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Key SoCal Water Agency Approves Two WaterFix Tunnels For California Aqueduct

A pair of tunnels to transport water from the Sacramento River to the California Aqueduct has been approved by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.


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Metro has voted to provide the billions of dollars in additional financing necessary to allow for the construction of the full California WaterFix project.

“The vote by Metropolitan is a positive development and helps move the California Water Fix project forward, although there are still many more steps that need to happen,” said Dirk Marks, director of water resources for the SCV Water Agency.

WaterFix is a plan for building two 35-mile-long tunnels to divert part of the Sacramento River to supply water to the San Francisco Bay Area, the agricultural San Joaquin Valley and Southern California.

“Last fall, the former CLWA board voted to support the California Water Fix. It benefits our region by providing better water quality and maintaining water supply reliability,” said Marks. “The tunnels provide safeguards for water delivery in the event of earthquakes or levee failures that could occur in the Delta.”

WaterFix will be paid for by the people and businesses that use the water it helps deliver via the retail water agencies and cities that serve those customers, according to Metro officials.

“For decades, we have sought a solution to the problems of the Bay Delta, problems that put Southern California’s water supply at risk,” Metropolitan board Chairman Randy Record said. “We finally have that solution, California WaterFix. We simply could not jeopardize the opportunity to move this long-sought and much-needed project forward.”

Metropolitan’s financing of the full project is expected to cost households on average up to $4.80 a month, though that average cost would be reduced as Metropolitan recoups some of its investments from the agricultural sector.

Metropolitan will be selling or leasing capacity in the tunnels to allow water deliveries or exchanges
for other parties.

The Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency buys some of their water from the California Aqueduct, in addition to other sources such as groundwater.

About 30 percent of the water that flows out of taps in Southern California comes from Northern California via the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

Opponents to the plan fear negative effects on the environment are pushing for more sustainable developments

California WaterFix is aimed to modernize the state’s water delivery system by building three new water intakes in the northern Delta and two tunnels to carry the water under the Delta to the existing aqueduct systems in the southern Delta that deliver water to cities and farms.

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Key SoCal Water Agency Approves Two WaterFix Tunnels For California Aqueduct

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About Devon Miller

Devon Miller was born and raised in Santa Clarita. He joined KHTS Radio as a digital marketing intern in September of 2017, and later moved to news as a staff writer in December. Miller attended College of the Canyons and served as the Associated Student Government President. Miller is now News Director for KHTS, covering breaking news and politics across the Santa Clarita Valley.