The Landscape: Introduction to California Water California Water Law Symposium David A. Sandino Chief Counsel California Department of Water Resources (916) 653-7084 dsandino@water.ca.gov January 30, 2010

Summary of Presentation Overview of California’s water landscape Preview of today’s conference Aimed for new water devotee

How Do We Manage Water?

The Whole World is Watching! The Economist Special Report 60 Minutes Segment Legislature and Governor National Academy of Sciences

Forces Driving the California Water Landscape Hydrology Residential & lifestyle choices Water supply infrastructure Regional approaches Water demands Population growth Climate change Governance

California’s Hydrology 2/3’s of the water supply falls in Northern California 2/3’s of the population lives in Southern California Varies from year to year, season to season, and region to region

Water Variability and Use 2/3 of precipitation in north 2/3 of use in south

Current Statewide Water Conditions Water supplies were reduced statewide (40% SWP) in 2009 due to dry hydrology and changing environmental protections in the Delta State Water Project announced 5% supply on December 1 Recent rains are helpful but not a panacea Lake Oroville: 50% of average

California Water Systems 9

Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Region Supplies water to 25 million Californians

The Delta Region Convergence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers 40% (30 MAF) of California’s average runoff 2/3 of California’s water consumption Legacy communities and agriculture Fish and wildlife resources

California’s Water Balance Average Total Supply: 120 MAF In dry years, insufficient supplies to meet total demand: environment, urban, and agriculture Supply has been met through demand reduction, water transfers, and groundwater overdraft See 2009 California Water Plan @ DWR website for details

Environmental Water Water dedicated for in-stream flow Federal and State Wild and Scenic Rivers Acts San Francisco Bay and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta outflow requirements Water Dedicated to Delta Endangered Species protection

Delta Smelt

2008 Delta Smelt & 2009 Salmon Biological Opinions Avoid jeopardy and improve habitat Authorized SWP and CVP operations Reduce SWP and CVP supplies reliability up to 30% depending on hydrology and fish presence

California’s Population Growth California’s population is growing rapidly 1970-----20 million 1980-----24 million 1990-----30 million 2010-----38 million 2020-----42 million? 2050-----60 million?

Expected Storage Capacity Impacts from Changes in Runoff Due to Climate Change 13.5 MAF Reservoir Storage 14 MAF Snow Pack Storage    Fm Maury (4/28/04)….We have been using the April-July runoff as a measure of the snowpack.  This is about 15 MAF using the current 1951-2000 average for all California basins included in B-120, counting the Owens, but not Klamath which is in Oregon.  The previous 50 year average, 1946-95, was a bit less at 14.6 MAF for the same streams.  If we just count the rivers affecting the Bay Delta system and service area, Central Valley plus Trinity plus Owen, one would get 14.1 MAF with our current average. --- Average snowpack volume on the ground on April 1 s a different question and I don’t know if we have a good answer.  I do remember Pierre Stephens taking a look at this about 2 years ago and coming up with the same approximate figure around 15 MAF, which is not unreasonable.  Some April-July runoff comes from late season rain and ground water.  On the other hand, not all of the April 1 snow shows up as runoff because there are losses to vegetation ET and the air.  My earlier estimate of about a one-third reduction in runoff was based on a shrinkage of snow covered area (for a 3 degree C rise) by about half. Fm Art (4/28/04) For what it is worth, my quick calc of the April-July runoff (approximate snow pack) for the Central Valley + Trinity comes out at 13.876 MAF so I’d say the 14MAF number is good.  But that (mostly) is the 50 year average 1951-2000.  This summer I plan to have this number updated using 1956-2005 but I don’t yet have a feel for how it might change the average (I just haven’t looked at it yet.) Fm David (4/28/04) Yes, if you take away the Truckee and Cosumnes from my number, you essentially get Art’s number.---- The average April-July runoff for the state is 14.6 MAF (rivers include:  Trinity, Sac R at Bend, Feather, Yuba, American, Cosumnes, Mokelumne, Stanislaus, Tuolumne, Merced, SJoaquin, Kings, Kaweah, Tule, Kern, and Truckee) Each river has a different April 1 average snowpack (for the entire basin mix of snow courses) in terms of inches of water content.  I’ll list these if it is helpful Trinity 33.6” Bend  33.3” Feather 32.7” Yuba  36.1” American 32.5” Cosumnes 19.9” Mokelumne 34.8” Stanislaus 32.3” Tuolumne 31.0” Merced 32.1” San Joaquin 26.9” Kings 23.7” Kaweah 21.3” Tule 20.9” Kern 19.4” Truckee  37.1”  Fm Maury (4/28/04)….I am getting around to answering last week’s pile of e-mail.  The 4 to 5 MAF figure comes from an old study which I published in the 1990 Western Snow Conference proceedings (meeting was in Sacramento).  It was based from an analysis of a 3 degree C rise which would presumably raise the average April 1 snow level by 1500 feet.  I then looked at the change in snow covered area (reduced by about half for all west slope Sierra rivers plus Trinity at Lewiston) and reran the April-July runoff regression equations with reduced snowpack, coming up with about 1/3 less April-July runoff.  The loss was more in the northern Sierra, less in the south where average elevations are higher.  Total average AJRO at that time for these basins was about 14 MAF, so a reduction of 1/3 worked out to about 4.7 MAF.  However, the approach was fairly crude, so it would be better to use a range.   Interestingly, the work by Scripps a decade later in Noah Knowles paper which we used for B-160 isn’t that different.  The new 50 year average, 1951-2000, now used by Snow Surveys, is still about the same at 13876 TAF, even though the water year is up about 5 percent or so.  We have often used 15 MAF for the total snowpack runoff; that includes the east side of the Sierra.  I hope this helps.   If Jerry is looking for something more controversial, you could say that some researchers expect considerably larger floods.  Since the whole American River solution with the extra outlet gates and the mini-raise at Folsom would just about barely fit the 100 and 200 year calculated flood, a significant increase would mean this expensive solution would again fall short soon after it is completed.  As you know, I don’t have much confidence in some of the model flood projections, but do think some increase would be expected.    11 MAF Reservoir Storage A 3oC increase in temperature is projected to result in an increase in snow elevation of 1500 feet and a 4 to 5 MAF decrease in Sierra snow pack

Governance: the Legal Flow of California Water

Who Is Involved in Governance? Federal Government: EPA, USBR, Corps, Wildlife Agencies State Government: SWRCB, DWR, DFG, CPUC, Delta Stewardship Council Local Government: Cities, Counties, Local Water Agencies Stakeholders: Urban, Agriculture, Environment, Tribes, Recreation, & Energy Congress and State Legislature Courts: Federal and State

Water Legislation: Reform or Retreat?

“The history of California is written on its waters.” --Justice Ronald B. Robie State Water Resources Control Board Cases (2006) 136 Cal.Ap.4th 674, 687

4 Key Components of Water Legislation Delta Governance and Sustainability Statewide Water Conservation Groundwater Monitoring Water Supply Reliability Funding: November Bond Measure

Long Term Actions conservation Diversify regional supplies California Aqueduct Sustain and increase conservation Diversify regional supplies Increase storage Fix the Delta Conveyance Habitat Sustain investment INCREASE WATER CONSERVATION CA Water Plan projects urban water use increasing and agricultural use decreasing IRWM will integrate conservation into regional planning Increasing water conservation is an essential element of solving the state’s water crisis The Governor has called for a 20% per capita reduction in urban water use statewide INCREASE WATER STORAGE Increase flexibility for Delta Offset snowpack loss/Manage climate change Provide flood protection Meet changing water needs Provide cold water for fish FIX THE DELTA Bay-Delta Conservation Plan Protect and restore habitat Improve water quality Control invasive species protect of resident and anadromous fish Improve Delta conveyance Identify and address other system stressors (ammonia, invasive, power plant ops, illegal diversions) 23

Which Way to the California Water Law Symposium?