Friant Water Authority and Friant North Authority Sign Memorandum of Agreement

New Arrangement Unites a Majority of the Friant Division on Common Issues

For Immediate Release:

July 29, 2016

Lindsay, Calif. – The Friant Water Authority (FWA) and Friant North Authority (FNA) this week signed an agreement that sets forth a cooperative path forward for the two organizations. 

The Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) finalized July 26 establishes a number of areas in which FWA and FNA intend to work together and share resources on common issues that affect the water supply of the Friant Division of the Central Valley Project. These areas include legislative and regulatory affairs, communications, and water operations and technical analysis, and other mutual issues that arise. 

“The MOA is a formal recognition of how important unity is within the Friant Division to achieve our shared goals,” said FWA CEO Jason Phillips. “This is a highly effective and cost-efficient way for our growers and cities to have their interests represented and looked after, which is something they deserve to have.” 

“Our water users need us to work together with a unified voice to protect Friant Division water supplies,” said FNA Executive Officer Dave Orth. “FNA will continue to be a tireless advocate for our farmers in the northern portion of the Friant Division, but when it comes to the critical issues and challenges in California water – the Delta, weathering the historic drought, and working with other water users – Friant’s interests are one.” 

FWA is a joint-powers authority formed in 2004 by a majority of the water agencies receiving water from the Friant Division of the Central Valley Project. Its primary purposes are to operate and maintain the Friant-Kern Canal and to serve the information and representation needs of its member agencies. FNA is a joint-powers authority formed in 2015 by certain water agencies receiving water from the Friant Division of the Central Valley Project to jointly advance common interests and objectives with respect to their Friant Division water supplies.

Contact:
Alexandra Biering
916-628-0431
abiering@friantwater.org

FWA is a joint-powers authority formed in 2004 by a majority of the water agencies receiving water from the Friant Division of the Central Valley Project. Its primary purposes are to operate and maintain the Friant-Kern Canal and to serve the information and representation needs of its member agencies.

Friant Division Receives First Water Allocation Since 2013

March 18, 2016

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For More Information, Please Contact:
STEVE OTTEMOELLER, WATER RESOURCES MANAGER, FRIANT WATER AUTHORITY
Office: (559) 562-6305

LINDSAY, California

Friant Water Authority’s Chief Executive Officer Jason Phillips reported today that the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) is providing the Friant Division its first water allocation from the San Joaquin River since 2013.

“We are very pleased to know we will be receiving surface water from Millerton Lake this year, our first water allocation since 2013,” said Phillips. “Friant Water Authority staff have worked tirelessly with other Friant Division representatives and Reclamation to make this initial allocation a reality. Continuing this close collaboration and partnership with Reclamation now and in the future will result in better outcomes for the Friant Division. We look forward to seeing water flowing in the Friant-Kern Canal once again.”

This initial allocation is for 240,000 acre-feet of Class 1 water and an additional 100,000 acre-feet of water that must be evacuated from Millerton lake in the near term to avert flood control concerns. A subsequent allocation is expected in the near future. Reclamation officials are unable to completely allocate the water that would normally be made available to the Friant Division because they want to ensure sufficient water is present in the watershed to meet the demands of the downstream senior water rights holders. Those senior water rights holders are normally supplied with water pumped from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. But even with significant precipitation in the northern part of California, and with some dams making flood control releases, pumping sufficient amounts of water from the Delta to meet the senior water rights holders on the San Joaquin River may not be possible due to flow and pumping restrictions in the Delta meant to protect endangered species. “Pumping from the Delta has been getting more restrictive, yet the populations of the species are still crashing,” said Phillips. “We could be facing this problem annually if a better solution is not identified soon.”

Severe drought has had a strangle-hold on California since 2012. While the impacts of the drought have been felt almost everywhere in California, it has been especially painful in the Friant Division. “Much
of the Friant Division is planted in permanent crops,” Phillips observed. “Many orchards were leveled due to lack of sufficient water in 2014 and 2015 when there was no allocation of surface water. In addition, when irrigation water is applied to crops, underground aquifers are replenished. Without such water over the past two years, some aquifers were drawn down to the level where domestic wells failed. This is what happened in the East Porterville area, where a number of domestic wells went dry.”

“We will continue to work with Reclamation and the other Friant Division interests to supplement this initial allocation as the water year hydrology develops,” Phillips said. “The growers in the Friant Division need to know as soon as possible how much water will be available this year so they can make planting and other business decisions. We greatly appreciate the cooperation of Reclamation officials, who are doing everything they can to expedite the water allocations.”

The Friant Water Authority operates and maintains the Friant-Kern Canal, a conveyance feature of the Central Valley Project. The Authority consists of 13 water purveyors. The Friant Service area includes approximately one million acres and 15,000 mostly small family farms on the east side of the southern San Joaquin Valley (Merced. Madera, Fresno, Tulare, Kings, and Kern counties). Friant Division water supplies are also relied upon by several cities and towns, including the City of Fresno, as a major portion of their municipal and industrial water supplies.

Friant Water Authority Names Jason Phillips As CEO

For More Information, Please Contact:
ERIC BORBA, CHAIR, FRIANT WATER AUTHORITY

Friant Water Authority Board of Directors has selected Jason Phillips to be their first Chief Executive Officer.

“This is a critical time for Jason Phillips to become Friant’s first Chief Executive Officer,” said Friant Chairman Eric Borba. “We need a leader who will thrive in the highly dynamic environment of California water. Jason’s experience with the Bureau of Reclamation and his vision, strategy and track record is exactly what Friant needs. He has a proven ability to inspire, energize, and connect with employees, partners, customers and leaders.

Jason joined the Bureau of Reclamation in 2001 and moved quickly through the Bureau’s ranks. He most recently served as the Bureau’s Deputy Regional Director of the Mid-Pacific Region. He has helped lead and execute many of the Bureau’s programs, including the Klamath Project, the San Joaquin River Restoration Program, the Upper San Joaquin River Basin Storage Investigation, and the San Luis Drainage Feature Re-evaluation. “I am looking forward to joining the Friant Water Authority where I will be representing great people and working with an excellent team,” said Phillips. “Family farms, businesses, and cities depend on a reliable water supply from Friant for their livelihood. Unfortunately, they have been severely impacted by the lack of water in recent years. I will be committed and focused on taking strategic action and forming key partnerships necessary to improve short and long-term water supply reliability. The confidence the Board has in my ability to succeed in this role means a lot to me and will be important to our overall success.”

“Jason is clearly the leader for Friant’s future, and he has the unanimous support of the Board of Directors,” said Eric Borba, Board Chair. “We initiated the formal CEO process several months ago, searching internally and externally to find the best leader for our membership and staff. With Jason taking the role of CEO, the Board is very confident the Friant Water Authority will have the leadership necessary to improve and protect our water supplies.”

The Authority operates and maintains the Friant-Kern Canal, a conveyance feature of the Central Valley Project. The Authority consists of 14 water purveyors. The Friant Service area includes approximately one million acres and 15,000 mostly small family farms on the east side of the southern San Joaquin Valley (Merced. Madera, Fresno, Tulare, Kings, and Kern counties). Friant Division water supplies are also relied upon by several cities and towns, including the City of Fresno, as a major portion of their municipal and industrial water supplies.

Phillips received a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering at Portland State University. Before joining the Bureau of Reclamation, he worked as a Civil Engineer and Project Manager for the Army Corps of Engineers for both the Sacramento and Portland Districts. Jason currently lives in Roseville, California with his wife and three children ages 16, 14, and 12.