I was checking on reservoir levels to see how they are filling up after our very wet February here in Norcal, when I came across an interesting story. From San Luis Obispo’s The Tribune online:
Nacimiento residents sue Monterey County for $120 million over declining water levels — The Tribune.
Authored by Lindsey Holden:
A group of Lake Nacimiento residents is suing Monterey County for $120 million, claiming officials ignored the needs of recreational users by releasing more water from the reservoir than necessary.
The lawsuit was filed January 19. I haven’t seen any follow up stories yet.
The Nacimiento Regional Water Management Advisory Committee (NRWMAC) — which represents approximately 6,500 residents living around the reservoir — on Tuesday filed a civil lawsuit against the Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA).
The reason Monterey County oversees a reservoir in San Luis Obisbo County is stated below.
The 377,900 acre-foot reservoir was built in the late 1950s, and its $7 million price tag was primarily financed by Salinas Valley growers.
378,000 acre-feet is the maximum, and is rarely reached due to variable rainfall totals during the wet season.
Agreements made around the time Nacimiento was built left San Luis Obispo County with rights to 17,500 acre-feet of water per year, while Monterey County gets 180,000 acre-feet annually. www.sanluisobispo.com/… Lindsey Holden.
From what information I’ve been able to gather, the dam was built in 1956-57 for three main purposes;
1. Irrigation for Salinas Valley farms, the “salad bowl” of the US.
2. Flood control for the Nacimiento watershed, a main tributary to the Salinas River. The Nacimiento River was one of the most flood-prone in the state.
3. Water storage and recharging aquifers in the Salinas Valley.
The proof that these are the reasons the reservoir was created is the fact that the project was financed almost entirely by Salinas Valley Ag companies.
The interesting thing about Lake Nacimiento, is that it lies within San Luis Obispo County (SLOCo), but the management of the lake and most of the water rights belong to adjacent Monterey County (MoCo). This agreement was reached before the first truckload of earth was moved in 1956. MoCo interests said in effect, “We’ll pay for it, maintain it and patrol it if you let us build it in your county. You get the benefit of flood control, and we’ll fill a few water glasses for you.”
In 2006, the local variation of the Steelhead Trout was put on the Endangered Species list.
The 17,500 acre-feet of water SLOCo had rights to were never claimed until the mid-2000’s, and no water was piped that direction until 2007.
Since 1956, the area has transformed from a wilderness to a developed area of two communities around the lake with a population of around 6,500, most of whom are Recreation enthusiasts. Rec permits and such generate about $3 million per annum.
Fish caught from the watershed are not safe to eat due to high levels of toxic metals from mine run-off.
We now have the principal players who want the 378,000 acre-feet of water (assuming it’s there) for their own purposes:
1. MoCo ag interests, with rights to 180,000 A-F.
2. SLOCo, with rights to 17,500 A-F.
3. “Conservation releases” to protect the Steelhead Trout and the river’s viability. NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service directs the Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA) when to release water and how much. These are required by federal and state law.
4. The residents of the lake area who need the lake to remain above 25% capacity in order to use their private boat launches. This last group is who is suing MCWRA, claiming they are mis-managing the lake, releasing too much water and that the 25% number is arbitrary.
I could not find the reason for the $120 million figure that property owners are suing for, but I assume it relates to property values being impacted by fewer people wanted to buy homes on a lake where recreation is not guaranteed.
Water rights to river water is such an odd concept to me. They are based on historical data and averages, but rainfall is quite variable in Northern California, and projected to become even more so as climate change becomes more pronounced. We had a five-year period of severe to extreme drought within the last decade. 6 of the last 10 years, the reservoir dropped below 25% capacity during boating season (Memorial Day to Labor Day.)
I think it’s no coincidence that SLOCo only demanded the water they had rights to around the same time that it became apparent that the river trout was going onto the Endangered Species list. Two more groups or entities demanding water, followed by a half-decade of drought, and of course the boaters aren’t happy if they can’t boat, and of course property owners aren’t happy if they bought a property based on the idea of being able to recreate, and then finding out they can’t because lake levels are consistently too low.
2011 to 2015, rainfall totals were far below average, and again in 2017-2018. We’ve only had one really good year since 2010, until 2019. Water rights looks good on paper, but rights to something that doesn’t exist is moot. Same for the idea of boating on water that doesn’t exist. I think.
Issues like this are not going away, and are only going to worsen over the coming decades. Underground water levels throughout the American Southwest have dropped from 50 to 200 feet since 1950. www.climas.arizona.edu/… California and Arizona can grow a lot of food, but a lot of it is dependent on irrigation. California is already facing a shortage crisis of water storage infrastructure, but there is not enough political will to spend the money needed to fix the problem.
I am not a groundwater expert by any means, though I have a good friend who is. I just care about these issues as they pertain to the future quality of life of humans around the globe. The term “water wars” is used quite often, but I fear the days are coming when water wars will be shooting wars. I have my opinion of what our priorities should be for the use of water, but I want to see what others think. I apologize in advance if I have stated anything erroneous in this article.
Couldn’t add a dam poll for some reason, damn. What are your priorities for water use from Lake Nacimiento? Please state in the comments.
sources:
www.sanluisobispo.com/… Lindsey Holden, Jan. 16, 2019.
www.sanluisobispo.com/… Lindsey Holden, Apr. 19, 2018
en.wikipedia.org/… About Lake Nacimiento.
www.climas.arizona.edu/… About water levels in the West.
en.wikipedia.org/… About Salinas Valley farming.