Greetings,

Last week Governor Newsom declared a drought emergency in the Russian River watershed and called attention to the climate extremes we're increasingly seeing in California. While the Yuba River watershed is not experiencing the same level of drought as some of our neighbors, our annual rainfall, snowpack, runoff and storage at New Bullards Bar Reservoir are all below normal. 

Yuba County is no stranger to environmental extremes. Our communities know firsthand the impacts of both droughts and floods. That's why Yuba Water Agency continues to prepare for all extremes in our watershed.

Our agency, along with eight other public and private partners, is leading watershed-scale forest restoration – the largest in the state – to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire. We're working closely with our local irrigation districts and state and federal partners to sustainably manage surface and groundwater supplies to meet a wide range of needs. And, even though we're in a second-straight year of dry conditions, we're investing in bold infrastructure improvements throughout Yuba County to prepare for future storms and floods that we know will inevitability come.

You can read more below about how we're investing our revenue to power a brighter future for the people of Yuba County. I hope you'll continue to stay connected with us through this newsletter, our website and our agency's social media channels.

Willie Whittlesey
General Manager, Yuba Water Agency

The lasting social, economic and environmental impacts of floods in our region have reinforced the need for bold investments in long-term flood risk reduction projects. Join us for a one-hour virtual webinar this Wednesday to learn about Yuba Water-led projects and partnerships that are improving public safety and climate resilience for the people of Yuba County. [Register here]

Earlier this year, Yuba Water committed $6.5 million to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire and implement landscape-scale forest restoration in the Yuba River watershed. The funds will advance several forest restoration projects as part of the North Yuba Forest Partnership, a diverse group of nine organizations working collaboratively to plan, finance and implement forest restoration across 275,000 acres of private and public land spanning Sierra and Yuba counties and two national forests. [Read more]

Browns Valley Elementary students now have the opportunity to contribute to science and weather forecasts in their watershed thanks to a new monitoring station installed at the school by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography with support from Yuba Water. Learn more about the new weather station and our partnership with Scripps and local schools. [Read more]

Last month Yuba Water approved several grants and matching loans to advance critical flood risk reduction work and wastewater infrastructure improvements in Yuba County. Recipients included the Three Rivers Levee Improvement Authority, Olivehurst Public Utility District and the City of Wheatland. [Read more]

Cordua Irrigation District recently joined the Lower Yuba River Accord, a model water management agreement that supports endangered fish, ensures water supplies for cities and farms and reduces conflict over water use. Implemented in 2008, the Yuba Accord resolved decades of controversy and litigation over instream flow requirements in the lower Yuba River. [Read more]

Flows on the lower Yuba River from Englebright Lake to Marysville are increasing significantly this month as instream flow and irrigation demands pick up for the season. The public should use caution when recreating on the lower Yuba River for their safety in the weeks ahead. [Read more]

Approximately one mile of the north channel of the lower Yuba River is closed to all watercraft from Daguerre Point Dam to 6,000 feet downstream through early December for habitat enhancement work as part of Yuba Water’s Hallwood Side Channel and Floodplain Restoration Project. [Read more]