California receives $74 million WIFIA loan to reduce groundwater reliance in Santa Cruz
(UI) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced two Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loans totaling $74 million to the Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency in Santa Cruz County, California. EPA’s loan will support alternative water supply projects to reduce the demand for groundwater.
“Investing in local water infrastructure is one of the best bets a community can make to secure a climate resilient future,” said EPA Acting Assistant Administrator for Office of Water Bruno Pigott. “Santa Cruz will see firsthand the benefits of EPA’s work to invest in America while creating 500-plus jobs and saving millions of dollars for the community.
In drought-stricken regions, water utilities look for ways to ensure water supplies are resilient. The Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency’s Water Sustainability Projects are improving system resilience by investing this WIFIA loan into projects that will provide alternative surface water supplies and reduce demand on the existing groundwater supply by nearly 25% by 2040. They will achieve this by modifying a naturally occurring lake to create a new seasonal surface water source that will be treated and distributed to customers to offset groundwater demand during the summer months and upgrade the existing filter plant and construct a pump station, recharge basin, and associated pipeline.
This project will divert water from nearby shallow lake systems, called sloughs, through recharge basins into shallow aquifers. The recharged water will be provided to agricultural customers for irrigation purposes.
“The closing of these two WIFIA loans provides PV Water with the funding necessary to complete the College Lake Project and partially fund the Watsonville Slough System Project, two important water supply projects that will help PV Water achieve sustainable groundwater resources,” said Pajaro Valley Water Board Chair, Amy Newell.
Since its creation, EPA’s WIFIA program has announced nearly $20 billion in financing to support over $43 billion in water infrastructure projects that are strengthening drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure while creating over 140,000 jobs.
The Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency is utilizing the financial flexibilities available with WIFIA loans to help keep rates affordable. By financing its projects with WIFIA loans, they will save $24 million and create over 500 jobs.
Established by the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014, the WIFIA program is a federal loan program administered by EPA. The WIFIA program aims to accelerate investment in the nation’s water infrastructure by providing long-term, low-cost supplemental credit assistance for regionally and nationally significant projects. The WIFIA program has an active pipeline of pending applications for projects that will result in billions of dollars in water infrastructure investment and thousands of jobs.
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