California Environmental Water Caucus

Glossary of Water Policy Terminology

8500: This number refers to the California Department of Water Resources desired pumping rate for exporting water from the Delta to the State Water Project (SWP) measured in cubic feet per second (cfs). The SWP currently has permission to pump at 6680 cfs. The total pumping capacity of the SWP is 10,300 cfs, and the Federal export pumps have the capacity to pump at a rate of 6,200 cfs.
B2: The section of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act (CVPIA) that states that 800,000 acre-feet of water should be allocated from the CVP for the restoration of anadromous Central Valley fisheries which is supposed to be part of the Delta's "base flows" for environmental purposes. Westlands Water District sued to try to prevent full implementation of this measure. While the environmental groups who defended the law lost the main issues on B2, the Judge declared that a "PRIMARY PURPOSE" of the CVP is environmental.
Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP): This plan is intended to satisfy the requirements of the federal and state Endangered Species Acts while providing assurances that sufficient water is taken from the Delta for the water agencies (Bureau of Reclamation and the California Department of Water Resources) and the water districts who have contracts to buy water from these two agencies (e.g. Tulare Lake Water Storage District, Westlands Water District, and Metropolitan Water District of Southern California). The conservation part of the planning process is trying to identify habitat restoration measures for the Delta and the nearby Suisun Marsh to ensure conservation of the nine fish species that are currently considered at risk, while at the same time providing for water conveyance through and/or around the Delta for water supply. The plan is being developed by state and federal agencies with input from environmental and water contractor stakeholders. The effort started by evaluating 10 options which were subsequently narrowed to 4 in September of 2007. If all goes as planned, one option will be carried forward though planning studies in 2008 which will then be subject to environmental evaluation. The Plan has specifically excluded from consideration, at least so far, the study of reduction of demand for water from the Delta.
CALFED Bay-Delta Program: This joint federal-state program, initiated in the mid 1990s to develop solutions to the Delta crisis while facilitating exports for water supply is now largely defunct due to inadequate funding and disagreements among stakeholders primarily due to competing priorities. The hope that both delta ecosystem and water conveyance "would get better together" was unsubstantiated. The process also suffered from a shortfall in anticipated federal funding. The exhaustion of most state bond funds, and the lack of a realistic plan for beneficiaries to pay for new facilities led to the end of most CALFED-sponsored activities by 2005. The planned studies evaluating the environmental impacts and feasibility of proposed new facilities were not completed on schedule. The completion of those studies, including those evaluating off-stream surface storage (new or enlarged reservoirs) is now unclear due to uncertain funding.
CALFED ROD: Refers to the CALFED Record of Decision. This document is the official agreement of the state and federal agencies that make up CALFED regarding the future implementation of the CALFED program, with input from agricultural, environmental and urban stakeholders.
Delta Vision: In 2006, the Governor established a Blue Ribbon Task Force to develop a vision for a sustainable Delta that would continue to support environmental and economic functions. The task force is to recommend actions that will address the full array of natural resource, infrastructure, land use and governance issues necessary to achieve that goal. The panel's findings and recommendations were published in early 2008, and a strategic plan to implement the vision is expected by October 31, 2008.
EWA: Refers to the Environmental, or more accurately, the Exporters Water Account. The EWA is a program within CALFED set up to ensure that endangered species (mostly fish) have a sufficient amount of water at all times in order to live. The EWA was supposed to ensure enough water by 1) maintaining a continuous supply of water to water contractors, and 2) purchasing additional water through water storage and water transfers to meet the needs of endangered species. Like many parts of CALFED, this program was not sufficiently funded, and much of the water in the EWA account was expended to benefit water contractors, while environmental water went to satisfy pre-existing water quality and fish protection laws, providing no additional benefit to the environment.
Hard Path/Soft Path: Hard path refers to the traditional water supply augmentation strategies such as building new dams and canals. Soft path refers to nonstructural water management innovations to improve water supply reliability such as water conservation, water reclamation, groundwater banking and changes in reservoir operation to improve sustainability.
Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL): TMDLs are action plans to restore the health of seriously polluted water bodies. They define how much of a pollutant a water body can tolerate and still meet water quality standards. Section 303(d) of the federal Clean Water Act requires that states identify all water bodies (rivers, streams, bays, creeks, and coastal areas) that do not meet water quality standards, and the pollutants that impair them. TMDLs examine water quality problems, identify pollutant sources, and specify actions that will restore clean water. The California Coastkeeper Alliance has launched a series of interactive maps identifying the impaired water bodies of CA for which TMDLs are required.
Water Use Efficiency: Reducing water use through water recycling, water reuse, and water conservation. Water Use Efficiency was one of the program focus areas within CALFED.
X2: This is the term used to define the distance that salt water stretches from the Golden Gate Bridge to the point in the Delta where salinity is measured at 2 parts per thousand (ppt). 2 ppt is generally considered the breaking point between brackish water and fresh water. If the X2 value is high, then there is more saltwater intrusion into the Delta. If the X2 value is low, then there is more freshwater in the Delta.