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Regular-Affiliated Agencies # 42.
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| Board of Supervisors |
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| Subject |
| Receive presentation from Lewis Bair, General Manager of Reclamation District 108, on Voluntary Agreements between local water purveyors and the State Water Resources Control Board. (No general fund impact) (Blacklock/Bair) |
| Recommended Action |
| Receive presentation from Lewis Bair, General Manager of Reclamation District 108, on Voluntary Agreements between local water purveyors and the State Water Resources Control Board. |
| Strategic Plan Goal(s) |
Operational Excellence
Sustainable Environment
Flourishing Agriculture |
| Reason for Recommended Action/Background |
About the State Water Resources Control Board
The State Water Resources Control Board ("State Board") is one of the six environmental entities operating under the authority of the California Environmental Protection Agency. The State Board was created by the State Legislature in 1967, and exists to "preserve, enhance, and restore the quality of California’s water resources and drinking water for the protection of the environment, public health, and all beneficial uses, and to ensure proper water resource allocation and efficient use, for the benefit of present and future generations." The five-member Board protects water quality by setting statewide policy, coordinating and supporting the Regional Board efforts, and reviewing petitions that contest Regional Board actions. Together with nine regional boards, the State Board is authorized to implement the federal Clean Water Act in California. A brochure is provided as Attachment A to this staff report that describes the role and responsibilities of the State Board and the various regional water quality control boards.
Background
Voluntary Agreements
"Voluntary Agreements" (formerly referred to as "Voluntary Settlement Agreements") are negotiated between a water purveyor, the State Natural Resource Agency, the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Department of Water Resources. These agreements typically contain a framework for voluntary curtailments, projects that benefit aquatic species, and formal monitoring and management plans. Once an agreement has been reached, the Voluntary Agreement is submitted to the State Board for its review and approval.
The Voluntary Agreements being presented before the Board of Supervisors are the result of a highly contentious nine-year update to the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan, which was released in July 2018. The July update proposed an "unimpaired flow" approach to managing water on the Lower San Joaquin River and its tributaries - the Stanislaus, Tuolumne and Merced rivers. Unimpaired flow is the flow of water that would occur in a waterway if there were no diversions on that waterway. The draft Plan called for a requirement that 40% of unimpaired flow be implemented for those waterways listed above.
Many opponents of the Plan and its proposed water curtailments pointed out that the State Board was attempting to force more water through tributaries into the Delta at the same time that it was presiding over hearings to permit a change in point of diversion by the State Department of Water Resources to allow for the California Water Fix. The County formally opposed the change in point of diversion proposed by the State. The state recently dismissed all State Board proceedings relating to the change in point of diversion to reevalute the WaterFix.
At that time, the State Board said the release of the third and final draft of the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan update for the Lower San Joaquin River and Southern Delta, and an accompanying Substitute Environmental Document, “comes after a nine-year process during which the Board studied and analyzed options, conducted extensive public outreach, including public hearings in the area, and reviewed more than 1,400 comment letters.”
How could this impact Yolo County?
On the same day in July 2018 as release of the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan mentioned above, the State Water Board also announced “further progress” on its effort to update flow requirements for the Sacramento River, and its tributaries, potentially including Cache Creek and Putah Creek. This second Plan update is at an earlier stage procedurally than the Lower San Joaquin River/Southern Delta plan update; a draft proposed plan and staff report analyzing alternatives will be released later for public review and comment, according to the State Board.
Should curtailments be issued for the Sacramento River and its tributaries (including Cache Creek and Putah Creek) water supplies/deliveries could be adversely impacted for the following water purveyors:
- RDs 108 and 2035
- River Garden Farms
- Dunnigan Water District
- Woodland-Davis Clean Water Agency
- City of West Sacramento
- City of Winters
- Yolo County Flood Control and Water Conservation District
Reductions in availability of surface water supplies could potentially result in supplementation by increased groundwater pumping and/or the fallowing of agricultural lands. |
| Collaborations (including Board advisory groups and external partner agencies) |
| Staff has collaborated with RD 108, the Northern California Water Association, the Association of California Water Agencies, and various local water purveyors. |
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