SGVMWD's Board of Directors Takes Historic Action to Secure/Enhance Water Supply Reliability for Member Agencies
Please see below for an update from the San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District on the steps taken to secure water supply reliability for our city, a member agency of the SGVMWD.
"The San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District (the District), formed in 1959, was created to provide a reliable supply of supplemental water for its member agencies, namely the cities of Alhambra, Azusa, Monterey Park and Sierra Madre. As one of 29 State Water Contractors which receive allocations from the State Water Project, the District imports water from northern California using its Devil Canyon-Azusa Pipeline and conveys water nearly 40 miles to the Main San Gabriel Basin, the underground aquifer located beneath the San Gabriel Valley.
The City of Sierra Madre, however, is located in the Santa Anita Sub-Area of the Raymond Basin, outside of the Main San Gabriel Basin, and has not had direct access to the District's imported water supply. In 2006, the District entered into an agreement with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD) to facilitate the construction of a connection to MWD's treated water transmission main in 2013, and has since provided relief to the City as an interim solution to an emerging challenge.
In 2019 the District and the City of Sierra Madre collaborated, with the assistance of Stetson Engineers, to identify a long-term solution to the challenge of a diminishing ground water supply within the region. The most feasible solution would be for Sierra Madre to develop a groundwater well within the Main San Gabriel Basin, whereby the City would gain direct access to the District's imported water supply. This solution required cooperation of the City of Arcadia to convey water through Arcadia's system to Sierra Madre.
Sierra Madre and Arcadia completed a water wheeling agreement effective December 4, 2019. That agreement called for construction of a joint well to be located within the City of Arcadia. The water would then be transmitted through Arcadia's existing pipelines to Sierra Madre's water distribution system. For Sierra Madre, the last remaining item needed to move the project forward was securing funding for the construction of a joint well.
At the District's January 2020 Board of Directors' meeting, the District's Board unanimously approved nearly $1.9 million in grant funding for the construction of the joint well (pending execution of an appropriate Board Resolution and Grant Agreement). The Board's action solves a decades-old challenge in Sierra Madre and, at the same time, ensures a greater water supply for each of its four member cities.
The District congratulates Sierra Madre and Arcadia for their efforts to resolve the water supply challenges that exist in the Raymond Basin. Their efforts provide a model for the type of cooperation and collaboration necessary to deliver a safe, reliable, and sustainable water supply to the residents of our region.
The District will provide further updates as the process moves forward toward a fully executed funding Agreement."