Urban Water Institute Annual Water Conference August 15

Urban Water Institute Annual Water Conference August 15, 2014 D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E Gary Bardini Deputy Director Department of Water Resources D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

California’s Drought • 2014 third dry year statewide • Statewide storage well below average • Groundwater basins are being depleted • Feb and Mar rain helped, but drought conditions persist • State and federal water projects restricted by regulatory actions to protect the Delta • Local conditions are degrading • High level of local, State and federal coordination • 2015 could also be dry • More frequent or longer droughts are likely D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Statewide Drought Conditions Extreme Drought 82% Exceptional Drought 58% United States Drought Monitor August 5, 2014 D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

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Three Year Snowpack & Run Off Sierra Snowpack = 1/3 of the State’s total water supply April 1 Snowpack Yearly Runoff 2012 52% 62% 2013 42% 60% 2014 25% 36% D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Current Reservoir Conditions Folsom Lake – Jan 2014 % Avg % Cap Folsom 33 34 40 48 48 59 San Luis 20 43 Shasta Oroville – Jan 2014 Aug 11, 2014 D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

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Drought Impacts: Groundwater • Spring 2010 – Spring 2014 • Red - decrease of more than 10 ft • Orange - decrease of between 2. 5 to 10 ft • San Joaquin Valley Critical Impact • Contributes to Subsidence • Increased Well Drilling • Deeper and Larger Wells • Small Communities / Homes D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Governor’s Drought Proclamation • Conservation – 20% • Groundwater Report • Water Contingency Plans • Well Drilling / Local Impacts • State Agencies • CDFA Website • Water Transfers • DFW – Contingency Plans, Fish • Consolidate Place of Use • Delta Actions • Shovel Ready Projects • Climate Forecasting • Notice on Diversions • Cal. Fire – Staff and Action • WQCP – Cold Water, WQ • Task Force – Food, Money, Services • Drinking Water Assistance • Task Force - Monitor D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Drought Impacts: State Actions • Executive Order B-21 -13: Streamline water transfers (May 2013) • California Water Plan Update (draft Oct 2013) • Interagency Drought Task Force (Dec 2013) • Governor’s Drought Proclamation and Water Action Plan (Jan 2014) • Urgency Legislation providing $687. 4 million to support drought relief (Feb 2014) • Governor’s Executive Order (Apr 2014) • Drought Operations Plan (Apr 2014) D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Improved Conditions in Spring • Some Increased Supply • Scaled Back Requests for Modified Delta Standards • Limited Operational Flexibility • Water Transfers • Emergency Drought Barrier Installation on Hold D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

California Water Action Plan: Actions for Reliability, Restoration and Resilience • • • Conservation as a way of life Regional self-reliance and IWM Achieve co-equal goals for the Delta Protect and restore ecosystems Manage and prepare for dry periods Expand storage and GW management Safe water for all communities Operational and regulatory efficiency Sustainable and integrated financing D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Proposed Public Investments: D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Possible Drought Actions for 2015 • • • Reduced Project Deliveries Modified Delta Flow/Salinity Standards State Water Board Curtailments Drought Barrier Installation (one or more) Mandatory Conservation Increased Ground Water Use Increased Oversight on Ground Water Use Increased Mutual Aid Increased Real-time Data and Information D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

El Nino for Winter 2014/15? • 65 percent probability forming in the fall/winter. • No strong correlation and above-normal precipitation for interior Northern California http: //www. wrh. noaa. gov/sto/climate/ENSO. php D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Thank You The governor asked all Californians to reduce water consumption by 20 percent and referred residents and water agencies to the Save Our Water campaign -- www. saveourh 20. org D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

“When the well is dry, we know the worth of water” – Benjamin Franklin D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Drought Impacts: Greatest Risks • Health & safety and economic – Catastrophic wildfires (e. g. , Southern California in 2003 and 2007) • Health & safety – Impacts to small water systems in rural areas (including wildfire damage) • Environmental – Continued San Joaquin Valley land subsidence, spawning beds • Economic – Minimal water allocations to some agricultural water users, particularly in the San Joaquin Valley D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

State Water Project Allocations SWP 5% April 2014 • In January, first time in the 54 -year history of the SWP that an allocation of zero was announced. • SWP provides at least some of the water used by 25 million Californians. • SWP water irrigates about 750, 000 acres of farmland. D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

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Drought Impacts: 18 Counties in a State of Emergency due to Drought • • • D R O U G H T Glenn Inyo Kern Kings Lake Madera Mendocino Merced Modoc San Joaquin San Luis Obispo • Santa Barbara • Siskiyou • Sonoma • Sutter • Tulare • Tuolumne • Yuba P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Drought Impacts: Tribal Governments in State of Emergency due to Drought • • • Hoopa Valley Tribe (Humboldt) Yurok Tribe (Del Norte) Tule River Tribe (Tulare) Karuk Tribe (Siskiyou/Humboldt) Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo (Mendocino) Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation (Yolo) D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Local Drought Task Forces • Currently, 31 local task forces at the county level • Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) has a Drought Action Group that includes many local agency representatives from throughout the state D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Governor’s Interagency Drought Task Force Meets weekly Established via Governor Brown’s December 17 th letter to agencies One week reporting period Multiple state agencies involved in addition to above including: Department of Public Health Employment Development Department of General Services D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Voluntary Water Transfers • DWR streamlining process – Improving contracting procedures for voluntary transfers dependent on SWP facilities – Requires a willing buyer and willing seller – Facilitating fast-tracking of transfers with appropriate supporting documentation – Improving coordination and alignment with other agencies SWRCB USBR – Updated Web information: – www. water. ca. gov/watertransfers D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E

Emergency Drought Barriers • Temporary Rock Barriers Sutter Slough Steamboat Slough • Permits Required • Agency Consultations West False River • Limit Saltwater Intrusion D R O U G H T P R E P A R E D N E S S & R E S P O N S E