HomeMy WebLinkAboutReso 68-21_2020 Appendix to 2015 UWMP_FINAL
G
Appendix G: Demonstration
of Reduced Delta Reliance
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Quantifying Regional Self-Reliance and
Reduced Reliance on Water Supplies from the
Delta Watershed
1. Background
Under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Reform Act of 2009, state and local public agencies proposing
a covered action in the Delta, prior to initiating the implementation of that action, must prepare a written
certification of consistency with detailed findings as to whether the covered action is consistent with
applicable Delta Plan policies and submit that certification to the Delta Stewardship Council. Anyone may
appeal a certification of consistency, and if the Delta Stewardship Council grants the appeal, the covered
action may not be implemented until the agency proposing the covered action submits a revised
certification of consistency, and either no appeal is filed, or the Delta Stewardship Council denies the
subsequent appeal.
An urban water supplier that anticipates participating in or receiving water from a proposed covered action
such as a multi-year water transfer, conveyance facility, or new diversion that involves transferring water
through, exporting water from, or using water in the Delta should provide information in their 2015 and
2020 Urban Water Management Plans (UWMPs) that can then be used in the covered action process to
demonstrate consistency with Delta Plan Policy WR P1, Reduce Reliance on the Delta Through Improved
Regional Water Self-Reliance (WR P1).
WR P1 details what is needed for a covered action to demonstrate consistency with reduced reliance on
the Delta and improved regional self-reliance. WR P1 subsection (a) states that:
(a) Water shall not be exported from, transferred through, or used in the Delta if all the following
apply:
(1) One or more water suppliers that would receive water as a result of the export, transfer,
or use have failed to adequately contribute to reduced reliance on the Delta and improved
regional self-reliance consistent with all of the requirements listed in paragraph (1) of
subsection (c);
(2) That failure has significantly caused the need for the export, transfer, or use; and
(3) The export, transfer, or use would have a significant adverse environmental impact in
the Delta.
WR P1 subsection (c)(1) further defines what adequately contributing to reduced reliance on the Delta
means in terms of (a)(1) above.
(c)(1) Water suppliers that have done all the following are contributing to reduced reliance on the
Delta and improved regional self-reliance and are therefore consistent with this policy:
(A) Completed a current Urban or Agricultural Water Management Plan (Plan) which has
been reviewed by the California Department of Water Resources for compliance with the
applicable requirements of Water Code Division 6, Parts 2.55, 2.6, and 2.8;
(B) Identified, evaluated, and commenced implementation, consistent with the
implementation schedule set forth in the Plan, of all programs and projects included in the
Plan that are locally cost effective and technically feasible which reduce reliance on the
Delta; and
(C) Included in the Plan, commencing in 2015, the expected outcome for measurable
reduction in Delta reliance and improvement in regional self-reliance. The expected
outcome for measurable reduction in Delta reliance and improvement in regional self-
reliance shall be reported in the Plan as the reduction in the amount of water used, or in
the percentage of water used, from the Delta watershed. For the purposes of reporting,
water efficiency is considered a new source of water supply, consistent with Water Code
section 1011(a).
The analysis and documentation provided below include all the elements described in WR P1(c)(1) that
need to be included in a water supplier’s UWMP to support a certification of consistency for a future
covered action.
2. Methodology
As stated in WR P1(c)(1)(C), the policy requires that, commencing in 2015, UWMPs include expected
outcomes for improved regional self-reliance and measurable reduction in Delta reliance. WR P1 further
states that those outcomes shall be reported in the UWMP as the reduction in the amount of water used,
or in the percentage of water used, from the Delta. The expected outcomes for the City of Morro Bay’s
(City’s) regional self-reliance and reduced Delta reliance were developed using the approach and
guidance described in Appendix C of DWR’s Urban Water Management Plan Guidebook 2020 issued in
March 2021 (Guidebook Appendix C).
The methodology used to determine the City’s improved regional self-reliance is consistent with the
approach detailed in DWR’s UWMP Guidebook Appendix C, including the use of narrative justifications
for the accounting of supplies and the documentation of specific data sources. Some of the key
assumptions underlying the City’s demonstration of reduced reliance include:
• All data were obtained from the current 2020 UWMP or previously adopted UWMPs and represent
average or normal water year conditions.
• All analyses were conducted at the service area level, and all data reflect the total contributions
of the City and its customers.
• Future projects that are covered actions requiring a certification of consistency with the Delta Plan
were excluded from this analysis.
To calculate the expected outcomes for improved regional self-reliance and reduced Delta reliance, the
outcomes need to be compared to a baseline. This analysis uses a normal water year representation of
2010 as the baseline, which is consistent with the approach described in the Guidebook Appendix C.
Data for the 2010 baseline were taken from the City’s 2005 UWMP, as UWMPs generally do not provide
normal water year data for the year that they are adopted (i.e., 2005 UWMP forecasts begin in 2010,
2010 UWMP forecasts begin in 2015, and so on).
Consistent with the 2010 baseline data approach, the expected outcomes for improved regional self-
reliance and reduced Delta reliance for 2015 and 2020 were taken from the City’s 2010 and 2015
UWMPs, respectively. Expected outcomes for 2025-2045 are from the current 2020 UWMP.
Documentation of the specific data sources and assumptions are included in the discussions below.
3. Demonstration of Regional Self-Reliance
Service Area Demands without Water Use Efficiency
In alignment with the Guidebook Appendix C, this analysis uses normal water year demands, rather than
normal water year supplies to calculate expected outcomes in terms of the percentage of water used.
Normal water year demands serve as a proxy for the amount of supplies that would be used in a normal
water year, which helps alleviate issues associated with how supply capability is presented to fulfill the
requirements of the UWMP Act versus how supplies might be accounted for to demonstrate consistency
with WR P1.
Because WR P1 considers water use efficiency savings a source of water supply, water suppliers can
calculate their embedded water use efficiency savings based on changes in forecasted per capita water
use compared to the baseline. As explained in the Guidebook Appendix C, water use efficiency savings
must be added back to the normal year demands to represent demands without water use efficiency
savings accounted for; otherwise, the effect of water use efficiency savings on regional self-reliance
would be overestimated. Table 1 shows the results of this adjustment for the City. Supporting narratives
and documentation for all the data shown in Table 1 are provided below.
Service Area Demands with Water Use Efficiency
The service area water demands shown in Table 1 represent the total municipal and industrial (M&I)
water demands for the City’s retail service area.
The M&I demand data shown in Table 1 were collected from the following sources:
• Baseline (2010): City’s 2005 UWMP, Table 4-3
• 2015: City’s 2010 UWMP, Table 3-7
• 2020: City’s 2015 UWMP, Table 4-2
• 2025-2045: City’s 2020 UWMP, Table 4-4
Service Area Population
The population data shown in Table 1 were collected from the following sources:
• Baseline (2010): City’s 2010 UWMP, Table 2-1
• 2015: City’s 2015 UWMP, Table 3-1
• 2020-2045: City’s 2020 UWMP, Table 3-2
Estimated Water Use Efficiency Since Baseline
The “Estimated Water Use Efficiency Since Baseline” was calculated using “Potable Service Area
Demands with Water Use Efficiency” divided by “Service Area Population” and then comparing with 2010
Per Capita Water Use.
Service Area Water Demands without Water Use Efficiency
In Table 2, the “Service Area Demands with Water Use Efficiency” was added to the “Estimated Water
Use Efficiency Since Baseline” to obtain the “Service Area Water Demands without Water Use Efficiency
Accounted For”.
Supplies Contributing to Regional Self-Reliance
For a covered action to demonstrate consistency with the Delta Plan, WR P1 subsection (c)(1)(C) states
that water suppliers must report the expected outcomes for measurable improvement in regional self-
reliance. Table 3 shows expected outcomes for supplies contributing to regional self-reliance both in
amount and as a percentage. The numbers shown in Table 3 represent efforts to improve regional self-
reliance for the City’s entire service area. Supporting narratives and documentation for all the data
provided in Table 3 are described below.
Water Use Efficiency
The water use efficiency information shown in Table 3 is taken directly from Table 1.
Advanced Water Technologies
In the past, the City has used desalinated water as a supply. However, the City’s desalination plant has
been used minimally over the last decade. The desalination plant provides a source of backup and
emergency water supply in case of future State Water Project (SWP) supply reductions or service
outages. Currently, the facility is in a state of needed repair and is not in use and is therefore not
included as a future supply source. The City’s advanced water technologies shown in Table 3 refer to
desalinated water and were from the following sources:
• Baseline (2010): City’s 2005 UWMP, assumed consistent with supply identified for the next three
years (2006-2009) in Table ES-10.
• 2015: City’s 2010 UWMP, Table 4-1
• 2020: City’s 2015 UWMP, Table 6-9
• 2025-2045: Not applicable at this time.
Local and Regional Water Supply and Storage Projects
Other programs and projects that contribute to regional self-reliance shown in Table 3 include the City’s
local groundwater supply. These values come from the following sources:
• Baseline (2010): City’s 2005 UWMP, Table 5-3
• 2015: City’s 2010 UWMP, Table 4-1
• 2020: City’s 2015 UWMP, Table 6-9
• 2025-2045: City’s 2020 UWMP, Table 6-9
4. Summary of Expected Outcomes for Reduced Reliance on the Delta
As stated in WR P1(c)(1)(C), the policy requires that, commencing in 2015, UWMPs include expected
outcomes for measurable reduction in Delta reliance and improved regional self- reliance. WR P1 further
states that those outcomes shall be reported in the UWMP as the reduction in the amount of water used,
or in the percentage of water used, from the Delta.
The expected outcomes for the City’s reduced Delta reliance and regional self-reliance were developed
using the approach and guidance described in Guidebook Appendix C issued in March 2021.
Regional Self-Reliance
The results shown in Table 3 demonstrate that the City’s service area is improving its regional self-
reliance. The following provides a summary of the near-term (2025) and long-term (2045) expected
outcomes for City’s Delta reliance on supplies from the Delta watershed:
• Near-term (2025) – Normal water year regional self-reliance is expected to increase by about 400
AFY from the 2010 baseline (Table 3).
• Long-term (2045) – Normal water year regional self-reliance is expected to increase by
approximately 430 AFY from the 2010 baseline (Table 3).
5. UWMP Implementation
In addition to the analysis and documentation described above, WR P1 subsection (c)(1)(B) requires that
all programs and projects included in the UWMP that are locally cost-effective and technically feasible,
which reduce reliance on the Delta, are identified, evaluated, and implemented consistent with the
implementation schedule. WR P1 (c)(1)(B) states that:
(B) Identified, evaluated, and commenced implementation, consistent with the implementation
schedule set forth in the Plan, of all programs and projects included in the Plan that are locally
cost effective and technically feasible which reduce reliance on the Delta[.]
In accordance with Water Code Section 10631(f), water suppliers must already include in their UWMP a
detailed description of expected future projects and programs that they may implement to increase the
amount of water supply available to them in normal and single-dry water years and for a period of drought
lasting five consecutive years. The UWMP description must also identify specific projects, including a
description of the increase in water supply that is expected to be available from each project, and include
an estimate regarding the implementation timeline for each project or program.
Chapter 6 of the City’s 2020 UWMP summarizes the implementation plan and water portfolio to meet the
region’s water needs.
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Table 1. Optional Calculation of Water Use Efficiency
Table 2. Calculation of Service Area Water Demands Without Water Use Efficiency
Table 3. Calculation of Supplies Contributing to Regional Self-Reliance
Table 4. Calculation of Reliance on Water Supplies from the Delta Watershed