Fire is not the only element getting attention in California. Water management in the state—a key piece of the drought-fire cycle puzzle—is also getting a federal boost.
The USDA announced the $449 million loan on Nov. 27. The funds will go to the Maxwell Water Intertie project in the Sacramento Valley of Northern California. The intertie project will connect existing canals and reservoir systems and build a new reservoir near Maxwell, CA.
“In order to meet the demands of the future, we need to increase our storage capacity and bring our water infrastructure into the 21st century,” said Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke in the USDA announcements of the loan.
He added that he, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue, and President Donald Trump were trying to make the old adage “whiskey’s for drinking and water’s for fighting” obsolete.
“We all share a commitment to storing and delivering water for farmers, families and commercial users in California.”
Perdue reiterated USDA’s commitment to “being an ally to innovative leaders taking action to rebuild rural infrastructure” in the announcement.
“By working in a collaborative fashion with our state and local partners, we can balance the needs of everyone involved and ensure that the productivity of water in the Sacramento Valley is around for generations of farmers and ranchers to come,” he added.
USDA loans
While the language of the USDA announcement called the funding move “an investment,” the monies were made available through the USDA’s Community Facilities direct loan program.
The direct loan program is open to public entities, community-based nonprofit corporations, and federally-recognized Tribes for “essential community facilities.” These are defined as facilities related to health care, public governance and services, community support centers, education, utility systems, or local food systems.
The loan comes with a 4 percent fixed interest rate. According to the USDA’s summary of the loan terms, “Loan repayment terms may not be longer than the useful life of the facility, state statutes, the applicants’ authority, or a maximum of 40 years, whichever is less.”
Maxwell details
The Maxwell Water Intertie project is part of the larger Sites Reservoir project, which aims to create a 1.8 million-acre-foot offstream reservoir west of Maxwell.
According to both the USDA and the Sites Project Authority that manages the Sites project, the intertie will connect the existing Tehama Colusa Canal with the existing Glenn Colusa Irrigation District’s main canal via 3.5 miles of 12-foot diameter pipeline. In addition to the intertie, the project would create the new 1,200-acre-foot Terminal Regulating Reservoir.
“The Maxwell Water Intertie will increase the efficiency and reliability of water management in the western Sacramento Valley by adding to and improving existing water infrastructure to facilitate greater flexibility in water conveyance, which would increase the drought resistance of rural communities and help to support our region’s agricultural economy.” said Jim Watson, general manager of the Sites Project Authority, in the official announcement of the funds.
The Sites Project Authority estimates that the overall Sites Reservoir project will be fully operational by 2029 and will ease the stress on the state’s water system. The group characterized the need for such projects to capture and store rainfall as a necessary result of climate change, among other issues facing the state.
“California has faced severe water supply and ecosystem challenges for decades,” reads one of the group’s summary reports from April.
“Declining ecological conditions in the Sacramento River and Delta, limited water supplies and a growing population, compounded by climate change, persistent drought conditions, and increased flow requirements for native fish have led to an unsustainable situation.” — WLJ
