ITEM:

CONSENT CALENDAR

 

7.

RECEIVE AND FILE DISTRICT-WIDE ANNUAL WATER PRODUCTION SUMMARY REPORT FOR WATER YEAR 2015

 

Meeting Date:

May 16, 2016

Budgeted: 

N/A

 

From:

David Stoldt,

Program/

Hydrologic Monitoring

 

General Manager

Line Item No.:    

N/A

 

Prepared By:

Thomas Lindberg

Cost Estimate:

N/A

 

General Counsel Review:  N/A

Committee Recommendation:  N/A

CEQA Compliance:  N/A

 

SUMMARY: Staff has prepared a draft Water Production Summary Report of all registered production sources, i.e., wells and surface water diversions, within the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District (District) for Water Year (WY) 2015.  WY 2015 covers the 12-month period from October 1, 2014 through September 30, 2015.  Preliminary computations indicate that 14,231 acre-feet (AF) of groundwater were produced from registered wells in the District during WY 2015 (Exhibit 7-A).  In addition, 69 AF of surface water were diverted by private users.  Combined surface and groundwater production from all sources within the District in WY 2015 is calculated at 14,300 AF.  This report presents comparisons of California American Water (Cal-Am) and non Cal-Am production in WY 2015 and WY 2014, and compares WY 2015 production with the District’s current water allocation program limits.

 

RECOMMENDATION:  This report is for informational purposes only.  The Board should review the draft summary report and provide staff with any comments or questions.  Staff will complete and file the final report, incorporating any late revisions, if this item is approved with the Consent Calendar.

 

BACKGROUND:  District Rules and Regulations require well owners and operators to submit annual water production information to the District.  Well production is calculated by either the Land Use or Water Meter reporting method and is described below.

 

Number of Wells – Presently, there are 1,241 registered wells in the District.  Of this total, 824 wells are active, and 384 wells are inactive.  A well is considered active if it has produced any water in the last reporting period, i.e., WY 2015.  Information on the remaining 33 registered wells is not available because reporting forms were not returned by owners of those wells prior to preparation of this report.

 

Data Adjustments – For certain wells, staff estimated actual production to more accurately quantify water produced during WY 2015.  Data adjustments were required to estimate water production from 112 wells that had either incomplete water meter records or reported water production for a period longer than the water year. Production from metered wells with incomplete records was estimated by using generalized non Cal-Am monthly distribution factors developed by staff.  In 48 cases, production records were incomplete because reported meter readings covered a period shorter than WY 2015.  In 23 other cases, production records were incomplete because meters were replaced or repaired after the start of WY 2015.  The application of monthly distribution factors allowed staff to reasonably account for the percentage of production that was not reported for each of these wells, which was then added to the annual total for these wells.  There were 64 cases in which production was reported for a period longer than 12 months.  Estimates of the amounts that were over-reported were made based on the monthly distribution factors.  These amounts were then subtracted from the reported totals.  There were also 12 cases where adjustments were made due to “order of magnitude issues” resulting from well owners incorrectly reading their water meters.    

 

District-wide Production - Preliminary production values for WY 2015 are summarized by reporting method (i.e., Water Meter or Land Use), reporting status (i.e., active, inactive, or not reporting), and source area in Exhibit 7-A.  For comparison, production values for WY 2014 are presented in Exhibit 7-B.  The various source areas are shown in Exhibit 7-C.  The volume of water produced from each source area is shown in Exhibit 7-D.  The number of active non Cal-Am wells and the volume of water produced by each reporting method in WY 2015 and WY 2014 are compared in Exhibit 7-E.

 

District-wide, total water production decreased by 1,336 AF (8.5%) in WY 2015 compared to WY 2014.  Specifically, groundwater withdrawals decreased by 1,170 AF (10.5%), and surface diversions increased by 44.5 AF (181%) in WY 2015.  No surface water has been diverted within the Cal-Am main system since WY 2003 because of seismic safety and sedimentation concerns at San Clemente Dam and Reservoir.  The San Clemente Reservoir Removal and Reroute project is underway; the dam was removed during the summer of 2015 and restoration activities continue along the newly routed streambed.

  

Monterey Peninsula Water Resources System (MPWRS) The MPWRS includes surface water in the Carmel River and its tributaries, and groundwater in the Carmel Valley alluvial aquifer, coastal subareas of the Seaside Groundwater Basin, including the Laguna Seca Subarea (LSS) of the Seaside Groundwater Basin.  Overall water production within the MPWRS in WY 2015 decreased by 1,327 AF (9.3%) compared to WY 2014.  Specifically, Cal-Am production in WY 2015 decreased by 1,237 AF (11.2%), and non Cal-Am well production decreased by 90 AF (2.8%) relative to reported production in WY 2014.  Cal-Am production from Carmel Valley decreased 769 AF (9.9%), and Cal-Am production from the Seaside Basin decreased by 467 AF (14.5%).  Non Cal-Am production from Carmel Valley decreased by 358 AF (11.9%) compared to WY 2014, and non Cal-Am production from the Seaside Basin increased by 268 AF (105.7%).  In WY 2015, 245 AF of potable water that was produced by the City of Sand City Desalination Plant was added to Cal-Am production because it was delivered to the Cal-Am main system. 

 

In WY 2015, 215 AF were diverted from cal-Am well sources in Carmel Valley for injection at the Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) Projects in the Seaside Basin.  No recovery water was produced for Cal-Am Customer Service in WY 2015.  For reference, since the District’s Seaside ASR Program began testing in WY 1998 through the end of WY 2015, a total of 4,987 AF have been injected into the Seaside Basin.   

 

Water Allocation Program – With respect to the District’s Water Allocation Program limits, Cal-Am production from the MPWRS in WY 2015 was 9,778 AF, or 7,863 AF (44.6%) less than the Cal-Am production limit of 17,641 AF that was established with the adoption of Ordinance No. 87 in 1997.  Non Cal-Am production within the MPWRS in WY 2015 was 3,176 AF, or 130 AF (4.3%) greater than the non Cal-Am production limit of 3,046 AF established by Ordinance No. 87.  Combined production from Cal-Am and non Cal-Am sources within the MPWRS was 12,954 AF in WY 2015, which is 7,733 acre-feet (37.4%) less than the 20,687 acre-feet production limit set for the MPWRS as part of the District’s Water Allocation Program.  Therefore, no action is necessary at this time, although staff will continue to monitor production trends within the MPWRS and District-wide.  A comparison of reported water production from the MPWRS in WY 2015 relative to the District’s Water Allocation limits is presented in Exhibit 7-F.  Prior to 2008, the LSS was not included in the MPWRS, but was added with the adoption of Ordinance 135 on September 22, 2008.  However, the production limits in the District’s Allocation Program did not change.

 

Lastly, it should be noted that 99% of the groundwater production within the District was reported by the water meter method in WY 2015.  In addition, over 95% of registered well owners in the District reported annual production for their wells in WY 2015.

 

EXHIBITS

7-A      District-wide Water Production Summary for Water Year 2014

7-B      District-wide Water Production Summary for Water Year 2013

7-C      MPWMD Water Production Source Areas

7-D      Water Production by Source Area for Water Year 2014

7-E      District-wide Production by Reporting Method for non Cal-Am Wells in WY 2014 and    WY 2013

7-F      Comparison of Reported Production to Production Limits within the MPWRS in WY 2014

 

 

 

 

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