California Water News Daily Your Source For Water News in California
Drought conditions are forcing water rights holders to think outside the box. A new agreement approved by the State Water Resources Control Board last week allows rights holders in the Upper Russian River
watershed to voluntarily reduce water use and share their available water.
The 2022 Upper Russian River Voluntary Sharing Agreement program protects supplies and enables individuals enrolled in the program who still have water under their water rights to share with other participants who do not, effectively serving as an alternative to curtailments, which are a blanket restriction on water diversions for those with younger rights when there is insufficient water supply.
“This is a truly significant development – and the first of its kind – as state and local leaders continue to innovate their response to drought and climate change while addressing the needs of residents in Sonoma and Mendocino counties,” said Sam Boland-Brien, a supervising engineer with the State Water Board. “The cooperation among the various stakeholders continues to be remarkable. It just shows what can be accomplished when state and local entities work together to come up with solutions.”
Stakeholders in the watershed have been pursuing an alternative to curtailments since 2020. On May 10, 2022, the board readopted an emergency regulation authorizing creation of a voluntary water sharing agreement for the Upper Russian River that would operate as an exception to curtailments.
