San Diego County Water Authority keeps selling surplus supply: Burbank deal follows a $13 million a year contract that pencils to $1,300 per acre foot
Burbank signed a long-term agreement on August 27 to buy up to 5,000 acre feet a year from the San Diego County Water Authority through 2047. Earlier in 2026 the Authority sold Western Municipal Water District 10,000 acre feet a year for $13 million annually under a 21-year deal, about $1,300 per acre foot.
- Burbank agreement
- Up to 5,000 AF/yr through 2047
- Western MWD contract
- 10,000 AF/yr, 21 years
- Western MWD price
- $13 million/yr (≈ $1,300/AF)
What happened
Burbank announced on August 27, 2026 a long-term agreement to purchase up to 5,000 acre feet of water annually from the San Diego County Water Authority through 2047, intended to diversify and firm the city’s supply. The Burbank price was not disclosed in the announcement.
It is the latest in a series of surplus sales by the Authority. In spring 2026 it signed a 21-year deal with Western Municipal Water District in Riverside County to supply 10,000 acre feet a year for $13 million annually, which works out to about $1,300 per acre foot, and its board then approved a similar sale to Eastern Municipal Water District.
What it means if you own water here
Wholesale agency-to-agency contracts are the most visible price benchmark in Southern California, and $1,300 per acre foot for reliable treated supply on a two-decade term is now a public number. It anchors what firm, long-term water is worth to a municipal buyer, which is the top of the demand map on this site.
Private holders rarely sell treated, delivered water, so the comparison is not one-to-one. But when a utility is paying $1,300 per acre foot for reliability, a senior raw-water right that helps a utility avoid that purchase has a defensible ceiling to negotiate toward.
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