Department of Water Resources Increases State Water Project Supplies to State Water Contractors (SGVMWD) for 2023

Operations Update

In March, District operations included delivery of 521 acre-feet of water to Covina Irrigating Company on behalf of Three Valleys Municipal Water District. As imported water deliveries increase in the months ahead, the District expects to resume production of hydro-electric power at its generating facility in San Dimas to fulfill a request from the city of Azusa for such power. The hydroelectric generator has not operated for about three years due to the recent drought, decreased State Water Project imported water allocations, and the low volume of water being conveyed via the District’s pipeline.

Continued storms and stormwater runoff in March further improved drought and water supply conditions statewide and in the San Gabriel Valley. The graphics above show the marked improvement from January through April 2023 in state and local reservoir, snowpack and groundwater conditions. They also show significant change in the severity of drought statewide. As many reservoirs are approaching capacity, snowpack is more than double normal levels, and local groundwater, which improves more slowly due to the time it takes stormwater runoff to percolate down to groundwater levels, has risen more than 20 feet year-to-date. 

While the most recent drought is effectively over, we must remember we live in a region where most years are dry, where drought will return and where climate change makes the work of water planning and delivery challenging. The reality remains that if we’re not in a drought, we are probably either getting into one or recovering from one. 

We need to sustain our focus on developing a long-term water conservation ethic that enables us to save water now, when it’s wet, for when it’s dry. While the State has lifted many water use restrictions, it’s important to note that in the past 1-2 years Californians fell short of meeting the voluntary 15% conservation goal and were only saving water at a 6% rate, far short of the 25% conservation level achieved in the state’s most recent drought. 

Groundwater – in the Main San Gabriel Basin, the “Baldwin Park Key Well” is the indicator of local groundwater levels (see graph – blue line includes cyclic storage; black line does not). As of April 1, 2023, the level increased significantly to 204.9 feet above mean sea level, compared to 189.7 feet in March, 179.4 feet in February and 179.2 feet in January. Prior to the onslaught of storms earlier this year, the Basin had experienced a steady decline in groundwater levels from a high of 212.5 feet above mean sea level in December 2019 and was trending downward toward the historic low of 169.4 recorded on November 21, 2018. One vertical foot is equivalent to about 8,000 acre-feet of groundwater in the Main Basin. Watermaster’s operating guidelines for replacement water or “safe yield” is between 200 and 250 feet above mean sea level. 

About 80 percent of the Valley’s water supply is furnished by local groundwater, and the Valley imports about 20 percent of the water we use from northern California and the Colorado River. A 60 percent allocation is needed to meet the demand of our member cities for replacement water. Thus, in years where the allocation dips below that amount, we see the important role that water storage and water conservation play.

Note: Groundwater use accounts for 41% of California’s total water supply (80% in the San Gabriel Valley) on an average, annual basis, and as much as 58% in a critically dry year. About 85% of public water systems rely on groundwater as their primary supply. Of water diverted and pumped in California, about 80% is used by agriculture and 20% is used by cities and towns.

Imported Water – In March, the California Department of Water Resources increased State Water Project allocations to State Water Contractors such as SGVMWD for 2023 to 75%. Imported water is used to supplement local groundwater supplies in the Main San Gabriel Basin. The graph below shows how imported water allocations fluctuate over time.

Note: Two-thirds of California’s water originates in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and flows through the Delta, a large inland river delta and estuary in northern California.

Statewide Snow Pack – as of early April, the snow water equivalent had increased to 61.3 inches from 44.7 inches in March, which is 234% of the April 1 average and 235% of normal for this date (snowpack is measured from April 1 to March 31, a 12-month period). April 1 is usually the “high point” for snow accumulation each year. The current snowpack is one of the biggest the state has experienced since the 1950s.

Note: On average, the Sierra Nevada Mountains snowpack, which is a key source of water banked in reservoirs, supplies about 30% of California’s water needs as it melts in the spring and early summer, feeding reservoirs and the water table, resulting in groundwater. The snowpack is often referred to as California’s “frozen reservoir.”

Statewide Reservoir Levels – statewide, as of February 28, 2023, (the latest data available to us), reservoir levels had risen to 96% of average and 61% of capacity, with further gains imminent in March. As of early April, storage levels at Shasta Lake, the state’s largest reservoir, were 84% of capacity and 106% of the historical average for this date, and storage levels at Lake Oroville, the state’s second largest reservoir, were 83% of capacity and 116% of the historical average. The state’s fifth largest reservoir, San Luis, was 24% full five months ago, but has risen 144 feet and is now full for the just the third time in the past twelve years.

Locally, San Gabriel Reservoir was at 137% of average and Cogswell Reservoir was at 155% of average. During the recent drought, low precipitation levels, high temperatures, hot and dry soil, and high levels of evaporation decreased stormwater runoff from surface levels to replenish both reservoirs and local groundwater supplies.

Note: Every winter, most areas need about 12 inches of rainfall before the ground is saturated enough to get large amounts of runoff into streams and reservoirs. California’s reservoirs generally hold enough water to go one dry year without impacts but begin to empty if a wet year does not follow.

The District’s popular and long-running Opportunities for Water Leadership Community Grant Program (O.W.L. Grants) is providing grants ranging from $500-$1,500 to schools and non-profits for Earth Day related educational activities THIS APRIL!! These grants are IN ADDITION to the ongoing unlimited grant program. If you were unable to participate in the Earth Day grant program, please consider our ongoing grant program.

Streamlined applications and additional information about the program are posted on the District’s website (https://sgvmwd.com/water-conservation/#owl-grants). Our intent was to use the “seed” grants to spur new “Earth Day” environmental and water education activities and to build new, long-term partnerships at schools and non-profit organizations on this special day and beyond.

We are pleased to announce the following “Earth Day” grant recipients. We will furnish more details and photos in next month’s newsletter.

• Sierra Madre Elementary School (Pasadena Unified School District)

• Northrup Elementary School (Alhambra Unified School District)

• Monterey Highlands Elementary School (Alhambra Unified School District)

• Brightwood Elementary School (Alhambra Unified School District)

• Mark Keppel High School (Alhambra Unified School District)

• Alhambra High School (Alhambra Unified School District)

The District’s O.W.L. Grants Program was featured in September 2022 by ABC-Channel 7 to help encourage water conservation as part of its “Water-Wise Wednesday” community feature. The entire news segment may be viewed with the link below.