By Don A. Wright
The Exchange Contractors board of directors met at its Los Banos headquarters on Friday, December 5, 2025. Director Canon Michael was calling it in and under the Brown Act that’s OK, as long as the location he’s calling from is noticed and available to the public. Also on the phone was Jeff Bryant, General Manager of the Firebaugh Canal Water District. Michael’s physical absence required a roll call vote for any items requiring action by the board.
The Meeting
President Chris Cardella kicked things off at 9:00am by asking Jarrett Martin, General Manager of the Central California Irrigation District to lead the pledge of allegiance. There were no changes or corrections to the agenda and the minutes from November were approved.
Executive Director Chris White said there is a gentleman with more than 30-years at Ex Con. He began working at Firebaugh Canal Water District for five-years before coming to Ex Con. He was the Executive Director before transitioning to Special Projects Director. There was a very warm round of applause for Steve Chedester. His wife and I believe son were present. I can confirm every good thing said about Steve. He is a true asset to the water community and I’m personally grateful for the kindness and friendship he’s shown me. Congratulations Steve.
Water Report
Adam Hoffman, Water Master, said demands are below 350 cubic feet per second and the releases from Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River should maintain about 150 cfs at Sac Dam. Shasta reservoir is looking good due to the recent rains. The federal side of San Luis Reservoir is increasing with better conditions due to the recent precipitation and low demand.
Hoffman said there’s about 13,000 cfs Delta inflow allowing for full pumping in November from the federal Jones Pumping Plant. This has dropped to one unit due to downstream repairs and a King Tide. There are no storms predicted in the next 10-days as a high-pressure ridge is pushing storms to the northwest.
Exec Direct Report
White said apparently there has been an agreement with both the federal government and California’s regulatory folks for improved operations in the Delta. This is a result of President Donald Trump’s executive orders to get more water to cities and farms. There will be a trip to Washington DC soon. So, that should be an interesting topic for discussion.
On the SGMA side things are looking good after the State Board’s more flexible actions in returning the Kaweah Subbasin back into the hands of the Department of Water Resources.
Martin reported the grant awards from the Exchange Contractor’s – Foundation? – I don’t recall the official name of the entity, but schools and public parks have both benefitted from funding.
Policies
Chedester reported the US Bureau of Reclamation is projecting the bypass fish ladder plan at 90-percent by February. Someone asked which year and of course it’s 2026. Come on, the Bureau has been locked out of its office by some Senators.
Chedester said the new deal in the Delta will have a positive impact on the Record of Decision. He also reported there has been an agreement with the firm MWD to do a groundwater study for the Water Blueprint for the San Joaquin Valley. There has been a bit of a holdup as the State Franchise Tax Board’s weighing in on the Blueprint’s exact nonprofit status, if I understood correctly. Also Blueprint related is the progress of the Unified Water Plan for the Valley. The California Water Institute housed at Fresno State University and Stantec Engineering are preparing this plan.
Goberment Mischief
Neil Young produced an album called “Rust Never Sleeps” and neither does the government. Even with shutdowns and legislative recesses one must be ever vigilant. Dave Corey got to report some positive and perhaps even hopeful news. And, he doesn’t say this often, but the recent meeting of the Nitrogen Expert Panel went very well. He had good things to say about the panel members and they seemed to understand agriculture’s unique situation and were receptive to the plans presented to them. Hopefully, this will result in flexibility rather than a one size fits all, top-down list of regulations from the State Water Resources Control Board’s staff.
Legislative Report
White said on the ballooning tracking on the state budget is in the packet. There was an op-ed authored by Congressman Adam Grey regarding water supplies and infrastructure which appeared in The Hill last month.
Attorney’s Report
Andy McClure participated remotely and said the City of Fresno case will go to conference on December 12th and the case could be accepted, denied or go to another conference. The court considers 6,000 petitions per year.
He said the appellate review on the Del Puerto case’s attorney fees is over and that bill can be paid. A demure for the Exchange Contractors and CCID was filed and asked the plaintiff be considered a vexatious litigant.
The McMullan Area GSA has a 4,600 acre groundwater bank with the ability to recharge and recover more than 100,000 a/f. This is available to Mendota Pool access making it Ex Con’s business and they are following this. Also, the new Delta Record Of Decision will be a target for Governor Gavin Newsom launching a lawsuit. I’m beginning to believe derangement syndrome is real.
Four Managers
Mike Gardner, GM Columbia Canal Company said staff is dewatering and some canal liner will be removed and repairs made.
Bryant reported November was an average month but the rain delayed some areas for this month’s deliveries. He reported FCWD is getting a trashcan full of Golden Mussel on its pumpstations. They purchased a high pressure/high temperature rig to kill off the pods and physically clean them out.
John Wiersma, GM San Luis Canal Company reported a lower delivery last month since the rain negated a lot of need. They’ve started some construction and maintenance projects and going full bore he said. Typical winter construction but a bit more aggressive this time. He said the Golden Mussel problem has hit SLCC and he’s teaming with Bryant and others on refining the attack.
Martin reported CCID will test a remote-controlled Rubicon gate for the clients to operate. The hope is this technology will benefit growers. That will be installed in the next few weeks. It’s a 20 cfs ditch and the project is a bit pricey but there is hope this will improve service and welcomed everyone to come out and see how things go.
Info & Closed Session
By unanimous vote next month’s meeting will be January 9th, 2026. White said Ann McMillan will go on tour of Ex Con soon. I don’t know who she is, maybe some smart, good-looking reader will kindly educate me. The USBR Water Users Conference will be in Reno next month. That used to be called the Mid Pacific Region Conference and it is a lot of fun and a great opportunity to meet and learn. Brush up on your bowling a little before you go.
The meeting went into closed session at 9:50-ish and there were nine items on the agenda of either a litigious nature or negotiation of real property. That was that for Ex Con this month and for 2025. Go be good to yourselves and each other.
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SAN JOAQUIN RIVER EXCHANGE CONTRACTORS WATER AUTHORITY
Main Office: 541 H Street, P.O. Box 2115 Los Banos, CA 93653 Office 209/827-8616 www.sjrecwa.net Email: contactus@sjrecwa.net
DWR SGMA Identifier #5-022.07
The Exchange Contractors cover almost a quarter of a million acres in Fresno, Madera, Merced and Stanislaus Counties.
Mission Statement
The Exchange Contractors Water Authority mission is to effectively protect the Exchange Contract and maximize local water supply, flexibility and redundancy in order to maintain local control over the members’ water supply.
Board
Chris Cardella -Chair Columbia Canal Company, Mike Stearns-Vice Chair Director Firebaugh Canal Water District, Cannon Michael-Treasurer San Luis Canal Company, Eric Fontana- Director Central California Irrigation District
Staff
Chris White-Executive Director, Steve Chedester- Director Policies & Programs, Adam Hoffman-Water Resources Specialist, Joann White-Director Finance and Human Resources, Darlene O’Brien- Administrative Assistant, Andy McClure-Attorney Minasian Law Firm.
History
From the Exchange Contractors’ website: www.sjrecwa.net The San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors hold some of the oldest water rights in the state, dating back to the late 1800s. The rights were established by Henry Miller of the legendary Miller and Lux cattle empire. In 1871, Henry Miller constructed canals to divert water from the San Joaquin and North Fork of the Kings Rivers for irrigation of his vast acreage. Today, several of the original Miller and Lux canals are operated by the Exchange Contractors.
Although Henry Miller’s canals served the irrigation needs of his estate in the western portion of Fresno, Madera, Merced, and Stanislaus counties, in order for more growth on the east side of the San Joaquin Valley to occur, more water was needed. In 1933, the United States Department of Interior undertook the Central Valley Project, a vast undertaking to build dams throughout the great Central Valley including the Sacramento, American and San Joaquin Rivers. When construction of the Friant Dam (north of Fresno) was under consideration, feasibility studies showed that irrigation development of the Friant Project between Chowchilla and Bakersfield depended upon water being diverted from the San Joaquin River at Friant Dam and brought to the east side of the valley, via the Friant-Kern Canal.
To accomplish this, the government asked the heirs of Miller and Lux to agree to “exchange” where they receive their pre-1914 appropriative and riparian water from the San Joaquin and Kings Rivers for guaranteed deliveries of “substitute” water from the Sacramento River by means of the Delta-Mendota Canal and other facilities of the United States. This agreement, known as the “Exchange Contract,” along with the accompanying “Purchase Contract,” were reached in 1939 and that led to the name “San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors.” In normal years, the Exchange Contractors are guaranteed 100% of their contractual water allotment (840,000 acre feet) and in critical years the amount is 75% (650,000 a/f).
The Exchange Contractors, however, did not abandon their San Joaquin River water rights. Instead, they agreed not to exercise those San Joaquin and Kings Rivers’ water rights if guaranteed water deliveries continued through the Delta-Mendota Canal or other facilities of the United States.
