Earth pulling Isaac Newton’s apple toward the ground taught gravity to humanity. Now gravity pulling satellites toward Earth is teaching Californians how little water we have — and helping businesses cope with the scarcity of a resource as crucial to the state’s economy as it is to humanity’s survival.
As the state’s water supply shrinks from too much consumption and not enough replenishment amid climate change and long-term drought, and extreme weather brings floods, companies are paying increased attention to water, and the risks to commerce — including regulation — that arise when supply can’t meet demand.
“Water is the new carbon,” says water-resources engineer Nick Silverman, chief scientist at