Central Valley Project water users could receive 100 percent water allotments this year

Water users of California’s Central Valley Project (CVP) are likely to receive significantly higher water allocations this year, with many users projected to receive 100 percent of their requested allotments for the first time in more than 10 years.

The Bureau of Reclamation, responsible for allotting the federal portion of the San Luis Reservoir, has noted that the Central Valley has recently received record levels of precipitation, leading to high projections for allocations going to senior water rights holders in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys and Friant and Eastside Divisions.

The bureau is still refining the allocations for south-of-Delta users, leading to speculation on what users on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley can expect to receive. More information will be available in the coming weeks as the bureau evaluates the March 1 snow survey results, though the Westside growers are expected to receive much more than the 5 percent allocation given to them for the 2016 water year.

“With the improvement in hydrology and snowpack in 2017, common sense would suggest that everyone’s water allocation will be a vast improvement over the last few years,” said Westlands Water District Deputy General Manager for External Affairs Johnny Amaral.