The Central Valley Project Water Association (CVPWA) represents water users that have long-term contracts with the Bureau of Reclamation and receive their water from the Central Valley Project, which operates many dams and canals in California.
The association was founded in the late 1970s and represents 75 agricultural districts, as well as several industrial and municipal districts. Because of the rising cost of water in California, the association is in favor of more surface-level reservoirs for more water storage. They are also in favor of mitigating the damage the CVP caused to the Bay Delta.
The CVPWA is an independent organization funded by its members. Its offices are located in Sacramento, California. The current executive director is Robert Stackhouse, who replaced Jason Peltier in June 2001. Jason Peltier left after working there for 12.5 years to assume a position with the United States Department of the Interior.
Some environmental issues they are concerned about are:
- The restoration of riparian habitats around the Delta which were damaged by the CVP.
- The removal of dams in Battle Creek, California to protect Chinook Salmon and other fish.
- The addition of more water quality measuring stations to determine where toxic substances are coming from. The CVPWA believes that these should be dealt with at the source, rather than flushing them into the Delta.
One of the recent concerns of the CVPWA about the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) was over the Board sending seemingly last-minute bills to agricultural districts and individual farmers for thousands of dollars. The SWRCB planned to receive $7.2 million annually from the bills, half of its annual budget. The CVPWA believed this tax was illegal and unconstitutional, and filed a lawsuit against the SWRCB early February 2004.
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