Partly cloudy skies this evening will give way to occasional showers overnight. Low 56F. Winds SW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%..
Partly cloudy skies this evening will give way to occasional showers overnight. Low 56F. Winds SW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%.
Updated: April 9, 2026 @ 3:56 pm
An aerial view of the Middle River in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
The state’s two major water supply managers on Wednesday announced widely different early-year estimates of how much water their systems will provide this year.
While the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation estimates that most cities and farms will receive anywhere from between 65% and 100% of requested water amounts, the California Department of Water Resources estimate came in at just 15%.
While the state number appears low, it’s 5% more than its last estimate from December 2023 and doesn’t include snow or rainfall totals after Feb. 1.
A major factor in the differences between the federal and state allocation numbers is that all the higher delivery estimates from the Bureau of Reclamation are for water users north of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, where the bulk of the state’s rain and snow accumulates.
Bureau of Reclamation Deputy Regional Director Kristin White said the federal system’s south-of-Delta water users — while fewer than those that rely on the state system — will largely receive allocations similar to the state system’s.
DWR runs the State Water Project, which delivers water to 29 public agencies serving 27 million people and 750,000 acres of farmland.
The Central Valley Project, operated by the Bureau of Reclamation, delivers water to wholesalers and retailers in 29 of the state’s 58 counties, including 5 million acre-feet to farms and 600,000 acre-feet — a year’s supply for roughly 2.5 million people — to cities and towns.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Thomas Morgan said:
Connie Weiss said:
Dirk van Ulden said:
CA Is Burning said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.