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<br /> <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br />I <br /> <br /> <br />departure from the previous functions of the State of California Department of Water <br />Resources. <br />The impetus for this innovation arose in the crisis atmosphere prevailing at the <br />beginning of 1991, as the state entered the fifth consecutive year of drought. Winter <br />precipitation had been far below normal, reservoirs across the state were at or near their <br />historic lows", and statewide streamflows were forecast to be approximately half of <br />normal.'" The expected impacts of the low-water conditions were very unevenly <br />distnbuted. Rapidly growing urban centers, particularly in the southern portion of the <br />state, as well as agricultural users served by the federal Central Valley Project (CVP) and <br />the State Water Project (SWP) were anticipating severe cutbacks in supplies." At the <br />same time, other agricultural water users with riparian rights, senior appropriative rights <br />or access to storage outside of the SWP or CVP had full or nearly full supplies at their <br />disposal. <br />While it appeared obvious that substantial net benefits would arise from water <br />transfers directed at reducing the unbalanced effects of the drought, it also appeared <br />obvious that privately arranged transfers were unlikely to occur in sufficient volume to <br />provide significant assistance to the cities and agricultural users most severely affected. <br />Despite legislative attempts to promote water marketing," privately arranged transfers <br /> <br />"On December 31, statewide reservoir storage averaged 32 percent of capacity, 54 percent of the historical <br />average. Howitt, Richard, Nancy Moore and Rodney T. Smith, 1992. A Retrospective on Califomill's 1991 <br />Emergency Drought Water Bank, Repon prepared for the California Depanment of Water Resources. <br />California's Continuing Drought. 1987-1991: A Summmy of Impacts and Conditions as of December I, 1991. <br />Sacramento: State of California, Department of Water Resources. <br /> <br />"USDA, 1991. Water Supply Outlook for the Wesrem United States: lfJ1lUl11Y 1, 1991. Ponland: Soil <br />CoDSelVlltion Service. <br /> <br />-ne SWP bad announced complete suspension of deliveries to agricultural users and deliveries of only <br />10 percent of contractual entitlements to municipalities. The CVP bad declared that supplies would be 50 <br />percent of entitlements for' urban users and 2S percent for agricultural customers, except for holders of <br />Sacramento River water rights and San Joaquin exchange contractors, who would receive 75 percent Howitt, <br />Richard, Nancy Moore and Rodney T. Smith, 1992. A ReIrospective on California's 1991 Emergency Drought <br />Water Bank, Repon prepared for the California Department of Water Resources. <br /> <br />"Gray, Brian E., 1989. "A Primer on California Water Transfer Law, Arizona Law Review. 31: 745-782 <br /> <br />2-23 <br />