IRRIGATION
Irrigation Water Customers
IRRIGATION UPDATE 4/6/2023
Repairs on the Dobbins Oregon House canal have finally started!
Due to weather delays, repair work on our water conveyance infrastructure started later than we
originally hoped. However, now that the rain and snow have stopped falling, District staff has been
working hard with the contractors we hired to get the job done.
Approximately 1200’ ft should be completed today.
Bad weather has also prevented us from repairing other high water loss areas that carry irrigation
water, and those areas need to be repaired to allow a successful irrigation season. For this
reason, the irrigation this year will start on May 1ˢᵗ. No one wants any delays, but the District’s
water conveyance system has needed repairs for a very long time, and there is a lot to get done.
Check this page for updates as repairs continue and this year’s irrigation season begins.
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Irrigation Update: March 6, 2023
Applications for the 2023 Irrigation season were sent out on 3/1/2023.
Please complete and return to the District office along with the amount due from the last page of the application by April 1, 2023.
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Memo from, Interim General Manager, Leona Harris
As the 2023 Irrigation season approaches, I want to assure everyone we are doing everything possible
During this time to complete repairs and maintenance on both the Forbestown Ditch, and the Dobbins Oregon House canal in preparation for the start of the Irrigation season.
We are working together with South Feather under our mutual aid agreement to complete Shotcrete for several large sections on the Forbestown Ditch that are high water loss areas.
We are also in the process of putting Shotcrete on portions of the Dobbins Oregon House Canal,
to drive down losses and working towards a successful irrigation delivery.
Work on both are being completed as weather permits.
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April 14, 2022 | DROUGHT CONDITIONS PREVENT 2022 IRRIGATION SEASON
Dear North Yuba Water District seasonal agricultural customers,
Due to ongoing drought conditions, we will not have a 2022 irrigation season.
Even though we’ve had a few storms recently, we do not have the capacity or the means to deliver an irrigation season to irrigation customers during this drought year. Here’s why:
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In order to have an irrigation season we must have water available to divert BOTH from the Forbestown Ditch and from Mother Nature through Dry Creek for a combined total of 12 CFS (cubic feet per second).
Due to the drought, we do not have this. -
NYWD’s main conveyance system is The Forbestown Ditch, which can presently hold a maximum of 24 CFS.
It is an open ditch and loses an average of 35% of its water along the 10 miles, due to seepage. -
In 2005, the NYWD Board of Directors signed a new contract, that took effect in 2010, dramatically changing how the 24 CFS is allotted in the Forbestown Ditch. Because of this and the ongoing draught, since 2012, irrigation seasons have been extremely inconsistent.
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Prior to 2010, South Feather Water and Power (SFWPA) was contractually owed 11 CFS at the head of the Forbestown Ditch and they were responsible for the seepage and water lost along the way. This arrangement left about 4 CFS (out of 24 CFS) that NYWD diverted for irrigation purposes. When Mother Nature was good, it combined with water from Dry Creek to provide the needed 12 CFS to produce a full irrigation season most years.
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After 2010, under the new agreement, NYWD now owes SFWPA 11 CFS at the bottom of the Ditch and NYWD is accountable for all the water loss along the way, leaving virtually no water to divert from the Forbestown Ditch for irrigation purposes. Even with SFWPA’s recent offer to reduce demand by 2.0 – 4.0 cfs at the bottom of the Ditch, there is not sufficient additional Mother Nature water through Dry Creek to initiate an irrigation season.
We must work to pipe the Forbestown Ditch so we can regain the 35% of our water lost to seepage and take advantage of the additional capacity provided by the proposed 42-inch pipe. Engineering is complete on the project, but ongoing lawsuits by South Feather Water & Power Authority and a few seasonal agriculture customers, have stalled the project. The NYWD Board and the NYWD staff remain unanimously supportive of piping the Forbestown Ditch and need your support in the coming years to accomplish this goal.
Until the Ditch is piped, the only potential for an irrigation season in future years will be in extremely wet years, when Mother Nature allows.
NYWD General Manager, Jeff Maupin, is willing to discuss the details further with you, contact him at (530) 675-2567.
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March 29, 2021 | DROUGHT CONDITIONS PREVENT 2021 IRRIGATION SEASON
Our District is once again facing extreme drought conditions. During the March 26 Board Meeting, your North Yuba Water District Board of Directors confirmed we do not have the capacity or the means to deliver an irrigation season to you for 2021.
Why has irrigation water been sporadic since 2010?
Since 2010 it has been a real challenge to deliver a solid irrigation season to our customers. Dramatic contract changes between NYWD and South Feather Water & Power, called the "2005 Agreement", took effect in 2010, leaving virtually no water to divert from the Forbestown Ditch for irrigation purposes.
Mother Nature’s water, conveyed through Dry Creek (shown below on 3/29/21), is now your primary source for irrigation water. This year, there is not enough water flow on Dry Creek to start an irrigation season, and no hope in sight for a miracle rainy April.
What are the current water levels on Dry Creek?
Dry Creek - Detailed Water Flow Information
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A flow of 4 cfs (cubic feet per second) is needed in Dry Creek for fish flows
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Beyond this, NYWD needs a minimum of 12 ADDITIONAL cfs (cubic feet per second) to divert water to the irrigation intake headworks (pictured below), to start the irrigation season
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Friday, 3/26/21, Dry Creek water flow measured 6 additional cfs beyond the fish flow requirement
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Monday, 3/29/21, Dry Creek water flow measured 4 additional cfs beyond the fish flow requirement
What changes in the "2005 Agreement" affected NYWD irrigation water supply?
Prior to this "2005 Agreement", which took affect in 2010, South Feather Water & Power (SFWPA) was guaranteed 11 cfs (cubic feet per second) at the TOP of the Forbestown Ditch, known as "Turnout SF-14". Losses occurring as this water travelled down the 10 mile open ditch were SFWPA's responsibility. Under this arrangement, and after servicing the NYWD domestic water customers, there was enough water still controlled by NYWD to divert from the Forbestown Ditch for irrigation customers. This water, combined with Dry Creek, were the primary source for NYWD irrigation water.
Once the "2005 Agreement" took affect in 2010, it guaranteed SFWPA 11 cfs at the BOTTOM of the Forbestown Ditch, with all water losses the responsibility of NYWD now. Because the Forbestown Ditch is an open, unpiped, mainly dirt ditch, it losses up to 35% of the conveyed water over the 10 mile span. There was no longer any water of consequence to divert for NYWD irrigation customers. Dry Creek now became the primary source for NYWD irrigation water.
What is the long-term solution to return to consistent irrigation seasons?
Piping the Forbestown Ditch is the only way to counteract the devastating contract changes and keep enough water in the system to use for irrigation customers.
The Forbestown Ditch in its current state can hold a maximum of 22 cfs (cubic feet per second.) Because of the "2005 Agreement", this is just enough water to fulfill our obligation to SFWPA and to the NYWD domestic water customers. Piping the Ditch will allow us to regain water lost during conveyance.
Until the Forbestown Ditch is piped, irrigation customers will continue to be at the mercy of Mother Nature. I urge you to learn more about the Forbestown Ditch piping project and its potential to restore your irrigation season water.
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VIDEO: 2018 Irrigation Ditch Repairs
In 2017, we identified locations on the Irrigation Ditches with the worst water loss. As promised, in late summer 2018, we began installing pipe at these hot-spots. A video showing one finished piped area is below. Over the past couple months, our crews have been working on about a dozen locations throughout the irrigation ditches. Piping the worst seepage locations will help us to maximize any water available in coming years.
Thank you for your patience through this process. Should you have any questions, please contact the North Yuba Water District at 530-675-2567.
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Irrigation Policy Amendment (Approved 5/25/2017) to the irrigation policy fee schedule to include a customer generated call out fee. A fee of $65.00 per call during normal business hours and $170.00 per call after hours and weekends will be charged to the customers when staff investigates a customer complaint and finds that no problem exists. However, if a problem with district facilities is found no fee will be charged.
