Drought response efforts just got a major boost in the Bay Area. On November 12, 2014, the San Francisco Estuary Partnership was awarded a $32 million Integrated Regional Water Management (IRWM) Grant (Proposition 84) from the California Department of Water Resources to address Bay Area drought relief, critical water supply, and water quality. The Estuary Partnership is providing grant management for projects to be completed by water districts and community organizations throughout the region.
"This important state investment of grant funds for Bay Area Projects will help address the impacts of the statewide drought and speed up the ability of Bay Area communities to prepare for extended drought conditions," says Judy Kelly, Director of the San Francisco Estuary Partnership.
The Estuary Partnership is one of 27 agencies statewide to be awarded the IRWM 2014 Drought Grant -- part of $200 million in state money resulting from Governor Jerry Brown's January Declaration of Drought State of Emergency. IRWM is a regional collaboration tasked to better integrate water resource management. The IRWMP process and projects cross jurisdictional, watershed, and political boundaries bringing together diverse agencies and groups to create solutions that provide multi-benefit solutions to our pressing water issues.
Types of projects being funded include emergency rehabilitation, drought preparedness and relief, water recycling, water storage, flood control, and water conservation for safe drinking water, water quality and supply. Funding is slated for 10 Bay Area projects, which include the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's Lower Cherry Aqueduct Emergency Rehabilitation Project; the Alameda County Zone 7 Water Supply Drought Preparedness Project; and the Santa Clara Valley Water District/City of Sunnyvale's Continuous Recycled Water Production Facilities and Wolfe Road Pipeline.
The San Francisco Estuary Partnership is a coalition of resource agencies, non-profits, citizens, and scientists working to protect, restore, and enhance water quality and fish and wildlife habitat in and around the San Francisco Bay-Delta Estuary. The Partnership is a program of the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG). Founded in 1961, ABAG is the regional planning agency for the nine counties and 101 cities and towns of the Bay Area and is recognized as the first council of governments in California.
For more information, contact Jennifer Krebs, Principal Environmental Planner, San Francisco Estuary Partnership, 510-622-2315.