Meetings:
Rosedale Rio-Bravo Water Storage District Board of Directors
Arvin-Edison board of directors
Cawelo Water District Board of Directors
Date: July 9 through 11, 2024
Rosedale Rio-Bravo Packet: CLICK HERE
Arvin Edison Agenda: CLICK HERE
Cawelo Agenda: CLICK HERE
“Fish disco” projects praised
At the Rosedale Rio-Bravo Water District meeting, water resources manager Trent Taylor acknowledged the work that the Department of Water Resources (DWR) has been doing with the Fish Friendly Diversion projects to try and keep endangered species away from export pumps in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
”They are doing a lot more work behind the scenes, it was good to hear that from DWR themselves,” said Taylor.
He said DWR is trying to divert fish by using non-physical barriers of lights and sounds to scare fish away from certain parts of the delta, something they’re calling the “fish disco.” He said DWR reported only about 5% of fish go around that barrier.
Fish near the pumps at Tracy have been a major problem, causing the state and federal projects to restrict the amount of water delivered to contractors. The State Water Project has only been delivering 40% of contracted water allotments despite this being a strong water year with full reservoirs.
Dan Bartel, engineer manager for the district, asked if there were any cons to the non-physical barriers or if any entity opposed it. No one is opposed to the non-physical barriers and the only potential con is that the non-physical barrier is expensive and difficult to maintain since it is in the water and must be removed during the off season.
Taylor also said DWR reported it had found the delta smelt are moving north, away from the pumps. The fish are finding better feeding grounds in the north as well. Because of that, DWR is pushing for another reconsultation on the smelt activities in the delta.
“The one thing we all said after the meeting was we need to support them [DWR] more, and let them know that the work they are doing is valuable,” Taylor said.
Tank art
The Water Association of Kern County is hoping to re-up a striking art project that includes whimsical paintings on several large red-and-white striped “stand tanks” owned by Arvin-Edison Water Storage District.
There are several along Highway 58 near Edison Highway with murals that are part of the “Magic of Water” campaign put on by the Water Association. Some murals feature wizards holding lush bunches of grapes and others show fairies with ripe citrus.
The Water Association pays all costs for the program, which has been in existence for five years.
One board member noted that the person who had been in charge of the campaign when they first made the contract in 2017, was no longer working with the WAKC so the campaign had fallen through.
The board asked for more information about the success of the program.
Kern Subbasin Updates
Review of the Kern subbasin’s revamped groundwater plan by the state Water Resources Control Board continues to be a main topic of conversation throughout local water districts.
Local water managers are still waiting to hear from the state about the date of Kern’s probationary hearing. It had been set for “sometime” in January. But then the Kaweah subbasin’s hearing was bumped from Nov. 5 to Jan. 7, leading locals to wonder if their hearing will also be moved.
Meanwhile, there was discussion at the Cawelo Water District and Rosedale-Rio Bravo that the region’s coordination agreement may be amended.That agreement is required under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act and binds different groundwater agencies to the same accounting and monitoring methods.
Bartel, with Rosedale-Rio Bravo, said the Buena Vista Groundwater Sustainability Agency is pushing for a new agreement, while the other 21 entities felt a new agreement at this late stage could cause concern at the Water Board.
“The terms of the agreement are not binding and we also had it in there that any entity can drop out at any time,” said Bartel.
Dave Halopoff, assistant general manager Cawelo, said that he felt it was reviewing the coordination agreement should come after any action by the Water Board.
“After action is taken by the state board you have 12 months to review the coordination agreement which is reasonable because we don’t know what that action will be, and we don’t know how that potential action will affect everything,” said Halopoff.
How to attend:
Rosedale- Rio Bravo meets at 8 a.m. on the 2nd Tuesday of each month at their district office located at 849 Allen Road
Arvin-Edison Water Storage District meets at 12 p.m. on the 2nd Tuesday of each month at its office, 20401 E. Bear Mountain Blvd., or online via Microsoft Teams using the Meeting ID: 286 409 917 101 and Passcode: LbHxDa
Cawelo Water District meets at 9 a.m. on the 2nd Thursday of each month at their district office located at 17207 Industrial Farm Road. You can also join online via Zoom using the Meeting ID: 813 8284 0698 and Passcode: 424688, or via this link.
Sonia Lemus, freelance for SJV Water 
