NOT SNOW BAD
In a slight nod to a miserable snow year and below-average runoff predictions, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) plans to export a little less water from the Eastern Sierra compared to last year, and will also drop groundwater pumping in Inyo County in 2026-27. Even with those slight reductions, the Eastern Sierra will supply about 47% of Los Angeles’ water in the coming year.
Those are the big-ticket items in the recently released Draft LADWP Owens Valley 2026-27 Operations Plan. The 206-page document outlines the status of aquifer levels, planned pumping by wellfield, reviews vegetation conditions in the Owens Valley and details in-valley water uses. It also recaps numerous mitigation measures and other legal requirements laid out in the Inyo-LA Long-Term Water Agreement and other related documents and court orders.
Some light reading, in other words, broken up with plenty of charts, graphs and satellite photos.
The big-picture look shows only slight variations from last year’s operations plan.
A bit surprising was the Owens River Basin runoff forecast hitting about 79% of normal, despite an Eastern Sierra snowpack coming in at about 24% of average. The difference, as the footnotes reveal, is the runoff forecast is based on having “median precipitation” for the entire water year, which runs from April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027. Another meager snow and rain year would drop the runoff estimate to around 65% of average.
The “most probable” runoff for the Mono Basin would be about 84,300 acre feet (AF), which is 71% of average, with the Owens River Basin runoff at 79% of average with 322,300 AF (that includes the Owens, Long and Round valleys). The estimated runoff total of 406,600 AF is about 66,000 AF less than last year’s runoff from what was basically an average snow and runoff year.
The Los Angeles Aqueduct will carry about 227,000 AF of Eastern Sierra water to Los Angeles. A slight drop from the 269,000 AF exported last year. This year’s exports will represent about 47% of the city’s annual water supply, which comes to 457,000 AF. Aquifers in the city will contribute another 13%; recycled water 3% and water purchased from the Metro Water District about 37%.
Mono Lake was recently measured at 6,382.75 feet above sea level, which allows LADWP to export 16,000 AF of water from the basin. The Operations Plan indicates the department will take that full allotment.
Estimated Inyo County groundwater pumping in 2026-27 would range between 54,310 and 81,360 AF, which is roughly 10,000 AF less than last year’s proposal.
Using such wide ranges has been criticized by Inyo County and environmental groups. The Operations Plan notes that under the terms of the Long-Term Water Agreement, about 225,000 AF would be “available forgroundwater pumping.”
Groundwater levels in the entire Owens Valley are predicted to drop between 1 and 2 feet, based on pumping amounts and less then average runoff. However, changes in groundwater differ in each of the seven wellfields in the valley. Laws could see groundwater decline by more the 3 feet, with Big Pine, Independence Oak and Symmes-Sheperd also seeing significant drops that could hit several feet.
City-owned land in the Owens Valley will be supplied with about 95,000 AF of water, with more than half devoted to agricultural uses. Irrigation account for 46,790 AF, with stock water coming in at another 11,200 AF. Enhancement and Mitigation measures will receive 12,350 AF; the Lower Owens River Project, 18,100 AF; Recreation and Wildlife, 6,600 AF.
