Reclamation District No. 108 receives water conservation award

Written by Lewis Bair:

At the 2009 Mid-Pacific Water User Conference, the Bureau of Reclamation presented Reclamation District No. 108, located in Colusa and Yolo Counties, Northern California, with the Regional Directors Award for their efforts to conserve water with their Pilot Water Conservation Program.

Faced with water shortages and budget constraints, RD No. 108 Board of Trustees (Trustees) had to make the difficult decision to increase water rates or find some way to reduce the budget. Two years ago the District implemented a volunteer Pilot Water Conservation Program. Its success depended on active participation by landowners within the District. While the pilot program consisted of several water conservation elements, the cornerstone of the program was an incentive based rice drainage program. The program not only allowed the District to divert less water from the Sacramento River but also returned a tremendous saving to the District in the areas of power and energy related to drainage pumping.

Nearly 100% of the landowners participated in the program. The Pilot Water Conservation Program paid landowners and water users the reduction in energy costs paid for conservation activities. During the first two years of the program the results were dramatic, reducing drainage by approximately 30,000 acre-feet annually resulting in payments to landowners of over $300,000 each year. The rice program along with other conservation efforts allowed the District to plant 100% of it’s farmable acreage with a 75% water allocation.

The success of the program was attributed to a uniquely sized orifice cut into the rice drainage outlet. The dimension of the opening in the rice drainage board originated from staff and management. This opening resulted in a stable, but reduced flow of water from each field. The orifice was designed to permit .5 cubic feet per second of drainage for every 100 acres of rice.

The Pilot Water Conservation Program has been such a great success; it is now an annual program helping to conserve water while keeping costs down. The Trustees and management agree that the program has made budgeting a little easier and farmers are happy with the conservation payments.

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