HomeMy WebLinkAboutState Water Resources Control Board permit State Water Resources Control Board
Division of Water Rights
Linda Adams 1001 I Street,14'h Floor♦ Sacramento,California 95814 ♦916.341.5300 Arnold Schwarzenegger
Secreraryfor P.O.Box 2000♦ Sacramento,California 95812-2000 Governor
Environmental Protecllon
Fax: 916.341.5400♦www.waterboards.ca.gov/waterrights.ca.gov
PERMIT 11360 (APPLICATION 12622)
NOTICE OF PETITION FOR TEMPORARY CHANGE
INVOLVING THE TRANSFER OF UP TO 6,000 ACRE FEET OF WATER
FROM THE CITY OF SACRAMENTO
AND SACRAMENTO SUBURBAN WATER DISTRICT
TO THE 2009 DROUGHT WATER BANK
ADMINISTERED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES
Notice is hereby given that on June 8, 2009,
City of Sacramento BOARD OFSUPERVISORS
c/o Martha Lennihan
Lennihan Law - ti 2009
2311 Capitol Avenue
Sacramento, CA 95816 OROVILLE,CALIFORNIA
and
Sacramento Suburban Water District
c/o Joshua Horowitz
Bartkiewicz, Kronick & Shanahan
1011 22nd Street
Sacramento, CA 95816-4907
filed with the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) a Petition for
Temporary Change under Water Code section 1725, et seq. Pursuant to the petition,
City of Sacramento (City) and Sacramento Suburban Water District (SSWD) seek to
transfer up to 6,000 acre-feet (af) of water to the Department of Water Resources'
(DWR) 2009 Drought Water Bank (DWB). The City has a long-term water service
contract to deliver up to 5,000 of of water to its co-petitioner SSWD in 2009. SSWD
proposes to forgo delivery of this quantity of surface water and to transfer its entitlement
to DWR's 2009 DWB for use within the service areas of the State Water Project (SWP)
and the Central Valley Project (CVP). The balance of up to 1,000 of will be transferred
by the City directly to DWR's 2009 DWB. Temporary changes approved pursuant to
Water Code section 1725 may be effective for up to one year from the date of approval.
BACKGROUND
In response to Governor Schwarzenegger's June 4, 2008 Executive Order, the DWB
was initiated in the summer of 2008 to help alleviate the draught conditions should they
continue into 2009. DWR established the DWB to purchase water from willing sellers
upstream of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. This water will be transferred using
California Environmental Protection Agency
.fl
�, 6 Recycled Paper
Notice of Petition for Temporary Change
Application 12622
Page 2
SWP or CVP facilities to water suppliers that are at risk of experiencing water shortages
in 2009 due to drought conditions and that require supplemental water supplies to meet
anticipated demands. Additional information regarding the DWB is available online at:
hftp://www.water.ca.aov/drought/bank/.
DESCRIPTION OF THE TRANSFER
The City proposes to transfer up to 6,000 of of water to the DWR 2009 DWB. Up to
1,000 of will be transferred directly by the City to the DWB and the other up to 5,000 of
will be provided by the City to SSWD under those parties' wholesale contract, and
made available by SSWD to the DWB. The 6,000 of of transfer water would be
released from Folsom Reservoir, thence the American River, thence the Sacramento
River and conveyed across the Delta to the SWP and CVP facilities.
The petition requests that transfer be authorized for release from July 1, 2009 through
December 31, 2009; however, the water is most likely to be released during the months
of August and September 2009.
Due to the additional amount of export pumping associated with this transfer, additional
Delta inflow will be required to maintain water quality objectives within the Delta.
Accordingly, a portion of the transfer water (typically referred to as "carriage water") will
be used for salinity control, fish and wildlife enhancement, and water quality control.
To provide the 6,000 of of transfer water, the City proposes to institute a groundwater
substitution program that will pump additional groundwater in an amount equivalent to
up to 1,000 of between July 1, 2009 and September 30, 2009 of which it would
otherwise receive through surface water diversions. SSWD proposes to institute a
groundwater substitution transfer in which it would forgo receipt of up to 5,000 of of
surface water that it anticipates would be available during July through September 2009
under the 2004 Wholesale Water Supply Agreement Between the City of Sacramento
and Sacramento Suburban Water District("Wholesale Agreement"). SSWD would
pump groundwater for use by its customers in an amount equivalent to the amount of
surface water that it would otherwise receive through the Wholesale Agreement.
The Wholesale Agreement provides for the City to divert and treat surface water at the
City's E.A. Fairbairn Water Treatment Plant and convey the treated surface water to
SSWD's South Service Area through a jointly-owned transmission pipeline when there
is adequate flow in the American River. Generally, the Wholesale Agreement specifies
that no water shall be delivered to SSWD when the Water Forum diversion restrictions
included in the City's four American River water rights permits are in effect.
If March through November unimpaired inflow is greater than 400,000 af, then the City's
American River diversion is limited if flow is less than the "Hodge Flow Criteria" as _
measured at the City's Fairbairn Water Treatment Plant. The Hodge Flow Criteria are
as follows:
Notice of Petition for Temporary Change
Application 12622
Page 3
October 15 — February 2,000 cubic feet per second (cfs)
March —June 3,000 cfs, and
July— October 15 1,750 cfs
If flow at the City's Faribairn Water Treatment Plant is less than the Hodge Flow
Criteria, no water will be delivered to SSWD. Also, if the diversion of water for SSWD
would cause the City's diversions to be restricted because the flow drops below the
Hodge Flow Criteria, then SSWD will not receive water. Currently the controlling flow
measurement is made at the Fair Oaks gauge on the American River.
In the absence of this transfer, up to 1,000 of of the subject water would be used within
the City's service area, and up to 5,000 of of the subject water would be used within
SSWD's South Service Area.
PROPOSED TEMPORARY CHANGE
The proposed transfer would temporarily add the SWP's Banks Pumping Plant and
Barker Slough Pumping Plant, the CVP's Jones Pumping Plant, and the Contra Costa
Canal. Also, the service areas of the SWP and CVP would be added to the authorized
place of use under Permit 11360. The SWP's service area is shown on Map 1878-1 ,
2, 3, and 4 on file with Application 5629. The CVP's service area is shown on Map
214-208-12581 on file with Application 5626. In addition, domestic, industrial, irrigation,
salinity control, fish and wildlife enhancement, and water quality control should be
temporarily added as purposes of use under Permit 11360 consistent with the carriage
water requirements described above.
PETITIONER'S WATER RIGHTS
Permit 11360 (Application 12622), issued on May 7, 1958, authorizes the City to divert
500 cubic feet per second (cfs) from Rubicon River, 500 cfs from South Fork Rubicon
River, 200 cfs from Rock Bound Creek, 75,000 of per year (afa) by storage collected
from Rubicon River, 200,000 afa by storage collected from South Fork Rubicon River,
14,000 afa by storage collected from Rock Bound Creek and 25,000 afa by storage
collected from Gerle Creek. This permit authorizes the direct diversion and
accumulation of water in storage between November 1 of each year and August 1 of
the succeeding year. The authorized purpose of use under Permit 11360 is municipal.
COMPLIANCE WITH CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT
Temporary changes involving the transfer of water that was previously stored are
exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
However, the State Water Board-must consider potential impacts to other legal users of
the water and to fish, wildlife, or other instream beneficial uses.
Notice of Petition for Temporary Change
Application 12622
Page 4
STATE WATER RESOURCES CONTROL BOARD'S STATUTORY PROVISIONS
Pursuant to Water Code sections 1725, et seq., the State Water Board is authorized to
issue temporary change orders, allowing the transfer or exchange of water or water
rights after completing an evaluation and finding that the proposed temporary changes:
1. Involve only water that would otherwise have been consumptively used, stored, or
conserved pursuant to Water Code section 1011, by Permittee;
2. Would not injure any legal user of the water;
3. Would not unreasonably affect fish, wildlife, or other instream beneficial uses; and
4. Any increase in groundwater pumping associated with this transfer (i.e.,
groundwater substitution) will be performed in compliance with Water Code
sections 1745.10 and 1745.11.
If the State Water Board cannot satisfy, in a timely manner, the provisions of Water
Code section 1725, et. seq., then the State Water Board may deny the petition or
schedule and notice a hearing regarding the proposed transfer or exchange of water.
OPPORTUNITY FOR COMMENT
Pursuant to the requirements outlined above, the State Water Board is seeking
information to assist in the evaluation of the proposed temporary change of water
rights. Any person may file comments concerning the petition for temporary change.
The comments must address the required findings set forth above. The petitioner has
the burden of establishing that the proposed temporary change will not injure any legal
user of water, or unreasonably affect fish, wildlife, or instream beneficial uses. If the
State Water Board determines that the petitioner has established a prima facie case,
the burden of proof then shifts to the party that has filed comments (Water Code
section 1727). While such a determination has not been made in this case,
commenters should provide sufficient information to support claims of injury or effects
on fish, wildlife, or other instream beneficial uses.
Due to the relative brevity of the temporary transfer process, the Division of Water
Rights (if necessary) may request that the petitioner submit additional information during
the comment period. Any such requests and any additional information submitted by the
petitioner regarding this proposed temporary change during the comment period will
be posted with this notice on the Division of Water Rights' website at:
www.waterboards.ca.aov/waterrights/water issues/programs/applications/transfers to notices/.
Potential commenters are strongly urged to check the website for such information prior
to filing a comment.
Notice of Petition for Temporary Change
Application 12622
Page 5
Comments filed in response to this notice must be received in the office of the State
Water Board's Division of Water Rights, at the first address listed below by 2:00 p.m.
on July 31, 2009. Additionally, a copy of the comments must be filed with the City and
SSWD. Comments must be accompanied by proof of service of a separate copy
of the materials on the petitioner. Interested parties are encouraged to file
comments by FAX and to notify the following contact persons by telephone of any
materials that will be submitted. An original copy of all materials, however, must be
received for the State Water Board to consider your comments.
Division of Water Rights Sacramento Suburban Water District
c/o Greg Wilson c/o Joshua Horowitz
P.Q. Box 2000 Bartkiewicz, Kronick, &. Shanahan
Sacramento, CA 95812-2000 1011 22nd Street
FAX: (916) 341-5400 Sacramento, CA 95816-4907
FAX: (916) 446-4018
Please address questions about this notice to Greg Wilson at (916) 341-5427.
Questions regarding the petitioner, co-petitioner, or transferee should be addressed as
follows:
City of Sacramento (petitioner): Martha Lennihan (916) 321-4460
FAX: (916) 321-4422
SSWD (co-petitioner): Joshua Horowitz (916) 446-4254
FAX: (916) 446-4018
DW R (transferee): Teresa Geimer (916) 651-7194
FAX: (916) 651-0726
ORIGINAL SIGNED BY
Leslie F. Graber, Manager
Hearings and Special Programs Section
Dated: June 29, 2009