Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
A New Groundwater Storage Project Could Help Southern California In The Next Drought
Water is currently flowing into storage through the first completed part of the High Desert Water Bank.
(
Photo courtesy of Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
)
The first stage of a new groundwater storage project in the Antelope Valley is now up and running after three years of construction.
The High Desert Water Bank, which is through a partnership with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and the Antelope Valley-East Kern Water Agency (AVEK), has the capacity to store and withdraw enough water to serve about 210,000 Southern California homes each year.
The new facility can store 280,000 acre-feet of water, which is four times the capacity of Big Bear Lake, according to Metropolitan.
The water will come from the State Water Project, a 705-mile storage and delivery system that serves 27 million people across California. It will then be directed into recharge basins, which are essentially huge ponds that allow the water to slowly seep 200 feet down into the Antelope Valley groundwater basin. There will be a series of recovery wells or groundwater pumping wells in that basin for agencies to draw from when it’s needed.
Support for LAist comes from
That means in wet years like this one, all that extra water can be saved. In dry or drought years, the water can be pumped back out and brought down into Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego and Ventura counties.
Kira Alonzo, a Metropolitan team manager and a lead on the project, said the new ground water storage facility is important for the region because “we’re all in this together.”
“Those dry years when we’re asking our Southern Californians to become more efficient in their water use, we’re doing everything that we can and making these investments to adapt,” she said.
The $211-million project is Metropolitan’s largest investment in groundwater storage ever, according to the agency. It’s been at least five years in the making, but the project is expected to be completed in early 2027.
Matthew Knudson, AVEK’s General Manager, said they’re going to continue to build new recharge basins and drilling 17 more recovery wells. Then, they’ll need to install pumps and motors for each of the wells. Knudson said another major component of the project will bring offsite power into the area to operate all of the 27 total new wells.
“From day one when I came to AVEK in June 2017, it’s been the primary project that staff has been working on,” he said. “So it’s great to see it actually in operation today and delivering water as we speak.”
Support for LAist comes from
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity. -
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
-
With California voters facing a decision on redistricting this November, Surf City is poised to join the brewing battle over Congressional voting districts.
-
The drug dealer, the last of five defendants to plead guilty to federal charges linked to the 'Friends' actor’s death, will face a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.
-
The weather’s been a little different lately, with humidity, isolated rain and wind gusts throughout much of Southern California. What’s causing the late-summer bout of gray?
Best of LAist