On June 27 there were 291,600 acre-feet of water in Lahontan Reservoir as the community heads into what is expected to be the final month of managing snowmelt from one of the wettest winters on record. The reservoir is an integral part of the facilities that make up the Newlands Project, one of the first reclamation projects built in the West after the passage of the Reclamation Act of 1902.
The Newlands Project was built to supplement water from the Carson River with water from the Truckee River, diverting water through the Derby Dam on the Truckee through the Truckee Canal for 32 miles where it is stored in Lahontan Reservoir to serve the water rights owned by the Fallon farmers. As the canal passes through Fernley it also serves water rights for Fernley farmers as well as Hazen, and Swingle Bench.
Lahontan was originally built to hold 295,000 a.f. of water, but with flashboards installed on the top of the dam, it can hold 312,000 a.f. An acre-foot of water is the volume of water that would cover an acre of land with one foot of water and is the equivalent of 326,000 gallons.
The Newlands Project is managed by the Truckee-Carson Irrigation District as the contractor to the Bureau of Reclamation. The two agencies have been implementing flood operations since March 6 to manage the huge inflow of water expected into the Lahontan Valley from the Carson River. Flood operations have, and continue to be, closely coordinated with the City of Fallon, Churchill County, Nevada Department of Transportation, Nevada Department of Wildlife, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and NAS Fallon.
“Our number one goal is public safety and preventing flooding; second is to maximize storage in Lahontan Reservoir,” said Reclamation’s Lahontan Basin Area Manager Jack Worsley.
In early May, Reclamation and TCID made the operational decision to begin filling Lahontan Reservoir to maximize stored water. This approach was successfully implemented in 2017, 2018, and 2019 when Lahontan Reservoir storage was filled to 304,198 acre-feet without experiencing any uncontrolled releases. “The goal of maximizing storage is to take advantage of an abundant water year and provide additional water supply for the next water year in the event of a drought year,” said Worsley.
During the County Commission meeting last week, County Manager Jim Barbee reported that flood operations continue, however, the forecasted amount of snowpack still left in the mountains has been reduced to 200,000 a.f. at this time of the year. “We appear to be in pretty good shape,” said Barbee, “they may have to open the weir to displace 30,000 a.f. of water to balance outflows with inflows as it gets on the boards.”
Barbee reported that the total cost to construct the new weir and the berm near Carson Lake, as well as run the flood operations for the community is right at $4.6 million expended by the county. “The high point is with the weir we are able to flow 2,500 cubic feet per second through the V-line Canal, if necessary, with an additional 1,000 cfs in the river, creating maximum efficiency. With this in place there is no need to flood,” he said.
Barbee said the county is now, “focused heavily on getting reimbursed for what is now a BOR structure that is utilized under the operation and guidance of TCID.” He said in the best case there will be full reimbursement, but at this point, BOR has not acknowledged their request. “We will be invoicing our federal partners by the end of the week,” he said.
In other business during the commission meeting, commissioners approved an agreement with Quality Inn that would provide 60 rooms at $99 per night to be used in the case of a flood event that displaces any residents. Shannon Ernst, director of Social Services said that this would temporarily serve 60 families and would be used rather than activating a shelter at the Rafter 3-C or the Convention Center.
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