Woodville PUD receiving $2.2 million for water project

The Woodville Public Utilities District will receive a state grant of more than $2.2 million to improve the quality of drinking water for its community.

The grant was recently announced by the State Department of Water Resources as part of a program to support communities facing water supply challenges. The department announced the first round of funding which will eventually total $200 million through the Small Community Drought Relief

Program.

In the first round, 10 small water systems in Tulare, Siskiyou, Shasta, Lake and Kern Counties were chosen to receive $25 million. The funds will support a range of projects including emergency wanter system repairs and infrastructure such as new wells and water storage tanks along with improving the ability to distribute water.

The $2,219,400 grant awarded to the Woodville Public Utility District will be used for a well pump, booster pump station and water storage tank.

“The climate-induced drought is challenging Californians on several fronts, including small community water systems,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth, “Our goal is to provide immediate and near-term financial and technical support to help small communities overcome this drought and future droughts.”

“Drought is a compounding stressor to already struggling and vulnerable drinking water systems in the state,” said Joaquin Esquivel, Chair of the State Water Board. “DWR’S investments in critical water supply projects will provide much-needed emergency assistance as the state continues building the long-term resilience of our water systems. This new program also highlights the criticality of continued coordination between local, state and federal agencies to support communities that are responding to intensifying drought conditions.”

The Small Community Drought Relief Program assists communities that are not served by an urban water supplier with at least 3,000 connections

or that provides more than 3,000 acre-feet of drinking water annually. The program is one of several drought funding programs available through the state. An additional $100 million

in grant funding for urban drought relief projects and $200 million for multi-benefit drought relief projects is expected to be released this fall.

DWR also released guidelines for how small water systems may apply for remaining funds as part of the Small Community Drought Relief Program. Eligible projects must be designed to benefit small communities located in counties under Governor Gavin Newsom’s drought emergency proclamations, which includes Tulare County. Small communities impacted by the drought are encouraged to apply as soon as possible and can submit applications or questions to Smallcommunitydrought@ water.ca.gov.

As part of this year’s state budget, DWR and the State Water Board will also administer $1.3 billion for drinking water and wastewater

projects and $85 million for groundwater cleanup and water recycling. On Wednesday, the State Water Board began considering funding from the State budget for drinking water and wastewater projects for small, disadvantaged communities and also review proposals within its draft 2021-22 Fund Expenditure Plan on how best to invest $130 million of drinking water funding from the Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund during this fiscal year.

Communities with a failing drinking water supply must contact their county’s Office of Emergency Services for immediate assistance and emergency response to urgent drinking water needs. These contacts can then facilitate requests for state funding.