Costa Applauds North Valley Regional Recycled Water Program

Merced, CA – Today, Rep. Jim Costa (CA-16) joined the Bureau of Reclamation and the Del Puerto Water District to participate in the groundbreaking event for the North Valley Regional Recycled Water Program.

“Today’s groundbreaking of the North Valley Regional Recycled Water Program is not only significant for the Del Puerto Water District and the farmers that the District serves, but also for water districts throughout the San Joaquin Valley as they look for ways to secure a more reliable water supply,” said Rep. Jim Costa. “Once the project is complete, over 30 percent of the water supply for the District will be secured to be delivered to farmers in San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Merced Counties. This is a regional solution to California’s water crisis and is a terrific example of the innovative approaches that Valley water agencies, municipalities, farmers and sportsmen are using to create additional resiliency to drought in the future. I applaud the Del Puerto Water District and the Bureau of Reclamation for working together to bring the NVRRWP to fruition.”

“Understanding the circumstances we have faced over the last two decades with the declining reliability of the District’s CVP surface supply contract, and especially knowing what our growers have endured the last four years during the ongoing drought, is to understand how meaningful the North Valley Regional Recycled Water Program will be for the future of Del Puerto Water District and its Landowners,” said Anthea Hanson, General Manager of Del Puerto Water District. “The Program Water generated by the NVRRWP will be a reliable base supply upon which each farmer will be able to depend, year in and year out, over the course of the next forty-plus years, which will support investment, jobs and economic activity in the Westside area. And the Districts’ partnership with the Cities will provide benefits to their urban constituents over time, as well. The District thanks Rep. Jim Costa for his unwavering support these past years.”

The North Valley Regional Recycled Program will make tertiary-treated recycled water available to the drought-impacted west side of the San Joaquin Valley, south of the Delta. The project will provide a reliable new water supply for prime agricultural lands and wildlife refuges in San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Merced Counties. Upon its completion, as much as 48,000 acre-feet of water could be available to the Del Puerto Water District.

Rep. Costa worked with Rep. Jeff Denham and Senator Dianne Feinstein to secure $75,000 from the Bureau of Reclamation’s Title XVI Water Reclamation and Reuse Program that was used for planning purposes and completion of the environmental documents for the North Valley Regional Recycled Water Program.

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