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<br />Bulletin 160.98 Public Review Dreft <br /> <br />oa0397 <br /> <br />Chapter 1, introduclion <br /> <br />management options available to, and being considered by, local agencies form the building <br />blocks of plans prepared for each of the State's ten major hydrologic regions. (Water supplies <br />provided by local agencies represent about 70 percent of California's developed water supplies,) <br />These potential local options are integrated with options that are statewide in scope, such as the <br />recommended alternative for the CALFED Bay-Delta program, to create a statewide plan. <br />The statewide plan represents a snapshot, at an appraisal level of detail, of how actions <br />planned by California water managers would reduce the gap between existing supplies and <br />forecasted future demands. The plan does not reduce all shortages statewide -- in average water <br />years and in drought water years .. to zero in 2020. Although this goal would be an optimum <br />solution, such an approach does not reflect economic realities and current planning by local <br />agencies. Not all areas of the State and not all water users can afford, for instance, to reduce <br />drought year shortages to zero. Compiling those options that appear to have a reasonable chance <br />of being implemented by water agencies in each hydrologic region illustrates potential progress <br />in reducing the State's future shortages. <br />Bulletin 160-98 estimates that California's water shortages at a 1995 level of development <br />are 1.6 maf in average water years, and 5.2 maf in drought years. The magnitude of shortages <br />shown for drought conditions in the base year reflect the cutbacks in supply experienced by <br />California water users during the recent six-year drought. Bulletin 160-98 projects increased <br />shortages by 2020 -- 2.9 mafin an average water year, and 7 mafin drought years, The future <br />water management options identified as being most likely to be implemented could reduce those <br />shortages to 1.4 mafin average water years and 3.9 mafin drought water years. <br />The accompanying sidebar summarizes key statistics developed later in the Bulletin, The <br />material is shown here to provide the reader with an overview of California's water needs, <br />California -- An Overview <br />Figure 1.1 shows California's size relative to that of other states in the nation. California <br />is the nation's most populous state, and is also the top.ranked state in terms of dollar value of <br />agricultural production, Although California's present population is over 32 million people, the <br />State still has large areas of open space and lands set aside for public use and enjoyment, <br />including 18 national forests, 23 units of the national park system, and 355 units of the state park <br />system. California is a state of great contrasts, Population density ranges from over 16,000 <br /> <br />1-2 <br /> <br />DRAFT <br /> <br />j <br />I <br />