For Immediate Release – July 12, 2013

Contact – Mark Drew, California Trout
760-924-1008, mdrew@caltrout.org

MAMMOTH CREEK SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT REACHED

Collaborative Approach Secures Water for Residents, Adequate flows for Fish

Mammoth Lakes, Calif. – Today the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) and the Mammoth Community Water District (MCWD) announced settlement agreements in two lawsuits over water allocation in Mammoth Creek. These settlements both herald a hopeful future for fair water allocation locally, in the Eastern Sierras, as well as for urban users in the Los Angeles area.

The settlement of these lawsuits also enables a 2010 settlement agreement regarding bypass flows in Mammoth Creek to take effect. This earlier settlement agreement, among MCWD, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (formerly Fish and Game), and non-profit watershed advocacy group California Trout, ensured adequate flows in Mammoth Creek to support fisheries while also providing sufficient water supplies for area residents and businesses.

“The recent turn of events around Mammoth Creek speaks to the power of collaboration and science-based negotiations when it comes to tackling California’s complex water challenges,” said Mark Drew, California Trout’s Eastern Sierra Manager. “With these settlement agreements in place, local residents will have their water needs met and essential flows for fisheries will remain intact.”

Drew continued, “We have seen that when all parties come to the table with respect for one-another, an open mind, and an eye on the science it is possible to find a way forward that everyone can support. These settlements give us every reason to be hopeful that we might also see a similarly positive resolution around water rights challenges in the nearby Mono Basin.”

Background

Establishing appropriate bypass flows on Mammoth Creek has been a contentious issue for decades. The Mammoth Community Water District (District) drafted an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) in 2009 to study the options for balancing the needs of people who rely on the creek’s water, recreational offerings, and the fish that depend on it for survival. Out of concern for the health of fisheries in the creek, California Trout and the Department of Fish and Wildlife engaged in litigation to secure improved flows on behalf of fish in Mammoth Creek as well as Hot Creek and the Upper Owens River, into which the creek flows.

The litigation eventually led to a science-based settlement agreement that secures sufficient flows for fisheries, initiated a Mammoth Lakes Basin fisheries enhancement fund, provides for the ongoing monitoring of groundwater extraction to ensure that in-stream flows are not negatively impacted by the practice, and requires implementation and monitoring of a comprehensive water conservation plan in the basin. The State Water Resources Control Board approved by the Final EIR and the Settlement Agreement in 2012.

Although the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power initially objected to the plan and engaged in litigation over its provisions, the recent settlement of that litigation will now allow the plan to move forward.

For more information about water allocation in the Mammoth Basin, or to learn more about the settlement process, call Mark Drew at 760-924-1008 or mdrew@caltrout.org.