Friday, Jun 24 2011 3:49PM
The Santa Margarita Water District proposed a plan to use water from an aquifer beneath land owned by a resource development company.
The Santa Margarita Water District (SMWD) in California is working on a proposal that would create a new water resource for residents living in the area.
The district wants to import 50,000 acre-feet of water from land owned and operated by the water company Cadiz Incorporated. The company owns 34,000 acres of land in the Cadiz and Fenner valleys in San Bernardino County. Additionally, the SMWD wants to work with four other water companies in the area.
Water for the SMWD's proposed project would come from a large aquifer beneath Cadiz's land, where the water district states between 17 million and 34 million acre-feet may exist.
"The Cadiz Valley Water Conservation, Recovery and Storage Project is designed to capture and conserve billions of gallons of renewable native groundwater flowing beneath our property in the Cadiz Valley that is currently lost to evaporation at nearby dry lakes," Cadiz Incorporated stated in the proposal.
The company added the project would create a sustainable water supply for residents living in the region without harming the local environment.
An Environmental Impact Review for the plans will be made available for public comment in July.