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State water board receives hydrologic update on Shasta and Scott watersheds; Scott gauge accuracy prompts procedural change
Summary
Division of Water Rights staff told the State Water Resources Control Board it has temporarily adjusted monitoring after an erroneous curtailment in the Scott River watershed tied to an inaccurate Fort Jones gage and that Shasta River flows were generally above minimums in July.
The State Water Resources Control Board on Aug. 5 received an informational update from division staff on hydrologic conditions and curtailment activity in the Shasta and Scott River watersheds.
Erin Regazzi of the Division of Water Rights briefed the board on July curtailments and monitoring. The division said Shasta River flows generally remained above the flow requirement during July after conditional curtailments took effect July 27; Applied River Sciences is conducting a summer flow study in Shasta Canyon to evaluate late‑season rearing habitat, pool stratification and thermal refugia for salmonids. Regazzi said California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), in coordination with NOAA Fisheries, may propose temporary alternative flows at the Wairika gauge under emergency regulation provisions, and the board’s deputy director could approve a short‑term change if CDFW recommends it and affected water rights holders agree.
On the Scott River, the division described a monitoring and curtailment sequence in July when the Fort Jones USGS gage showed declining flows. Staff issued a curtailment when readings fell below the minimum; local water users and the watermaster then reported visually higher flows, prompting additional physical measurements. USGS revised the rating curve after watermaster and USGS measurements, and the board suspended curtailments the next morning. Regazzi told the board the Fort Jones gauge had become inaccurate because of channel morphology change and gravel movement, and staff said it plans to require additional flow measurements when flows approach 10 cubic feet per second (CFS) within the flow requirement (i.e., when within a 10 CFS range) to reduce the risk of erroneous curtailments.
Board members noted concerns from agricultural diverters about early curtailments and asked the division to improve communications about the rationale for preemptive actions. Regazzi said staff had discussed the approach with the watermaster, Farm Bureau and county officials and will continue outreach. The division also flagged wildfire monitoring in Siskiyou County and told the board it will present a long‑term work plan for baseline minimum flows and associated technical and economic analysis at the Nov. 4 meeting.
