IMPORTED WATER

Water from northern California is acquired through the State Water Project and transported to the San Gabriel Valley via the California Aqueduct. We obtain out-of-state water from the Colorado River to supplement our local water supply.

State Water Project

California Aqueduct

The San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District is one of approximately 30 water agencies that have contracted with the State of California, through the Department of Water Resources, for water deliveries from the State Water Project system. Deliveries to the Water District are made via the State Water Project's California Aqueduct. The "heart" of the Water District's delivery system is the Devil Canyon-Azusa pipeline, which was constructed in 1972 to deliver water from the State Water Project to the Main San Gabriel Basin. The pipeline is about 38 miles long and runs west from the Devil Canyon Metering Facility in the San Bernardino Mountains to the San Gabriel Canyon Spreading Grounds in Azusa.

The State Water Project obtains its supplies primarily from the Sacramento River Basin. About half of the total supply diverted from the Delta for the State Water Project is regulated flow from the Feather River (a tributary to the Sacramento River ), while the other half is unregulated flow from runoff downstream of Sacramento River reservoirs and from other rivers that flow into the Delta. The Sacramento River watershed is subject to wide annual variations in total runoff.

Colorado River

Colorado River

The distribution and management of Colorado River water is governed by a complex body of laws, court decrees, compacts, agreements, regulations, and an international treaty collectively known as the "Law of the River."