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The Bureau of Reclamation and the Placerville -area El Dorado Irrigation District (EID) recently announced they have entered into a Warren Act contract for 17,000 acre-feet per year of EID’s Project 184 supplies/Water Rights Permit 21112 from Folsom Reservoir. The contract is the result of EID’s 25-year effort to secure this Warren Act contract as a new water supply for its nearly 110,000 residents in northern El Dorado County. The contract will be in effect through February 2030.
The Warren Act authorizes the United States to execute contracts for the conveyance and storage of non-Central Valley Project (CVP) water in federal facilities when excess capacity exists. The Warren Act contracts are undertaken under the authority of the Act beginning June 17, 1902.
Drew Lessard, Area Manager for Reclamation’s Central California Area Office, which manages Folsom Reservoir, stated, “Reclamation is pleased to enter into this contract with EID, which will help ensure critical supplies for their water users through 2030.”
“This long-sought contract is the culmination of years of dedicated work by both parties,” said Acting EID General Manager Tom Cumpston. “Access to this supply from Folsom bolsters EID’s robust water portfolio and enhances dry-year water reliability for EID’s customers and the wider community. At the same time, Reclamation has negotiated contract terms that protect both its Folsom Reservoir customers and the aquatic environment downstream of the dam.”
Initial deliveries under the long-term Warren Act contract will be limited to 8,500 acre-feet per year until EID completes the installation of a Reclamation-approved, fully operational temperature control device at EID’s raw water pump station. Following the device installation, the contract will allow diversion of the full 17,000 acre-feet per year of non-Central Valley Project (CVP) water. The contract will allow EID to utilize Project 184 water for consumption use purposes within their CVP service area through February 2030 per the long-term Warren Act.
EID’s operation of its federally licensed Project 184 hydroelectric project makes the Permit 21112 supplies available through permit conditions required that the water be diverted at Folsom Reservoir and that EID also enter into a Warren Act contract with Reclamation for the diversion.
Reclamation developed an Environmental Assessment (EA) to consider potential impacts of entering into the contract with EID. The Final EA, dated July 2016, supports the Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI), signed on August 2. The Final EA/FONSI were prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act and are available at http://www.usbr.gov/mp/nepa/documentShow.cfm?Doc_ID=26545
