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Heavy NorCal Rains Boost Friant’s Chances For Water

March15,2016-Top of Shasta at 5.39.04 PMThe state’s largest – Shasta Reservoir is filling up fast – at 3.7 million acre-feet of storage today and for the first time in four years it could rise to capacity at 4.5 mil-af in coming weeks The lake’s rain total this season is an impressive 60 inches this water-year as the reservoir’s rushing inflow reached nearly 100,000acre-feet over a 24-hour period in the past day.

All this is good news for California and locally for drought plagued farmers.

Because of the ample March rains and the need to plan for the irrigation season Friant Water Authority CEO Jason Phillips thinks the Bureau of Reclamation will announce at least an initial water allocation for farms and cities this week including water for Friant’s east side farmers for the first time in several years.

In California all water flows south and even though Shasta is long way from where the Friant Kern Canal flows – it make all the difference.

“We think there is 1.5 million acre feet in the upper San Joaquin watershed and should translate into at least 80% of Class 1 supply (100% Class 1 is 800,000 acre-feet) suggests Phillips. “But the Bureau will announce a smaller number” due to restrictions on how much water can be pumped south from Shasta in spring months. “They are taking a conservative approach.”

But it wont be because there is not enough water – far from it.

For the past two weeks Shasta’s rain gauge has been busy adding over 15 inches of precipitation. The Shasta area like much of northern California, was pounded by a series of blustery storms and an EL Nino inspired atmospheric river of moisture.This past weekend,up and down the Sacramento River the water levels have been rising to just below flood stage.

Northern California rainfall this past few weeks has been “impressive” observes Phillips.The all important Shasta reservoir supplies water for 23 million Californians but is also key to indirectly supplying water for 15,000 east side farms in Fresno,Tulare and Kern Counties. So they too cheer when they hear the reservoir has gone from 29% full as of the end of 2015 to 78% full today.

Just as impressive has been the snowfall in the Tahoe area receiving over 100 inches in the past 9 days,over 8 feet of snow. Folsom Reservoir hit hard by the drought, where people strolled last fall on the sandy lake bottom – is full enough to be on flood-release this week impacting the delta area below already getting inundated both from rainfall and high river flows. Several other reservoirs were spilling this week too.

With Shasta likely to fill – the Bureau of Reclamation is finalizing deliberations this week of how to divvy up the water flowing south this spring with expectations that the San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors will get get a 100% allocation this year – 840,000 acre-feet.

Heading Out To Sea

At issue is how much of that can be delivered through the delta even if there is plenty of water from Shasta – even excess flows that will just head out to sea. The Bureau must decide how to manage flows for fish as well as farmers.So far this year Phillips says about double the amount of water through the first 9 weeks of the year have flowed out to the ocean compared to last year and even less water was pumped south.

“It’s very frustrating – what is happening.”

Out To Sea  2016-03-15 at 9.31.00 AM
If the feds figure they cannot deliver all water promised to the Los Banos area Exchange Contractors through the delta they will take it out of the Friant contractors allotment stored in Millerton and the upper San Joaquin watershed. At least there is plenty of snow there too.The betting is that Friant Water Authority will deliver some good amount of Class 1 water down the Friant Kern Canal to thirsty east side farmers for the first time in several years, great news for them.

Some even expect some Class 2 water – wow!

Phillips says that could happen in May when sudden hot weather could spur a quick snowmelt and force the release of flood water from Millerton. Farmers may have first call on that water.

Phillips says government pumping restrictions could ease in the summer months after there is little danger for smelt or salmonand pumping can go all-out into the San Luis Reservoir south of the delta.”That’s where lots of water in Shasta comes into play.”

Rain and snow amounts in the central Sierra above Millerton have been good this year but not as plentiful as the northern parts of the state.

Millerton water supply is at 94% of average for the date and 63% of capacity. Huntington Lake has received over 30 inches of precip this year – more than double what they got all last year. Kaiser Point has nearly 40 inches. The five station San Joaquin seasonal amount is 116% of average for this date.

On the Kings River, Pine Flat sits at 367,000 acre feet compared to 151,100 as of January 1.Kings River Water Association watermaster Steve Haugen says estimates of water supply for the upper Kings is in the mid 80s percent compared to just 20 percent this time last year.

Like the mid-state southern California has not seen the El Nino rains they thought they would but will appreciate the flows from northern California this summer delivered by the state water system.

Now you know why they put those reservoirs in northern California.

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