As most Western communities expect to grapple with water shortages this summer and fall, one is looking to share its unlikely surplus.
San Diego County in California spent nearly $1 billion on a desalination plant after a 1990s drought left it with scarce supply. Now, with the seawater-to-tap water plant running at just one-third of capacity, its water utility is shopping around deals to sell its water across the West.
Drought in the contiguous United States has reached record levels for this time of year, weather data shows. Meteorologists said it’s a bad sign for the upcoming wildfire season, food prices and western water issues.
More than 61% of the Lower 48 states is in moderate to exceptional drought — including 97% of the Southeast and two-thirds of the West — according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. It’s the highest levels for this time of year since the drought monitor began in 2000.
A water transfer agreement for the sale of San Diego County Water Authority supply to the Eastern Municipal Water District was approved by both the EMWD and the SDCWA boards.The EMWD board approved the agreement on a 5-0 vote April 1. The CWA board unanimously approved the transfer April 9. Eastern will purchase a minimum of 10,000 acre-feet of water annually from the CWA.
“This is a historic agreement for our region. It enhances water supply reliability for Eastern, for our growing community. It’s an incredibly effective way to manage water resources for Southern California,” said EMWD general manager Joe Mouawad.“This agreement’s fabulous. It just shows we’re here to do what’s in the best interests of our ratepayers,” said EWMD board president Stephen Corona.
The County Water Authority already has long term sales agreements with the Eastern and Western Municipal Water Districts in Riverside County.
The Wall Street Journal reports both the Southern Nevada Water Authority and the Arizona Department of Water Resources are signing exploratory agreements.
The San Diego County Water Authority has finalized two long-term water supply agreements with neighboring water districts, securing a potential revenue stream of $660 million and, it says, establishing a new model for regional water cooperation in Southern California.
The SDCWA, a wholesale water provider with no direct retail customers, sells water to 22 member agencies, including cities, special districts and the 125,000-acre Camp Pendleton Marine Corps base, primarily located in northern San Diego County.
The San Diego County Water Authority signed a new agreement Thursday to sell water to Riverside County. As Voice of San Diego’s Scott Lewis explains for our latest ‘Why It Matters’ segment, it’s the latest balancing act of high rates and securing a vital resource.
With the Colorado River in crisis, Arizona and Nevada are turning to an unconventional lifeline: the ocean water off California’s golden beaches.
Both desert states are pursuing a deal with the San Diego County Water Authority to tap millions of gallons of fresh water produced by a Carlsbad ocean-desalination plant—the largest in North America—to help offset their reliance on the collapsing Colorado River.
Menos de un mes después de cerrar un acuerdo con un distrito de agua del condado de Riverside, la junta directiva de la Autoridad del Agua del Condado de San Diego se dispone a considerar otro convenio con una agencia hídrica distinta del condado vecino del norte.
El jueves, la junta considerará suministrar a Eastern Municipal Water District of Southern California un volumen anual de 10.000 acres-pie durante 21 años, a una tarifa en el primer año de alrededor de 1.350 dólares por acre-pie. Además, si se aprueba, Eastern realizará una compra anticipada de otros 30.000 acres-pie por 19 millones de dólares. En total, en los primeros cinco años del acuerdo, la autoridad del agua generaría 74 millones de dólares en nuevos ingresos.
Less than a month after cutting a deal with a Riverside County water district, the San Diego County Water Authority’s board on will Thursday consider another agreement with a different water agency from the county to the north.
The board will consider supplying an annual quantity of 10,000 acre- feet to the Eastern Municipal Water District of Southern California for 21 years at a rate in year one of around $1,350 per acre-foot. Additionally, if approved, Eastern will pre-purchase an additional 30,000 acre-feet for $19 million. All told, in the first five years of the agreement, the water authority would generate $74 million in new revenue.
In what local water officials are calling a victory, the San Diego County Water Authority Board Members agreed unanimously Thursday to sell water to the Eastern Municipal Water District in Riverside County.
Leaders from both agencies said regional cooperation is essential as climate variability and economic pressures reshape long‑term planning and underscore the need for fresh approaches that sustain water affordability and reliability.
