Inventory of the Records of the California Central Valleys Flood Control Association

Processed by Jessica M. Herrick

California State Archives

1020 "O" Street

Sacramento, California 95814

Phone: (916) 653-2246

Fax: (916) 653-7363

Email: archivesweb@sos.ca.gov

URL: http://www.sos.ca.gov/archives/

Inventory of the Records of the California Central Valleys Flood Control Association

Collection number: C103

California State Archives

Office of the Secretary of State

Sacramento, California

Processed by:: Jessica M. Herrick
Date Completed:: December 1, 2007
Encoded by:: Jessica M. Herrick

Descriptive Summary

Title: Records of the California Central Valleys Flood Control Association

Dates: 1926-1981

Collection number: C103

Creator: California Central Valleys Flood Control Association

Creator: Flood Control Association of Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers System

Creator: Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee

Creator: Sacramento River and Delta Water Association

Creator: Sacramento River and Delta Water Committee

Creator: Delta Water Agency

Creator: Delta Counties Consulting Board

Creator: North Delta Area Water Quality Committee

Extent: 17 cubic feet of textual records, and 18 maps.

Repository: California State Archives

Sacramento, California

Abstract: The California Central Valleys Flood Control Association (CCVFCA) records consist of 17 cubic feet of records and 18 maps created and collected by the CCVFCA, its predecessor, related committees, and affiliated groups. The records are arranged into 24 series. The bulk of the records in this collection were created in the 1950s and 1960s. The collection documents the efforts of the CCVFCA, composed of individual landowners, irrigation districts, reclamation districts, drainage districts, and others, in working with federal and state agencies for the construction, operation, and maintenance of a Central Valley flood control system. The CCVFCA also took an interest in water rights, area of origin issues, water diversion and use, and water quality issues.

Physical location: California State Archives

Languages: Languages represented in the collection: English

Administrative Information

Access

While the majority of the records are open for research, any access restrictions are noted in the record series descriptions.

Publication Rights

For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the California State Archives. Permission for reproduction or publication is given on behalf of the California State Archives as the owner of the physical items. The researcher assumes all responsibility for possible infringement which may arise from reproduction or publication of materials from the California State Archives collections.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], California Central Valleys Flood Control Association Records, C103.[series number], [box /folder number], California State Archives, Office of the Secretary of State, Sacramento, California.

Acquisition and Custodial History

The California Central Valley Flood Control Association donated the records to the California State Archives in 1996.

Agency History

The California Central Valleys Flood Control Association (CCVFCA) began its existence as the Flood Control Association of Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers System (FCA) in 1926. Various private interests formed the FCA in order to promote Central Valley flood control issues with both the state and federal governments, as stated in Article II of the FCA's Articles of Association:

This association is organized for the following purposes:

(a) To keep before the National Government, and particularly before the National Congress, the established and recognized principle that control of the flood waters of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers and their tributaries is a national problem which must be financed by the United States Government in co-operation with local interests; and to endeavor to secure from time to time an equitable distribution of the cost of such flood control between the National Government, the State Government, and the lands subject to benefit from such control. (b) To secure through the executive and legislative branches of the United States and the State of California adequate annual appropriations to continue the construction and maintenance of works to control the flood waters of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers and their tributaries....

The Central Valley's history of devastating floods led the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' California Debris Commission (CDC) to develop plans for a levee and bypass flood control system in the Sacramento River watershed, called the Sacramento Flood Control Project (also known as the Sacramento River Flood Control Project). Assessments of landowners supplemented by monies from both the state and federal governments were to fund the construction and maintenance of the Project. In 1911, the California Legislature adopted a Flood Control Act formally approving the CDC's plan and creating a State Reclamation Board to supervise such reclamation activities across the state. The federal government endorsed the Project in 1917 as part of the first national Flood Control Act.

Although construction on the Sacramento Flood Control Project began almost immediately, activity slowed in the 1920s. American farming entered a depression early in this decade, initiated by drastic decreases in farm prices after World War I. As a result, landowners could not afford to pay the large assessments imposed by the state to cover the soaring construction costs of the Project. State and federal negotiations ensued, in order to re-evaluate a means of funding the Project. In 1926, various Central Valley landowners decided that they needed an organization designed specifically to lobby for, and safeguard private interests in, the development, construction, and financing of a flood control system on the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers. They created the FCA.

Membership in the FCA consisted of reclamation, levee, and drainage districts in the watersheds of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers; landowners outside such districts but within the watershed; and the cities of Sacramento and Stockton. The governing body consisted of a Board of Directors elected biennially by the Association's constituents. By 1929, 43 districts had joined the FCA, with a total area of 725,027 acres. The FCA levied assessments on its members periodically, financing the activities of the Association in promoting the position of private interests in regard to flood control. Such activities included monitoring state and federal legislation that impacted flood control projects and cooperating with state, federal, and local government agencies (like the State Reclamation Board) in the planning and construction of flood control works. The Great Depression took its toll on Central Valley landowners however, and by 1933 the activities of the financially struggling FCA had virtually ceased.

Interest in the Association revived in the late 1930s. In 1938, representatives of various reclamation, flood control, levee, and drainage districts met to organize a new association. Although they adopted Articles of Association very similar to those of the FCA, the representatives chose a different name for the new organization: the California Central Valleys Flood Control Association (CCVFCA), by which it was known until the mid-1970s. After that time, the organization took on its current name, the California Central Valley Flood Control Association.

The CCVFCA concentrated most of its efforts upon flood control issues surrounding the Sacramento River watershed. Since its inception, the CCVFCA has worked closely with federal, state, and local government agencies as well as its constituents to promote the development, construction, and maintenance of effective flood control systems integrated with the numerous irrigation and other water projects constructed throughout the Central Valley, such as the Central Valley Project (CVP) and the State Water Project. The Association has taken a close interest in various issues regarding the Sacramento and San Joaquin Delta, as well as the water rights of its members. Currently, the CCVFCA has 75 members, consisting primarily of reclamation, drainage, and levee districts.

At times throughout its existence, the CCVFCA developed committees to deal with specific issues, or made arrangements with like-minded organizations, some of the records of which are included in this collection. These records are described below as subgroups of the CCVFCA collection. These subgroups include: Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee (1942-1960); Sacramento River and Delta Water Association (1950-1970); Sacramento River and Delta Water Committee (1970-1972); Delta Water Agency (1963-1971); Delta Counties Consulting Board (1961-1966); and North Delta Area Water Quality Committee (1974-1981).

Scope and Content

The California Central Valleys Flood Control Association (CCVFCA) records consist of 17 cubic feet of records and 18 maps created and collected by the CCVFCA, its predecessor, related committees, and affiliated groups. The records are arranged into 24 series. The bulk of the records in this collection were created in the 1950s and 1960s. The collection documents the efforts of the CCVFCA, composed of individual landowners, irrigation districts, reclamation districts, drainage districts, and others, in working with federal and state agencies for the construction, operation, and maintenance of a Central Valley flood control system. The CCVFCA also took an interest in water rights, area of origin issues, water diversion and use, and water quality issues, especially in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s when the massive federal Central Valley Project and the State Water Plan were implemented.

The earlier records of the CCVFCA, including those of its predecessor the FCA, deal primarily with flood control issues in the 1930s and 1940s. Series C103.01 through C103.04, as well as Series C103.07, includes records regarding flood control project works planning, operation, and maintenance. After most of the initial construction work on the Sacramento River Flood Control Project had been completed, the CCVFCA turned its attention to other water issues affecting its members. At this point, a major division in the records is apparent: records dealing with the Sacramento River above the City of Sacramento and records pertaining to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

Those records regarding the Sacramento River and its tributaries appear in Series C103.05 through C103.16, C103.18, C103.19, and C103.024, and include records of the CCVFCA, the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee, and the Sacramento River and Delta Water Association. When the federal government began full-scale operation of the Central Valley Project, many landowners and districts in the Sacramento Valley felt that their present and future water rights were threatened by diversions to the San Joaquin Valley. Many of these records focus on protests to and other issues surrounding applications by the United States Bureau of Reclamation for the appropriation of water in the Sacramento River system. The Bureau, as well as the California Division of Water Resources (later Department of Water Resources), undertook several studies of water rights, water diversion and use, land use, and water quality along the Sacramento River. These studies, and the data that contributed to them, are often included in these records. Most of this work was done in the 1950s and 1960s, when federal and state agencies were negotiating water use contracts with many of these landowners and districts.

The records pertaining to the Delta appear in Series C103.05, C103.07, and C103.13 through C103.024. Most of these records date to the mid-1960s and early 1970s, when negotiations began in earnest between Delta landowners and federal and state governments over water diversion from the Delta. The CCVFCA and affiliated groups (such as the Sacramento River and Delta Water Association, Sacramento River and Delta Water Committee, Delta Water Agency, Delta Counties Consulting Board, and North Delta Area Water Quality Committee) participated in these negotiations. Water rights was only one of the topics discussed in regard to the Delta - also of interest for the parties involved were issues of water quality, salinity intrusion, flood control issues specific to the Delta communities, and area of origin concerns over the protection of both present and future water needs. The State Water Rights Board (later, the State Water Resources Control Board) held several hearings regarding the Delta in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Background information to the decisions subsequently reached by the State boards is included in this collection.

Most of the major issues facing Central Valley water users in the mid-twentieth century are addressed by records in this collection: flood control, water rights, water quality, water use and diversion, irrigation, and the friction between landowners, local districts, and municipal, state, and federal government agencies. Researchers are also encouraged to review the records of the California Water Commission, State Reclamation Board, State Water Rights Board, and Department of Water Resources at the California State Archives for additional information on these topics.

Accruals

No further accruals are expected.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

California Central Valleys Flood Control Association

Water rights

Water Management

Central Valley (Calif.)

Irrigation water

Sacramento San Joaquin Delta

Floods California

Sacramento River (Calif.)

Related Material at the California State Archives

California Water Commission Records

Department of Water Resources Records

State Reclamation Board Records

State Water Rights Board Records

Records of the Flood Control Association of Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers System (FCA) 1926-1936

C103.001, Box 1, folders 1-21

Series 1 Administrative Files 1926-1936

Physical Description: 21 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject heading.

Scope and Content Note

Correspondence, memoranda, notices, resolutions, newspaper clippings, bulletins, meeting transcripts, and other record types are found in this series, which primarily documents the FCA's activities in the promotion of flood control issues before both state and federal governments on behalf of its members; membership recruiting; and member services. The FCA furnished information to its members about pending flood control legislation and its potential impact upon flood control projects, and worked closely with landowners and government officials to help plan, build, and maintain an effective flood control system in the Sacramento watershed. Topics include the proceedings of the Board of Directors; formation of the FCA; membership solicitation, dues, and applications; financial data; general meetings; monthly bulletins provided to its members; and correspondence to and from the FCA secretary.

C103.002, Box 1, folder 22-Box 2, folder 5

Series 2 Special Committee on New Construction Files. 1929-1933

Physical Description: 9 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.

Scope and Content Note

This series contains memoranda, correspondence, reports, and minutes of meetings pertaining to the activities of the FCA's Special Committee on New Construction. The series also contains some documents pertaining to the FCA's Legislative Committee. The FCA created the Special Committee on New Construction in 1929, to represent the interests of FCA members in the construction of the Sacramento Flood Control Project. The topics therefore include the planning and construction of various flood control works in the Sacramento Valley. Additionally, the Committee worked closely with both state and federal government agencies, examining flood control expenditures and assessments, and disseminating information regarding the same to the FCA's constituents. Such records are also included in this series. The Committee members often visited new construction sites to monitor the progress of the Project, and also solicited information from the Association's members in regard to potential new projects.

Records of the California Central Valleys Flood Control Association (CCVFCA) 1938-1977

C103.003, Box 2, folders 6-23

Series 1 Administrative Files 1939-1965

Physical Description: 18 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject heading.

Scope and Content Note

This series contains information regarding the administration of the CCVFCA. Files have financial records, membership records, reports to the members about the Association's activities, memoranda, and correspondence. Some correspondence of the Board of Directors is included, as are records regarding membership solicitation and dues, and Executive Committee and Executive Secretary correspondence regarding the administration of the Association and its activities.

C103.004, Box 2, folders 24-29

Series 2 Meeting Files 1938-1946

Physical Description: 6 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by type of meeting, and chronologically thereunder.

Scope and Content Note

This series includes the records of meetings either held or attended by the CCVFCA in the first decade of its existence, such as annual meetings, meetings of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee, general meetings, and meetings regarding specific subjects such as flood control or the Upper Sacramento River. The files include minutes and transcripts of meetings, correspondence, press releases, background materials, newspaper clippings, and meeting notifications. Topics include the planning, construction, and maintenance of flood control works; disbursement of state, federal, and local monies for construction activities; reports on membership; project status; and the activities of the CCVFCA in promoting the interests of its members before the state and federal governments.

C103.005, Box 2, folder 30-Box 4 folder 2

Series 3 Subject Files 1939-1977

Physical Description: 31 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject heading.

Scope and Content Note

Subject Files contain memoranda, correspondence, reports, hearing agendas, background material, and newspaper clippings. The materials cover a variety of issues relating to flood control, water rights, water quality, and water use. Several files pertain to flood control project planning, including correspondence with state and federal agencies responsible for construction activities, as well as the comments of various counties and districts on flood control works. In addition, many of these records regard water-planning activities impacting the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (such as plans for the Delta Cross Channel, the Delta-Mendota Canal and Pool, and Delta levees). Bank protection, levee maintenance, and the navigability of the Sacramento River are also topics that appear.

For a complete list of subject headings, see Appendix A in Additional Series Information.

Additional Series Information

Appendix A: List of Subject Files

C103.006, Box 4, folders 3-12

Series 4 Sacramento River Water Quality Study Files 1968-1973

Physical Description: 10 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject heading.

Scope and Content Note

These files include memoranda, correspondence, interim reports, and background material related to the Sacramento River Water Quality Study. In the late 1960s, the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board proposed a water quality control policy for the Sacramento River between the City of Sacramento and Keswick Dam. Concerns over the proposed policy's impact on agricultural development in the region led to a special water quality study of the river, conducted by the Department of Water Resources acting in cooperation with local agencies, the Regional Water Quality Control Board, and the State Water Resources Control Board. This series concerns the CCVFCA and their close work with the Department of Water Resources in both funding the study and collecting water quality data from various local agencies and districts, from the study's inception in 1969 through the early 1970s.

C103.007 Box 4, folder 13-Box 5, folder 22

Series 5 State Agency Files 1946-1977

Physical Description: 33 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by name of state agency, and chronologically thereunder.

Scope and Content Note

This series includes correspondence, memoranda, reports, minutes of meetings, background material, newspaper clippings, and other records pertaining to the relationship and interaction of CCVFCA with various state agencies. Topics include flood control, water rights, water use and diversion, and other water-related issues. The majority of the files concern the State Reclamation Board (1946-1977), the Department of Water Resources (1957-1977), and the California Water Commission (1967-1979). Other agencies include the Division of Water Resources, State Lands Commission, State Water Resources Board, State Water Resources Control Board, and the State Water Rights Board.

C103.008, Box 6, folders 1-15

Series 6 United States Bureau of Reclamation Reports 1952-1958

Physical Description: 15 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged in order of report area number, as defined by the United States Bureau of Reclamation.

Scope and Content Note

This series contains reports of the United States Bureau of Reclamation, USBR during that agency's investigations of historical water diversion and use in the Sacramento Valley during the 1950s. The Bureau's "American River Service Area Investigations" - downstream of Folsom Dam - and the "Sacramento River Service Area Investigations" - spanning the Sacramento River from what is now West Sacramento upstream to Redding - reports can include information in text, map, and table format, regarding water rights applications, permits and licenses; irrigation water use and irrigation facilities; flood control and drainage operations; land classification and use; and agricultural development.

In the early 1950s, the USBR entered into a contract with the California Department of Public Works, whereby the Department's Division of Water Resources would compile and furnish to the USBR information regarding water rights, appropriation, diversion, and use records for the Sacramento River watershed. The USBR was about to start full-scale operation of the Central Valley Project, CVP, designed to provide sufficient irrigation water for the San Joaquin Valley by diverting from the Sacramento River watershed and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The Bureau needed information regarding historical water diversions and water use from the Sacramento River watershed to operate the project in a manner that would not injure present water users.

The CCVFCA altered its Articles of Association in 1949, declaring that its purposes included the protection and preservation of water rights owned, controlled, or administered by its members, and the protection of the interests of its members in the development of present and future water resources in the Sacramento River watershed. As a result, the CCVFCA took a large interest in the activities of the USBR in constructing and operating the CVP.

Records of the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee 1942-1960

Scope and Content Note

The CCVFCA created the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee in the early 1950s, in order to represent the interests of local landowners in the planning and operation of the massive federal CVP. The project was designed to divert water from the Sacramento and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta watersheds to provide for irrigation in the San Joaquin Valley. The federal government, acting through the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR), filed applications with the State to appropriate water from the Sacramento River watershed for use in the CVP (as per the California Water Commission Act, Cal. Statutes 1913 Chapter 586, which requires potential water appropriators to file an application to appropriate with the State of California). Landowners in the region, via the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee, protested these applications, seeking to impose various conditions and limitations on the use of the water.

Rather than enter into lengthy litigation proceedings over these issues, the USBR, the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee, and the State of California (represented by the Division of Water Resources, Department of Public Works, and the Attorney General) signed a "Memorandum of Understanding" in 1952. The parties agreed to enter into a process of negotiation with a minimum of formal proceedings in order to allocate the water of the Sacramento River watershed in an equitable manner, to allow the CVP to operate without harming other water users. Most of the records of the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee relate to these negotiations. The Committee operated until 1954. In that year, its functions were taken over by a new organization, the Sacramento River and Delta Water Association.

C103.009, Box 6, folders 16-20

Series 1 Administrative Files 1951-1954

Physical Description: 4 file folders and one volume.

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject heading.

Scope and Content Note

This series pertains to the administration of the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee, such as funding the committee's actions; attendance at meetings and conferences; and review of proposed legislation. Files contain correspondence, memoranda, meeting minutes, background information, and reports. Also included is a bound volume containing the agreements that were made between the USBR and various landowners, irrigation districts, levee districts, and others for the trial distribution of water in the Sacramento River during 1954.

C103.010, Box 6, folders 21-24

Series 2 Application Files 1951-1954

Physical Description: 4 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged numerically by Application Number as assigned by the State of California.

Scope and Content Note

These files contain information related to the applications filed by the USBR with the State of California to appropriate waters from the Sacramento River, Rock Slough, and Old River, for use in the CVP. These included Application Numbers 5625, 5626, 9363, 9364, 9365, 9366, 9367, 9368, and 10588 (the Application Numbers were assigned by the California's Division of Water Resources, which at that time had jurisdiction over water rights). The files contain correspondence, memoranda, protest documents, copies of the USBR's applications to appropriate water, and contract documents between landowners and the Committee. Sacramento Valley landowners and water districts, represented by the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee, protested these applications in an attempt to impose various conditions and limitations on the use of the water. The landowners sought to protect their existing water rights, as well as their potential future water requirements. This series includes the contracts drawn up by various landowners and districts authorizing the attorneys of the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee (in the persons of Stephen W. Downey and Martin McDonough) to file protests to the applications on their behalf, and also pledging financial support for any actions taken by the Committee in said protests. The formal protests by the landowners to the State Engineer are included in this series as well.

C103.011, Box 7, folders 1-11

Series 3 Correspondence 1942-1954

Physical Description: 11 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject, and chronologically thereunder.

Scope and Content Note

This series primarily contains correspondence between the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee and its members, state agencies, irrigation and levee districts, and others. Much of the correspondence relates to the protests against the applications of the USBR to appropriate waters of the Sacramento River watershed. Of particular note are five file folders that contain what the Committee entitled "Sacramento River Negotiations: Compilation of the More Important Correspondence and Memoranda," dating from 1952 to 1954. These files also contain reports, meeting minutes, and other background material to the negotiations.

C103.012, Box 7, folder 12-Box 10, folder 31

Series 4 Water Use and Diversion Reports 1951-1960

Physical Description: 112 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged numerically according to number of the report as assigned by the California Division of Water Resources. Alphabetical index by name of water user is available in Box 7/12.

Scope and Content Note

This series consists of the California Division of Water Resources' "Sacramento Valley Water Utilization: Preliminary Reports on Diversions," prepared to fulfill its contractual obligation to supply information to the USBR regarding historical water rights, use, and diversion on the Sacramento River watershed. These reports contain information in textual, map, and table form, regarding historical water diversions; applications to appropriate water; parties in interest to said water; diversion works; distribution systems; records of use; and area of use of the water. The files also include some of the reports ultimately compiled by the USBR based on said data (the Bureau's "Sacramento River Service Area Investigation" reports - see also Series C103.08).

The California Department of Public Works signed a contract with the USBR in 1950 that required the Division of Water Resources to submit a separate report for each water diversion on the Sacramento River and its tributaries north of the Tower Bridge in the City of Sacramento. The reports were to include information regarding water appropriations since 1914 and water diversions since 1924, to assist the Bureau in developing a water use plan for the CVP. The CCVFCA, through the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee, provided its various members with the preliminary reports of the Division of Water Resources, requesting that each member ensure that the data regarding water diversion, use, and water rights was accurate.

Records of the Sacramento River and Delta Water Association 1934-1971

Scope and Content Note

Various members of the CCVFCA's Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee requested the creation of an independent entity to succeed to the duties of the Committee in negotiating water rights and use contracts with the USBR in regard to the CVP. As a result, the Sacramento River and Delta Water Association (SRDWA) was formed in 1954 as a voluntary, nonprofit organization independent of the CCVFCA. Upon the formation of the SRDWA, the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee became inactive.

The SRDWA continued the work of the Committee in representing numerous landowners, irrigation, reclamation and levee districts, and others in negotiations over the distribution and use of the waters of the Sacramento River watershed and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Members of the Sacramento Valley Water Users Committee became members of the SRDWA simply by filing a declaration of adherence to the new organization's Articles of Agreement. The Association levied assessments on its members to finance its negotiation and administrative costs. To keep said costs as reasonable as possible, the Association made arrangements with the CCVFCA whereby the two organizations shared office space, personnel (for instance, John M. Luther acted as manager of the SRDWA as well as secretary for the CCVFCA for many years), and overhead costs, while paying separately for special services such as engineering and legal representation (attorneys Stephen W. Downey and Martin McDonough served both organizations).

One of the major activities of the SRDWA was to file and pursue protests to the applications made by the USBR for appropriating water from the Sacramento River and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The Association also represented its members in various hearings before the California State Water Rights Board (later the State Water Resources Control Board) regarding these applications. Many of the records in the subgroup pertain to the negotiations, applications to appropriate water, and the water hearings.

The SRDWA had successfully negotiated contracts for water rights, use, and diversion for its members above the City of Sacramento by 1965. Work to achieve similar contracts for its Delta members continued through the 1960s. The Association supported the passage of the Delta Water Agency Act (Cal Statutes 1968 Chapter 419), which created the Delta Water Agency. This new agency took over the duties of the SRDWA in regard to the negotiation of contracts between the Delta landowners and the USBR. As a result, the members of the SRDWA and the CCVFCA determined that the SRDWA was no longer necessary. In 1970 what few duties remained to the Association were transferred back to the CCVFCA, which established the Sacramento River and Delta Water Committee to succeed to the assets and activities of the Association.

C103.013, Box 11, folders 1-16

Series 1 Administrative Files 1950-1964

Physical Description: 16 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject heading.

Scope and Content Note

The administrative files of the Sacramento River and Delta Water Association (SRDWA) contain correspondence, memoranda, reports, maps, membership lists, resolutions, contracts, newspaper clippings, and other background materials regarding its Articles of Agreement and bylaws; the Board of Directors; membership solicitation, assessments, dues, and communications; correspondence and sample forms regarding water contracts; and some records of its Committees on By-Laws and Ways and Means.

C103.014, Box 11, folders 17-25

Series 2 Meeting Files 1954-1970

Physical Description: 9 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by type of meeting, and chronologically thereunder.

Scope and Content Note

Meeting Files include meeting minutes and agendas from the Board of Directors (1954-1958) and the Executive Committee (1954-1970), as well as correspondence, resolutions, information on expenditures, and memoranda regarding the topics to be addressed at these meetings (such as the applications of the USBR relating to water diversions for the CVP). Additionally, this series includes materials from several occasions when representatives of the CCVFCA appeared before various legislative committees or state agencies (such as the State Water Rights Board) to promote the interests of its members in the equitable distribution of the waters of the Sacramento River and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (see the folders labeled Miscellaneous Meetings and Conferences, 1955-1958).

C103.015, Box 11, folder 26-Box 12, folder 67

Series 3 Member Files 1957-1971

Physical Description: 84 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by name of member.

Scope and Content Note

Member Files contain water use, diversion, and rights information regarding each SRDWA member; correspondence between the SRDWA and its members; and membership dues information. SRDWA members included reclamation districts, levee districts, drainage districts, landowners, and others that owned or had an interest in property along the Sacramento River and in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. In 1962, in preparation for hearings before the State Water Rights Board, the SRDWA sent questionnaires to all of its members asking for data regarding the location of the member's property (often in the form of a map), water rights claimed by the members, irrigation information, and crop use. These questionnaires are often included in the member files.

C103.016, Box 12, folder 68-Box 13, folder 8

Series 4 Subject Files 1943-1980

Physical Description: 15 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject heading.

Scope and Content Note

This series contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, meeting and hearing agendas and minutes, resolutions, contracts, and other background information in regard to a variety of subjects in which the SRDWA took an interest. A full list of subject headings is available in Appendix B in Additional Series Information. Topics of note include the hearings before the State Water Rights Board in regard to water diversion from the American River in the 1950s; the Iron Canyon Project on the upper Sacramento River proposed by the United States Army Corps of Engineers; and Sacramento Superior Court Case Number 126 921, SRDWA et al vs. California Water Commission, in which the SRDWA sought the issuance of a writ of mandate to the California Water Commission, to force the Commission to deny approval of various changes in CVP water diversions requested by the USBR in 1960.

Additional Series Information

Appendix B: List of Subject Files

C103.017, Box 13, folder 9-Box 14, folder 8

Series 5 Delta Files 1934-1968

Physical Description: 25 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject heading.

Scope and Content Note

This series contains correspondence, memoranda, reports, studies, newspaper clippings, maps, and other background materials related to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Many members of the SRDWA owned or had an interest in property within the boundaries of the Delta. The SRDWA subsequently took a keen interest in water diversion, water use, and water rights issues regarding the Delta. Many of the records in this series pertain to the negotiations between SRDWA and the USBR over the distribution of Delta waters. Other files include information regarding Delta water quality; salinity; flood control issues; development of the Peripheral Canal; and correspondence with both the California Department of Water Resources and the USBR. A full list of folder headings is available in Appendix C in Additional Series Information.

Additional Series Information

Appendix C: List of Delta Files

C103.018, Box 14, folder 9-Box 16, folder 14

Series 6 Application Files 1954-1971

Physical Description: 50 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged numerically by Application Number as assigned by the State of California.

Scope and Content Note

One of the primary functions of the SRDWA was to provide an organization through which landowners could protest the applications of the USBR and other entities to appropriate the waters of the Sacramento River and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. This series consists of the files kept by SRDWA regarding these applications. A full list of folder headings is located in Appendix D in Additional Series Information. The folders contain correspondence, memoranda, copies of the applications and protests thereto, water use and diversion data, maps, State Water Rights Board decisions (later the State Water Resources Control Board), reports to the SRDWA members about the activities of the Association, and other materials relating to the applications. Files pertaining to the applications of the USBR make up the majority of the series, including Application Numbers 23, 234, 1465, 5817-5822, and 9369 (San Joaquin River); 5625, 5626, 9363-9368, and 10588 (Sacramento River); 15764, 20245, and 21542 (Old River); 18115 and 19451 (Stony Creek); 18721-18723, 21636, and 21637 (American River); 19303-19305 (Stanislaus River); 19812 (American and Sacramento rivers); 20713 and 20714 (Dry Creek and Yuba River); 21835 (Cosumnes River, Sutter and Dry creeks); and 22648 and 22649 (Sacramento River, Funks Creek, Stone Corral Creek, Oat Creek, and Union Creek). The series also includes information regarding those applications filed by the California Department of Water Resources in support of the State Water Project in the 1960s (such as Application Numbers 5629, 5630, 14443, 14444, 14445A, 17514A, and 17515A, for Feather River, Sacramento River Delta, Italian Slough, and Lindsey Slough waters).

Additional Series Information

Appendix D: List of Application Files

Records of the Sacramento River and Delta Water Committee 1970-1972

Scope and Content Note

The Sacramento River and Delta Water Association (SRDWA) negotiated contracts for water rights, use, and diversion for its members above the City of Sacramento by 1965. Work to achieve similar contracts for its Delta members continued through the 1960s. The Association supported the passage of the Delta Water Agency Act (Cal Statutes 1968 Chapter 419), which created the Delta Water Agency. This new agency took over the duties of the SRDWA in regard to the negotiation of contracts between the Delta landowners and the USBR. As a result, the members of the SRDWA and the CCVFCA determined that the SRDWA was no longer necessary. In 1970 what few duties remained to the Association were transferred back to the CCVFCA, which established the Sacramento River and Delta Water Committee to succeed to the assets and activities of the Association.

C103.019, Box 16, folder 15

Series 1 Correspondence 1970-1972

Physical Description: 1 file folder

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.

Scope and Content Note

This series contains correspondence, memoranda, meeting minutes, reports, letters to CCVFCA members, and background information regarding water diversion and use along the Sacramento River and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in the early 1970s. Many of the documents pertain to the Committee's activities in regard to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Hearings before the State Water Resources Control Board.

Records of the Delta Water Agency 1963-1975

Scope and Content Note

The Delta Water Agency officially organized on January 23, 1969. The Agency was to negotiate agreements with the USBR and the State of California whereby any water diversions from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (for instance, for use in the CVP or State Water Plan) would be executed in a manner that both protected the water supply of the Delta from salinity intrusion, and also assured that Delta landowners would retain a sufficient supply of water to meet both present and future needs.

The Delta Water Agency made arrangements with the CCVFCA for joint use of office facilities and personnel funds. On February 13, 1970, the Agency formally began negotiations with the USBR and the California Department of Water Resources. It also took part in the Delta Water Rights hearings before the State Water Resources Control Board in the early 1970s (which resulted in the Board's Decision 1379). The Delta Water Agency terminated on December 31, 1973.

C103.020, Box 16, folders 16-29

Series 1 Administrative Files 1963-1975

Physical Description: 14 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject.

Scope and Content Note

This series contains records relating to the administration and activities of the Delta Water Agency, such as reports, correspondence, memoranda, water quality and quantity information, salinity data, meeting minutes, and other background information. Topics of note include the Agency's annual reports; correspondence to and from the Agency; meeting minutes and background information; and various reports regarding the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. A full list of subject headings can be found in Appendix E in Additional Series Information.

Additional Series Information

Appendix E: List of Administrative Files

Records of the Delta Counties Consulting Board 1961-1966

Scope and Content Note

The Delta Counties Consulting Board, organized in 1961, consisted of designated members of the Boards of Supervisors of the counties of Contra Costa, Merced, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Solano, Stanislaus, and Yolo. The Board met regularly with the USBR and other agencies responsible for the construction, operation, and maintenance of water works in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and the lower San Joaquin River, to represent the interests of the various Delta counties in maintaining water quality and quantity sufficient for the present and future needs of the counties.

C103.021, Box 17, folder 1

Series 1 Administrative File 1965-1966

Physical Description: 1 file folder

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.

Scope and Content Note

This file contains correspondence, memoranda, and reports regarding the activities of the Delta Counties Consulting Board in consulting with various federal, state, and local agencies. Topics include the Peripheral Canal, salinity intrusion, and other water quality issues.

C103.022, Box 17, folders 2-10

Series 2 Meeting Files 1961-1965

Physical Description: 9 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.

Scope and Content Note

The meeting files of the Delta Counties Consulting Board can include meeting agendas and minutes, correspondence, memoranda, reports, maps, charts, press releases, newspaper clippings, and other background information to topics discussed at the meetings. Said topics include Delta water quality, salinity intrusion, fish and wildlife, drainage issues, proposed legislation, resolutions, proposed plans for Delta development, and the Peripheral Canal.

Records of the North Delta Area Water Quality Committee 1974-1981

Scope and Content Note

The North Delta Water Agency created the North Delta Area Water Quality Committee in 1974, in response to amendments made in 1972 to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (known as the Clean Water Act). These amendments required that entities discharging agricultural waste into rivers and streams obtain a permit to discharge said waste under the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES). The permits placed limits on the amount of waste that each individual discharger could release into the waters of the state. Additionally, the State of California passed amendments to the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act (California Statutes 1972 Chapter 1256), which required the State Water Resources Control Board, via the Regional Water Quality Control Boards, to issue and oversee such pollution permits. The North Delta Area Water Quality Committee was formed to administer the compilation and submittal of a consolidated permit that would include all of its members.

The Committee represented an area of approximately 200,000 acres in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, including 29 districts and numerous individual landowners. It shared office space and overhead costs with the CCVFCA, to reduce operating expenses. The Committee levied assessments on its members to finance its activities in compiling the information necessary for the permit, which was eventually issued by the State Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Region (NPDES permit no. CA0080411). The Committee was disbanded in 1979.

C103.023, Box 17, folders 11-17

Series 1 Administrative Files 1965-1966

Physical Description: 7 file folders

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by subject, and chronologically thereunder.

Scope and Content Note

This series documents the administrative activities of the North Delta Area Water Quality Committee as it moved through the process of obtaining a National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit from the State Water Resources Control Board. Files can include correspondence; memoranda; contracts and other agreements made between the Committee and its constituents as well as other state and local agencies; reports; mailing lists; meeting minutes and agendas; and other types of records. Topics include waste discharge information and requirements; water quality investigations; and assessments to the members.

Maps 1942-1976

C103.024, Box 18-19

Series 1 Maps 1965-1966

Physical Description: 18 maps

Arrangement

Arranged chronologically.

Scope and Content Note

This series consists of 18 rolled maps collected or compiled by the CCVFCA in support of its activities regarding flood control, water rights, water use and diversion, and other water issues regarding its members. Each map is described below.

C103.024-1. 1 sheet. Base Map by California State Reclamation Board, "Map Showing Flowage Easement Areas in Flood Control Project of Sacramento River and Tributaries," Sheet 3 of 5 (1942). Additional markings by CCVFCA, label reads "Sacramento River Design Flood Flows."

C103.024-2. 1 sheet. Base Map by California State Reclamation Board, "Sacramento River Flood Control Project, Showing By-Passes, Levees and Reclamation Districts." Additional markings by CCVFCA show various state levee maintenance areas marked in red. Other markings indicate reclamation projects south of Chico. CCVFCA labels reads "Chico-Butte Basin Area" (circa 1950).

C103.024-3. 3 sheets. Base Maps: United States Geological Survey 7.5 Minute Topographic Maps "Arcade," "Carmichael," and "Sacramento East." Additional markings by CCVFCA show "Preliminary Flood Limits 21 Nov. 1950" sketched on each map in red. CCVFCA label reads "American River, Nov. 1950, Extent of Flooding."

C103.024-4. 1 sheet. Unknown author. "Proposed Boundaries for Sacramento River Water District" (1953).

C103.024-5. 27 sheets. Base Map by U.S. Army, Engineer Office, "Sacramento River California, From Sacramento to Collinsville" (1933). CCVFCA label reads: "Bank Protection Atlas, Memorandum of Understanding between U.S.A. and State of California" (1953).

C103.024-6. 7 sheets. Base Map United States Geological Survey 7.5 Minute Topographic Map "Antioch North Quadrangle" (circa 1954). Additional markings by unknown author are labeled "Sherman Island, Stage 1, Agricultural Water Replacement Facilities."

C103.024-7. 7 sheets. By CCVFCA (data taken from county assessor's maps), showing "Sacramento San Joaquin Delta 1955 Property Lines and Owners (approximate)."

C103.024-8. 1 sheet. By California State Reclamation Board, "Sacramento River Flood Control Project: Map Showing By-Passes, Levees and Reclamation Districts" (1958).

C103.024-9. 1 sheet. Base Map of unknown origin, with additional markings by SRDWA, labeled "Sacramento River and Delta Water Association Location of Members, SRDWA Exhibit No. 4" (circa 1959).

C103.024-10. 1 sheet (double-sided). By United States Department of Commerce, Coast and Geodetic Survey, "Sacramento River, Andrus Island to Sacramento," and "San Joaquin River" (1961).

C103.024-11. 1 sheet. By USBR, Region 2, "Delta Lowlands Service Area Investigations, Application, Permit, and License Data and Land Ownership, Report Area DL-6, Isleton to Antioch and Vicinity" Plate 3 (1963).

C103.024-12. 1 sheet. By USBR, Region 2, "Delta Lowlands Service Area Investigations, Application, Permit, and License Data and Land Ownership, Report Area DL-6, Isleton to Antioch and Vicinity" Plate 4 (1963).

C103.024-13. 22 sheets. By United States Army Engineer District, Corps of Engineers, Sacramento, California, "Sacramento and Feather River Levees, Aerial Mosaic" (incomplete set) (1964).

C103.024-14. 19 sheets. By United States Army Engineer District, Corps of Engineers, Sacramento, California, "Sacramento River and Bypasses and San Joaquin Delta, Aerial Mosaic" (incomplete set) (1964).

C103.024-15. 1 sheet. By California Department of Water Resources, "Plan of Development, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta" (1974).

C103.024-16. 1 sheet. By unknown author, Base Map: "Sacramento San Joaquin Delta." Additional Markings depict "Peripheral Canal," Route and Proposed Alternatives (circa 1975).

C103.024-17. 1 sheet. Base Map by United States Geological Survey, 7.5 Minute Topographical Survey maps, Delta Region. Additional Markings: "Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta" (circa 1975).

C103.024-18. 37 sheets. By North Delta Water Quality Committee, "NPDES Permit No. CA0080411, Phase I, Crop Maps" (1976).