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EXECUTTVE SUMMARY
PALO VERDE TEST LAND FALLOWING PROGRAM
August 1, 1992 - July 31, 1994
On May 29, 1992, a Program Agreement was signed ratifying a two-year Test Land
Fallowing Program (Program) between The Metropolitan Water District of Southern
California (MWD) and the Palo Verde Irrigation District (PVID). Under the Program,
MWD would receive water saved through fallowing agricultural land in PVID in
exchange for monetary compensation. The agreement required MWD to pay for
administrative costs, enforcement costs, contract monitoring, and to compensate
Program participants $1,240 per acre over the two-year period. Payment dates for
Program participants were August 1, 1992; February 1, 1993; August 2, 1993; February
1, 1994; and August 15, 1994. Payments were made on schedule. Program participants
were responsible for payment of taxes, PVID water tolls, dust control costs and
maintenance costs associated with maintaining participating fields fallow.
A five-member Measurement Committee (Committee) was established to provide
ongoing review of the Program. The Committee consisted of one representative from
each of the following organizations: U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR), PVID, MWD,
Imperial Irrigation District (IID), and Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD).
Prior to Program implementation, an environmental analysis was conducted. It was
determined that no significant impacts would result from the Program for the following
reasons: (1) with implementation of approved mitigation measures, no significant impact
to area resources was anticipated; (2) effects would be small and diffuse since only a
maximum of 25 percent of base agricultural acreage would be accepted from each
participant; (3) effects would be temporary as the Program was intended to last only two
years; and (4) no previous significant environmental effects had been observed when
PVID agricultural lands were left fallow for other reasons over a period of time.
The Program began on August 1, 1992 and ended on July 31, 1994. Landowners and
lessees participating in the Program agreed to fallow a total of 20,215 acres (Fallowed
Acreage). Sixty-three (63) contracts were executed with landowners/lessees in PVID.
The total acreage participating in the Program (base acreage) was 80,366 acres consisting
of 20,215 fallowed and 60,151 non-fallowed acres. Fallowed Acreage was 25 percent of
the base acreage, consisted of 261 fields, and was approximately 22 percent of the total
cropped acreage in PVID of 93,000 acres.
Over 73 percent of the Fallowed Acreage would have been used for forage production
(alfalfa, sudan, and bermuda), absent the Program. Cotton and small grains would have
been planted on approximately 16 percent of the Fallowed Acreage, and melons and
vegetables on the remaining 11 percent.
The Fallowed Acreage was estimated to generate 4.6 acre-feet per fallowed acre each
year (AF/ac/yr) during the two-year Program. Based upon 4.6 AF/ac/yr, the "saved
water" was estimated to total 92,989 AF/yr or 185,978 AF during the two-year Program.
The saved water was stored in Lower Colorado River Basin reservoirs, managed by the
United States, and will be released at the request of MVM subject to provisions of the
Program Agreement.
Maintenance of the Fallowed Acreage for the duration of the two-year
Program was accomplished according to specific Land Management Plans (Plans)
submitted by each participant and reviewed by MWD at the start of the Program. The
purpose of the Plans was to conserve land and water resources, and eliminate or minimize
adverse impacts to adjacent farms, the community or PVID through control of weeds and
wind erosion. Weed control measures included chemical and mechanical methods. Wind
erosion control measures included application of appropriate cultural practices such as
providing stubble, sod remnants or cloddy fallow.
The most preferred method to begin the fallowing process was application of chemicals
to existing crops. Chemicals were applied to 10,513 acres which is 52 percent of the total
Fallowed Acreage. Disking was the most preferred mechanical method, used on 5,414
acres (27 percent), followed by plowing with 2,835 acres (14 percent), knifing with 1,068
acres (5 percent), and subsoiling with 385 acres (2 percent) which account for the initial
land fallowing of the 20,215 acres. After initial fallowing, chemicals and disking were
the most common methods employed in maintaining Program compliance.
The total weighted average cost during the two-year Program for all fallowing treatments,
including initial fallowing and all follow-up treatments, was $53.38 per acre. Total
weighted average costs among Program participants ranged from a low of $23.08 per acre
to a high of $135.00 per acre.
Program fields were monitored throughout the two-year period to ensure compliance with
the terms of the fallowing agreements. Fields were visually checked a minimum of once
a month. Soil moisture readings were taken from selected fields (138 fallowed and 21
non-fallowed) up to 11 times during the two-year Program. Groundwater was monitored
on a monthly basis through readings from 285 observation wells. Satellite images were
taken at the beginning, mid-point, and end of the Program. All monitoring efforts
provided cross-checks and verified that no water was applied to fallowed fields during
the Program.
One of the components of the Program Agreement was development of a computerized
water ordering system for PVID. The new PVID water ordering system is being used on
a daily basis and has replaced the previous manual system improving water control and
manpower scheduling.
Parties to the Program Agreement agreed that 4.6 AF of water would be considered the
amount saved for each fallowed acre. Part of the post-Program efforts involved
estimating the amount of water actually saved. Following an in-depth review of available
procedures, three methods were employed to estimate the amount of water actually saved
which included: 1) Historical Comparison; 2) Rule Curve; and 3) Actual Use. The
Historical Comparison method compared net diversions during the two-year Program to
the 1981-91 average net diversions with the difference of 207,334 acre-feet or 5.1
AF/ac/yr considered as an estimate of Program water savings. The Rule Curve method
relies upon historic water use patterns to predict future water use. Historic water use for
the 11-year period 1981-91 was used to develop a rule curve for predicting water use
during the two-year period of the Program. The difference between predicted PVID net
diversions and actual net diversions during the Program provided an estimate of water
savings of 4.5 AF/ac/y-r. The third method used to estimate water savings was based on
actual water use during the Program. Inherent to this method is the assumption that the
cropping pattern and water use on the followed fields, absent the Program, would have
been similar to the 73,000 acres of non-fallowed fields during the Program which resulted
in an estimated water savings of 4.6 AF/ac/yr. Results from these three methods
provided support for the 4.6 AF/ac/yr water savings contained in the Program
Agreement.
Participants were surveyed following each year of the Program. The structure of the
first- and second-year surveys was very similar and included three primary areas of focus.
The first area was concerned with fallowing methods used by participants both at the start
of the Program and to maintain compliance throughout the two years; the second area
involved labor, equipment, purchase of goods and services, crop marketing, and use of
Program funds; and the third area covered miscellaneous topics such as issues associated
with non-fallowed fields due to the Program, acreage enrolled in federal programs,
preferable Program implementation dates, irrigations saved in anticipation of the
Program, and general comments. Overall, the surveys found that the Program had little
impact on existing operations and all participants indicated that the Program was
beneficial and would be willing to enter into another, similar Program with only minor
modifications.
A post-Program survey of the participants was completed in February 1995. Requested
information related to: (1) the process of bringing fallowed fields back into production,
(2) crops planted or planned for the fallowed fields, and (3) perceptions of the Program
by participants.
The post-Program survey found that there were 61 participants, representing 19,095
acres (94 percent), indicating that no additional irrigations were required, however,
three participants (611 acres) within this group did notice that it took longer to irrigate
the fallowed fields. Only 2 participants, representing 1,120 acres (6 percent), indicated
that one additional irrigation was needed on the fallowed fields. In addition, as of
February 1995, 17,931 acres (89 percent) had been planted, leaving only 2,284
unplanted acres. Crops that would be planted in the spring on 1,747 acres had been
decided, leaving only 537 acres in which a decision was still pending. It was observed
that most of the Fallowed Acreage was planted into alfalfa (62 percent) followed by
wheat (21 percent) and cotton (7 percent).
In addition to surveying Program participants, a survey was also conducted in the
community to evaluate an impression of possible indirect impacts to third party
businesses. The Program was not found to have affected overall regional economic
performance to any significant degree. City officials and local bank representatives
characterized the current state of the regional economy as improved relative to pre-
Program conditions. The Program was not found to have affected the region's property
or sales tax bases, or the provision of governmental services. It was, however, found to
have contributed to a slight (1 percent) loss of employment in the region.
The total cost of the Test Land Fallowing Program to MVID was S26.6 million. Based
on 4.6 acre-feet of water saved per acre of fallowed land, the Program saved an average
of 92,989 acre-feet per year and a two-year total of 185,978 acre-feet. Considering both
the amount of water saved and the total Program costs, the average cost per acre-foot of
water saved for MWD was $143.
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