At its meeting today, the Desert Water Agency (DWA) Board of Directors voted to continue funding the next phase of pre-construction work for the Delta Conveyance Project. The project, a single below-ground tunnel through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, is vital to the reliability of water from the State Water Project (SWP), which serves around 27 million Californians.
The Delta Conveyance Project will address climate change challenges, increase seismic resiliency, improve water supply stability, and provide operational flexibility and durability.
DWA, one of 29 State Water Project contractors with rights to water from Northern California, has long supported increasing SWP reliability. The Agency uses imported water to replenish the region’s groundwater basin.
“The Coachella Valley relies on water from the State Water Project, and it is our duty as a groundwater management agency and local water provider to protect regional water security,” said Board President Paul Ortega. “Without the Delta Conveyance Project, we risk water reliability and safety for future generations.”
Climate change and sea level rise are expected to reduce SWP deliveries by around 22 percent by 2070, according to the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), and there is significant risk of extended disruption in the event of an earthquake. The project would offset the negative impacts of climate change, maintain water deliveries even after major seismic events, and help mitigate other potential issues that could affect water supplies.
DWR information shows that if the project had been operational from January through June in 2024, 941,000 acre-feet of water could have been captured and stored. That’s enough for more than 9.8 million people for one year, or nearly 3.3 million households.
“As the state continues to face changing weather patterns, risk of natural disasters and other unforeseen challenges, the Delta Conveyance Project is critical to safeguarding the ability to deliver State Water Project water,” said General Manager Steve Johnson. “Desert Water Agency is proud to continue to support this important project.”
To learn more about the Delta Conveyance Project, go to https://water.ca.gov/deltaconveyance.
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About DWA
Desert Water Agency is a public, not-for-profit agency and a State Water Contractor, managing and importing water for a 325-square-mile area in the western Coachella Valley. DWA provides tap water service to Palm Springs and parts