Landowners and businesses that pump water from California streams now face hundreds of dollars in fines if the use of that water isn't recorded.
The State Water Resources Control Board, in an effort to better identify the amount of water being used in the state's watersheds, is now requiring that a statement outlining the amount of water diverted be submitted every three years. Those who haven't filed a statement must do so by July 1.
While there are exceptions, most with so-called riparian water rights will have to file the form or face a maximum penalty of $1,000 -- plus $500 for each day the violation continues after the water board notifies the water rights holder.
The requirement is for any diversions that occurred after July 1, 2009, a product of legislation passed that year.
Water Board Assistant Deputy Director for Water Rights Jim Kassel said that the state probably only knows of about one third of diversions from streams. While the program has been around for years, Kassel said that relatively little information has come in.
”Because there was no penalty,” Kassel said, “we know that there are many people who don't” file the statements.
The Water Diversion and Use Program hopes to collect far more information on who holds riparian rights, which are afforded to the owners of properties that border streams. They are the most senior water rights, and don't require a permit or license from the state.
The program aims to create a clearinghouse for diversions and water uses. According to State Water Board information, the law allows its Division of Water Rights to notify water users about water rights applications that might affect the supply of water in a watershed. That should help protect existing water users, the board believes.
The new information should help trigger more vigorous analyses of water availability in any given watershed, Kassel said.
There are several exemptions from the rules, including if a water user diverts less than 25 acre feet of water per year from a spring that does not flow off the property. A diversion that is regulated by a state water master is also exempted. While water pumped from a known subterranean stream is subject to the program's requirements, more common wells are not covered.
The water board has been authorized by the Legislature to increase enforcement staff to “investigate any unauthorized diversion and use of water throughout the state,” according to a statement.
But longtime water attorney Michael Jackson with the California Water Impact Network said that while third parties trying to exercise water rights may benefit from the program, the State Water Board itself is unlikely to use that information to enforce water rights. Because of that, Jackson said, there probably will be little benefit to environmental concerns like fisheries.
One only need look at the Sacramento River Delta, Jackson said, where diversion standards are violated every day. Even when the river's fisheries are collapsing, he said, the board does nothing to enforce their authority.
”It's not unusual for them to expand their authority but not do anything with it,” Jackson said.
The program have some overlap with another state agency's. Water users has been required since 1961 to notify the California Department of Fish and Game before they begin diverting water, with an eye toward maintaining streams for fish like salmon and steelhead. But many landowners still aren't aware of the statute, or they ignore it.
”We've been slowly getting the word out,” said Fish and Game Senior Environmental Scientist Bill Condon.
Condon said the agency could look at the information the water board is compiling, but doubts that it will. Instead, he expects Fish and Game to keep working with the largest diverters, especially in streams that support protected coho salmon.
John Driscoll covers natural resources/industry. He can be reached at 441-0504 or jdriscoll@times-standard.com