The San Joaquin River agreement and the Vernalis adaptive management plan
Date
1998-10
Authors
Johnston, William R., author
U.S. Committee on Irrigation and Drainage, publisher
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Abstract
This paper describes a unique negotiated settlement, The San Joaquin River Agreement (SJRA), which has been developed by a group San Joaquin River Basin water rights holders as a voluntary effort to provide water to meet flow objectives of the California State Water Resources Control Board's (SWRCB), San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary Water Quality Control Plan (WQCP) for the protection of San Joaquin Basin chinook salmon. The SJRA includes a study called the Vernalis Adaptive Management Plan (VAMP), which is a proposed 12 year evaluation of San Joaquin River flows, Delta export pumping rates and San Joaquin Basin salmon smolt survival. This agreement is an important effort to resolve a difficult issue regarding the sharing of the flow of the San Joaquin River between irrigators, municipal users, fishery and other environmental uses and to avoid a protracted controversial water right hearing and potential subsequent litigation. Also explained in this paper is the SJRA, the VAMP, how each was developed, why they are necessary, how they will work, whether or not the fish resources will be protected, where the water will come from to meet the target flows and the proposed operation details.
Description
Presented at River basin management to meet competing needs: proceedings from the USCID conference on shared rivers held on October 21-31, 1998 in Park City, Utah.