2015 Annual Operations Plan. Klamath Project, Oregon-California Mid-Pacific Region

The Klamath Project (Project) delivers water for irrigation purposes to over 200,000 acres in Southern Oregon and Northern California. This 2015 Operations Plan (Plan) describes Project operations that are anticipated to occur during the 2015 spring-summer irrigation season (March 1 to November 15, 2015), based upon current and projected hydrologic conditions. The Plan is consistent with the Reclamation’s proposed action analyzed in the biological opinions issued jointly by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) (collectively the Services) on May 31, 2013 Biological Opinion (BiOp). During formal consultation with Services under section 7 of the Endangered Species Act, Reclamation proposed various actions, as further described in the Operation Plan, to mitigate impacts to federally listed species as a result of operation of the Klamath Project. Reclamation must operate as provided in the BiOp in order to remain in compliance with the Endangered Species Act.

This Plan is divided into two sections. The first section describes the estimated water supplies available for Project purposes during the 2015 spring-summer irrigation season. The second section discusses the voluntary drought mitigation measures that the Bureau of Reclamation and Project water users will employ to minimize and manage potential Project water supply shortages.