Water Agency Gives $182M to Two Projects

This article has been revised and corrected from the original version.

Two massive local water purification projects set to begin construction within the next 18 months have received up to $182 million from water wholesaler Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

The regional water agency funds are headed for a $700 million groundwater replenishment project in the San Fernando Valley and a $364 million water purification project in the Westlake Village area. Contractors have been selected for both projects, which are set to begin construction within the next 18 months.

“For decades, investments in local projects have helped strengthen Southern California’s resiliency by reducing demands for imported water supplies and decreasing the burden on our system,” said Nancy Sutley, Metropolitan board’s vice chair of climate action.

“Together, with investments in storage and conservation, these projects have become critical as we face the dramatic impacts of climate change that are threatening water sources across Southern California and the western United States,” Sutley added. 

About $139 million of the water wholesaler funds will flow over the next 25 years to the Los Angeles Groundwater Replenishment Project jointly developed by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and the Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts.

The project involves developing new facilities that will purify recycled water to recharge the San Fernando Valley Groundwater Basin aquifer. When completed around 2028, the project is expected to produce 19,500 acre-feet per year, enough to supply water for about 60,000 households. The new facilities will purify the water from the Tillman Water Reclamation Plant in Van Nuys, allowing that water to be put back into the ground to become part of the region’s drinking water supply.

Dallas-based Jacobs has been selected as the prime contractor for the project, which is slated to begin construction in December.

“This is a major milestone for the City of Los Angeles and the region,” said Anselmo Collins, senior assistant general manager at LADWP and the head of the department’s water system.

“This project is one of the key strategies to help reduce the city’s purchase of imported water, increase our local water supplies and improve our water reliability,” Collins added.

Meanwhile, about 20 miles to the west, Metropolitan Water District has committed $42.5 million to a water purification and pipeline project being developed by Las Virgenes Municipal Water District and the Triunfo Water and Sanitation District. The project, valued at around $365 million, involves building a water purification facility that will deliver water to the Las Virgenes Reservoir in Westlake Village. Another component of the project calls for 18 miles of new pipeline to transport that water to customers in portions of Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

The contractor team has been selected; it includes Chicago-based Walsh Construction along with Brown and Caldwell and Carollo Engineers, both of Walnut Creek.

Construction is set to begin late next year and continue through 2028.