As part of the water planning process in California, the State Water Resources Control Board has provided a “Notice of Surface Water Shortage and Potential for Curtailment of Water Right Diversions for 2015.”
“As the drought emergency continues, it appears that supplies this year could be just as limited or more so, if dry weather conditions persist.” Like last year, the SWRCB has an orderly process for administering water rights in California based on the priority of the water right and the availability of water. This process provides water suppliers and their landowners an ability to make planning decisions for this upcoming year based on their relative priority and the availability of water in their watercourse. The notice is an important warning for water right holders to begin planning for different water supply scenarios, depending upon the precipitation in their area between now and early summer.
In 2014, many water suppliers in the Sacramento Valley had their water rights curtailed, which significantly affected the economy and environment in certain parts of the Valley. Some of the landowners who have been curtailed have access to groundwater resources or other surface supplies that can help them through these dry periods, while others simply have no access to water supplies and cannot rely upon any water during dry years.
Although very difficult for those who curtail their water supplies, this orderly process has generally worked well and has helped California through challenging times when water is not available for all uses.
