About Yuba Water Agency

Yuba Water Agency is a stand-alone public agency governed by a board of seven elected officials to serve the people of Yuba County. Established by a special act of the California State Legislature in 1959, the agency’s primary missions are flood risk reduction, water supply reliability, fish habitat protection and enhancement, hydroelectric generation, and recreation at New Bullards Bar.

Today, Yuba Water Agency owns and operates facilities with a capacity of storing approximately one million acre-feet of water and generating more than 400 megawatts of hydropower. Each year, Yuba Water Agency releases more than 260,000 acre-feet of water to eight irrigation districts that convey the water to local farmers and ranchers in Yuba County.

Collaborative Efforts

As a leader in water transfers, efficient water management and fisheries restoration, the agency is involved in many collaborative efforts with local, state and federal agencies, and conservation groups. In 2009, Yuba Water Agency received the Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award (GEELA) for the Lower Yuba River Accord. Presented to the agency by Arnold Schwarzenegger, the GEELA is California’s highest and most prestigious environmental honor.

History

Yuba Water Agency was established in 1959 to reduce flood risk and provide a sustainable water supply for the people of Yuba County. Yuba County has historically endured devastating floods, due in part to Gold Rush-era hydraulic mining practices that washed millions of cubic yards of debris into the Yuba River, raising the riverbed and increasing the flood risk.

As gold mining gave way to farming and ranching, water users south of the Yuba River overdrafted the aquifer, causing dramatic declines in groundwater levels. To resolve these problems, Yuba Water Agency proposed the Yuba River Development Project, a multipurpose flood control, water and power project that was approved in 1961. In 1966, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a license for the project, and Yuba Water Agency completed construction in 1970.