For Immediate Release
Contact: Elizabeth Jonasson
(559) 241-6233
Westlands Water District Responds to the 35 Percent Water Allocation for the Central Valley Project
Low Water Allocations for Westlands Water District Negatively Impact the San Joaquin Valley Economy and the District’s Ability to Meet the Nation’s Food Security Needs
Fresno, CA – Today, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) announced an update to the water allocations for Central Valley Project (CVP) water users, initially announced in February. The initial allocation for South of Delta agricultural contractors, including Westlands Water District, was set at 15 percent of the total water contract. Today’s announcement revises the previous allocation to 35 percent for South of Delta agricultural contractors.
“Inadequate and unpredictable water supplies have a direct impact on the communities and farms in the San Joaquin Valley and their ability to feed the nation and the world,” said Allison Febbo, General Manager, Westlands Water District.
“This is very disappointing and not because our expectations are unrealistic. The broad public discussions surrounding water management in California have led us to believe that higher levels of delivery would be possible in better hydrologic years, such as this one. Westlands has been banking on that, literally, as demonstrated by the nearly 400,000 acre-feet we stored last year with a 100 percent allocation. Last year’s groundwater banking started to reverse subsidence in some areas and represents an important protection that we had intended for drought years, not average years like this.
“With implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), our growers rely almost entirely on our CVP surface water deliveries to either reduce our reliance on groundwater pumping in years with relatively good hydrology or recharge our groundwater basins in years with wet hydrology. Earlier this year, with our observation of the relatively good hydrology, we had been planning to have sufficient CVP surface water allocations to reduce or eliminate our reliance on groundwater pumping. Our upstream reservoirs are full, snowpack is decent, and Delta outflows are very high, and it appears that there is good response by fisheries to two good hydrologic years in a row. From what we see, the science regarding operational decisions and the hydrology moving forward support a higher allocation.
“It’s essential that water operations decisions are made with an appropriate respect for the people, communities, and essential industries that rely on CVP water supply allocations for survival. Today’s low allocation update is a missed opportunity to celebrate what appears to be good outcomes for fisheries and to also provide water supplies that are essential for the San Joaquin Valley, an area already struggling with economic challenges and rising unemployment.”
The future for CVP South of Delta water supply in 2024 is concerning, according to Westlands’ analysis, due to a variety of factors. Salvage of both steelhead and winter-run salmon at the Delta export facilities are expected to exceed historical records for both species. The fishery salvage numbers are expected to trigger further restrictions on Delta pumping into June, when the opportunity to take advantage of the good hydrologic conditions will have largely passed. A significant lingering concern held by Westlands is that the high numbers of fish entrained are a symptom of good outcomes for the fisheries, and that the precautionary measures being taken are not having a significant effect on the viability of the species, despite the heavy cost in water supply. The compounded uncertainties surrounding fish are expected to constrain the Bureau of Reclamation in its ability to provide robust CVP water supply allocations early in the year. Westlands continues to ask for clarity on the science behind the restrictions and looks to use this unfortunate outcome as the basis for better clarity and a more balanced and thoughtful framework for decision making in future adaptive management forums.
###
About Westlands Water District
Westlands Water District is recognized as a world leader in agricultural water conservation and has served the farmers and rural communities on the west side of Fresno and Kings counties for more than five decades. As stewards of one of California’s most precious natural resources, Westlands continually invests in conservation, and champions farmers deploying innovative irrigation methods based on the best available technology.