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2025 URBAN WATER MANAGEMENT PLAN <br /> MAY 2026/FINAL DRAFT/CAROLLO <br /> 6.2.2 Colorado River Aqueduct <br /> 6.2.2.1 Background <br /> The Colorado River was MET's original source of water after MET's establishment in 1928.The original <br /> founding members created MET with the goal of building the CRA to bring water to Southern California. <br /> The CRA,which is owned and operated by MET, transports water from the Colorado River to its terminus <br /> Lake Mathews, in Riverside County.The actual amount of water per year that may be conveyed through <br /> the CRA to MET's member agencies is subject to the availability of Colorado River water.Approximately <br /> 40 million people rely on the Colorado River and its tributaries for potable water with 5.5 million acres of <br /> land using Colorado River water for irrigation. <br /> The CRA includes supplies from the implementation of the Quantification Settlement Agreement (QSA) <br /> and its related agreements to transfer water from agricultural agencies to urban uses.The 2003 QSA <br /> enabled California to implement major Colorado River water conservation and transfer programs to <br /> stabilize water supplies and reduce the state's demand on the river to its 4.4 million acre-feet (MAF) <br /> entitlement. Colorado River transactions are potentially available to supply additional water up to the CRA <br /> capacity of 1.25 MAF on an as-needed basis. Water from the Colorado River or its tributaries is available <br /> to users in California,Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming, and Mexico. California is <br /> apportioned the use of 4A MAF of water from the Colorado River each year plus one-half of any surplus <br /> that may be available for use collectively in Arizona, California, and Nevada. In addition, California has <br /> historically been allowed to use Colorado River water apportioned to, but not used by,Arizona or Nevada. <br /> MET has fourth-priority rights,with a basic entitlement of 550,000 AFY of Colorado River water, plus <br /> surplus water up to an additional 662,000 AFY when the following conditions exist (MET, 2025): <br /> ■ Water is unused by the California holders of priorities 1 through 3. <br /> ■ Water is saved by the Palo Verde land management, crop rotation, and water supply program. <br /> ■ When the Unites States (US) Secretary of the Interior makes available either one or both of the <br /> following: <br /> » Surplus water. <br /> >> Colorado River water that is apportioned to but unused by Arizona and/or Nevada. <br /> 6.2.2.2 Current Conditions and Supply <br /> The Colorado River supply faces current and future imbalances between water supply and demand in the <br /> Colorado River Basin due to reductions in snowpack, long-term drought conditions, and climate change. <br /> The last 25-year period has been called a megadrought,with Lake Mead's elevation dropping from a high <br /> of 1,215 feet in 2000 to its lowest level of 1,040 feet in July 2022.While extreme wet conditions resulted in <br /> lake levels exceeding 1,077 feet in February 2024, levels have been persistently hovering around 1,057 feet <br /> since May of 2025. The United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) projects that there is a 53 percent <br /> likelihood that Lake Mead elevation could fall below 1,035 feet,which would trigger water shortages for <br /> MET under the current operating guidelines.As of August 2025, Lake Mead storage was approximately <br /> 31 percent of capacity per USBR's 24-Month Study,which also projected continued Lower Basin shortage <br /> conditions in 2026 (MET, 2025). <br /> The current operating guidelines for the Colorado River expire at the end of 2026, and a new, long-term <br /> operating plan must be in place by November 2026 to manage the river's water supply.The ongoing <br /> CITY OF SANTA ANA <br />