Even as drought exacerbates a federally declared water shortage in the Colorado River basin, a county in Utah is preparing to tap into the water supply with a new 140-mile project called the Lake Powell Pipeline.
Although the project is seeing backlash from conservationists and other states in the basin, Utah is claiming a right to more water because it’s not using its full allocation under the Colorado River Compact of 1922.
“The drought has really hit us hard,” Zach Renstrom, general manager of the Washington County Water Conservancy District, tells GreenWire. “That is one thing that the drought has really taught all water managers, is these large water infrastructure projects have been key to ensuring safe drinking water.”
EPA Announces Nearly $200 Million in Loans to Fix Bay Area Water Infrastructure
Three federal loans totaling nearly $200 million were recently announced to help fix pipes and fund a water treatment plant in the Bay Area of California.
At an event hosted by Silicon Valley Clean Water at the agency’s new wastewater treatment plant currently under construction in Redwood Shores, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan announced two Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act loans totaling $143 million to SVCW and $25 million to the Oro Loma Sanitary District supporting projects expected to create more than 2,500 jobs.
“Investing in water infrastructure has proven time and again to deliver a multitude of benefits, including building climate and drought-resilient water systems, safeguarding public health, and creating good-paying jobs,” Regan says. “Today’s announcements embody the promise of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal, which will broaden the scope of these powerful benefits for communities across the nation.”
Los Angeles Officials Divert Drinking Water for Golf Course Irrigation
Ongoing issues at the Hyperion Water Reclamation Plant in Los Angeles have reduced its ability to treat wastewater and are compelling officials to divert million of gallons of clean drinking water to purposes typically reserved for recycled water.
Despite a drought and water conservation efforts in California, officials are diverting drinking water for a project that aims to protect coastal aquifers from seawater contamination, and irrigation at parks, cemeteries and golf courses in the region.
The problems at the plant also were responsible for a large spill into Santa Monica Bay recently.
