Golden Gate University School of Law GGU Law Digital Commons California Agencies California Documents 1989 The aliC fornia State Water Project Department of Water Resources Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/caldocs_agencies Part of the Water Law Commons Recommended Citation Department of Water Resources, "The alC ifornia State Water Project" (1989). California Agencies. Paper 213. http://digitalcommons.law.ggu.edu/caldocs_agencies/213 This Cal State Document is brought to you for free and open access by the California Documents at GGU Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in California Agencies by an authorized administrator of GGU Law Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE _, ____ I • CALIFORNIA STATE WATER PROJECT..______ STATE DEPOSITORY SEP 09 2010 GOLDEN GAlE UNIVERSITY I.AWUBRARV • I I · Tc A 424 .. ~--~----------------------------------~ .C3 C352 1989 DO NOT IWIOR FROM ,_4W I f8AARY SEP 2 I 2010 TC424.C3 C352 1989 The California State Water Project OVERVIEW - CALIFORNIA The California State Water Project is a and droughts occur in the same year; water supply contractors. Costs for water storage and delivery system of the wettest areas are in Northern flood control are paid by the federal reseJVOirs, aqueducts, powerplants and California, while most of California's government and costs for recreation pumping plants. It extends for more people and irrigated lands are in the and fish and wildlife enhancement are than 600 miles-two-thirds the length drier central and southern portions of paid by the State. of California. Planned, built and the State. California's challenge is how operated by the California Department best to conserve, control and deliver Oroville Reservoir California Aqueduct of Water Resources, it is the largest enough water to meet its needs where Water Supply state-built, multi-purpose water project and when they occur. The State has contracts to supply up to in the country. The Project's main 4.2 million acre-feet of water annually purpose is water supply - that is, to Following World War II, traditional from the State Water Project to 30 store surplus water during wet periods water development by local and federal public agencies. (An acre-foot is and distribute it to areas of need in governments was not keeping pace with 325,851 gallons.) Approximately 30 Northern California, the San Francisco the needs of California's expanding percent of this water is used to irrigate Bay Area, the San Joaquin Valley, and population. So, in 1951, the California farmland, and 70 percent wi11 be used Southern Cdlifornia. Other project Legislature authorized what is now the to meet the needs of the State's functions include flood control, power State Water Project. In 1960, California growir.g population. generation, recreation, and fish and voters approved the Legislature's 1959 wildlife enhancement Water Resources Development Bond Today, nearly 19 million people­ Act to help finance the Project. more than two-thirds of all Overall, nature provides enough water Californians-receive part of their to meet California's present and future All costs for water development, water supply from the State Water needs; but this supply varies widely operation and maintenance, fish and Project. Project water is also supplied from year to year, season to season, wildlife preservation (mitigation), and to more than 600,000 acres of irrigated and area to area. Sometimes floods power are repaid, with interest, by the farmland. STATE WATER PROJECT Flood Control lakes and waterways where appropriate. Power Approximately 98 million recreation-days Much of California's development has of use were recorded at Project Great quantities of electrical energy are occurred on low-lying lands that are recreation facilities from 1962 through n~ededed to transport water long subject to flooding under natural 1988. (A recreation-day is the visit of distances and pump it over hilly terrain conditions. Where feasible, flood control one person to a recreation area for any to serve the water contractors. To help provisions were incorporated into the part of one day.) generate this power, eight hydroelectric Project to protect such areas. Storage Edmonston Pumping Plant Lake Del Valle space was provided in Oroville and Del Stream flow maintenance, fish hatcheries, power plants have been built as part of Valle Lakes to capture flood flows. In fish screens, mitigation agreements, and the Project. These produce nearly half of Kern County an interconnection was salinity control gates are among the the energy needed by the Project for built to divert Kern River flood flows provisions for fish and wildlife. In pumping. The remaining energy comes into the California Aqueduct. addition, the California Department of from other sources, including coal-fired Fish and Game operates an annual fish and geothermal plants built by the Recreation, Fish and Wildlife stocking program at Project reservoirs Project. and lakes. The need for more and better Salinity Control opportunities for water-associated recreation parallels population growth. The State Water Project, in cooperation Preservation and enhancement of fish with the federal Central Valley Project, and wildlife habitat are also important. is operated to limit salinity intrusion into The State Water Project was designed the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and and built with these needs in mind. Suisun Marsh. D From the Feather River to Southern California, facilities for anglers, boaters, picnickers, campers, cyclists, and other visitors have been provided at Project COORDINATION WITH The federal Central Valley Project is a Project were developed to be used large multi-purpose water project. It jointly by both projects. These include includes 20 reservoirs, 500 miles of San Luis Reservoir, O'Neill Forebay, canals, and other facilities. Its primary more than 100 miles of the California purpose is to provide water for Aqueduct, and related pumping irrigation throughout California's great facilities. Costs and facilities are Central Valley. Other functions shared approximately 55 percent State include urban water supply, water and 45 percent federal. quality, flood control, power, recreation, and fish and wildlife San Luis Reservoir stores surplus water enhancement. pumped from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta through the California Some facilities of the Central Valley Aqueduct (State) and the Project and the California State Water Delta-Mendota Canal (federal) during periods of heavy precipitation and snowmelt. Later in the year, the stored water is released for distribution to State and federal service areas. More recently, the federal government participated in the funding of the State-constructed Suisun Marsh protection facilities. In addition to the joint-use facilities, operation of the two projects is coordinated to manage available supplies efficiently and economically. Legend --State Water Project - central Valley Project - Federal -State Joint Use Facilities --Future Additions CENTRAL VALLEY PROJECT During periods of controlled flow In November 1986, officials of the two water, and provides for sharing (summer, fall, and dry years) projects signed a Coordinated responsibilities in meeting present coordinated operation focuses on the Operation Agreement. This signing Delta water quality standards. Delta. Releases from reservoirs to followed Congressional authorization natural river channels must be carefully of the agreement in October 1986. In The agreement also requires that the balanced to satisfy in-basin needs for addition to formalizing the previous parties negotiate a contract for the water supply, navigation, and fisheries; annual operational arrangements, this State Project to transport water for the in-Delta irrigation needs; Delta salinity agreement permits increased federal project through the California control standards; and Delta diversion operational efficiency of both projects, Aqueduct, and for the federal project requirements of the State and federal ensures that each project receives an to sell an equal amount of water to the projects. equitable share of available surplus State Project. o Suisun Marsh L....---------------------------------__.Salinity Control Gates WATER CONTRACTORS AND SERVICE AREAS CONTRACTING AGENCY CUmuhltlve Maximum SAN JOAQUIN VALLEY AREA l.oc8- Dell•- Annuli! 9. County ol Kings 45,900 4.000 Uon to 1/89 EnUUemenl 10. Oevll's Den Water Oist 318,146 12.700 ' l No. (8C,...IH I) (8C,...IH I) \ ' 11 . Dudley Rodge Water Dist 1,128.792 57,700 UPPER FEATHER AREA 12 Empire West S1de Irrigation Oist 71.972 3.000 (/'t,_ _____ 1 City of Yuba City 889 9,600 13. Kern County Water Agency 15.514.754 1.153,400 1- l 2 County of Butte 5,714 27.500 14 Oak Flat Water Dost 119.171 5,700 J ~·~') f i 3. Plumas County Flood Control & 15 Tulare Lake Basin Water Water Conservation Oist. 6.698 2,700 Storage Dist 2.337.185 t18,500 \. .I .I Subtotal 13,301 39,800 SUbtotal 19,535,920 1,355,000 I ) . NORTH BAY AREA CENTRAL COASTAL AREA 4. Napa County Flood Control & 16. San Luis Obospo County Flood i ~ '-'---~-~- Water Conservatton Oist. 101,552 25.000 Control & Water Cons. Oist. 0 25.000 5. Solano County Flood Control & 17. Santa Barbara County Flood Water Conservatton Dist 12.646 42,000 _j_. ___ _.\ Control & Water Cons Oist 0 45,488 SUbtotal 114,198 87,000 Subtotal 0 70,488 t-> SOUTH BAY AREA SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AREA 6 Alameda County Flood Control & 18 Antelope Valley-East Kern Water Conservation D1st , Zone 7 328.581 46,000 Water Agency 580,443 138,400 Alameda County Water Oist 424,656 42.000 19 Castaic Lake Water Agency 98,847 41,500 8. Santa Clara Valley Water Dlst. 2,021,932 100.000 20. Coachella Valley Water Dist. 188,859 23.100 Subtotal z.ns,111t 188,000 21 Crestlme-Lake Arrowhead Water Agency 19,669 5,600 22 Desert Water Agency 298,600 38,100 23 Lottlerock Creek Irrigation Dost. 6,506 2,300 24.