On November 28, 2016, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) announced that the State Water Project (SWP) initial water allocation is 20 percent of contracted amounts.
For Kern County, this means about 200,000 acre-feet (af) of water would be delivered to Kern County water users from the SWP in 2017-compared to the contracted amount of about one million acre-feet.
The SWP provides water to more than 25 million residents and more than 750,000 acres of agricultural land throughout California. Each year, DWR issues a conservative initial allocation, since California normally receives more than 90 percent of its snow and rain between December and April. DWR typically issues a final allocation in May, after the state's wettest months have passed.
"A 20 percent SWP allocation is a hopeful improvement over initial SWP allocations in 2014, 2015 and 2016 of only 5 or 10 percent. However, California desperately needs some plentiful water years to make up for extremely dry conditions in recent years, which have required a disproportionate reliance on diminishing groundwater reserves in Kern County," said Kern County Water Agency (Agency) Board of Directors President Ted Page.
Recent storms have brought some relief, but California could still end up in the sixth year of an unprecedented drought cycle. Water leaders throughout Kern County and the state have implemented creative water management strategies to help deal with this shortage, but significant replenishment of groundwater and reservoir storage supplies has never been more critical.
"Improved hydrologic conditions are encouraging, but they simply aren't enough. California desperately needs a comprehensive solution to the state's longstanding water crisis. Kern County is hopefully that the wet hydrology continues through the winter months," added Page.
The Agency is part of a diverse coalition of California water agencies that have invested more than $240 million to develop California WaterFix-a prudent, realistic, science-driven and achievable approach that will fix California's aging water delivery system, protect its economy and ensure related public safety.
This approach includes a tremendous amount of public review and comment. It covers five main areas:
1. Water Security
2. Climate Change Adaptation
3. Environmental Protection
4. Seismic Safety
5. Affordability
For more information about California WaterFix, visit: www.californiawaterfix.com.
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The Kern County Water Agency (Agency) was created in 1961 by a special act of the State Legislature and serves as the local contracting entity for the State Water Project. The Agency, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2011, participates in a wide scope of management activities, including water quality, flood control and groundwater operations to preserve and enhance Kern County's water supply-the main ingredient for the well-being of an economy.
