Newsom Unveils New Water Plan, Water Allocations Still Only 30% of Normal

California Gavin Newsom unveiled his new water plan and projects that forecasted delivery of state aqueduct water allocations will reach only 30% of requested water. Water experts warn that drought-level allocations despite above-average rain and snow for the last two years will lead to more groundwater pumping, delaying recharging of the state’s depleted aquifers, underground reservoirs of last resort. The California Department of Water Resources says the state’s reservoirs are at “115 percent of average for this time of year” but that the state aqueduct system will provide “delivery of 30 percent of requested supplies to contractors south of the Delta, which accounts for the majority of contractors; 50 percent of requested supplies to contractors north of the Delta; and an anticipated 100 percent allocation to Feather River Settlement Contractors.”