Administration of Navajo Reservoir Releases. Subject to applicable federal law, whenever total storage in Navajo Reservoir is anticipated to exceed, or does exceed, a 1,000,000 acre-feet threshold at the end of May of the current year, excluding storage in any top water bank established in Navajo Reservoir pursuant to section 10401(b) of the Settlement Act, the Navajo Nation and the United States, acting in its capacity as trustee for the Navajo Nation, will not challenge the New Mexico State Engineer during the irrigation season making available to direct-flow water users on the San Xxxx River below Navajo Dam up to 225 cubic-feet-per-second (cfs) as measured at the San Xxxx River at Xxxxxxxxx gauging station if inflow to the reservoir is determined to be less than 225 cfs. The direct-flow water users may divert and use water made available pursuant to this subparagraph without a contract for water from Navajo Reservoir. Making water available to direct-flow users pursuant to this paragraph shall not impair the ability of the Secretary, in the current year, to deliver water to Navajo Reservoir water supply contractors or to provide flows to satisfy any obligation under federal law. The reservoir storage threshold may be adjusted from time to time to maintain within the storage threshold a consistent amount of active storage that reflects sedimentation of the reservoir determined by sediment surveys or any change in the minimum reservoir operating level for the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project diversion.
