U.S., MWD Reach Water Agreement

Amid new concerns about possible water shortages, the U.S. Department of Interior and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California announced an agreement Thursday meant to avoid problems implementing a historic water deal involving the Colorado River.

Under the agreement, both agencies pledge to “coordinate and consult” with each other on myriad issues involving water projects on public lands controlled by the federal government, such as right-of-way disputes and environmental protection.

The agreement was announced as the Department of Interior released new projections about the impact of drought on the Colorado River.

Department hydrologists believe that if drought persists in the West for a sixth year, the river’s main reservoir, Lake Mead, may be too low to provide surplus allocations to California and Nevada by January 2005.

The water deal signed in October between the federal government and four Southern California water agencies was supposed to give California up to 12 years to wean itself away from receiving such surplus allocations.

Instead, the state may see an abrupt end to surplus allocations in just 13 months, called the “hard-landing” approach by water officials. California has received up to 800,000 acre-feet a year of surplus water in recent years, enough for 1.6 million families.

The dire prediction has increased the importance of implementing the October deal, which calls for conservation and a farms-to-cities sale of water, quickly and efficiently, officials said.

“There are a lot of administrative issues that, in the past, have taken months, even years, to complete ... given the bureaucracy on the part of both agencies,” said MWD General Counsel Jeff Kightlinger.

One project that both sides hope will be aided by the agreement is the lining of the All-American Canal, which brings Colorado River water to the Imperial Irrigation District and Coachella Valley Water District.

By lining the canal, and reducing seepage, the two agencies hope to provide 16,000 acre-feet of water a year to the San Luis Rey Indian tribe in northern San Diego County. For more than 30 years, the tribe has asserted that a dam built across the San Luis Rey River by the Vista Irrigation District and the city of Escondido illegally took water belonging to the tribe.

Water to settle the dispute is included in the comprehensive plan adopted in October by major Southern California water agencies for the state to begin living within its allocation.

The key to the plan is a 75-year agreement for the water-rich Imperial district to sell water to the San Diego County Water Authority.

The agreement between the Department of Interior and the Metropolitan Water District was signed Thursday in Las Vegas during the annual convention of officials from the seven states that depend on the Colorado River for water.