The CVP Today

The CVP
serves farms, homes, and industry in California‘s
Central Valley as well as the major urban centers in the San Francisco Bay
Area; it is also the primary source of water for much of California‘s wetlands.

In addition
to delivering water for farms, homes, factories, and the environment, the CVP
produces electric power and provides flood protection, navigation, recreation,
and water quality benefits. While the facilities are spread out over hundreds
of miles, the project is financially and operationally integrated as a single
large water project.

The
CVP:

  • Reaches from the Cascade
    Mountains near Redding in the north some
    500 miles to the Tehachapi Mountains near Bakersfield in the south.
  • Is comprised of 20 dams and
    reservoirs, 11 powerplants, and 500 miles of major canal as well as
    conduits, tunnels, and related facilities.  
  • Annually delivers about 7
    million acre-feet for agriculture, urban, and wildlife use.  
  • Provides about 5 million
    acre-feet for farms — enough to irrigate about 3 million acres or
    approximately one-third of the agricultural land in California.  
  • Furnishes about 600,000 acre-feet for municipal
    and industrial use, enough to supply close to 1 million households with
    their water needs each year.

     

  • Dedicates 800,000 acre-feet per year to fish and
    wildlife and their habitat and 410,00 acre-feet to State and Federal
    wildlife refuges and wetlands pursuant to the Central Valley Project
    Improvement Act (CVPIA).

     

  • Generates 5.6 billion kilowatt hours of
    electricity annually to meet the needs of about 2 million people.

 

Source:  Mid-Pacific Region/Bureau of Reclamation; U.S.
Department of Interior

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