Office of the Delta Watermaster

Important Update

UPDATE FOR 2024 IN-DELTA WATER RIGHTS REPORTING

DeltaACP.com is now available for those reporting via the Delta Alternative Compliance Plan (Delta ACP) for 2024 water year reports. This is for water diverted and used October 1, 2023 – September 30, 2024. The deadline for all filers using DeltaACP platform is April 1, 2025.

Due to the need for some software upgrades and integration of new OpenET data, I am authorizing a limited extension of time to comply with the regulations implementing the diversion measurement reporting requirement (Water Code section 1840). My colleagues and I appreciate your cooperation with our Office to meet the objectives of section 1840. The DeltaACP.com web interface is expected to be ready to accept water use reports on or about December 1, 2024.

We also appreciate the continued research and contributions to the Delta Measurement Experimental Consortium (DMEC), which will meet next on December 10, 2024 at 1:00pm. I find these substantial and ongoing efforts to comply with the regulations encouraging – as I will note that in-Delta diverters are currently at 98% reporting compliance for WY 2023. The extension for filing for WY 2024 reporting via Delta ACP will be April 1, 2025 (from the February 1, 2025 regulatory deadline), adding a reasonable period to ensure all reports can be incorporated into the system.

Diverters seeking coverage under the Delta ACP are hereby granted an extension of time to attain compliance with the measurement requirement, so as to accommodate the additional time required to update the Delta ACP user interface for both Statement and License reports. This extension will expire on April 1, 2025.

For any questions related to the foregoing delays, extension, and exercise of discretion, please email Jay Ziegler, Delta Watermaster, or Amy Blunk, Communications Specialist.

The Office of the Delta Watermaster – Background

The Office of the Delta Watermaster was created as part of the Delta Reform Act of 2009. The Watermaster is an independent officer of the State, appointed to a four-year term by the State Water Resources Control Board, reporting jointly to the Water Board and to the Delta Stewardship Council.

Important Reminder!

Water Rights Reporting

Delta Measurement Experimentation Consortium

Overlap Memo

2015 Informational Order

  Access the 2015 Informational Order FTP Document Repository

URL: https://ftp.waterboards.ca.gov
Username: IORR-FTP
Password: AccessIORR

General Water Rights Resources

Responsibilities

The Watermaster is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day administration of water rights, and, when necessary, for taking enforcement action, related to water diversions within the Delta. The Watermaster also confers with and assists both the Water Board and the Stewardship Council as they carry out their respective legislative mandates to achieve the dual objectives of enhancing the Delta ecosystem and improving water supply reliability within the constraints of the water rights system and of the Delta as an evolving place.

The Delta – The Hub of California’s Water Management System

The Delta is an inland estuary located at the confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers just before their outlet to San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The Delta is comprised of a network of islands, channels and wetlands which make up the largest estuary on the Western Coast of the United States. The Delta is the hub of California’s water management system as well as an important ecological system supporting a variety of species, several of which are protected under endangered species acts. The Delta ecosystem and the water management facilities located there are under pressure from a variety of natural and man-made stressors including:

  • water diversions from its natural tributaries;
  • withdrawal of a portion of its water to meet the needs of users throughout the State;
  • invasive species which compete with or prey upon its endangered natives;
  • the constant risk of salinity intrusion from the Ocean and of salinity concentration by farming;
  • degradation in its water quality from historic causes such as hydraulic mining and current causes such as farm and urban runoff;
  • channelization of its waterways and the fragility of some of its levees;
  • oxidation and erosion of friable peat soils which have left some islands subsided below the surrounding water table;
  • complex (and sometimes conflicting) regulatory constraints; and
  • a clash of public and private interests that has generated decades of litigation and conflict.

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Delta Waterway
Photo credit: Department of Water Resources

  Contacts

For Questions or Comments
Contact the Office of the Delta Watermaster:

Email: deltawatermaster@waterboards.ca.gov
Phone: 916-319-8264

U.S. Mail:
Office of the Delta Watermaster
State Water Resources Control Board
P.O. Box 100
Sacramento, CA 95812-0100

Delta Challenges