The Water Bible – Water Measurement Manual

Watermasters, technicians, diverters, and anyone who needs to regulate diversions in the field uses the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Water Measurement Manual. I used this as a watermaster, and I still take it with me on some visits to clients. The manual answers a lot of questions:

What kind of measurement device should I install?

How do I get the flow from my measurement device?

How accurate is my device, and how can I figure that out?

You can buy a hardback version like I have by starting at the webpage https://www.usbr.gov/tsc/techreferences/mands/wmm.html . You can download a PDF version from https://www.usbr.gov/tsc/techreferences/mands/wmm/WMM_3rd_2001.pdf . I put a link to the PDF on the left sidebar here, too.

I should have posted this years ago. Better late than never….

My Ditch Is Too Flat / Too Shallow To Measure With a Weir

The simplest measurement device to install is a weir. Vertical side walls with board slots, or channel iron bolted onto the concrete, hold 2″ x 4″ boards. The boards need to be stacked 12″ to 18″ high, and the channel depth needs to be 24″ or deeper. Here is a 3′ wide weir with a 12″ board height:

But, what if the ditch is less than 24″ deep? The ditch shown below is about 18″ deep, and it must convey flow that comes near to the top of its banks. The ditch here is about 10′ wide and is passing 20 cfs:

The solution was to install a Watchman Replogle flume that is nearly as wide as the ditch – 8′ wide. It is installed on a concrete base so it stays level and does not tip. The flume floor is 3″ above the bottom of the ditch, and the maximum depth upstream of the ramp is 15″. In other words, the top of the flume as the same elevation as the top of the bank:

The flume is conveying about 12 cfs in these photos. It does so with a total accuracy better than +/- 10%.

The maximum ditch flow is 30 cfs. Will the flume convey that maximum flow, without overtopping? The photo below shows the flume conveying a flow of 30 cfs. Yes, it still measures flow accurately, without overtopping.

Here is the same size of flume in a different location, at a lower flow. Even with the low flow, the depth of water is the same all the way across the flume:

Here is another version of the same flume. The ditch here has plenty of depth, so overtopping was never an issue. So, why is a low-head flume installed here? This ditch is very flat and there is a possibility of restricting the flow into the ditch as it enters from a low pipe. Measuring the flow this way ensures accurate measurement without flooding the incoming pipe:

Write It Down (Or Possibly Lose A Water Right)

I got a call from a distraught diverter.  “My grandfather has irrigated this land since at least 1910, from _______ Creek.  Everyone knew about it at the time, we get 1.2 cubic feet per second for 105 acres of pasture up here.  Nobody was worried about filing on water rights back then, so we didn’t file at the Water Board until a few years ago.  But a new guy moved in next door and he says we don’t have a water right, it’s all his water.  We do have a well but we don’t use it until late in the season when the creek flow drops way down.  The neighbor claims we only use the well and never use the water from the creek.  Then he went and filed a complaint with the Water Board saying we never used water, which is a lie.  We got some letters from the state, we figured they were just the regular reminders and we were really busy.  It turns out one of the letters said the Water Board wanted to come to the ranch and see if we really divert water.  Now we have a letter that says we have to ‘cease and desist’ within 30 days or pay $500 per day fines!  What can we do about this?”

I asked, “Did your grandfather, parents, or you write down notes when you were irrigating?  Do you have photos at the diversion showing you were taking water?  Did you measure the flow somehow?”

“No, we don’t have anything like that.  But everyone around here used to know who used the water!  It wasn’t a problem until there were new owners.”

Have you heard the saying, “Write it down, or it never happened.”?  That is true in everything – conversations, phone calls, purchases, 

From one legal website, here is a list:

What Types of Contracts are Required to be in Writing?   Contracts that are for the transfer or sale of land, are for the sale of goods over $500, cannot be fully completed within one year of signing (according to the contracts terms), are related to marriage, involve a promise to pay another person’s debt (“surety contracts”), or will continue beyond the lifetime of a party performing the contract.

Water rights definitely belong on the list!

When I was a bureaucrat, I learned early on to document the work I was doing, document processes so I and others could do some technical process faster next time, and document all important conversations.  When email came around, I learned to email things to myself to have a record.  Then, 5 or 10 years later when questions came up, I had a dated electronic document to answer with.

So what happened with that diverter who called?  The diverter called the Water Board staffer who wrote the letter and arranged a visit to the property.  I went out and took photos, measured the diversion, put in a temporary measurement device, and wrote a report detailing all that the diverter told me.  Two Water Board engineers visited and wrote up a report.  Then nothing happened for three years.  The diverter is still using water from the creek, and now is measuring the amount of water and reporting it every year.  Hopefully the state won’t take any further action, but we don’t know.

The lesson is, keep records!  Even if something happened 100 years ago, write down now what you know about your water right, the diversion rate, the acreage irrigated, number of livestock.  When a complaint comes, it’s a lot easier to refute when you can just hand over a written account.

Using Circular Headgates as Submerged Orifices

If you have a circular headgate, how can you use that as an orifice to measure flow? It’s easy if the gate is fully open – orifice equations from the USBR Water Measurement Manual can be used. The area of a circle is PI*r^2.

Here are the orifice equations for a rectangular headgate – the same equations are used for a circular headgate, or really a headgate of any shape:


A = the area of the orifice
g = gravity, 32.2 ft/sec^2
h1 = the upstream depth in feet
h2 = the downstream depth in feet

The first equation with the coefficient of 0.61 is for a gate on a wall. The second with the
coefficient of 0.70 is for a circular gate at the end of a pipe.

The difference between h1 and h2 can also be measured down from the top of a
wall with a level top.

Now, how do you get the area of a partly open circular headgate? There is a long equation with a good description at: https://mathworld.wolfram.com/Circle-CircleIntersection.html However, it sure is easier to get it from a table:

There you go. Based on the change of stem height, you can calculate how much the headgate is open. Convert that to a percentage. For example. A 2.0′ diameter headgate open 0.5′ is 25% open. Then use the table’s 50% row to where it intersects the 2.00 foot diameter column to get an area of 1.913 square feet.

Some Hope For Amendments: SB 389, AB 460, AB 1337

At Don Wright’s WaterWrights news, his July 20 article explains that there is some hope for amendments to bills SB 389, AB 460, AB 1337.

“Legislative committee consultant Alex Dominguez said he has been attending many, many meetings and has seen the opposition to the three big water rights bills: SB 389, AB 460 and AB 1337. He said AB 460’s author Assemblywoman Rebecca Bauer-Kahan or RBK, has dug her heels in and isn’t willing to work with the water community. That’s what I’ve been hearing also. It sounded to me like there is some hope for SB 389 being amended in a way that could actually be helpful. Let’s see what happens with that. Attorney Lauren Layne added there is some indication AB 1337’s author Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks may be willing to amend the bill to make it more palatable.“

https://waterwrights.net/kings-river-water-association-june-20-2023/

State Aims To Take or Control Your Water Rights: SB 389, AB 460, AB 1337

Three water rights bills are headed to the floor for votes, as of May 18, 2023. These bills propose to make water right holders prove their claims whenever the Water Board demands, inspect your diversion without your permission if the Water Board says it’s for public health and safety, and make senior (riparian and pre-1914) water right holders curtail their water rights. Your Farm Bureau, Cattlemen’s Association, and other groups are working to reduce these bills, and to encourage legislators to vote against them.

I summarize bill information below, and you should read the bill text yourself. Each bill name below is linked to the bill text at https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/. There are a few good newspaper articles; one is at the Modesto Bee.

SB 389 would make you have to prove your water right, regardless of whatever information you or previous holders of the right have submitted to the Water Board. Then the Water Board would decide whether you have a right at all, and what kind of water right you have. The Water Board would demand information including your use of the water including your measurement device, calibration, accuracy, photos, maps, quantities, all diversion data, etc.; the basis of the water right claimed; patent date claimed for the place of use; notice date of the appropriation and the date of actual delivery of water to beneficial use; prior diversions and use, including direct diversions and diversions to storage; and diversions and use of transferred water.

AB 460 would let the Water Board inspect your property with no warrant if they decide that public health and safety are at risk, and if you don’t voluntarily let them inspect. The Water Board could now issue you an interim order to stop diverting or take some other action, whether or not there is a complaint. The bill language is not clear on this, but it looks like the daily fines for violating “a term or condition of a permit, license, certificate, or registration issued by, or an order or regulation” would increase from $500/day to $1,500/day, up to $10,000/day. You could request a hearing within 20 days after being served with the complaint, but the Water Board could make an interim order before the hearing if they think that “immediate compliance is necessary to prevent imminent or irreparable injury to other legal users of water, or to instream beneficial uses.”

AB 1337 would let the Water Board curtail any water right at any time for any reason. This would include pre-1914 and riparian water rights. Also, it would let the Water Board continue its current practice of permanent curtailment, in which the Water Board lets you know each week that it’s okay for you to divert. The Water Board would continue to make you go check your curtailment status online each week.

What Can You Do?

  • Get all of your paperwork together. Whatever you have related to your water right, get it all in one place. Do this now, don’t wait for a call from the Water Board.
  • If you have a pre-1914 water right, you will need to have a copy of the original claim and any other related records from the Recorder at the county. Most have water right books with one or more indices to look up the original claim. Prior to 1910, most of them will be written in cursive, so they can take awhile to read and understand.
  • Make sure you have records of your water use. Ideally, there will be a diary, log book, or other notes recording what was grown each year and an estimate of the quantities. If you know the previous owner, ask for a note on when and how water was used. It is important to have documented water use at least every 5 years; this used to apply only to post-1914 water rights and the Water Board is now looking for this with pre-1914 water rights.
  • Upload digital copies of your most important records with your last Supplemental Statement (for pre-1914 water or riparian right) or Report Of Licensee (for post-1914 water right). Make things easy for the Water Board to find.
  • The Water Board posts your Initial Statement Of Water Diversion And Use on their website, along with the following Supplemental Statements. You may have more important records in your hardcopy water rights folder at the the Water Board. You can either go to Sacramento to review your folder, or request that your folder be scanned by a third party that you make arrangements to pay.

H-S Flumes For Accurate Measurements Of Small Flows

What if you have a small diversion, but grass or debris would interfere with a standard weir?  A weir has to have unobstructed, free-flowing water over

        Weir with debris and grass on crest

the crest so measured depths accurately relate to a calculated flow.  A weir with debris problems has to be cleared whenever flow is measured, which increases the time requirement.

When weirs have low flows, they trap debris more frequently, and they are less accurate when the depth over the crest drops below  0.2 feet (2.4 inches).  Then the only way to measure flow is with a narrow suppressed weir, or with a contracted weir, typically half or less the maximum width.  A V-notch weir can be used for measurement of low flows.

Changing the weir boards for different flows requires someone with experience,

                      Contracted weir

who will recognize when the depth over the weir is 0.2 feet or less and then use a contracted weir board.  However, people are busy when irrigating, and even busier when flows drop.  Weirs are often neglected during the time they need more frequent maintenance visits.

A good flume for passing debris and measuring low flows is the HS flume.  These are accurate right down to zero flow.  For the maximum flow, they require more

1.0-foot HS flume, for flows of 0.00 to 0.80 cfs

material than a rectangular Winflume, Montana, or Parshall flume.  However, they are more accurate than other flumes at very low flows – testing by the University of Minnesota found an average accuracy to be +/- 3.2% for ideal approach conditions.  They will pass debris down to zero flow – the flume shown here has an opening of 0.05 feet, or 5/8 inch at the flat bottom, and the opening increases with height.

        HS flume for flows up to 0.8 cfs

                 HS flume at 0.025 cfs

Why aren’t HS flumes common in California?  I suspect that the early adoption of Parshall flumes here established the standard.  I have seen a few hundred flumes, but I had never seen an operating HL (wide, high flow), H, or HS flume, prior to my installations.

Why go to the trouble of using an HS flume, if Parshall flumes are readily

                   New Parshall Flume

available?  A Parshall flume may be +/- 10% accurate down to perhaps 5% of its maximum flow.  Below that, the accuracy decreases.  An HS flume is +/- 10% accurate down to 1% to 2% of its maximum flow.  If the flow regime is predominantly low with occasional high flows, it is important to measure those low flows with the best possible accuracy.  Some places where low flow measurement is critical include field runoff where pollution is proportional to flow, small water rights, and dam leakage.

HS flumes are easier to construct than a Parshall, too.  The HS flume bottom is flat, and it has 3 vertical planes.  The photos of the Parshall flume here show

            Bottom of Parshall flume

that it has 3 horizontal planes, and 5 vertical planes.  An HS flume takes less time to build, and can be put together fairly quickly in any farm or ranch shop.  Parshalls are complex enough that they are purchased, including design and shipping costs.

Reasoning With Regulators, Benefitting From Bureaucrats

I worked 30 years as a bureaucrat, and for the last six years I have owned my own business.  That gave me first-hand immersion in working with members of the public, especially water right holders who divert water from various streams in Northern California.  When it comes to property rights, owners are intensely interested in getting problems solved, fast and hopefully permanently.  As a property owner I will get the help of whoever I can and whoever it takes to solve my problem.  On the flip side, when I worked for state government, I sure know what worked to get me to work on someone’s problem!

Whenever you divert water, you deal with people.  Your neighbors are very interested in what you divert.  They want you to use only your water right and hopefully less…and they want every possible law applied against whoever takes more than their legal share.

Laws are made by people.  I’m not talking about God’s Laws which are not in your or my control.  The man-made documents and organizations that establish, make, change, and enforce water laws and rules include:

  • the California Constitution
  • the Legislature
  • the Governor
  • Courts at various levels
  • everyone’s favorite: federal, state, and local agencies

file581310649632Agencies, otherwise known as bureaucracies, all have one thing in common.  To emphasize a very important point: they are all run and staffed by people.  Some folks are easy to deal with, others aren’t.  Some are truly caring human beings, and others hide behind the policies of their employer.

What exactly is a bureaucracy?  Here is a very good explanation:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bureaucracy

By the way, corporations are the same as bureaucracies in a lot of ways.  Since we are talking about the diversion of surface water, that means bureaucracies.  And bureaucrats.

There are some money-saving, hassle-saving methods to dealing with bureaucrats.  These are time-tested and have worked for me and many others.  When other people acted this way with me, when I was a bureaucrat, to get me to do something even when I was too busy, it worked!  Hopefully these practices and techniques will aid you in dealing with an agency or a particularly difficult bureaucrat.

  1. Do some research.  “Google It”, as the saying goes, and learn about the agency you are dealing with.  (Actually, I am using Bing and DuckDuckGo as much as Google these days, to get accurate instead of popular results.)  Search for comments by people who had the same problem as you.  How did they handle it, and what was the result?  Did someone have a particularly effective way of getting a problem solved?  It might be worth an hour of your time to use the Internet to find out everything you can first.
  2. Document your problem in writing before contacting a bureaucracy, with text, photos, maps, drawings, contacts, everything you can get on paper.  Scan it if possible so everything you have can be emailed.
  3. Assuming you are calling or talking to the person, write everything down.  E-ver-y single thing.  Date all the entries.  Get each person’s name.  You might buy a cheap spiral bound notebook at a WalMart or Dollar store – or buy a few, and the ones you don’t use when dealing with bureaucrats you can use for a diary, or shopping lists, or dealing with corporations.  Enter it on the computer in front of you, or use Notes on your phone.  Let the person know that you are keeping careful notes.  If you intend to record audio of a call, ask first!
  4. Always be polite, and especially so during the first few contacts about a problem.  Do not threaten, curse, yell, or any of those things that would be classified as “impolite”.  If the person you are talking to gets unpleasant, just keep a record of it for later, and maintain your calm demeanor.
  5. Explain your problem or need in as few, relevant words as possible.  Boil your problem into one or two specific things that you need done.  That way a helpful person can get you the help you need quickly, without strain on your vocal cords or his or her ear.
  6. Don’t share your life story, complaints about your neighbor’s dog, the hassle you had getting your car repaired, or go into what a rotten, horrible person your neighbor is.  That is wasted time.  Unless what you say bears directly on the problem, it takes away working time from the person listening on the other end of the phone line, or reading your email, or sitting across the table from you.  There may not be enough time left to solve your problem!
  7. Give thanks and credit to the people who help you.  Call their boss, or write the boss a note about the great work they did in helping you.  Let everyone else you talk to about your problem know about those helpful people.
  8. If a bureaucrat says “It’s not my job”, politely explain the person’s statutory/legal/moral or other obligation to help you, and the terrible consequences to you if the person does not carry out his or her agency’s mission.  Give a reasonable estimate of the economic harm or cost involved.
  9. On the other hand, if the answer you get is “I have no idea how”, don’t get frustrated, get more contacts from the person.  You’ll be following a trail, sometimes clear, sometimes through thick brush.
  10. If you are talking to the right person and cannot get the help you need, or an exemption from a rule, or whatever help you are looking for, ask to talk to the bureaucrat’s boss.  Don’t insult the employee to the boss, just explain to the boss that he or she has the great power needed to help you.
  11. If the boss cannot help, ask to talk to his or her boss.  See the pattern here?  Be courageous and go up the line as high as you need to go.
  12. Take a few minutes and search online for the names and contact information of the people on the Board, or the Director, or the Chief, of the bureaucracy you are dealing with.  It can help to let a bureaucrat know that you know who these people are, and while you really don’t want to have to go that far, you will contact them if necessary.
  13. If you are being harassed or threatened by an agency and you are pretty sure they are going above and beyond their authority or normal practice, there are ways to get them to back off or slow down and listen.  Sometimes mentioning that they may be in violation of RICO, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, can give them pause.  Ask them for all communications in writing – that can cut up to half of bureaucratic actions off right at the knees.  Ask bureaucrats to include references to all laws, rules, regulations, codes, court cases, etc., that they are relying on.
  14. Find the agencies, boards, or people to whom you can file a complaint, if you have exhausted all normal ways of getting the help you need and you haven’t been helped.  You may even have to enlist the help of staff at your state legislator’s office, or your congressperson.
  15. Although it is expensive, you may have to hire an attorney.

That’s a long list, but if you are dealing with the State Water Resources Control Board, a lot of those folks are reasonable people.  The main problem at the Board is that these folks have five times the work to do than they can get done.  You’ll probably have to call several times to get someone’s attention.  See Rules 1 and 2 above!

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Do Something Wrong, Instead Of Nothing Right

Do something wrong, rather than nothing at all. Have you ever heard that before? I have heard it from Army veterans, a boss, even an elder of a church.  George Patton said, “A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.”  A non-military way to say that is, “A poor plan now is better than no plan at all.”

What it means to you and me is, if action is necessary, do something, maybe ANYthing, rather than freezing in place or ignoring a problem. This is obvious when you see a tornado 5 miles away, for example; either drive away from it if you are in a car, or take shelter if you are on foot. If you have a plumbing leak in the house and no parts to replace broken pipe, then put a bucket under it, or turn off the valve, and call a plumber. All of us have seen a TV show (or maybe had it happen to us) where the bad guy pointed a rifle and said, “Don’t move”. What do we all say to the TV? “Don’t just stand there, run!”. Doing nothing is a much worse choice, if the result for freezing in place is death or injury.

What about water rights – how does doing something wrong help? Everyone knows by now that surface water diverters need measurement devices, so put in a weir box and boards and measure your flow before the threats come from the Water Board, your watermaster, your ditch tender, or your neighbor.  Even just stick horizontal boards in a ditch and seal the sides with plastic – something to take positive action to reduce future pain.

Remember to file the information for the measurement device with the Water Board, either via your annual report of diversions, or using the Water Right Form and Survey Submittal Portal.

Take a look at the blog posts below.  There is enough information and how-to directions, that you should be able to do it well enough to satisfy the Water Board.  Check out these posts:

There is a philosophy based in law and a lot of experience, that says don’t put any controls on yourself until the court or government makes

Temporary Weir In Ditch

you. Why remodel your house to accommodate the wiring or plumbing, if you aren’t selling the house and everything works okay right now? Who would put a lot of money into an old truck to make it pass smog, if it just might pass a smog check the next time it has to be done? What farmer would change how he irrigates or ranches if everything still operates and the bank will keep making operating loans?

All of the Water Board deadlines have passed to install measurement devices, or file Alternative Compliance Plans.  If you haven’t got your device or plan done yet, get a Request For Additional Time done as soon as possible.

Be proactive.  Take some inexpensive, temporary action.  Educate yourself for free with some time in the Internet. Even a small, less-than-perfect improvement in your measurement device, flow and water use record keeping, can pay back a lot more when you have to deal with potential Water Board fines, a court case, or even just an angry neighbor in the future.

Installing Reservoir Staff Gages

How is a staff gage installed in a reservoir?  The typical way is to drive a piece of 2″ galvanized pipe into the ground, deep enough to so it isn’t easy to push over.  If cattle will be in the reservoir to get water, then the pipe needs to be really well installed.  A gas-powered post pounder can be rented at Rental Guys, Home Depot, or similar places.

Most reservoirs are deeper than six feet, so it’s best to maximize the length of pipe installed.  The length of pipe that can be installed by hand is usually about 6 feet.  For a 6-foot tall pipe, about 3 feet of pipe needs to be in the ground, so the total pipe length is 9 feet.

Then the staff gage is attached to a 2″ x 8″, using screws or small bolts.  Staff gages vary in width from 1″ to 4″; the usual USGS Style C staff gages are 2-1/2″ wide.  Once the staff gage is screwed on, the board is U-bolted to the pipe.

That’s it…except for the surveying part.  The top of staff gage needs to be at the same level as the spillway crest, so the maximum water surface elevation can be measured.  How is the surveying done?  An autolevel is close enough for most reservoirs, or two installers can use a very accurate survey level.

If the reservoir is deeper than your staff gage length (6 feet as shown here), and most are, then staged staff gages will be needed.  For example, a first gage is installed at the top, going from, say, 6 feet to 12 feet.  The second, lower staff gage is installed from 0 feet to 6 feet, and 6 feet is exactly the same elevation on both staff gages.  In the photo below, there are 3 staged staff gages to measure 18 feet in elevation:  0 to 6 feet, 6 feet to 12 feet, and 12 feet to 18 feet.  The top of the third, lowest staff gage can be seen in the bottom right corner.

More commonly, staff gages like the USGS Style C are purchased in 3.33 foot lengths.  This is convenient because staff gages are installed closer together.

What if a pond is full, or mostly full?  It is still possible to install a staff gage, but it will be harder.  Boats or rafts will be needed, and the pipe with the board already attached has to be put in place and held vertical while being driven.  If the total depth is greater than 6 feet, then a longer pipe, board, and staff gage will be needed, and the combined weight will be that much greater.  Hint: tie a rope and buoy to the pipe so when if it slips and sinks, it can be pulled up again.

What about installing a staff gage along the slope of a dam, to avoid having to wrestle a pipe and board for a deep installation?  This can be done by attaching a length of rebar or pipe to the dam face using concrete stakes or similar method.  The slope distances measured are converted to vertical depths.  However, this won’t stand up well to cattle or elk traffic, and it is more liable to be vandalized if the reservoir has easy access.

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