[Water_news] 1. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS - Top Item for 3/18/09

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation for DWR personnel of significant news articles and comment

 

March 18, 2009

 

Top Items–

 

 

Press Release:  State Water Project Allocation Remains Critically Low

Department of Water Resources

 

Press Release:  STATE WATER PROJECT DELIVERY PROJECTIONS INCREASE FIVE PERCENT

Picture Remains Grim Due to Cumulative Impacts of Drought & Regulatory Restrictions

State Water Contractors

 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

 

Press Release:  State Water Project Allocation Remains Critically Low

Department of Water Resources – 3/18/09

 

Sacramento - The Department of Water Resources (DWR) today announced it will increase the 2009 State Water Project (SWP) delivery allocation to 20 percent.   

 

Late winter storms increased snowpack to near 90 percent of normal, but water storage in the state’s major reservoirs and runoff projections remain well below average.  The precipitation was only enough to allow a 5 percent increase from the initial allocation of 15 percent in December 2008.

 

“California is in the midst of a crisis that threatens to cripple our economy and quality of life,” said DWR Director Lester Snow.  “In this third dry year, Californians must step up water conservation efforts, and we must utilize water transfers to alleviate impacts.  Yet another dry year also points to the need for long term investment in our state’s water management infrastructure.” 

 

Besides drought conditions, a federal court ruling to protect Delta smelt has reduced SWP pumping capacity by about 30 percent. In the future, the Delta’s fragile ecosystem, uncertain precipitation patterns and reduced snowmelt will further reduce California’s water supply reliability.

 

In making today’s revised allocation, DWR cautioned that drought conditions still prevail in California, requiring vigilant conservation of water in our homes, businesses and farms. Final 2009 allocations to SWP contractors will be set in May.

 

“A number of productive storms, between Feb. 12 and March 5, boosted rainfall and snowpack totals, and levels rose in major northern California reservoirs,” said DWR Senior Meteorologist Elissa Lynn.   “However, one wet month can not overcome back to back dry years in 2007 and 2008, so we are still in a drought.” 

 

Although statewide rainfall totals are near average for this date, Lake Oroville remains 34 percent below normal.  Runoff projections for the year are forecast at just 64 percent of normal, the third below average year in a row. 

 

At the start of each year DWR issues a conservative initial allocation estimate that is typically increased as the water year progresses. In October 2008, DWR announced an initial 2009 allocation of 15 percent for the SWP but severe drought conditions prevented this initial allocation from being increased until now. A SWP allocation this low and this late in the water year only occurred one other time in 1991, when it was also 20 percent.  The SWP has been allocating water since 1968.

 

On February 27, Governor Schwarzenegger proclaimed a state of emergency and ordered a range of actions to manage the drought crisis.  The Governor urged Californians to prepare for worsening drought and requested that all urban users reduce their water use by 20 percent.

 

DWR drought officials report that 18 agencies in California have implemented some form of mandatory water conservation measure and that voluntary conservation measures have been adopted by 57 agencies.

 

SWP contractors deliver water to more than 25 million California residents and more than 750,000 acres of farmland.  SWP contractors requested 4,166,376 million acre-feet of water for the 2009 calendar year, the maximum contractual amount allowed.  Reduced deliveries will require contractors to rely on dry water year contingency plans to meet their needs. 

 

A notice to SWP contractors regarding today’s allocation announcement appears on DWR’s State Water Project Analysis Office Web site at: http://www.swpao.water.ca.gov/notices/.#

http://www.water.ca.gov/news/newsreleases/2009/031809allocation20.doc

 

 

 

Press Release:  STATE WATER PROJECT DELIVERY PROJECTIONS INCREASE FIVE PERCENT

Picture Remains Grim Due to Cumulative Impacts of Drought & Regulatory Restrictions

State Water Contractors – 3/18/09

 

Sacramento, CA – The State Water Contractors welcomed the California Department of Water

Resources’ announcement that State Water Project (SWP) delivery projections have increased from 15

percent to 20 percent, but the organization says that the overall picture remains unchanged. The state

continues to face a three-year drought and a deep and growing water crisis. The cumulative impacts of

drought and ongoing regulatory restrictions have led to water rationing, fallowed farm lands, job losses

and water rate increases throughout the state.

 

The announcement indicates that the State Water Contractors, the public water agencies that purchase

water from the SWP, are projected to get 20 percent of the water they are contracted to receive in

2009. The 20 percent projection is one of the lowest in California’s history. Collectively, the State Water

Contractors serve 25 million people, 750,000 acres of farmland and businesses throughout Northern,

Central and Southern California.

 

“We are grateful for the sip of relief we’ve gotten from recent storms and the allocation increase,” said

Laura King Moon, assistant general manager of the State Water Contractors. “We need to remain

cautious though. Employment figures for farm workers will not improve as a result of a marginally

increased water allocation from the state. Water rates will not come down for families in the Bay Area

or Southern California. Reservoirs will not suddenly fill. Salmon and other fish facing extinction risks in

an unhealthy ecosystem will not magically recover.”

 

In the past two years, overall water runoff from California’s major watersheds fell significantly, coming in

at 53 percent of average in 2007 and 58 percent last year. Even with the recent rains, this year’s

overall runoff is forecast to be just 64 percent of average. As of last week, the state’s seven major

reservoirs were at 55 percent of their capacity.

 

“What is important to remember is that a drought is not a snapshot, but rather the cumulative result of

too little precipitation over too long a time. At the same time, the drought situation has been

exacerbated by a series of new limitations on water pumping by state and federal regulators and court

orders,” added Moon.

 

The ongoing regulatory restrictions, aimed at saving declining fish populations such as the Delta smelt,

cut the SWP’s water supply by nearly 30 percent in 2008 and have prevented water providers from

being able to sensibly save and manage runoff. Even if massive rainstorms hit, this regulatory noose

prevents water agencies from capturing and delivering the water nature has provided.

 

The current drought underscores the deeper structural problems facing California. The existing water

delivery system, created half-a-century ago, no longer meets the state’s needs. It is an inflexible,

limited system that is not working, in a drought or otherwise.

 

“It is critical for Californians to realize we are at a major crossroads in the way we manage and supply

water across the state. The primary water delivery system, which runs through the Sacramento-San

Joaquin Delta, needs modernization and repair. The needs are urgent and critical,” added Moon.

As a result, water providers, scientists, policy experts and environmentalists are working together to

redesign the way water is moved in California. The goal is to restore the health of the fisheries in the

Delta while providing a reliable water supply to the state.

 

The comprehensive redesign is being developed through the Bay Delta Conservation Plan in an open

and collaborative process. A new canal to move freshwater around the Delta is part of the vision, as are

many other elements such as continued freshwater flows through the Delta, habitat restoration, water

quality improvements and new safety measures for fish.

For more information on the BDCP, please visit http://www.resources.ca.gov/bdcp/.#

http://www.swc.org/uploadfiles/3.18.09SWPAllocations.pdf

 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

DWR’s California Water News is distributed to California Department of Water Resources management and staff,  for information purposes, by the DWR Public Affairs Office. For reader’s services, including new subscriptions, temporary cancellations and address changes, please use the online page: http://listhost2.water.ca.gov/mailman/listinfo/water_news . DWR operates and maintains the State Water Project, provides dam safety and flood control and inspection services, assists local water districts in water management and water conservation planning, and plans for future statewide water needs. Inclusion of materials is not to be construed as an endorsement of any programs, projects, or viewpoints by the Department or the State of California.