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<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />PROTECTION OF EXISTING RIGHTS <br /> <br />Colorado River Water Reoort <br /> <br />During December 1998, storage in the major Upper Basin reservoirs decreased by 556,000 <br />acre-feet and storage in the Lower Basin reservoirs decreased by 384,000 acre-feel. Total System <br />active storage at the end of December was 54.321 million acre-feet (mat) or 91 percent of capacity, <br />which is 0,476 mafless than one year ago. <br /> <br />January releases from Hoover, Davis, and Parker Dams averaged 13,840, 11,480 and <br />9,660 cubic feet per second (cfs), respectively. Planned releases from those three dams for the month <br />of February are 11,200, 10,200 and 6,800 cfs, respectively. The February releases represent those <br />needed to meet downstream water requiremen!s. <br /> <br />The preliminary February I forecast of April through July 1999 unregulated inflow into Lake <br />Powell is 6.200 maf, which is 80 percent of the 30-year average for the period 1961-1990. The <br />preliminary January forecast of the unregulated inflow into Lake Powell for the 1998-99 water year <br />is 10.303 maf, or 88 percent of the 30-year average. <br /> <br />The Lower Division states' estimated consumptive use of Colorado River water for calendar <br />year 1999, as estimated by Board staff, totals 8.164 maf and is projected as follows: Arizona, <br />2.778 maf; California, 5.126 maf; and, Nevada, 0.260 maf. Estimated additional unmeasured return <br />flow credits of 0.251 mafwould reduce the total amount to 7.913 maf. For calendar year 1999, the <br />Central Arizona Project (CAP) is projected to divert 1.273 mafand The Metropolitan Water District <br />of Southern California (MWD) is projected to divert 1.271 maf. For the twelve months ending <br />December 31, 1998, the preliminary measured diversions by the Central Arizona Project (CAP) was <br />1.223 maf and The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD), was 1.072 maf, <br /> <br />The preliminary February estimate of 1999 end-of-year California agricultural consumptive <br />use of Colorado River water under the first three priorities of the 1931 California Seven Party <br />Agreement is 3.796 maf. This estimate is based on the collective use through January 1999 by the <br />Palo Verde Irrigation District (PVlD), the Yuma Project Reservation Division (YPRD), the Imperial <br />Irrigation District (lID), and the Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD). Figure I, found at the <br />end of this report, depicts the historic end-of-year agricultural use for the year, <br /> <br />Colorado River Ooerations <br /> <br />Last August, at the Board's meeting in San Diego, representatives from the Yuma and Gila <br />water districts introduced the Board to the problems that are occurring in the Yuma area due to high <br />groundwater conditions. In order to study the impacts and determine the best alternatives to mitigate <br />the problem, they were proposing the formation of an area resource management group, That group <br />has now been formed, <br /> <br />2 <br />