Lower Yuba River Accord

The Lower Yuba River Accord: From Controversy to Consensus
Trout Unlimited ‘Yuba River’ Initiative

Overview
After 5 years in development, the 17-party consensus based proposed lower Yuba River Accord (Yuba Accord) is now under way. California’s State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) approved a 1-year pilot program for the Yuba Accord in April 2006, and this program is working well.

The 2006 Pilot Program establishes higher minimum instream flows, which exceed state and federal requirements, for the lower Yuba River’s Chinook salmon and steelhead. it also provides operational information on the program, and funding for an environmental review of he Yuba accord required under state and federal law.

The SWRCB is scheduled to consider the approval of a second 1-year pilot program for 2007. All 17 conservation groups, agricultural interests, and state and federal agencies participating in the Yuba Accord support the 2006 and 2007 pilot programs. The Yuba Accord is scheduled to go into effect in 2008.

Yuba River Accord Pilot Programs
The pilot programs are essential for the Yuba Accord’s development. Under the 2006 and 2007 pilot programs, Yuba County Water Agency (YCWA) releases water from its reservoir, New Bullards Dam and Reservoir, to meet significantly higher minimum instream flows for the fisheries resources of the lower Yuba River. These new flows range from 260,000 acre-feet of water in dry years to over 574,000 acre-feet of water in wet years. The higher flows will improve habitat conditions for the lower Yuba River’s Chinook salmon and steelhead, among the last remaining wild populations in California’s Central Valley. Other fish and wildlife species in the Yuba River will benefit as well.

The pilot programs include water sales to the CALFED Bay-Delta Program Environmental Water Account (EWA) to benefit the fisheries resources of the Bay-Delta. Revenues from these sales help fund the cost of the Yuba Accord’s Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS), currently being prepared, and implementation of the Yuba Accord, as well as other activities, such as YCWA’s share of costs for ongoing flood protection efforts in Yuba County.

“The proposed Lower Yuba River Accord is a landmark achievement not only because it will improve salmon and steelhead habitat and provide certainty for water rights and irrigation, but also because it is the product of unparalleled cooperation and compromise.” – DFG Director Ryan Broddrick, April 21 2005

Yuba Accord EIR/EIS
YCWA and the other Yuba Accord participants expect to make the draft Yuba Accord EIR/EIS available to the public in spring 2007. The parties welcome the publics review and comments on the draft EIR/EIS, and public participation in the process of evaluating and implementing the Yuba Accord.

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The Three Agreements
The Yuba Accord contains three proposed agreements:

The Fisheries Agreement, developed by local, state, and federal fisheries biologists, advocates, and policy representatives, will establish higher minimum instream flows during specified periods of the year. To provide these flows, YCWA will implement the Conjunctive Use Agreements, which will establish a comprehensive conjunctive use program that integrates surface water and groundwater supplies with irrigation districts/mutual water companies YCWA serves in Yuba County.

Under the Water Purchase Agreement, the California Department of Water Resources and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation will enter into a long-term agreement to purchase water from YC\VA to improve reliability for the State Water Project and Central Valley Project, including for fish and wildlife purposes, and to contribute to long-term EWA security.

The Yuba Accord’s instream flows may be modified when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issues a new long-term Federal Power Act license to YCWA for the Yuba Project during or after 2016.

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Conclusion
The Yuba Accord will be a major fisheries accomplishment for the State of California. It will result in higher minimum instream flows on the lower Yuba River, fund fisheries studies and restoration activities, enhance water supply reliability in Yuba County, and establish the first long-term acquisition of water for the EWA. By concluding over 20 years of litigation, the Yuba Accord will represent a remarkable shift from controversy to consensus on the lower Yuba River.

View The Lower Yuba River Accord Final EIR/EIS

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