Truckee River Water Quality Legislative Committee to Oversee the Western Regional Water Commission (S.B. 487, sec.

Transcription

1 Truckee River Water Quality Legislative Committee to Oversee the Western Regional Water Commission (S.B. 487, sec. 56) February 25, 2008 EXHIBIT E WESTERN WATER Document consists of 16 pages. Entire Exhibit provided. Meeting Date: Neil Mann, City of Reno Wayne Seidel, City of Sparks 1

2 Presentation Themes Truckee River Water Quality Truckee River Water Quantity Watershed Collaboration 2

3 Way Back in History Reclamation Act of 1902 Newlands Project Goal - Irrigate more than 400,000 acres of land in western Nevada using the Truckee and Carson Rivers. March 14, Secretary of the Interior authorized the Truckee-Carson Project, making it one of the first reclamation projects approved for construction. Nevada Senator Francis G. Newlands 1913 Water Rights issues unsettled, 30 years later resolved as the Orr Ditch Decree. 3

4 Growth in the Truckee Watershed Centralized Sewer Systems and Wastewater Treatment Plants Expansion of drinking water from surface and groundwater sources Development of irrigation water diversions Flood control projects Stormwater systems Downstream impacts and issues 4

5 Recent History Truckee Meadows Water Reclamation Facility (TMWRF) was started in 1963 Water Quality Based River Criteria for wastewater discharges began to evolve in the early 1990 s Regional Stormwater Program national permit requirements (1990) Truckee River Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) established for nitrogen, phosphorus, and total dissolved solids in 1994 TROA process involving many agencies to address existing and future Truckee River allocations and drought storage 5

6 Water Quality and Quantity Tools State of the Art treatment plants (TMWRF and TTSA) PL which allows water right transfers to augment instream flows Storage opportunities to augment instream flows Intra-agency working groups Financial grants and agency contributions for river restoration projects Collaborative watershed management 6

7 Truckee Meadows Water Reclamation Facility 7

8 The Nature Conservancy at Work McCarran Ranch Restoration 8

9 Water Quality and Quantity Successes Water Quality Settlement Agreement - $24 million for in-stream water rights River restoration projects like McCarran Ranch Water rights purchases instream flows Truckee River Flood Project Living River Plan Regional Stormwater Committee work 6,700 AF of in-stream water rights through TROA 9

10 Water Quality and Quantity Constraints Seasonal flow depletion in the river Suitability of the existing river TMDL TMWRF discharge permit reviews Stormwater discharge permit reviews Clean Water Act River return flow requirements Water right transfer ratios 10

11 WRWC Coordination and Management Activities Water Supply Wastewater Systems Reclaimed Water Water Quality 11

12 Water Supply Planning for the future Distribution systems Wholesale providers Resource acquisition Conservation programs Conjunctive use opportunities Resource sharing plans 12

13 Wastewater Systems Coordinated facilities planning TMDL 3 rd Party review Regulatory issues and negotiations Downstream interests Watershed focus 13

14 Reclaimed Water Regional reclaimed system Regulatory constraints Operational considerations Quality of reclaimed water Link to conservation element 14

15 Water Quality Watershed Based Programs: Future TMDL s and review processes NPDES Stormwater Program elements Agreements on instream flow goals Tribal Water Quality Control Plan Future Watershed Focus 15

16 Water Quality and Quantity Opportunities through WRWC Unified decision making Round-table for addressing issues Forum to enable larger area discussions Capacity to implement change Community based watershed solutions that meet regulatory requirements 16