Southern California cities can expect to receive 50% of their full water allotments this year from the aqueducts of the State Water Project, up from 40% last month, as runoff from this year’s ample snowpack continues to fill reservoirs in Northern California.
“Our full reservoirs will allow us to help meet the needs of the State Water Project contractors and their customers this year as well as provide some water supply next year in the event that dry conditions return,” Karla Nemeth, director of the state Department of Water Resources, said in a statement Tuesday.
The State Water Project’s aqueducts and pipelines transport water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to cities and other agencies for 27 million people and 750,000 acres of farmland.
Lake Oroville, the largest reservoir that feeds the State Water Project, is now 95% full and is expected to continue rising as snowmelt runs off the Sierra Nevada. The state Department of Water Resources said the reservoir could reach full capacity this spring for a third straight year.
The state’s snowpack in the Sierra reached exactly 100% of average for the season April 4, the department said. The average winter and spring followed an extremely wet and snowy 2023 and a wet 2024.
The last time California had three consecutive years of average or above-average snow was from 1998 to 2000, according to state water officials.
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which delivers supplies from the State Water Project and the Colorado River to cities and other agencies, this year has a record amount of water banked in reservoirs and underground storage areas.
The increase in the state’s water allocation followed a similar announcement Monday by the Trump administration, which manages supplies from the federal Central Valley Project. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation increased the water allocation for agricultural water agencies south of the Delta to 50% of their full allotments, up from 40% a month ago.
Managers of water agencies said that the increased supplies are welcome news, but that the still-limited allocations indicate what they view as constraints that should be addressed.
Jennifer Pierre, general manager of the State Water Contractors, said she and others “remain convinced that California needs more operational flexibility to make the most of the storms” when they come.
“Delta exports have been running at less than half capacity while the State Water Contractors continue to pay for 100% of the system’s operation and maintenance,” Pierre said. “This mismatch in hydrology and supplies requires immediate attention and science-based action to retain environmental protections while also increasing stored supplies when reservoirs are spilling.”
Environmental advocates said they are concerned about the increase in pumping.
Pumping operations to supply water “continue to have severe impacts to native fish species, and this year is no exception,” said Ashley Overhouse, water policy advisor for the group Defenders of Wildlife.
