Modesto district's proposed water deal with San Francisco would net millions

San Francisco could pay a high price for a small amount of water in the first of its proposed deals with the Modesto Irrigation District.

The district on Monday disclosed that the initial sale could be 2,200 acre-feet of water a year, less than 1 percent of what the MID diverts from the Tuolumne River.

That sale could bring more than $1.5 million a year, which works out to at least $682 per acre-foot.

That's a hundredfold increase over the $6.75 per acre-foot that the MID's farmers pay this year for their basic allotment of water. An acre-foot covers an acre a foot deep.

San Francisco could spread the cost among about 2.5 million customers in the Bay Area.

The sale is under negotiation.

The district staff estimated that other water transfers in the future could bring $18 million to $25 million per year. The possible volume and prices were not mentioned.

The MID provided the information in advance of four public meetings this week on the water sale concept. No board vote has been scheduled.

The district expects to make water available by building small reservoirs to capture flows that now go out the ends of canals.

San Francisco would divert the extra water in its Hetch Hetchy Water and Power System, higher in the Tuolumne watershed.

Supporters say such deals would raise money for MID system improvements and ease pressure for water and electricity rate increases. They note that the district would not give up its long-term rights to the water because it would still be a "beneficial use" under state law.

Critics say the water would be better used by Modesto-area farms and cities and for recharging groundwater basins. They worry that environmentalists and wildlife agencies could demand more flows in the lower Tuolumne if the MID gives the impression it has excess water.

Sales beyond the initial deal would require extensive study of the effects on the river and MID water users, the staff said.

San Francisco is facing a shortfall of about 27,500 acre-feet a year by 2035. Other options include desalinization of seawater and increased water recycling, conservation and groundwater use.

The system serves San Francisco and parts of three other counties.

Bee staff writer John Holland can be reached at jholland@modbee.com or 578-2385.

This story was originally published October 24, 2011 at 10:33 PM with the headline "Modesto district's proposed water deal with San Francisco would net millions."