State curtails river diversions again. What that means to Modesto-area water users
The state has again stopped river diversions in much of Stanislaus and nearby counties, but the effect on farms and cities is minimal for the moment.
The orders allow water agencies to continue delivering supplies already in reservoirs. They include the Modesto and Turlock irrigation districts and San Francisco on the Tuolumne River, and the Oakdale and South San Joaquin districts on the Stanislaus River.
These agencies have enough stored water for this year, but they still challenge the state’s authority over their long-held river rights.
A drought now 3 years old forced Tuesday’s action by the State Water Resources Control Board. It first curtailed diversions last August but lifted them after heavy storms in October and December. The months since then have been historically dry.
“We’re not going to get a significant pulse of new snowmelt at this point,” said Erik Ekdahl, the state board’s deputy director. “There is no more snow to melt.”
Much of Valley affected
The order affects many rights holders on the San Joaquin River and its tributaries. The state board seeks to provide at least some flow to protect fish and water quality in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and San Francisco Bay.
Many irrigation districts on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley are already getting zero water from the federal Central Valley Project. Allotments are 75% for about a quarter-million acres with senior rights between the Crows Landing and Mendota areas.
MID and TID capped their customers at about 60% of normal use with the goal of having enough for 2023 and meeting lower-river fish rules. OID and SSJID do not have caps but have urged careful use. San Francisco has several years of storage but is urging conservation, too, in the Bay Area.
These agencies and others sued the state board last year on the grounds that it does not have the power to curtail their rights.
MID and TID issued a joint statement about the latest action: “As we continue to analyze these curtailment orders and the state water board’s methodology to justify the need for curtailments on the Tuolumne River, the Modesto and Turlock irrigation districts will be able to continue to meet our customers’ needs and environmental requirements.”
Urban conservation lags
Meanwhile, new figures released by the state board show that urban Californians remain largely indifferent to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s call for 15% voluntary water conservation.
The board said per-capita urban water consumption in April fell by 7% compared to a year earlier — and was 17% higher when compared with April 2020. All told, urban Californians have reduced consumption by just 2% since the governor called for savings last summer.
The fact that water usage fell in April compared to a year earlier was “at least heartening,” said board Chairman E. Joaquin Esquivel. Others, though, said the conservation numbers need to get a lot better.
“These are not the numbers we wanted to see, and they are not the numbers we need to see,” said Adel Hagekhalil, general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.
Newsom has threatened to impose mandatory statewide cuts on urban usage if the conservation figures don’t improve.
This story was originally published June 10, 2022 at 12:00 AM.
