SACRAMENTO, CA - In a state that has faced many water-related challenges, increased water allocation is fantastic news. We were excited to learn that the Department of Water Resources (DWR) has announced a further increase in the State Water Project (SWP) water supply allocation forecast for 2024. The forecasted allocation has increased to 40 percent, up from 30 percent last month.
“This year highlights the challenges of moving water in wet periods with the current pumping infrastructure in the south Delta. We had both record low pumping for a wet year and high fish salvage at the pumps,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “We need to be moving water when it’s wet so that we can ease conditions for people and fish when dry conditions return. It’s one more reason the Delta Conveyance Project, which would move water when the flows are high in a manner safer for fish, is a necessary climate adaptation project for California.”
The SWP provides critical water supplies to 27 million Californians and farmers served by 29 public water agencies. This increase would provide an additional 420,000 acre-feet of water, enough water to serve an estimated 1.5 million households for a year, a press release stated.
The update is based on an 800,000 acre-foot increase in storage at Lake Oroville and the latest snow survey data from the all-important April 1 measurements. Statewide, the snowpack remains near average at 99 percent of average for this date. The spring forecast in the latest snow runoff report also anticipates above-average runoff this spring.
The SWP is working with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers to manage flood releases and maximize the capture and storage of water from the winter storms and spring runoff in its reservoirs. Since January 1, storage has increased by 917,000 acre-feet at Lake Oroville and by 178,125 acre-feet at San Luis Reservoir.
Allocations are updated monthly as snowpack, rainfall, and runoff information is assessed, with a final allocation typically determined in May or June.
For more from the press release, click here.
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