ANNUAL WATER SUPPLY AND USE

Unlike water agencies with more abundant supplies, Westlands must allocate (ration) water to its farmers, even in the wettest years. The District's primary annual contract entitlements from the Central Valley Project (Project) total 1,150,000 acre-feet. The annual safe yield of the confined underground aquifer adds another 135,000 to 200,000 acre-feet. Thus, the total water available is about 215,000 acre-feet (15 percent) short of the 1,500,000 acre-feet required to irrigate the entire District.


The surface water supply is allocated to more than 535,000 acres eligible to receive Project water. An additional 33,000 acres farmed that are ineligible to receive Project water must rely solely on pumped groundwater. The District has three separate priority areas for water allocation. During periods of drought, deficiencies are applied as an equal percentage of the contract entitlement to each priority area.



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