(a) Truckee River diversions through the Truckee Canal will be made to meet Lahontan Reservoir end-of-month storage objectives for the months of January through June. The current month storage objective will be based, in part, on the monthly Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) April through July runoff forecast for the Carson River near Fort Churchill. The forecast will be used to determine the target storage for Lahontan Reservoir and anticipated diversion requirements for the Carson Division. The Bureau, in consultation with the District, Federal Water Master, Fish and Wildlife Service, the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, and other affected parties, will determine the exceedance levels and predicted Carson River inflows based on the reliability of the NRCS forecast and other available information such as river forecasts from other sources. The end-of-month storage objectives may be adjusted any time during the month as new forecasts or other information become available.

(b) The January through June storage objective will be calculated using the following formula:

LSOCM = TSM/J−(C1* AJ) + L + (C2* CDT)

(c) The Lahontan Reservoir storage objective for each month is contained in the following table.

(d) Once the monthly Lahontan Reservoir storage objective has been determined, the monthly diversion to the Project from the Truckee River will be based upon water availability and Project demand as expressed in the following relationship:

TRD = TDD + TCL + CDD + LRL + LSOCM−ALRS−CRI

(e) The following procedure is intended to ensure that monthly storage objectives are not exceeded. It may be implemented only if the following conditions are met:

(1) Diversions from the Truckee River are required to achieve the current month Lahontan Reservoir storage objective (LSOCM);

(2) Truckee River runoff above Derby Dam is available for diversion to Lahontan Reservoir;

(3) Sufficient Stampede Reservoir storage capacity is available.

(f) The Bureau, in consultation with the Federal Water Master, the District, Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe will determine whether the calculated current month Truckee River diversion to Lahontan Reservoir (TRD-TDD-TCL) may be reduced during that month and the amount of reduction credit stored in Stampede Reservoir.

(1) Reductions in diversions may begin in November and continue until the end of June.

(2) Reductions in diversions to Lahontan Reservoir with credit storage in Stampede Reservoir may be implemented to the extent that:

(i) The reduction is in lieu of a scheduled release from Stampede Reservoir for the purpose of supplementing flows to Pyramid Lake; and/or

(ii) Water is captured in Stampede Reservoir that is scheduled to be passed through and diverted to the Truckee Canal.

(3) The Fish and Wildlife Service must approve any proposal to reduce diversions to Lahontan Reservoir for Newlands Project credit purposes without a comparable reduction in release from Stampede Reservoir or any conversion of Stampede Reservoir project water to Newlands Project credit water.

(4) The diversion to Lahontan Reservoir may be adjusted any time during the month as revised runoff forecasts become available. The accumulated credit will be added to current Lahontan Reservoir storage (ALRS) in calculating TRD. If the sum of accumulated credit and Lahontan Reservoir storage exceeds 295,000 acre-feet, credit will be reduced by the amount in excess of 295,000 acre-feet. Credit will also be reduced by the amount of precautionary drawdown or spills in that month. If the end-of-month storage in Lahontan Reservoir plus the accumulated credit in Stampede Reservoir at the end of June exceeds the end-of-month storage objective for Lahontan, the credit will be reduced by the amount exceeding the end-of-month storage objective.

(5) Following consultation with the District, the Federal Water Master, and other interested parties as appropriate, the Bureau will release credit water as needed for Project purposes from July 1 through the end of the irrigation season in which the credit accrues with timing priority given to meeting current year Project irrigation demands.

(6) Conveyance of credit water in the Truckee Canal must be in addition to regularly scheduled diversions for the Project and will be measured at the USGS gauge number 10351300 near Wadsworth.

(7) Newlands credit water in Stampede Reservoir storage will be subject to spill and will not carry over to subsequent years. Newlands credit water in Stampede can be exchanged to other reservoirs and retain its priority. The credit must be reduced to the extent that Lahontan Reservoir storage plus accumulated credit at the end of the previous month exceeds the storage objectives for that month. If Newlands credit water is spilled, it may be diverted to Lahontan Reservoir subject to applicable storage targets.

(i) The Bureau, in consultation with the District, the Federal Water Master, and other interested parties, may release Newlands Project credit water before July 1.

(ii) If any Newlands credit water remains in Stampede Reservoir storage after the end of the current irrigation season in which it accumulated, it will convert to water for cui-ui recovery and will no longer be available for Newlands credit water.

(iii) Newlands credit water stored in Stampede Reservoir will be available for use only on the Carson Division of the Newlands Project.

(g) Subject to the provisions of §418.20 (b), LSOCM may be adjusted as frequently as necessary when new information indicates the need and diversions from the Truckee River to the Truckee Canal must be adjusted daily or otherwise as frequently as necessary to meet the monthly storage objective.