Agenda - 04-13-2010 - 3 - Laserfiche WebLink

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• 2 has held a 1 MGD Level II allocation since 1988. Level I allocations are provided based on 20- year water need projections and when withdrawals are planned to begin within five years of obtaining an allocation. Level II allocations are made based on longer term needs of up to 30 years. Attachment 2 lists the jurisdictions and utilities which currently have Jordan Lake water supply allocations. The JLP formerly asked the Environmental Management Commission (EMC) to re-open the water supply allocation process in late 2009. DWR held a Public Information Meeting concerning Round 4 of the Jordan Lake Water Supply Storage Allocation process on February 24, 2010. At this meeting, DWR staff discussed the procedures they intend to follow during the allocation request process. DWR requested potential applicants for Jordan Lake water to submit a "Letter of Interest" by April 1, 2010. This "Letter of Interest" does not represent a commitment to obtaining an allocation or to using water from Jordan Lake, rather it is to identify potential applicants and assist with the basin water supply planning process. Information on the Jordan Lake Allocation process and Orange County's Allocation Request are provided in Attachment 3. DWR anticipates that the allocation process could continue through late-2012, longer if InterBasin Transfer (IBT) certificates are needed. A number of steps remain to be completed prior to allocation, as shown in the attachment. These include re-examining the safe yield'of Jordan Lake, climate change impacts, and updating the Cape Fear Basin Hydrologic Model. County staff have been working with the Triangle J Council of Governments (TJCOG) to develop basic information about a future Orange County allocation request. As previously stated, the County has held a 1 MGD allocation for Jordan Lake water since 1988. Since Orange County does not own or operate a water system, nor does it plan to do so, any delivery of Jordan Lake water to residents of the County must occur through a partner utility. Several potential partners exist: the City of Durham, the Towns of Hillsborough and Mebane, the Orange Water and Sewer Authority (OWASA) and the Orange-Alamance Water System (OAWS). DWR has requested water demand estimates from applicants which project through 2060. DWR is also planning on having workshops after April 2010 at which it will present allocation application information. Draft County projections developed to date may be found in Attachment 4. FINANCIAL IMPACT: The following costs are anticipated to be incurred by Orange County for the development and submittal of an application in support of the fourth round of the Jordan Lake Water Supply Allocation process: • Regional water supply plan: $1,682 • Jordan Lake allocation application: $2,951 • Update of the Cape Fear Basin Hydrologic Model: $1,136 to $4,545.45 If needed, an Interbasin Transfer Certificate (IBT) would be necessary for transfers of more than 2 MGD of water from one river basin to another, in this case potentially from the Cape Fear basin (where Jordan lake is located) to the Neuse basin. The preparation of an IBT can be extremely expensive, potentially into six figures. As a reminder, the outcome of an IBT application is not guaranteed since DWR can reject or approve the request for the transfer of water.