Freshwater resources
Site news
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Recent graduate Edward Apraku, PhD ’26, combined environmental engineering with a commitment to community impact during his time at Stanford.
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Environmental chemist Nina Zhao seeks to understand the chemicals in our lives, and why people respond so differently to the same drug, pesticide, or pollutant.
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Stanford researchers are working with the City of Santa Cruz to improve assistance programs for residents who pay their water bills indirectly through rent.
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Stanford engineer Khalid Osman and collaborators are building modeling tools to help water system managers find the most cost-effective option for improving their community’s drinking water.
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Hotter, drier conditions could leave millions of Americans struggling to afford tap water. The cost of drought resilience measures, such as desalination plants, will likely fall on ratepayers, with the greatest impact on low-income and minority communities, according to the research.
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Stanford water experts discuss America's hundreds of thousands of dams, controversy over the planned removal of two in Northern California, and the future of water infrastructure.
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Khalid Osman, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering at Stanford University, assesses public perceptions of water infrastructure, water conservation efforts, and the management of existing infrastructure systems.
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Researchers have discovered a way to draw potable water from air almost anywhere using solar power and a gel-like material that lasts for eight months or more.
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From studying the economic aftermath of cyclones to understanding innovative approaches to crop planting schedules, five researchers represent a new wave of climate progress.
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Experts at the 2026 Water in the West conference examined the governance failures putting the West's water future at risk.
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Since his time as a Stanford undergraduate, William Tarpeh has been interested in addressing problems others ignore. His lab develops systems that recover nitrogen from wastewater in usable forms such as fertilizer.
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By 2050, up to half the world’s urban population will face water scarcity. A new model of water supply, demand, and policies in a drought-prone city of 7 million in India shows how policies could prevent the poor from bearing the heaviest burden.
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While 14% of major companies report carbon emissions, just 9% disclose water withdrawals and only 1% reveal recycled water use. Stanford and Korea University researchers have developed a scoring system that weighs where companies draw water and how they use it.
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In many parts of the world, staple crops such as maize and wheat are dependent on rainfall recycled from land rather than oceans, making them more vulnerable to drought. Researchers at Stanford and the University of California San Diego identified a critical threshold in atmospheric moisture sources that could help predict and prevent future crop failures.
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Scientists are tapping wastewater for valuable nutrients, public health information, and more.
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Stanford researchers have developed a prototype system that can harvest fertilizer from urine. The approach could provide sanitation, income, and energy in resource-limited regions.
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Often portrayed as lumber-hungry nuisances, North American beavers build dams that help freshwater ecosystems thrive. A new Stanford-led study uses high-resolution aerial imagery to map beaver dams and ponds, ultimately aiding managers in prioritizing areas for restoring wetlands and reintroducing beavers.
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A new water market model for the Colorado River basin could improve water security and restore ecosystems amid intensifying shortages.
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As water becomes more scarce and demand rises, researchers are pioneering a new management approach that can help avert disastrous drought impacts. By collaborating with experts in Chile, the team aims to provide policymakers with the tools needed to integrate long-term environmental and social changes into water governance and ensure resilience in a warming world.
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Scholars are developing a way to make wastewater drinkable while also recovering valuable products like fertilizer components.
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Researchers found that up to 13 million acres of California’s Central Valley may be suitable for recharging groundwater. The largest portion of this area occurs on agricultural land, with most corresponding to orchards, field crops, and vineyards.
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Historic rains filled Greater Los Angeles reservoirs and shallow aquifers nearly to capacity in 2023. But drought conditions persisted in deeper aquifers, according to a new analysis of seismic data from California’s earthquake monitoring network.
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Rainy days are becoming less frequent but more intense across much of the planet because of climate change. Even in years with similar rainfall totals, plants fare differently when rain falls in fewer, bigger bursts, a new study shows.
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A new study from Stanford researchers shows central California’s vast San Joaquin Valley has sunk at a record pace since 2006. Strategic recharging of aquifers could help slow or stop the sinking.
