New Kern River Watermaster in the wings
It appears a new Kern River Watermaster will be chosen to replace Dana Munn, whose contract winds up at the end of this year.
If he’s officially approved by all the voting members of the “river interests,” Mark Mulkay will likely become the fourth ever Kern River Watermaster.
He said he’s discussed it with all the parties and let them know he wants the job. Other sources confirmed that the river interests, entities that hold rights to the Kern River, have unofficially agreed on Mulkay as incoming Watermaster.
Mulkay had managed the Kern Delta Water District, one of the river interests, from 1993 until he retired in 2020. He is still under contract with Kern Delta working on a few projects but said those will be completed in a couple of months and his Kern Delta contract will become even more part time over the next year.
“So I’ll have plenty of time” to fulfill the Watermaster’s duties, he said.
The Kern River Watermaster acts as the liaison with the Army Corps of Engineers, which operates water releases from Isabella Lake. The Watermaster also keeps track of all the rights and contracts that govern the river and checks on record keeping.
“It’s not the Watermaster’s job to tell the water districts what they can or can’t do. It’s just to say, ‘Here’s what the agreements say and here’s what the records show,’” Mulkay said. “It’s a little bit of a watchdog, but ultimately, it doesn’t have a lot of authority.”
There are three entities that need to give the final thumbs-up before Mulkay can officially become Watermaster. Those include the North Kern and Buena Vista water storage districts and the Kern County Water Agency, which actually holds two votes. Unofficially, the other two river rights holders, Kern Delta and the city of Bakersfield, also have a say but not an official vote, Mulkay explained.
Meanwhile, Munn will remain the Watermaster until the end of his contract Dec. 31.
Munn took on the job in 2014 after Chuck Williams, who had served as “temporary” Watermaster for 38 years, retired. Munn was also the general manager of Shafter Wasco Irrigation District but retired in April due to health issues. Munn is highly respected for his encyclopedic knowledge of river operations as well as his unflappable demeanor.
The first Watermaster was Bill Balch, who served in that capacity from 1955, shortly after Isabella Dam was completed in 1953, to 1975, according to a booklet by the city of Bakersfield about the city’s purchase of Kern River rights in 1976.