India, Oct. 10 -- Every big city gets its water from somewhere, and those choices can reshape distant places. Mono Lake in eastern California is a good example. For decades, the city of Los Angeles took water from the streams that fed it. In 1994, the state stepped in. That year, it adopted Decision 1631, setting streamflow requirements, water export limits, and other conditions to protect the lake's public trust resources, according to the California State Water Resources Control Board.

The board explains that it had granted permits to Los Angeles and its Department of Water and Power to divert water from streams that flow into Mono Lake. The diversions caused the lake level to drop 45 feet between 1941 and 1982. This ended up causing s...