federal water contracts for the Central Valley Project. Effects of California drought In April 2015, EBMUD declared a Stage 4 critical drought and has set a community-wide goal to reduce water use by 20%. To reach this goal, EBMUD has adopted new water rules that affect all customers and must supplement normal water supplies with water from additional sources, like 33,250 acre-feet from the Central Valley Project. EBMUD has enforced strict water restrictions in order to ensure all conservation measures are being taken. By the end of 2015, EBMUD was projected to have in storage 320,000 to 330,000 acre-feet of water. On May 10, 2016, EBMUD declared an end to the drought emergency, as their reservoirs had more water than average. The board voted to relax many of the water conservation rules and the 25% surcharge, effective July 1, 2016. It announced that Pardee Reservoir had reached 100 percent of its capacity in January 2017 and had begun releasing excess water into Camanche Reservoir. Future expansion EBMUD has begun considering the expansion of its own Pardee Reservoir as the main route to secure enough water for its projected 2040 requirements. This proposal would expand Pardee Reservoir by building a new dam on the river. Environmentalists claimed that this action would destroy a beautiful section of the river which is used by the public for fishing, swimming and kayaking. Environmental activists such as the coordinator of the Environmental Water Caucus criticized EBMUD for disregarding an opportunity to join the consortium interested considering expanding the Los Vaqueros Reservoir (built and operated by the Contra Costa Water District (CCWD)). EBMUD countered its critics by saying that at the time their officials believed the Los Vaqueros proposal was not sufficiently developed to be a reliable alternative for their future plans. CCWD officials pointed out that their expansion plans were much further developed than any of EBMUD's alternatives. In 2009, environmental activists groups sued to block approval of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Pardee Reservoir expansion proposal. Following a two-year trial, Sacramento Superior Court Judge Timothy Frawley agreed with the plaintiffs' objections and rejected the EIS in 2011. His ruling stated that EBMUD had not adequately addressed all the potential environmental harms of the project. Specifically, Judge Frawley said the document completely omitted discussing a less destructive alternative - working with CCWD on expanding Los Vaqueros reservoir. Moreover, it neglected to discuss the