April 21, 2015 - Watch the nightly news or pick up a newspaper and you know that California is in the grip of a multi-year drought. The Los Angeles Times reported in late March that snow pack in the Sierra Nevada is at record or near-record lows and California has just recorded its warmest winter ever. This drought situation impacts national park units in many ways.
One impact is water rights. Park water rights allow water to be diverted from natural sources for administrative uses including staff housing, visitor centers, campgrounds, and concessions. In January 2014, in response to drought conditions, the California State Water Board began issuing calls for curtailment on junior (inferior) water rights holders. This is an order for junior water right holders to stop diverting water until further notice.
In response to the January 2014 calls, the Water Rights Branch (WRB) of the NPS Water Resources Division sent a notice to national park units in California alerting them to the Board’s action and offering assistance. Some parks use municipal water and therefore are not directly impacted by the action. But a handful of parks, including Sequoia and Kings Canyon, Yosemite, and Lassen Volcanic national parks, are now working with WRB to prepare for another potential call by taking the following actions:
- Examine current water uses and find ways to conserve water and eliminate waste;
- Develop contingency plans that prioritize water uses in the park in case of a call;
- Research and document historic uses of water based on riparian rights in the park.
Because riparian rights are generally the most senior in the California system, WRB, with the assistance of park personnel, is assembling the parks’ documentation of riparian water use. Later this spring, WRB plans to file Statements of Water Diversion and Use with the State Water Resources Control Board that support the parks’ claim of use of water based on riparian rights. This documentation should support the parks’ water use for domestic purposes in the face of calls for curtailment by the State Water Board, except perhaps in the most dire circumstances.
The primary threat to parks, if water rights are curtailed, is not being able to provide staff and visitors with water to meet basic administrative needs. The curtailment process does allow for health and safety exceptions to curtailment, but there is still clear need to make necessary preparations in order to fulfill park missions. The parks also recognize the need to be good neighbors. People all over the state are facing threats to their livelihoods from the ongoing drought. As parks prepare for an uncertain water future, they are reducing park water demand and are ensuring that park use is lean and efficient in responding to the current reality.
Learn more about the work of WRB.
