Overview
Engineering | Finance | Administrative
 The Chino Basin is one of the largest groundwater basins
in Southern California containing approximately 5,000,000
acre-feet of water and has an unused storage capacity of
approximately 1,000,000 acre-feet. The Chino Basin consists
of approximately 235 square miles of the upper Santa Ana
River watershed and lies within portions of San Bernardino,
Riverside, and Los Angeles counties. Approximately 5% of
the Chino Basin is located in Los Angeles County, 15% in
Riverside County, and 80% in San Bernardino County. The Chino
Basin is bounded by Cucamonga Basin and the San Gabriel Mountains
to the north, the Temescal Basin to the south, Chino Hills
and Puente Hills to the southwest, San Jose Hills, Pomona
and Claremont Basins on the northwest and the Rialto/Colton
Basins on the east. The legal boundaries of the Chino Basin
are defined in the Judgment.
The Chino Basin has a rapidly growing
population. As of August 1, 2001, the population of the Chino
Basin was approximately 1.2 million, and estimated to reach
approximately 1.6 million or more by 2020. Consequently,
the demand for water from the Chino Basin is expected to
continue to rise, and thus conservation and efficient use
of the Chino Basin water supply is crucial to meeting future
water demands. In the 1970s, Chino Basin water users became
concerned with increasing water production, a decreasing water supply and
declining water quality in the Chino Basin. By 1975, several major Chino
Basin water users and the State of California initiated studies of problems
allocating water rights within the Chino Basin, and began to negotiate a
solution. During negotiations, three pools of Chino Basin water users with
similar interests in the allocation of the Chino Basin emerged: (i) agricultural
users, including dairy farmers and the State of California (the "Agricultural
Pool"), (ii) industrial users (the "Non-Agricultural Pool"), and (iii) water
municipalities (the Appropriative Pool) and other government entities sometimes
collectively referred to herein as the "Pools" and each individually as a "Pool").
On January 2, 1975, several Chino Basin producers filed
suit in California State Superior Court for San Bernardino
County (the "Court") to settle the problem of allocating
water rights in the Chino Basin. On January 27, 1978, the
Court entered a judgment in "Chino Basin Municipal Water
District v. City of Chino et. al." adjudicating water rights
in the Chino Basin and establishing the Watermaster (the "Judgment").
The Watermaster is a Court created entity established pursuant
to the Judgment. The Judgment adjudicated all groundwater
rights in Chino Basin and contains a physical solution to
meet the requirements of water users having rights in or
dependent upon the Chino Basin. The judgment also appointed
the Watermaster to account for and implement the management
of the Chino Basin. The Judgment declared that the initial
operating safe yield of the Chino Basin is 145,000 acre feet
per year, which is allocated (i) 82,800 acre feet per year
to the Agricultural Pool, (ii) 7,366 acre feet per year to
the Non-Agricultural Pool, and (iii) 54,834 acre feet per
year to the Appropriative Pool.
Engineering
Watermaster continues to develop the Optimum Basin Management
Program (OBMP). Upon completion of the OBMP, specific tasks
and activities were assigned to Watermaster's legal and engineering
services to support Watermaster in the implementation of the
OBMP. The OBMP consists of nine key elements covering a wide-range
of water activity in the Basin. More...
Administrative
Watermaster Administration is based on day-to-day operations
and extensive communication to meet requirements of the judgment
and the court. The efficiency and effectiveness of daily operations
consist of staff resources to support the Watermaster Board,
Advisory Committee, Non-Agricultural Pool, Appropriative Pool,
and Agricultural Pool. In an effort to build and develop a
strong administrative foundation, Watermaster is required
to facilitate the appropriate supporting documentation referencing
all water activities involving Watermaster. More...
Finance
The main Source of Revenue for the Watermaster are Assessments.
The Watermaster levies and collects Administrative Assessments,
OBMP Assessments, and Replenishment Assessments.
Administrative Assessments are general administrative and special project expenses
incurred by Watermaster. These administrative expenses are allocated and assessed
to the respective pools based on allocations made by Watermaster. Special project
expenses are allocated to the specific pool by express assent and findings of
benefits by the applicable pool committee, or pursuant written order of the court.More...
Engineering | Finance | Administrative
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