VIDEO: Where does the water go? How the Kern River is divvied up

Where does the water go?

The Kern River’s abrupt stop, practically mid-channel, can be jarring.

The full river suddenly goes dry just outside Bakersfield leaving a dusty channel snaking through the heart of town.

Why? Where does all that water go? Who owns it? How does it all work?

Our video project, “Law of the River,” answers those questions and more as we look at the river’s history, how it operates, who owns the water and what the future may hold.

This is the first in a series of videos that will look at each stop along the way for Kern River flows.