The Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) are gearing up for the hot and dry summer months as the state experiences a third consecutive year of severe drought.
California will enter the dry summer months with below-average reservoir storage and with the state’s largest reservoir, Shasta Lake, at critically low levels. The Sierra snowpack is essentially gone, and runoff into the state’s streams and reservoirs has largely peaked for the year.
“The overall water supply for California is still critical going into the dry summer months,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth, on June 2. “DWR and its federal partners at the U.S.
Bureau of Reclamation will continue to take a conservative approach to water management decisions to maintain storage, water quality, and water deliveries for millions of Californians. We need to be prepared for a hotter, drier future brought on by our changing climate.”
DWR and Reclamation are coordinating closely on water project operations and actions to address expected low river flows and temperature challenges this summer.
As a result of the ongoing severe drought conditions, DWR has finalized its decision earlier this year to deliver 5 percent of requested State Water Project (SWP) supplies in 2022. DWR will also provide water for any unmet critical health and safety needs of the 29 water agencies that contract to receive SWP supplies. ■