Metropolitan Board Approves Support for November 2010 Water Bond

Proposed Bond is Part of State Legislature’s Overhaul of California’s Water System

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The board of directors of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California today unanimously approved support for a statewide bond measure that would provide funding for California’s aging water infrastructure and for projects and programs aimed at addressing environmental and supply reliability issues in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

“It reflects an unparalleled effort to move California into a new era of water reliability and Delta stewardship that is designed to benefit the state’s residents, economy and environment for generations to come.”

If approved by voters on the Nov. 2 ballot, the proposed general obligation bond measure — “The Safe, Clean and Reliable Drinking Water Act of 2010” authored by state Sen. Dave Cogdill (R-Modesto) — would provide $11.14 billion for environmental restoration in the Delta as well as a wide range of water- and resource-management programs and projects throughout the state.

“This bond measure is part of a far-reaching bipartisan overhaul of the state’s water system by the California Legislature,” said Metropolitan board Chairman Timothy F. Brick. “It reflects an unparalleled effort to move California into a new era of water reliability and Delta stewardship that is designed to benefit the state’s residents, economy and environment for generations to come.”

The sweeping package of water reform legislation was passed by the state Legislature last November and signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Along with the bond measure, it includes four policy bills that established and set forth in statute new state policy to restore both the Delta’s deteriorating ecosystem and the state’s water supply reliability.

“As an early supporter of the legislative package, Metropolitan understands these coequal goals are intended to be achieved in a manner that protects the Delta’s values, spanning cultural, recreational and agricultural uses and natural resources,” Brick said.

Formed where the rivers of the Sierra Nevada merge before heading toward San Francisco Bay, the Delta is a critical component of the state’s water supply, helping sustain two-thirds of California’s residents and an agricultural industry that grows about half of the nation’s fruits and vegetables. About 30 percent of Southern California’s total supplies in a year moves across the Delta to state-operated pumps and aqueduct.

The proposed bond comprises seven categories: drought relief ($445 million); water supply reliability ($1.4 billion); Delta sustainability ($2.25 billion); statewide water system operational improvement ($3 billion); conservation and watershed protection ($1.785 billion); groundwater protection and water quality ($1 billion); and water recycling and conservation ($1.25 billion).

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is a cooperative of 26 cities and water agencies serving 19 million people in six counties. The district imports water from the Colorado River and Northern California to supplement local supplies, and helps its members to develop increased water conservation, recycling, storage and other resource-management programs.