La Jolla Irrigation Plan

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The La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians and its Reservation are situated in the San Luis Rey Watershed in Northern San Diego County, California. The region frequently experiences drought conditions that have significant impacts on the people, the economy and the natural resources of the Reservation. This Tribal Irrigation Water System, Multi-Phase Project Plan (Irrigation Plan) is intended to prepare the Tribe for future drought by guiding the implementation of irrigation system improvements that will alleviate the effects of drought on the tribal community. The Tribe consists of approximately 693 Tribal members that are governed by a five member Tribal Council. The Council is elected by Tribal members over the age of 21. There are 179 Tribal homes on the La Jolla Reservation. During periods of drought, available Tribal water sources dramatically decline. Drought also increases the severity and frequency of wildfires, and adversely affects the health of Tribal forests, by weakening trees and spreading insect infestation and disease. Thus drought increases the need for additional water supply for human use and for fire suppression; at the same time that drought decreases the availability of water. The completed emergency drought project funded by Reclamation successfully enhanced the Tribe’s ability to collect surface water for irrigation, fire suppression and construction, which partially reduced demand on potable water supplies. And the Drought Contingency Plan provided an excellent analysis of current conditions and a helpful framework for monitoring and mitigating drought. The Drought Plan also helped the Tribe to prioritize needed projects to better manage the effects of drought. Now, the Tribe needs assistance with implementation of the Tribe’s identified priority projects. To accomplish these goals, we propose a multi-phase plan comprised of several distinct, yet related projects. Each project is an important part of the overall plan, but each project can also be implemented independently. The La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians (Tribe) is working to reduce demand on limited potable water supplies and improve efficiency through a multi-phased plan. The Tribe is implementing the priority projects previously detailed in the La Jolla Drought Contingency Plan submitted to Reclamation in 2009. The main goals are as follows: 1. Technical assessments of the Tribe’s irrigation systems 2. Improvements to irrigation water supply and distribution systems 3. Renewable energy supply for a water disinfection system 4. Enhance non-potable water supply for fire fighting 5. Rainwater catchment systems for isolated homes 6. Improve water management and conservation The La Jolla Tribe intents to primarily use force account staff for the work effort.

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