As Colorado River runoff hits historic lows, longstanding agreements on allocation of Colorado River water are set to expire at year's end, and both Lakes Powell and Mead continue to lose storage, negotiations among the seven Colorado River states have not yielded any agreement. This has caused the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) to impose a 10-year plan that pleases no one and will not result in sustainable operation of the Colorado River.
Reclamation's mandate is really a series of two-year plans to be updated throughout the 10-year plan. In the first two years, the Lower Basin states of Arizona will lose 760,000 acre-feet of diversion rights, California will lose 440,000 acre-feet, and Nevada will lose 50,000 acre-feet. The Upper Basin states of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming lose nothing. Reclamation hopes the seven states (and 20+ Tribal Nations and the country of Mexico) will continue negotiations and come to a consensus. Thus far, the four Upper Basin states have offered nothing, and the mandate does not seem to be an incentive for them to do so.
There are many concerns with this mandate, beginning with the fact that the Upper Basin states are essentially nonparticipants. The reductions on the Lower Basin states are insufficient to make a lasting impact on sustainability of the river, and allocations of the cuts to entities within each state are unidentified. This is almost certain to result in litigation at both the federal and state levels.
Until we know how California water agencies divvy up the cuts, impacts to specific areas and economic sectors are conjectural at best. In California, the majority of Colorado River water goes to agriculture. Our state's agricultural community has instituted many programs to conserve water. These include much more efficient irrigation systems, lining of canals, and even fallowing of thousands of acres of productive farm land in the Central Valley, Palo Verde Valley, Coachella Valley and Imperial Valley.
Locally, a reduction in Colorado River allocation will have only a small direct impact. Riverside Public Utilities takes no Colorado River Water, Western Water takes a small amount of untreated Colorado River water for irrigation customers, and the City of Corona takes some Colorado River water for its residential and commercial customers. Corona has other alternative supplies. Regionally however, any significant loss of Colorado River Water will increase demand on other sources including the State Water Project which brings water from Northern California south to our area.
I am hopeful, but not optimistic, that the seven states, 20+ Tribal Nations, and Mexico can reach a consensus agreement before the next two-year iteration of the Reclamation plan is developed. Failing that agreement, I am concerned we will see more widespread and deeper reductions in Colorado River allocations for California.
The Colorado River supply uncertainty puts added pressure on completion of two key California water supply projects. The Sites Reservoir Project is nearing final approval and could begin construction before the end of this year, but is still struggling to get a full 1.5 million acre-feet per year water right. That part of the process is ongoing and should be finalized in the next few months. The Delta Conveyance Project, which would divert water from the Sacramento River above the Delta, is moving forward, but lags by a couple of years in the permitting process. This project would allow diversion of water, when available, above the existing pumping station at the lower end of the Delta where an endangered fish often congregates. The pumps must be shut down when the fish is present. This project would also allow diversion above the Delta in times of high water flow offering flood protection for the Delta and surrounding communities.
Hopefully we will know soon whether the Reclamation plan for reducing Colorado River diversions results in litigation, and whether it might affect implementation of the plan. One thing is abundantly clear: The Colorado River is significantly overdrafted, and is not sustainable under current operations. The nation's two largest reservoirs, Lakes Mead and Powell, are at historic low levels and there is a real risk that one or both will lose the ability to generate hydroelectric power in the near future.
We must do something, but let's try to do it effectively and equitably.
