Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
Report to the Pasadena Municipal Services Committee
July 14, 2026
1. Water Supply
State Water Project
This year the Metropolitan Water District (MWD) will receive a 45% allocation from the state water project which equals over 950-thousand-acre feet of water to MWD.
Since the projected annual water sales to member agencies is approximately 1.3- million-acre feet, a 45% allocation from the state project along with other MWD sources will allow MWD to add water to storage.
Colorado River
The seven basin states were unable to agree on a single plan to reduce Colorado River water use. As a result, the Lower Basin states—California, Arizona, and Nevada—submitted one proposal to the Bureau of Reclamation (Bureau), while the Upper Basin states—Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming—submitted a separate proposal. The Bureau said it will consider both plans and release the Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in late July or early August. This will set principals and a framework for Colorado reductions. A separate operating plan, to be released later, will detail the guidelines on how the reductions will be allocated among the parties with rights to Colorado River water.
The operating plan will provide the guidelines for the first two years of the ten-years covered by the EIS. While separating the plan into two-year increments make it more difficult to do long term water planning, it does allow flexibility in addressing the unknowns of hydrology and weather conditions more accurately.
The Bureau is currently offering $325 an acre foot for conservation programs to reduce use of Colorado River water and several water agencies within California have made commitments under this program. Other agencies are still developing their programs or trying to negotiate with the Bureau for a higher per acre foot payment.
MWD has 1.6 million acre-feet of water stored in Lake Mead, which should be available to offset MWD's required cuts for at least the first two years of the operating plan. However, there are constraints on when MWD may take or use this water against cuts.
Conservation
Conservation continues to be a critical part of water planning and the MWD budget.
In the Last 10 years, demands for MWD water have been reduced by over one- million-acre foot annually-2/3 from local projects and 1/3from conservation.
As a part of the turf replacement plan, MWD is now offering a $100 per tree incentive to add trees in addition to the required drought tolerant landscaping. Since the program was initiated 2 years ago, 3,707 trees have been added through the MWD incentive program.
Storage
Currently MWD has over 3.9-million-acre feet of water in storage. This provides a valuable buffer against shortages caused by climate change but because of the uncertainty from the Colorado River and the changes from snow pack to rain in the Northern Sierras, additional storage has become an important part of the future of water supply planning. MWD staff is currently studying possible Locations for additional in region and out of region off stream storage.
2. Budget
The MWD Board adopted a $2.75 billion budget for FY 26-27. The primary focus is to add resources for the maintenance and repair of MWD's aging infrastructure. The budget includes a 31 % increase for capital improvements and maintenance of the MWD system.
3. Pure Water Recycling Facility
The work to develop a joint recycling facility with the Los Angeles County Sanitation Department at their Carson facility began before California had adopted rules for direct potable reuse (DPR). With those rules now in place, MWD is studying how they might be used at the Carson Plant. The Board will have its first workshop about DPR on July 28, 2026.
Respectfully submitted,
Cynthia J. Kurtz