Central Valley Project Begins Water Year 2016

The Bureau of Reclamation’s Central Valley Project (CVP) in Sacramento, Calif., began water year (WY) 2016 (Oct. 1, 2015 to Sept. 30, 2016) with 2.9 million acre-ft of water in six key CVP reservoirs (Shasta, Trinity, Folsom, New Melones and Millerton reservoirs and the federal share of the joint federal/state San Luis Reservoir). This is 47% of the 15-year average annual carryover of 6.1 million acre-ft and 200,000 acre-ft less than the amount with which the Mid-Pacific Region began WY 2015 on Oct. 1, 2014.

“WY 2015 was very difficult, and we are beginning WY 2016 with even less water in our reservoirs,” said Mid-Pacific regional director David Murillo. “We are continuing to work closely and cooperatively with our partner agencies and stakeholders to make the best possible use of our limited water resources, especially as we are now entering what could be the fifth year of drought.

The CVP typically provides irrigation water to about 3 million acres of agricultural land in the San Joaquin and Sacramento valleys and along California’s central coast. The CVP also provides urban water f or millions of people and industrial water essential to the San Francisco Bay Area’s economy. Water from the CVP is also crucial for the environment, wildlife and fishery restoration, and hydroelectric power production.

During WY 2015, CVP power plants generated about 2.4 billion kilowatt-hours. Project use consumed about 25 percent of this energy; the remaining energy was made available for marketing. The Mid-Pacific Region’s hydroelectric generators have a combined capacity of approximately 2.1 million kilowatts.

In January 2016, Reclamation will announce a preliminary assessment of WY 2016 CVP water supply conditions and in February will announce the initial CVP water supply to be made available under contracts (prior to the start of the contract year, which begins on March 1).

Reclamation will continually monitor and evaluate hydrologic conditions and will adjust the initial water supply allocations, as warranted, to reflect updated snowpack and runoff.

Source: Bureau of Reclamation