRCA.

Friend and colleague Vicki Kretsinger emailed me that the Board of Directors of the Groundwater Resources Association of California (GRAC) just sent a letter to UC in support of the WRCA.

Download WRCAsupport letter

The GRAC site also has an email (16 April 2010) from WRCA Director Linda Vida as to the status of the WRCA.

Here is how Vida’s letter begins:

I wanted to give those of you that have an interest in WRCA a summary of the current status.  WRCA was established in 1958 as a system-wide unit as part of the University of California Office of the President (UCOP), Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources (ANR).

Last October 2, 2009, ANR determined that WRCA was no longer an appropriate fit for the Division, due to budget cuts and the adoption of a new strategic vision. [emboldening mine] The announcement stated that ANR would find a “new academic home” for WRCA by June 30, 2010.

Barbara Allen-Diaz, ANR Vice-President of Academic Programs and Strategic Initiatives, was put in charge of finding a new, but was not able to devote much time to this activity until recently.  ANR decided to send out a Request for Application (RFA) to specific departments at four UC campuses: Berkeley, Davis, Riverside and Merced. The RFA was sent out on April 12, 2010 and is due May 15, 2010.


Let’s try to follow ANR’s logic: 1) the WRCA is the nation’s most comprehensive collection of water materials in the USA; 2) it contains invaluable material about California’s water; 3) water is the most important natural resource; and 4) water is crticially important to California agriculture. Ergo, the WRCA is no longer within the purview of ANR and its new strategic plan.

The email continues to note that Vida is hopeful that one of the other UC schools will agree to accept the WRCA by 1 July 2010. A Request For Application (RFA) was sent out on 12 April to various departments at the Riverside, Berkeley, Davis, and Merced campuses. Proposals are due 15 May.Hey, maybe we could get some wealthy corporation or individual to subsidize the WRCA. How about Lynda and Stewart Resnick? Or The Governator?

Want to help? Visit this site.

Thanks to Emily Green for jogging my memory.

“Bozone: The invisible substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating.” – Firesign Theater

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