Chula Vista, Calif. – The Sweetwater Authority Governing Board voted and approved capacity fees for the South Bay Gaylord Pacific Hotel and Convention Center at its January 12 meeting. This is a significant step in moving to the next phase of the permitting process and progress in the Chula Vista Bayfront Development project.
Spring Valley, Calif. – The Otay Water District has launched a New Year’s-themed Instagram photo contest as one way to help make the community aware of water-saving efforts during the drought. The District encourages participants to use their creativity and share photographs of how they plan to save more water in 2022.
Santee, Calif. – Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve has been named Plan-it Green and Large Park of the Year by the National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (ARVC). This prominent recognition was awarded during the recent 2021 Outdoor Hospitality Conference & Expo (OHCE).
The San Diego County Water Authority has earned Climate Registered gold status from The Climate Registry for verifying and publicly reporting its greenhouse gas emissions. The effort fosters transparency for the agency’s climate mitigation initiatives and will help the Water Authority track and validate emissions reductions in the future.
The San Diego County Water Authority and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California have reached an agreement that will provide water to parts of Southern California facing extraordinary supply constraints due to cutbacks on the State Water Project.
Under a deal approved today by Metropolitan’s Board of Directors and previously authorized by the San Diego County Water Authority’s Board of Directors, Metropolitan will secure additional groundwater in 2022 from the Semitropic Water Bank in Kern County. Metropolitan can use that water to serve areas in the northwest and northeast parts of its service area that aren’t connected to its Colorado River supplies and are heavily reliant on limited State Water Project supplies.
“Metropolitan is committed to doing everything we can to bring more water to communities in our service area that are particularly challenged by the drought. We’re thrilled to have the Water Authority partner with us in this effort, supporting the well-being of all Southern California,” said Metropolitan board chairwoman Gloria D. Gray. “We’re all in this together. And we all need to do our part, including using water as efficiently as possible.”
Water Authority Board Chair Gary Croucher expressed a similar perspective. “We thank Metropolitan Board Chair Gloria Gray and General Manager Adel Hagekhalil for partnering with us in a way that benefits all of Southern California,” Croucher said. “We expect that this will be the first of many innovative and collaborative solutions with Metropolitan to sustain our collective economy and quality of life.”
Under terms of the agreement, Metropolitan will purchase 4,200 acre-feet of the Water Authority’s reserves in the Semitropic Original Water Bank in 2022 for $893 per acre foot. Metropolitan also will lease an additional 5,000 acre-feet of “take capacity” from the Water Authority’s water bank account.
Take capacity – a function of groundwater pumping and distribution system size – gives Metropolitan the ability to withdraw more of its own groundwater stored in the Semitropic Water Bank. An acre-foot is 326,000 gallons, enough to serve about three typical Southern California homes for a year.
In 2008, the Water Authority secured supplies in the Semitropic Water Bank for the San Diego region in preparation for drought. Due to other supply and storage investments and sustained water conservation in San Diego County, the Water Authority does not need to tap its Semitropic account to meet the region’s projected water demands in 2022, providing an opportunity to make that water available to other parts of the state.
Water years 2020 and 2021 were the driest two-year sequence on record in California. And in August, Lake Oroville – the main reservoir on the State Water Project – reached its lowest point since being filled in the 1970s. Earlier this month, the state announced that if hydrologic conditions don’t improve, State Water Project deliveries next year would be limited to only what is required to ensure the health and safety of residents, and no water would be delivered under the normal allocation system. Access to the Semitropic Water Bank is important because it is strategically located along the California Aqueduct and can supplement the limited state project deliveries.
Much of Southern California can rely on a diverse portfolio of Colorado River water, local supplies and stored reserves, when state project supplies are limited. However, parts of Metropolitan’s service area – including communities in Northern L.A. County, Ventura County and San Bernardino County – cannot receive Colorado River water and are more dependent on state project supplies. Metropolitan has taken important steps to modify its delivery infrastructure to shrink this dependent area.
The agency also continues to promote increased water efficiency across Southern California. Metropolitan’s board declared a Water Supply Alert in August and a Drought Emergency in November, both calling for increased conservation. The board also approved a series of measures to expand rebate and water-efficiency programs. Depending on local conditions, some Metropolitan member agencies have implemented mandatory conservation measures.
Vista Irrigation District board of directors elected Marty Miller as its president and Paul Dorey as its vice-president for 2022 at its annual organizational meeting.
Miller, who has served on the board of directorssince 2008, represents division 1, which stretches from Gopher Canyon Road to Vale Terrace Drive in Vista. This will be the third time Miller has led the board since being elected.
Chula Vista, Calif. – At the December 8 Sweetwater Authority Governing Board meeting, new leadership was appointed for the 2022 term.
The Governing Board appointed Alejandra Sotelo-Solis as Board Chair and Paulina Martinez-Perez as Vice Chair.
“It is an honor to have been elected as chair to help lead this body alongside Vice Chair Paulina Martinez-Perez,” said Chair Sotelo-Solis. “This is the first time in history at Sweetwater Authority that two Latina women are in side-byside executive leadership positions and I’m looking forward to continue working to address our district’s water needs, conservation efforts and helping to address the needs that COVID-19 has posed for our rate payers. We are stronger together.”
Sweetwater Authority Vice Chair Paulina Martinez-Perez. Photo: Sweetwater Authority
Sweetwater Authority Board Chair Alejandra Sotelo-Solis. Photo: Sweetwater Authority
Encinitas, Calif. — Olivenhain Municipal Water District’s Board of Directors is hosting a public hearing on December 15 at 5:30 p.m. to gather public input on new director division boundaries.
The hearing is the first of three scheduled hearings at which OMWD will accept input about communities that should be grouped together for the purpose of electing representatives to OMWD’s Board of Directors.
12/3/2021 – Today, Helix Water District was invited by the US Environmental Protection Agency to apply for a $15.8 million low-interest loan to help finance major water infrastructure upgrades in East County.
The Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loan will help the district pay for over $32 million worth of needed capital improvement projects and facility upgrades. The projects improve water reliability, quality and increase energy efficiency throughout the district’s 50 square mile service area.
A low-interest loan offers flexibility by allowing the district to tackle larger capital improvement projects while also keeping other projects on schedule. Financing the district’s upcoming projects also benefits customers by providing rate stability.
Chula Vista, Calif. – Thanks to investments in local water supplies, and customers’ water-saving efforts, Sweetwater Authority has sufficient water to meet customer needs, despite forecasts of a third consecutive dry year.
Earlier this week, the Department of Water Resources announced an initial water allocation of 0% from the State Water Project for California water districts. These allocations do not significantly impact the water available to Authority customers. The yearly allocation is a small portion of the total water supply for San Diego water agencies.
The Authority’s local water supplies include two reservoirs and groundwater wells connected to the Authority’s desalination facility, which provides a drought-proof water source. The majority of the water the Authority provides customers each year comes from these local sources.
Sweetwater Authority Logo 2019