California Water Board Blocks BlueTriton’s Water Diversions

California regulators unanimously approved a cease-and-desist order Tuesday to stop beverage company BlueTriton Brands from diverting millions of gallons of water in the San Bernardino National Forest.

The State Water Resources Control Board’s 4-0 decision tightly restricts how much water BlueTriton can funnel away from the Strawberry Creek watershed through tunnels and other transportation methods. The order goes into effect Nov. 1.

“The reality is that you see the interception of water that would otherwise be flowing into a channel,” Board Chair E. Joaquin Esquivel said at Tuesday’s meeting.

The decision culminates a nearly decade-long investigation into BlueTriton’s diversion of ...