Drought Rationing Plan
Drought Rationing Plan
The West Basin Drought Rationing Plan (DRP) was in effect from 2009-2011 (under the name Water Shortage Allocation Plan) and again in 2014-2015.
The methodology used to implement the DRP
Metropolitan Water District’s (MWD) Board of Directors approved the amended Water Supply Allocation Plan in March 2015. It is based on a guiding principle developed almost 15 years prior as part of their Water Surplus and Drought Management Plan.
According to the principle, “Metropolitan will encourage storage of water during periods of surplus and work jointly with its member agencies to minimize the impacts of water shortages on the region’s retail consumers and economy during periods of shortage.”
Fairness in allocation and minimizing regional hardship to retail water consumers remained central themes in the development of a specific formula for allocating shortages across Southern California. The formula uses different adjustments and credits to balance impacts of shortage at the retail level, where local supplies can vary dramatically, and provide equity on the wholesale level among member agencies. It also attempts to account for the growth in demand, local investments, changes in local supply conditions, the reduction in potable water demand from recycled water, and the implementation of water conservation programs.
Based closely on MWD’s methodology, West Basin’s Drought Rationing Plan model, adopted by the Board of Directors in April 2009 and amended in March 2015, determines each customer agency’s share of West Basin’s allocation from MWD.