SAWPA
Clean Reliable Water for the Region
Making the Santa Ana Watershed Work for You
The Region
The Santa Ana River is the largest coastal river system in Southern California. The river begins high in the San Bernardino
Mountains and flows over 100 miles southwesterly where it discharges to the Pacific Ocean in Huntington Beach. The
Santa Ana River watershed, which receives an average annual rainfall of about 13 inches, covers over 2650 square miles of
widely-varying terrain. This area, which includes parts of San Bernardino, Riverside, Los Angeles and Orange Counties, is
home to more than 4.5 million people.
Under natural conditions the river would be an intermittent stream with high run-off in the winter
and spring seasons, and with little or no flow in the summer months. In more recent years the
natural river supply has been, and still is, supplemented by highly-treated effluent flows from
wastewater treatment plants resulting in a perpetual stream of water that courses from the City of
San Bernardino to the coastal plain of Orange County. As the river and its tributaries flow toward
the sea, the water percolates into the sands and gravels of the stream system, recharging the 35
groundwater basins that comprise the watershed.
Water is pumped by farmers and cities from the
groundwater source and utilized for agricultural,
municipal and industrial supply. Following municipal
and industrial use, the water is returned to the river
as effluent. The river has a large volume of highly
treated effluent and is perhaps the most tightly
regulated in the world. However, each use of the supply results in added
salinity to the water for the next user. The quality of the effluent returned to
the River is closely controlled by the California Water Resources Control
Board and the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board to assure
that the water supply is protected for downstream beneficial uses.
Goal – Drought Self Sufficiency
Over the last thirty years, the Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority (SAWPA) and its member agencies Eastern
Municipal Water District, Inland Empire Utility Agency, Orange County Water District, San Bernardino Valley Municipal
Water District, and Western Municipal Water District have been leaders in planning and dealing with the complex
problems involved in watershed management. Their efforts have led to significant projects involving water conservation
and clean up of contamination. In order to continue that tradition of leadership, SAWPA is proposing a regional program
to assure a sustainable water supply for the future, while at the same time enhancing the environment. The goal of the
program is to make the region entirely self sufficient during drought cycles, thereby firming up the regions ability to assure
a stable economy, while improving water quality, and also allowing more of the State’s scarce water resources to be
allocated to wildlife and agriculture during those times.
Statewide Benefits
California is in the process of dealing with two major water
supply issues. CAL FED is a process designed to help the state
balance environmental, municipal supply and agricultural water
needs in the Bay Delta. SAWPA expects this program to support
the CAL FED process by reducing the needs of urban southern
California especially during dry years, and thereby enhances the
ability of the CAL FED parties to reach agreement. The second
major issue is the requirement of the Department of Interior that
California develop a plan to reduce its use of Colorado River
water from 5.2 million acre feet per year (AFY) to 4.4 million
AFY. Implementation of the SAWPA plan will reduce drought
year demand in Southern California by 400,000 AFY. This dryyear savings will help to achieve the 4.4 million AFY objective.
Major Components
This program has four major elements: 1) enhancement of the native
habitat along the river and its tributaries, 2) desalting and treatment of
contaminated brackish water to allow poor quality water to be
reclaimed and used, 3) storage of water from wet years in
groundwater storage basins to be used in drought and, 4)
conservation, including water use efficiency and reclamation.
Habitat Enhancement
Steel and concrete are not the only important aspects of the water business. In the Santa Ana River a non-native species
Arundo donax (giant cane) has come to dominate some 10,000 acres of riparian habitat. Some native species do not
prosper in the environment created by this Arundo. The giant cane is also a significant fire hazard, and has cost millions
of dollars and ravaged the environment each time it burns. The native flora typically take much longer to grow, are much
less dense and after each fire the Arundo expands its grip on the environment. From the perspective of water supply,
most observers estimate that if the Arundo were removed and replaced with native species, some 10,000 Acre Feet (AF)
of water per year could be saved. One respected University of California scientist
estimates that 37,000 AF of water per year could be saved. Protecting habitat enhances
water supply in other ways. Examples include the use of open space to percolate water
into the ground, or creating wetlands that clean water while preserving habitat. Projects
restoring native habitat and creating wetlands or open space, which can be used for many
purposes, have been developed by many agencies in this region. SAWPA envisions
expanding these activities with a long-term program designed to specifically manage,
expand and improve the habitat in the region, while at the same time obtaining a benefit
for wildlife, water quality and self-sufficiency.
Contamination Removal
Salt is not normally thought of as a contaminant, but in the Santa Ana region salt is a major factor limiting the use and
reuse of water. Virtually all-human activity adds salt in small amounts. Water as it percolates through the ground may also
pick up salt. As water is lost through evaporation or transpiration, the salt concentrates. As the salt accumulates, it
increases in the water to the point where the water is too salty to drink or grow crops.
The Santa Ana region has been a prime agricultural area for over one hundred years. The citrus industry flourished for
most of that time. The dairy industry currently flourishes in two parts of the watershed. It adds a significant amount of
salt and nitrate to the water. Over the history of citrus production, large amounts of fertilizer were applied to the land
particularly in the early part of the 20th century. Agricultural use of
fertilizer is currently regulated, but the legacy of salt and nitrate
contamination, and to a lesser extent herbicide and pesticide
contamination, will be here for a long time.
The Santa Ana region, over the years has also had major industrial
development. This has brought with it major contamination. In the
past SAWPA and its member agencies have taken the lead in removing
contamination and solving problems. As in the past SAWPA is
committed to helping to resolve the water quality problems and
holding the parties accountable who misuse this public resource.
To effectively use the water resources in the region, SAWPA proposes a major program to remove salts. Desalting the
groundwater is a key component in any long-range plan to insure clean and reliable water.
Groundwater Storage
The Santa Ana Region is blessed with many groundwater basins. These
range in size from the large basins such as the Chino Basin, Bunker Hill
Basin, Orange County Basin and San Timoteo Basin to small basins such as
the Claremont Heights Basin. Each of these basins has some capacity to
store water. The region currently takes delivery of about 350,000 AF of
imported water per year that is treated and directly delivered. To have a truly
sustainable water supply, the region needs to be able to store about three
years worth of all imported water supplies. This is currently possible for
replenished water, but not possible for the directly delivered water. The
safest way to adequately protect the region’s water supply from, drought
shortages, an earthquake or any other major emergency is to store it
underground. SAWPA will support the proposal to make the Chino Basin a
demonstration project area for the CAL FED process with storage of
500,000 AF.
Conservation and Water Efficiency
The Santa Ana region has long been a leader in water conservation. SAWPA’s member agencies have spent millions of
dollars promoting and implementing best management practices. More water is recycled in this region of California than
in any other comparable area in the United States. There remains more to be done. It is imperative that any plan include
a commitment to implement fully the best management practices of the industry and further to remain a leader in seeing
that all forms of water conservation are practiced. This includes the implementation of programs to insure that proper
landscaping practices are used, public education and storm water management and capture.
Cost
The estimated cost of this program over the next twenty years is $2 billion dollars over and above the cost of normal
pipeline replacement and water treatment. Initial funding of the program will come from local, regional, State, and Federal
funds. The funding of the program is designed to be an ongoing process. Each phase of the program will be
supplemented by the preceding phase. SAWPA has obtained loans of the funds necessary to get started. Agencies in the
local communities will repay the loans by purchasing the water. Any return on investment will be returned to SAWPA
where that money will be used to build the next project. This process will continue until the region reaches a point where
all the groundwater basins are appropriately managed and enough water is stored so that during drought, no imported
water is required (often called conjunctive use).
Progress to Date
The region has taken major steps toward the goal of sustainability. A $100 million brine disposal system has been built to
take salts to the ocean. Four desalters will be operational within the next two years. Major clean-up efforts have been
started in virtually every part of the region. Funding has come in from many sources and the Metropolitan Water District
of Southern California (MWD) is committed to funding up to $5 million per year for regional projects for the next 20
years. Local agencies from all corners of the watershed have invested hundreds of millions of dollars and are poised to
make even greater investments.
Where do we need to go?
The key issue is financing and policy resolution. The benefits of these projects must be clearly defined through a
consensus building process among stakeholders to create policy support parallel to financial support. The projects make
financial sense and local agencies must pay the lions share of the cost, but the projects can only be financed when partially
subsidized by parties looking at region-wide and statewide benefits. The partial subsidy needed indicates that the agencies
in this region will not need to seek additional imported water in a drought. A more detailed list of funding needs is
attached, and the funding sources are generally outlined below.
Local Funding
The proposed program will cost $2.0 billion above the normally expected pipeline and treatment costs. The proposed
local share of the program will be about $1.3 billion or 65%. The way the process is intended to operate, the water
agencies will be required to pay for the cost of water developed at a rate higher than the cost any given agency would
normally pay, but in return would be supporting the regional program to clean up the water and develop a sustainable
system. This could increase the average water bill less than 1% per year ( or by a total of 15 to 20%) phased in over the 20
year life of this plan.
MWD
The parallel step to the above funding mechanism is to obtain additional funding from the MWD to subsidize these and
other related projects in the future. MWD has agreements in place that support the Arlington Desalter, Chino Basin
Desalter, Menifee Desalter and numerous water reclamation projects. This amounts to a commitment of about $5 million
per year. SAWPA has had preliminary discussions with MWD and the objective is to obtain an additional $6 million per
year in funding over the next twenty years to allow additional projects to move ahead. Several other projects have been
proposed for the watershed and MWD is evaluating their value at the present time.
Water Bond
The next step in the process is to develop additional desalting, groundwater storage (sometimes referred to as conjunctive
use), a program to manage the habitat and further conservation measures. SAWPA is proposing that $350 million in a
proposed California state bond be allocated to the Santa Ana Region to develop the several basin clean up, groundwater
storage and habitat mitigation projects. Some of these projects may develop some additional revenue, which can return to
SAWPA for future project subsidies.
Federal Assistance
There are several instances where federal help could be vital. Staff is working with the Bureau of Reclamation to get the
exact details of a proposed Southern California water reclamation plan. The proposed plan will be included in the
Bureau’s report to Congress on water reclamation in Southern California. This is the primary funding source needed to
complete the puzzle of funding for recycling wastewater. Initial contacts with the Corp of Engineers have been made and
show promise towards allowing their part of the plan to move ahead.
The Challenge
The principal challenge facing everyone in the region is not technical, but to bring competing interests into alignment so
that we can all envision a future where the water resources we leave to our children and grandchildren are well managed,
of high quality and adequate to meet their needs. All stakeholders whether they be cities, businesses, regulators, farms or
wildlife and the environment must have their needs addressed for us to be successful.
Proposed Project Funding Sources
Proposed California State Bond Projects
Project Name
Chino Basin Clean-up and Conjunctive Use
Orange County Ground Water Replenishment
South Perris Desalter
San Jacinto/Lake Elsinore Watershed Improvement
San Bernardino High Groundwater Pump Out
San Bernardino Basin Conjunctive Use
Baseline Feeder
Riverside – Colton Basin Conjunctive Use
Santa Ana River Corridor Open Space
Santa Ana River Water Resources and Habitat Enhancement
Santa Ana River Wetlands Development
Santa Ana River Watershed Flood Control-Water Conservation Projects
Total
State Bond
Request
($ millions)
150
63
25
35
20
0
25
20
12
40
20
20
430
Total Cost
($ millions)
250
154
169
37
20
140
25
27
12
40
20
20
914
Additional Proposed Projects
Project Name
Etiwanda Basin Improvements
RP-1 Southwest Basin
Ely Basin Reverse Osmosis and Recharge
Carbon Canyon WRF Phase 2-5
RP-1/RP-4 Distribution
RP-1/RP-4 North Distribution
CCWRF Mission Linen Line
Orange County Reclamation
Western Municipal Water District Reclamation
San Bernardino Reclamation
EMWD Reclamation
Storage of Imported Water in Seven Oaks
San Bernardino High Groundwater Phase II
SAR Recharge Enhancement Projects
SARI Upstream Relocation
SARI Downstream Protection
Seismic Hazard Analysis, Design
Western – Elsinore Valley Desalter
Wetlands Development Phase II
Habitat Restoration
Manure Removal and Recycling
Total
Original Graphics SAWPA GIS Copyright 1998
Photography Courtesy of Orange County Water District and US Geological Survey
Available on the web at www.sawpa.org/sawpaplan/SAWPAWatershedPlan.htm
Amount Needed in Millions
2
0.16
20
20
18
28
5
89
53
94
95
20
20
32
1
35
30
16
20
30
50
678.16