CITY OF YUBA CITY AWARDED $6.3 MILLION FOR AQUIFER STORAGE AND RECOVERY WELL SYSTEM

California Department of Water Resources Grant Invests in Urban Drought Relief

Yuba City, California -The City of Yuba City is excited to announce the California Department of Water Resources has awarded it a $6,325,000 grant for urban and multi-benefit drought relief to establish an aquifer storage recovery system (ASR). The project includes drilling a new ASR at the City’s Water Treatment Plant to mitigate water shortages during times of drought.

The $6.5 million project includes a local match of $166,184 by the City for in-kind staff time to manage the project. The ASR will allow the City to treat and store surplus water from existing water rights in an underground aquifer, especially during normal or wet years, and allow recovery of that water when needed. 

This project will lessen the City’s dependence on outside water supplies and maximize its current water rights from the Feather River. The project will take three years from start to completion, and will begin as soon as the final agreement is executed with the Department of Water Resources.

The project will yield up to 2,400 acre-feet-per-year of potable water—19 percent of the City’s 2020 calendar year demand. It will facilitate greater use of water rights, maximize the City's control of supply sources, and support long-term water quality improvements in the qualifier where the ASR water is stored.

“We have been actively seeking funding support for this project for several years,” said Mayor Dave Shaw. “To finally receive it—during a time of extreme drought, no less—is a reassurance that we will be able to secure and store the water we need for our residents and businesses. Thank you to our incredible city team (staff) for the great work on securing the grant to make this project a reality.  This investment in our infrastructure supports us for the long term, planning for the unexpected.  The entire Council has been supportive of this project since we first discussed it more than a year ago.”

While maximizing the efficiency of existing water diversion, treatment, and transmission facilities, the ASR also reduces future capital expenditures for water infrastructure improvements and creates resilient, dependable, and protected storage technologies, as compared to reservoirs or surface impoundments.

“I’m extremely excited to have been a part of this process,” said Councilmember Grace Espindola. “This ASR is incredibly important to our water storage management systems.  It will give us flexibility and ensure we have an abundant supply of safe water for drinking.”

Yuba City’s Water Treatment Plant was originally built in 1969 and treats an average of 20 million gallons a day (MGD) of drinking water. A major upgrade in 2005 facilitated the capacity to treat up to 36 MGD, compared to 24 MGD previously, and installed a state-of-the-art membrane filtration system to meet the strictest water standards and provide the highest quality water. The Feather River serves as the City’s primary source of water and is pumped to the Water Treatment Plant at the north end of town. In total, it serves nearly 72,000 customers Citywide.

###