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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024
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Area Water Deal Awaits Handshake, Signatures

Area Water Deal Awaits Handshake, Signatures

BY LEE ZION

The San Diego County Water Authority has reached a deal on a five-year program that could save its member agencies up to $4.6 million a year , while also helping the environment.

Under the Surface Storage Operating Agreement, worked out between San Diego and Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, MWD will supply water to the region at a discount. In return, MWD will be able to use San Diego’s reservoirs to store its water, and call on that water as needed.

The tentative agreement, reached late last month, has not yet been signed, pending the approval of San Diego’s member agencies within the next few weeks, said Scott Willett, senior water resources specialist with the water authority.

Under the agreement, San Diego would receive between 50,000 acre-feet and 70,000 acre-feet of water annually from MWD. Of this amount, 10 percent is “call water” for MWD’s use, Willett said.

The rest is “scheduled water” designated for San Diego County, with a $70 per acre-foot discount off the usual price of $326. Including other charges and other discounts, that amounts to savings ranging between $3.1 million and $4.6 million a year, he said.

Also under the plan, member agencies will now pay for water only as they use it, rather than up front. This means local districts no longer have to pay for water that evaporates away while in storage, Willett said.

This has several benefits. Previously, local districts had no incentive to conserve, because stored water would be lost to spillage or evaporation, so agencies would use their allotment more quickly, he said.

“They tend to use it all very early in the summer , in the June-July time frame, which leaves August fairly dry, almost at the same time peak demand is occurring,” Willett said.

Smooth Out Peak Demands

Now, agencies can spread out their water use without worrying about evaporative loss. That means reservoirs will remain full for longer periods, he said.

That, in turn, helps the environment, since the reservoirs are now a more reliable habitat for fish. It also improves recreational activities such as boating, Willett said.

MWD also benefits. Brian Thomas, MWD’s chief financial officer, said the arrangement smoothes out “peaks” in water demand.

In August, demand is much higher throughout MWD’s service area. But the system’s capacity to move that water , pipelines, water treatment plants , is limited, he said.

San Diego’s reservoirs are an additional resource for MWD, Thomas said.

“It’s like making use of a reservoir in San Diego County without having to construct one,” he said.

One acre-foot of water is 326,000 gallons, or roughly the amount of water to satisfy the water needs of two families of four.

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