2.9 billion gallons of clean drinking water added to California’s supply with new investments

Projects will serve more than a million Californians

SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom has made significant strides in securing and enhancing water supplies, including improving the state’s ability to capture stormwater. Fortified by state investment to strengthen and expand California’s local water infrastructure, eight major, state-funded projects completed or broke ground across California this fall—including water recycling, wastewater treatment and desalination facilities—that benefit over 1 million people. Collectively, the projects add about 2.9 billion gallons annually to the state’s water supplies, enough water for roughly 20,000 homes per year.

“We’re dealing with hotter, drier, wetter, more volatile weather all at once — and California has to stay ahead of it. That means continuing to harden and modernize our water systems so 40 million people can count on a reliable supply in the face of these extremes. I’m proud of the investments we’re making, and we’re not slowing down. We’re going to keep advancing the projects, the storage, the recycling, and the infrastructure upgrades that ensure every community has stable, safe water access for the long haul.”

New water projects in California

The projects throughout the state were funded by nearly $590 million in grants and low-interest loans, including funding from the Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds. During the past fiscal year, the State Water Board invested $2 billion to support new projects in 390 communities. When these projects complete in the years to come, they will benefit nearly half the state’s population. And since 2019, the board has distributed over $11 billion in financial assistance.

“As we build the water and wastewater infrastructure California needs to prepare for a hotter, drier climate with more extreme weather, state investment is accelerating projects in large towns and cities, as well as small, rural communities,” said State Water Board Chair, E. Joaquin Esquivel. “Major state and federal infrastructure commitments in recent years have enabled the board to offer significant levels of grants and low-interest financing that keep vital projects affordable. The board will continue to act as the engine for distributing these investments year on year, so communities will have the water they need in the future.”

#1 Removing PFAS chemicals in Irvine

In Irvine, 38,000 people will receive water free of per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFAS), thanks to a new treatment system recently completed by the Irvine Water District using a $2.8 million state grant. The project removes PFAS from local groundwater. The system can process up to 3,200 gallons of water per minute. The project was one of seven similar projects through the Orange County Water District.

#2 Upgrading wastewater facilities in San Luis Obispo

In October, San Luis Obispo finished the wastewater upgrade of its Water Resource Recovery Facility, which will help improve services for 46,000 people in San Luis Obispo. The upgrade, which was funded by a $140 million low-interest loan from the state, replaced aging equipment and improved secondary treatment and disinfection technologies to meet state and federal standards.

“The SLO Water Plus project is the largest capital improvement the city has ever undertaken, and the State Water Board’s financing and technical support were instrumental,” said Miguel Barcenas, the city’s Utilities Deputy Director. “The low-interest loan is keeping our wastewater rates low, lower than expected.”

#3 More water capacity for Monterey

In October, Monterey One Water opened the Advanced Water Purification Facility, which will add 2,250 acre feet of recycled water per year to water supplies on the Monterey Peninsula, enough to serve 6,750 households. The State Water Board provided a $15 million grant for the project to help expand water capacity to benefit more than 92,000 people.

#4 Helping San Francisco manage extreme weather

In September, as a result of a $112 million low-interest loan by the state, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission completed the new Headworks Facility as part of critical upgrades to San Francisco’s largest wastewater treatment facility, the Southeast Treatment Plant. The new facility keeps odors within the plant and increases the plant’s capacity to manage extreme weather events, benefiting 623,000 people.

#5 Improving San Mateo’s sewer systems

In September, the Estero Municipal Improvement District completed a $552 million upgrade and expansion of the San Mateo Wastewater Treatment Plant. The upgrades increase system capacity to manage large storm events and prevent sewer system overflows that threaten public health and the San Francisco Bay. Through the project, which was supported through a $137 million low-interest state loan, 160,000 people receive improved wastewater services and greater protection from sewer system overflows.

#6 Desalinating water in Antioch

In September, the city of Antioch completed the Antioch Brackish Water Desalination Plant using a $60 million low-interest loan from the state which will help this Delta community adapt to climate change by facilitating the capture, treatment, and use of water directly from the San Joaquin River. The plant, which serves 110,000 people, can produce up to 6 million gallons of drinking water per day, or enough to sustain an amount equal to 20,000 households per year.

#7 Building drinking water sources West Lake Tahoe 

In September, the state provided the Tahoe City Public Utilities District with a $19.7 million low-interest loan and opened the West Lake Tahoe Regional Water Treatment Plant, an upgraded facility that can treat 1 million gallons of lake water per day. As a result of the project, 5,400 residents now have a permanent, drought-resilient source of drinking water and fire protection.

#8 Connecting people to sewer systems in Yucca Valley

In August, the Hi-Desert Water District broke ground on a new sewage collection system — the second phase of a 10-year wastewater infrastructure construction of a 32-mile pipeline to the district’s wastewater treatment plant. The project was funded by $103 million in grants that save individual property owners at least $30,000 in assessment costs — and will help connect approximately 5,400  people to sewer services.

 Accelerating vital water storage projects 

These projects are part of Governor Newsom’s comprehensive strategy to accelerate California’s ability to manage and store water, and works alongside the Governor’s infrastructure streamlining package to build more faster, and California’s Proposition 1 funding, dedicating $2.7 billion to improve California’s water infrastructure.

The Governor is also working to advance other important projects, including the Sites Reservoir Project. This project will help capture water during wet seasons and store it for use during drier seasons — holding up to 1.5 million acre-feet of water, enough for 3 million households’ yearly usage.

Additionally, the Governor continues to advance the state’s Delta Conveyance Project, which is the most consequential water infrastructure project in recent California history, and will help ensure that the state can continue to provide water for people, businesses, and farmland throughout the state. The Delta Conveyance Project will upgrade the State Water Project, enabling California’s water managers to capture and move more water during high-flow atmospheric rivers to better endure dry seasons. The tunnel, a modernization of the infrastructure system that delivers water to millions of people, would improve California’s ability to take advantage of intense periods of rain and excess flows in the Sacramento River.