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CVP Contract Supplies

Transfers

TRANSFERS

Exchanges with State Contractors

Under the terms of the Monterey Agreement, the acquisition of water from the State Water Contractors can only be on an exchange basis.  This means that for every acre-foot of water Westlands obtains, the District is obligated to return that water to the exchanging contractor within 10 years.  Given that Central Valley Project water supply reliability has been severely reduced, the opportunities for west side water districts to return water is limited to extremely wet years such as 1983, 1995 or 1998.  Current USBR forecasts show that with all current "actions" in place, if the drought period 1990-1992 were repeated, west side agriculture would have been allocated zero Central Valley Project water.  Westlands' efforts to permanently acquire the remaining authorized State Water Project water for sale under the Monterey Agreement are expected to be pre-empted by the State Water Contractors' exercise of first rights of refusal protocols.

Transfers with Other CVP Contractors

All other south-of-Delta Central Valley Project contractors are in the same position with respect to water supply reliability.  Surpluses are not expected to be available in the future unless Central Valley Project contractors north of the Delta are limited to wheeling opportunities through State Water Project facilities.  With all of the current demands and future uncertainties, the likelihood of extra export capability through State Water Project facilities is very limited.

FLOOD FLOWS

On a year-by-year basis, flood flows from the San Joaquin and Kings Rivers are available to Westlands.  These water supplies flow into the Mendota Pool on a seasonal basis and are available to the District through the 7-1 Pumping Plant. No water was taken from this source in the 1996-97 water year. The upper limit, due to pumping plant limitations, of water delivered from this source would be approximately 20,000 AF.